[News] Eisenberg: Buddy Ryan Deserves Credit For His Impact On Ravens 2000 Defense

[BR News]

The evolution of modern NFL defensive strategy was largely influenced by the late Buddy Ryan. And if you look back closely, you'll see his philosophical tenets were also all over the Ravens' legendary 2000 defense.

View the full article

[mearzunkies]

The Ryan family is a football family. I am so glad the Ravens chose Harbaugh over Rex. I really appreciate you Rex but IMO you are a great D coordinator but a average at best HC.

[alexbayrobin]

The Ryan family is a football family. I am so glad the Ravens chose Harbaugh over Rex. I really appreciate you Rex but IMO you are a great D coordinator but a average at best HC.

i agree that the choice of John as head coach was the right choice. But don't tell my father who is a Bills fan that Rex is just average. He's thinking the Bills are going beat us easily. I can't say any different even thought I think we will beat the Bills easily.

[whobilly]

We need that FEAR Factor injected back into our D

[ellicottraven]

What happened to our defense? People say one or two players don't a team make. But, can we really say Ray Lewis and Ed Reed didn't make our defense as feared as it was? We need players that can generate that kind of defensive passion on our team and anchor that passion with the level of play that complements that passion. We are lagging behind in that area unfortunately.

[dirtybird66]

yes,more than you think,as with most of our defense under REX RYAN,I remember reading how he was in constant touch with his father and went over alot of defensive stuff while he was our D COORDINATOR.GOD BLESS BUDDY and REX.

[Saxxin]

We need that FEAR Factor injected back into our D

Modern day rules don't allow it

[harfordravenfan]

2 minutes ago, Saxxin said:

Modern day rules don't allow it

As much love as I have for defenses in football... totally agree with ya there and realize that fantasy football has changed the game I love 

[Ravenseconbeast]

Just a great read. Thanks!

[Ravensfan23]

6 hours ago, ellicottraven said:

What happened to our defense? People say one or two players don't a team make. But, can we really say Ray Lewis and Ed Reed didn't make our defense as feared as it was? We need players that can generate that kind of defensive passion on our team and anchor that passion with the level of play that complements that passion. We are lagging behind in that area unfortunately.

there is a reason why most HOFer are called once in a generation player. Because they only come around once in a while and you rarely see a team replace that type of player with the same caliber player. 

Unfortunately we have to come to grips with the fact that this team won't have a Ray Lewis/Ed Reed type duo on defense for a long time if ever again. At this point I think the best the Ravens could do at those positions are CJ and Weddle and that combo isn't even in the same stadium as Sugar and Quick. 

Now that's not to say this defense can't or won't be great again because I love the young talent this year, but imo the era of place average to good players around 2 HOFers and the defense being dominate are done. 

The Ravens have to work harder to draft quality guys and coaches develop those guys. Because you are right by saying Ray and Ed made everyone else better but that crutch is no longer here. 

[MYTH420]

  13 hours ago, ellicottraven said:

What happened to our defense? People say one or two players don't a team make. But, can we really say Ray Lewis and Ed Reed didn't make our defense as feared as it was? We need players that can generate that kind of defensive passion on our team and anchor that passion with the level of play that complements that passion. We are lagging behind in that area unfortunately.

there is a reason why most HOFer are called once in a generation player. Because they only come around once in a while and you rarely see a team replace that type of player with the same caliber player. 

Unfortunately we have to come to grips with the fact that this team won't have a Ray Lewis/Ed Reed type duo on defense for a long time if ever again. At this point I think the best the Ravens could do at those positions are CJ and Weddle and that combo isn't even in the same stadium as Sugar and Quick. 

Now that's not to say this defense can't or won't be great again because I love the young talent this year, but imo the era of place average to good players around 2 HOFers and the defense being dominate are done. 

The Ravens have to work harder to draft quality guys and coaches develop those guys. Because you are right by saying Ray and Ed made everyone else better but that crutch is no longer here. 

Average to good players around 2 HOF? Boulware and Sharper were great LBs, McAlister and Woodson were great CBs, Thomas, Adams, Siragusa, and Burnett were great DL. Were those guys HOFs, no. But to call them average to good is an insult. While Lewis and Reed were the stars, that defense was stacked with great talent.

[20306cab]

  9 hours ago, Ravensfan23 said:

  15 hours ago, ellicottraven said:

What happened to our defense? People say one or two players don't a team make. But, can we really say Ray Lewis and Ed Reed didn't make our defense as feared as it was? We need players that can generate that kind of defensive passion on our team and anchor that passion with the level of play that complements that passion. We are lagging behind in that area unfortunately.

there is a reason why most HOFer are called once in a generation player. Because they only come around once in a while and you rarely see a team replace that type of player with the same caliber player. 

Unfortunately we have to come to grips with the fact that this team won't have a Ray Lewis/Ed Reed type duo on defense for a long time if ever again. At this point I think the best the Ravens could do at those positions are CJ and Weddle and that combo isn't even in the same stadium as Sugar and Quick. 

Now that's not to say this defense can't or won't be great again because I love the young talent this year, but imo the era of place average to good players around 2 HOFers and the defense being dominate are done. 

The Ravens have to work harder to draft quality guys and coaches develop those guys. Because you are right by saying Ray and Ed made everyone else better but that crutch is no longer here. 

Average to good players around 2 HOF? Boulware and Sharper were great LBs, McAlister and Woodson were great CBs, Thomas, Adams, Siragusa, and Burnett were great DL. Were those guys HOFs, no. But to call them average to good is an insult. While Lewis and Reed were the stars, that defense was stacked with great talent.

Woodson IS a HOFer, but never played CB for the Ravens. Was FS for the 2000 squad, two years before Reed got there. McCrary was starting DE for that team.

[whobilly]

  3 hours ago, MYTH420 said:

  11 hours ago, Ravensfan23 said:

  17 hours ago, ellicottraven said:

What happened to our defense? People say one or two players don't a team make. But, can we really say Ray Lewis and Ed Reed didn't make our defense as feared as it was? We need players that can generate that kind of defensive passion on our team and anchor that passion with the level of play that complements that passion. We are lagging behind in that area unfortunately.

there is a reason why most HOFer are called once in a generation player. Because they only come around once in a while and you rarely see a team replace that type of player with the same caliber player. 

Unfortunately we have to come to grips with the fact that this team won't have a Ray Lewis/Ed Reed type duo on defense for a long time if ever again. At this point I think the best the Ravens could do at those positions are CJ and Weddle and that combo isn't even in the same stadium as Sugar and Quick. 

Now that's not to say this defense can't or won't be great again because I love the young talent this year, but imo the era of place average to good players around 2 HOFers and the defense being dominate are done. 

The Ravens have to work harder to draft quality guys and coaches develop those guys. Because you are right by saying Ray and Ed made everyone else better but that crutch is no longer here. 

Average to good players around 2 HOF? Boulware and Sharper were great LBs, McAlister and Woodson were great CBs, Thomas, Adams, Siragusa, and Burnett were great DL. Were those guys HOFs, no. But to call them average to good is an insult. While Lewis and Reed were the stars, that defense was stacked with great talent.

Woodson IS a HOFer, but never played CB for the Ravens. Was FS for the 2000 squad, two years before Reed got there. McCrary was starting DE for that team.

A Thomas was not on the SB team either.

[whobilly]

  12 hours ago, Saxxin said:

Modern day rules don't allow it

As much love as I have for defenses in football... totally agree with ya there and realize that fantasy football has changed the game I love 

Agree. How sad the game has turned into one notch ahead of flag football. You couldn't have said it any better, Fantasy Football has changed the game. Walking out of Heinz Field last year after Tucker's OT game winner. A good number of Steelers fans on the way out...."Bummer we lost but I have Tucker on my fantasy team". That about says it all.

[harfordravenfan]

1 hour ago, whobilly said:

Agree. How sad the game has turned into one notch ahead of flag football. You couldn't have said it any better, Fantasy Football has changed the game. Walking out of Heinz Field last year after Tucker's OT game winner. A good number of Steelers fans on the way out...."Bummer we lost but I have Tucker on my fantasy team". That about says it all.

May sound crazy but that's the main reason I haven't tried playing fantasy football yet. Can't imagine myself watching a ravens game and hoping the opponent's wr/rb/ or QB does good

[whobilly]

  6 hours ago, whobilly said:

Agree. How sad the game has turned into one notch ahead of flag football. You couldn't have said it any better, Fantasy Football has changed the game. Walking out of Heinz Field last year after Tucker's OT game winner. A good number of Steelers fans on the way out...."Bummer we lost but I have Tucker on my fantasy team". That about says it all.

May sound crazy but that's the main reason I haven't tried playing fantasy football yet. Can't imagine myself watching a ravens game and hoping the opponent's wr/rb/ or QB does good

Amen.

[Ravensfan23]

11 hours ago, MYTH420 said:

Average to good players around 2 HOF? Boulware and Sharper were great LBs, McAlister and Woodson were great CBs, Thomas, Adams, Siragusa, and Burnett were great DL. Were those guys HOFs, no. But to call them average to good is an insult. While Lewis and Reed were the stars, that defense was stacked with great talent.

You do realize you just picked out some of the best players not named Suggs and Ngata to play next to Ray and Ed right? What about the Cary Williams of the world? The Buddy Lee's and JJ's? What about the Will Demps's Nakamura's Frank Walker's, Jameel McClain's Elerbe's Bart Scott's Dawan Edwards, Ronnie Prude, Upshaw, Kruger, Kemo and other who played well but greatly benefit from Ray and Ed either anticipating plays or placing guys in the right position. Hell i can even remember games where you could clearly hear Ed Reed saying to McCalister in the middle of a play...jump it Mac jump it. You don't think Ed Reed allowed that guy to play with even more confidence to sit on routes knowing that guys covered 2/3 of the earth?

My intention wasn't to discredit any players who helped the Ravens be great defensively, but let's not sit back and act like Ray and Ed didn't greatly improve this defense. Bill and Brady had all night sessions just identifying Ed Reed on tape, that doesn't just happen for any player or even just a great player like Weddle. I still remember listening to inside the game audio of the KC Chiefs telling Ray Lewis they didn't care who else made a tackle, they would continue to put 2 or 3 OL on him each play. You don't think that helps guys like Sharper and Hartwell playing next to Ray?

Again not taking anything away from the greats who've worn a Ravens uniform, but again there is a reason that Ray and Ed are considered once in a generation talents, because as great as guys like Earl Thomas, Eric Weddle, Eric Berry, Jarvis Byrd, Luke Kuechly, Pat Willis, Zach Thomas, Vontaze Burfict, Jon Beason and even Brain Urlacher, those guys just aren't or weren't Ed Reed and Ray Lewis caliber. We've been fortunate to witness that type of greatness here and it might be a well before we see it again.   

[OLD SCHOOL SMASH BALL]

On 7/2/2016 at 0:50 PM, BR News said:

The evolution of modern NFL defensive strategy was largely influenced by the late Buddy Ryan. And if you look back closely, you'll see his philosophical tenets were also all over the Ravens' legendary 2000 defense.

View the full article

You wont see many 4th quarter meltdowns on a Ryan coached defense

[whobilly]

  On ‎7‎/‎2‎/‎2016 at 0:50 PM, BR News said:

The evolution of modern NFL defensive strategy was largely influenced by the late Buddy Ryan. And if you look back closely, you'll see his philosophical tenets were also all over the Ravens' legendary 2000 defense.

View the full article

You wont see many 4th quarter meltdowns on a Ryan coached defense

Except for Rob Ryan...

[JamesA119]

@Myth420 and ravensfan23 agree. It underscores the fact that philosophy and scheme have a lot to do how effective a defense is. I have said this several times; we have had a carousel of players in the secondary since Pees took over. We have signed and released so many players in the secondary since he became a coach. No one seems to grasp what he is coaching. Does that mean that Ozzie no longer knows how to evaluate talent? I think the organization has been very patient with Pees. Weddle is a proven talent, so let's see if he struggles this coming season. If he does, that has to be it for Pees.

[Ugly Ball]

@Myth420 and ravensfan23 agree. It underscores the fact that philosophy and scheme have a lot to do how effective a defense is. I have said this several times; we have had a carousel of players in the secondary since Pees took over. We have signed and released so many players in the secondary since he became a coach. No one seems to grasp what he is coaching. Does that mean that Ozzie no longer knows how to evaluate talent? I think the organization has been very patient with Pees. Weddle is a proven talent, so let's see if he struggles this coming season. If he does, that has to be it for Pees.

I totally agree . After watching the 2000 Ravens season on YouTube, I get a little sick to my stomach thinking about how this team has changed over time.
"Bend but don't break", should have no place in a Raven's vocabulary !
After seeing how our secondary has been slayed the last couple years , I'd say it's about time to get back to "Breaking Everything" !

[OUravensfan]

On July 2, 2016 at 9:56 PM, harfordravenfan said:

As much love as I have for defenses in football... totally agree with ya there and realize that fantasy football has changed the game I love 

There is nothing worse than the fantasy football fan. And the rule changes that encourage more scoring are sickening 

[OLD SCHOOL SMASH BALL]

On 7/3/2016 at 7:22 PM, Ravensfan23 said:

You do realize you just picked out some of the best players not named Suggs and Ngata to play next to Ray and Ed right? What about the Cary Williams of the world? The Buddy Lee's and JJ's? What about the Will Demps's Nakamura's Frank Walker's, Jameel McClain's Elerbe's Bart Scott's Dawan Edwards, Ronnie Prude, Upshaw, Kruger, Kemo and other who played well but greatly benefit from Ray and Ed either anticipating plays or placing guys in the right position. Hell i can even remember games where you could clearly hear Ed Reed saying to McCalister in the middle of a play...jump it Mac jump it. You don't think Ed Reed allowed that guy to play with even more confidence to sit on routes knowing that guys covered 2/3 of the earth?

My intention wasn't to discredit any players who helped the Ravens be great defensively, but let's not sit back and act like Ray and Ed didn't greatly improve this defense. Bill and Brady had all night sessions just identifying Ed Reed on tape, that doesn't just happen for any player or even just a great player like Weddle. I still remember listening to inside the game audio of the KC Chiefs telling Ray Lewis they didn't care who else made a tackle, they would continue to put 2 or 3 OL on him each play. You don't think that helps guys like Sharper and Hartwell playing next to Ray?

Again not taking anything away from the greats who've worn a Ravens uniform, but again there is a reason that Ray and Ed are considered once in a generation talents, because as great as guys like Earl Thomas, Eric Weddle, Eric Berry, Jarvis Byrd, Luke Kuechly, Pat Willis, Zach Thomas, Vontaze Burfict, Jon Beason and even Brain Urlacher, those guys just aren't or weren't Ed Reed and Ray Lewis caliber. We've been fortunate to witness that type of greatness here and it might be a well before we see it again.   

I thought Corey Graham was solid too, wish we could have resigned him... after we let him go, we have been chasing our tail

[Ravensfan23]

20 hours ago, OLD SCHOOL SMASH BALL said:

I thought Corey Graham was solid too, wish we could have resigned him... after we let him go, we have been chasing our tail

Yea he definitely was. We had a nice run with Wilson and then Graham. I honestly thought that WIll Davis was a younger version of those 2 guys, but the injury may have really hurt him last year. 

[GENE2407]

I personally don't see any similarities in the defenses as far as style. The 85 Bears basically blitzed 9 guys on every play to stuff the run and hit the QB often. From my memory, the Ravens rushed mainly just their front 4 and still got maximum pressure on the QB AND held rb's to 2 yards a carry. That was no easy feat. The other 7 had their choice of maximum coverage or an occasional blitz. I know the end results were very similar, but look at the tape and the methods are totally different.

[GENE2407]

  On July 5, 2016 at 10:06 PM, OLD SCHOOL SMASH BALL said:

I thought Corey Graham was solid too, wish we could have resigned him... after we let him go, we have been chasing our tail

Yea he definitely was. We had a nice run with Wilson and then Graham. I honestly thought that WIll Davis was a younger version of those 2 guys, but the injury may have really hurt him last year. 

I thought that was the key bad move -- letting Graham walk. He was solid (certainly well worth the couple million $ he ended up getting from Buff) and might have helped us greatly in the NE playoff loss. I really believe with one guy like him, we'd be talking about at least another SB appearance.

[GENE2407]

  On July 2, 2016 at 9:56 PM, harfordravenfan said:

As much love as I have for defenses in football... totally agree with ya there and realize that fantasy football has changed the game I love 

There is nothing worse than the fantasy football fan. And the rule changes that encourage more scoring are sickening 

Someone put it well a few years back when they said "Denver just score 600 points, and they're talking about a rule making it harder to contact a receiver on a route."

[harfordravenfan]

On 7/6/2016 at 6:42 PM, Ravensfan23 said:

Yea he definitely was. We had a nice run with Wilson and then Graham. I honestly thought that WIll Davis was a younger version of those 2 guys, but the injury may have really hurt him last year. 

I think Will Davis bounces back from the injury, earns playing time, and helps our secondary a lot this year.