[News] Late For Work 7/22: Who Will Start At Every Ravens Position?

[BR News]

Brandon Williams most underrated player in NFL. Would Ravens have saved money if Eugene Monroe retired before release? Ray Rice promises to donate entire salary to domestic violence if signed. NFL will regularly swap referee crews.

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[Ravensfansince03]

With the effort that Ray Rice is putting forward to come back.... if Ozzie, Biscotti, & Harbaugh dont bring him back I'll never look at this organization the same. People make mistakes, but the biggest mistake you make is not forgiving a man for what he did after he has apologized. @Ozzie and the crew, be a man and give Rice another shot. You owe him that, and he owes it to us.

[Steve32]

With the effort that Ray Rice is putting forward to come back.... if Ozzie, Biscotti, & Harbaugh dont bring him back I'll never look at this organization the same. People make mistakes, but the biggest mistake you make is not forgiving a man for what he did after he has apologized. @Ozzie and the crew, be a man and give Rice another shot. You owe him that, and he owes it to us.

Absolutely not.
We are loaded at RB as it is and we are moving forward, not backwards.
I wish Ray Rice the best and I hope he gets another chance. But it won't be with the Ravens.

[rmcjacket23]

With the effort that Ray Rice is putting forward to come back.... if Ozzie, Biscotti, & Harbaugh dont bring him back I'll never look at this organization the same. People make mistakes, but the biggest mistake you make is not forgiving a man for what he did after he has apologized. @Ozzie and the crew, be a man and give Rice another shot. You owe him that, and he owes it to us.

LOL, ummm, no.

1. Forgiveness doesn't require you to give the guy a job.

2. He would be like the 4th best RB on this team, meaning he doesn't offer barely any value.

Fairly standard question these days that nobody ever seems to be able to answer...

How does signing Ray Rice make the Baltimore Ravens a better football team?

He isn't a charity case folks.

[VermontRaven]

Ray Rice is out of a job because his on field performance was diminishing at the time of the incident. Teams will "take a chance" if they believe they will get on-field production--see Greg Hardy. If a team thought Rice was an upgrade at RB, they would bring him in. It just doesn't appear that is the case.

[rmcjacket23]

Ray Rice is out of a job because his on field performance was diminishing at the time of the incident. Teams will "take a chance" if they believe they will get on-field production--see Greg Hardy. If a team thought Rice was an upgrade at RB, they would bring him in. It just doesn't appear that is the case.

Correct.

Team gets negative PR from signing him, and he's incredibly unlikely to offer much value as a RB.

Really no justifiable reason to sign him. Making fans "feel good" isn't a good reason to sign a player.

[budman]

26 minutes ago, Ravensfansince03 said:

With the effort that Ray Rice is putting forward to come back.... if Ozzie, Biscotti, & Harbaugh dont bring him back I'll never look at this organization the same. People make mistakes, but the biggest mistake you make is not forgiving a man for what he did after he has apologized. @Ozzie and the crew, be a man and give Rice another shot. You owe him that, and he owes it to us.

Never gonna happen and it shouldn't.

[757RavensFan]

46 minutes ago, Ravensfansince03 said:

With the effort that Ray Rice is putting forward to come back.... if Ozzie, Biscotti, & Harbaugh dont bring him back I'll never look at this organization the same. People make mistakes, but the biggest mistake you make is not forgiving a man for what he did after he has apologized. @Ozzie and the crew, be a man and give Rice another shot. You owe him that, and he owes it to us.

You might as well start looking at the Ravens Organization differently right now.  Biscotti, stated a long time ago that Rice would never play for the Ravens as long as he was the owner.  He said he could possibly work for them in some capacity, but he would never play for them again.  Rice has been out of the league going on 2 years now, the NFL clearly doesn't need Ray Rice to play.  

Edited July 22, 2016 by 757RavensFan

[757RavensFan]

Quote

Urschel is the front-runner to replace Kelechi Osemele, but there’s a loooooot of buzz surrounding rookie  Alex Lewis . 

I just can't see two rookies manning the left side of the line following Joe's comeback. That would scare the heck out of me. 

[sami]

I think Crockett Gilmore will start over Watson. Crockett is a BEAST!

[fusuymada]

The only position I am concerned about in that starting lineup scenario is Orr at middle linebacker. I think Stanley will be such an upgrade over Monroe and Hurst that he will simply be a non-story. Urschel has proven he can do anything well that they give him and I don't expect that to change soon. I would have preferred we had Hill to go with Weddle in the back of the defense, but he spent too much time with Eugene, so he is suspended. I really don't expect that Webb will be the starting safety when all is said and done. If we don't have any young players that can beat him out for that safety spot, then they should cut them all and start all over again because Webb hasn't lost a step, he has lost two or three and he is too undersized for that position. I know he likes to hit, but if he's up in the box and a 240 pound runner goes head to head with him, they will be carting him off the field. Elam should be that guy as he proved he has the size and hitting ability to play up close to the line but please don't ever ask him to cover anyone because all the way back to Florida if you look at the film, he was not a very good cover guy.

[bioLarzen]

  Quote

Urschel is the front-runner to replace Kelechi Osemele, but there’s a loooooot of buzz surrounding rookie  Alex Lewis . 

I just can't see two rookies manning the left side of the line following Joe's comeback. That would scare the heck out of me. 

This is the time of the year when all kinds of people get excited over rookies - in reality, apart from first and sometimes second round picks, rookies seldom secure a starting role - so, I'm not expecting guys like Alex Lewis, Kenneth Dixon, Reynolds, Correa and Judon cracking the starting lineup - not because they are not good enough - it's just that they are probably not there yet.
Even KO wasn't anything like he's grown to be in his rookie season.

[bioLarzen]

I think Crockett Gilmore will start over Watson. Crockett is a BEAST!

Ozzie probably didn't bring in Watson to be a backup - but the camp will answer the question.

[HomeoftheBRAVENS]

I know it's just a couple practice highlights of him running routes against nobody,but Breshad Perriman looked GOOD in that video.I can't wait to see what he can actually do.

Edited July 22, 2016 by HomeoftheBRAVENS

[rmcjacket23]

The only position I am concerned about in that starting lineup scenario is Orr at middle linebacker. I think Stanley will be such an upgrade over Monroe and Hurst that he will simply be a non-story. Urschel has proven he can do anything well that they give him and I don't expect that to change soon. I would have preferred we had Hill to go with Weddle in the back of the defense, but he spent too much time with Eugene, so he is suspended. I really don't expect that Webb will be the starting safety when all is said and done. If we don't have any young players that can beat him out for that safety spot, then they should cut them all and start all over again because Webb hasn't lost a step, he has lost two or three and he is too undersized for that position. I know he likes to hit, but if he's up in the box and a 240 pound runner goes head to head with him, they will be carting him off the field. Elam should be that guy as he proved he has the size and hitting ability to play up close to the line but please don't ever ask him to cover anyone because all the way back to Florida if you look at the film, he was not a very good cover guy.

I expect Correa to be the starting ILB opposite Mosley.

[fusuymada]

  49 minutes ago, VermontRaven said:

Ray Rice is out of a job because his on field performance was diminishing at the time of the incident. Teams will "take a chance" if they believe they will get on-field production--see Greg Hardy. If a team thought Rice was an upgrade at RB, they would bring him in. It just doesn't appear that is the case.

Correct.

Team gets negative PR from signing him, and he's incredibly unlikely to offer much value as a RB.

Really no justifiable reason to sign him. Making fans "feel good" isn't a good reason to sign a player.

I don't feel that Rice would be the subject of a lot of PR issues because he has done so much to promote the cause of domestic violence, you would have to have a personal vendetta against him to attack him at this point. Yes, he did have a bad year in 2013, a year where the line was horrible, the team was horrible, the passing game was horrible and no one on that team in a running back position did well. Right now the Ravens backfield is so stuffed full of quality players he would never get reps here anyway. There is still talk of Rex taking him on in Buffalo where they are looking for a running back. I would love to see him get a CHANCE, not a spot. I firmly believe that everyone deserves a second chance and I emphasize chance. Let him prove right now what type of player he is. If he gets a shot and can't produce then fine, he will know its over. But right now, I am like him, wondering, if given the chance, given the life changing experiences, given the mental focus he has now, could he succeed. One way to look at Rice is he was productive in all but one year and doesn't have near the wear and tear of other backs out there now.

[rmcjacket23]

2 minutes ago, fusuymada said:

I don't feel that Rice would be the subject of a lot of PR issues because he has done so much to promote the cause of domestic violence, you would have to have a personal vendetta against him to attack him at this point. Yes, he did have a bad year in 2013, a year where the line was horrible, the team was horrible, the passing game was horrible and no one on that team in a running back position did well. Right now the Ravens backfield is so stuffed full of quality players he would never get reps here anyway. There is still talk of Rex taking him on in Buffalo where they are looking for a running back. I would love to see him get a CHANCE, not a spot. I firmly believe that everyone deserves a second chance and I emphasize chance. Let him prove right now what type of player he is. If he gets a shot and can't produce then fine, he will know its over. But right now, I am like him, wondering, if given the chance, given the life changing experiences, given the mental focus he has now, could he succeed. One way to look at Rice is he was productive in all but one year and doesn't have near the wear and tear of other backs out there now.

Well, yes, most people would have a personal vendetta against him. That vendetta being that flying around the country giving speeches about how bad domestic violence is and volunteering your paycheck, which would be a drop in the bucket, doesn't quite offset the damage that you did when you were videotaped knocking your now wife out. When teams signed Michael Vick after he got out of prison... do you honestly think teams got positive PR from that? No, they didn't. They got negative PR from it, despite him doing plenty to get back in the public's good graces (some would argue he still hasn't). It took a LOT longer than two years for this to happen.

Why yes, I can see why some people may have a personal vendetta against him for that.

There's dozens of guys just like him who are "past their prime" that want another "chance" to play with the league. Why should Rice get a shot over those guys? The line of aging RBs with clearly diminished skills who want another training camp invite is a mile long. He comes with a lot more baggage than those guys.

[thecommish]

Any team would be foolish not to sign RR at this point. It would cost them whatever they wanted to pay... it would be a general donation to a charity of DV and great PR even overcoming the stigma that RR had been subject to. If RR can still play then they win and if not it was worth every penny in PR.

i just hope a team like the Patriots do not sign him.

[rmcjacket23]

Any team would be foolish not to sign RR at this point. It would cost them whatever they wanted to pay... it would be a general donation to a charity of DV and great PR even overcoming the stigma that RR had been subject to. If RR can still play then they win and if not it was worth every penny in PR.

i just hope a team like the Patriots do not sign him.

No real positive PR to signing him.

Again, I point to the fact that teams didn't get positive PR when they signed Vick straight out of prison either.

The franchise could just donate that amount to a DV cause if they wanted to and not deal with the headache of having to bring the player in.

[eze17]

  1 hour ago, fusuymada said:

The only position I am concerned about in that starting lineup scenario is Orr at middle linebacker. I think Stanley will be such an upgrade over Monroe and Hurst that he will simply be a non-story. Urschel has proven he can do anything well that they give him and I don't expect that to change soon. I would have preferred we had Hill to go with Weddle in the back of the defense, but he spent too much time with Eugene, so he is suspended. I really don't expect that Webb will be the starting safety when all is said and done. If we don't have any young players that can beat him out for that safety spot, then they should cut them all and start all over again because Webb hasn't lost a step, he has lost two or three and he is too undersized for that position. I know he likes to hit, but if he's up in the box and a 240 pound runner goes head to head with him, they will be carting him off the field. Elam should be that guy as he proved he has the size and hitting ability to play up close to the line but please don't ever ask him to cover anyone because all the way back to Florida if you look at the film, he was not a very good cover guy.

I expect Correa to be the starting ILB opposite Mosley.

Wow, bold prediction...guy has little experience playing the inside, so seems a stretch to throw him in the starting line-up. Not saying it couldn't happen but I think he would have to seriously impress the coaching staff to beat out someone who naturally plays the position. I take it your not very high on Orr, or for that matter Brown...

[rmcjacket23]

Just now, eze17 said:

Wow, bold prediction...guy has little experience playing the inside, so seems a stretch to throw him in the starting line-up. Not saying it couldn't happen but I think he would have to seriously impress the coaching staff to beat out someone who naturally plays the position. I take it your not very high on Orr, or for that matter Brown...

Mostly just a hunch. From reports, he saw a ton of time at ILB during OTAs.

I obviously don't think its a stretch to say that Orr or Brown aren't stud ILBs who Correa can't beat out for the job.

I wrote off Art Brown a long time ago and haven't been given any reason to reconsider that. I think if they are looking for youth and possibly more speed at ILB, Correa makes some sense.

[GeeWallee]

Ahhhhhh.....Training Camp begins. Let's Keep 'Em healthy and safe !

[JimmyBlack]

Flacco fades back, avoids the rush, and throws a 50 yard perfect strike to Wallace to beat the Steelers.

[JimmyBlack]

3 hours ago, sami said:

I think Crockett Gilmore will start over Watson. Crockett is a BEAST!

Baring injury, the Ravens won't waste all that money they spent on Watson by not starting him.  This won't stop them from going with 2 or 3 TE sets on occasion.  The wild card will be if Pitta ever sees the field this season.

[JimmyBlack]

18 minutes ago, GeeWallee said:

Ahhhhhh.....Training Camp begins. Let's Keep 'Em healthy and safe !

Prayers for healing and protection for our Ravens.

Edited July 22, 2016 by JimmyBlack

[JimmyBlack]

2 hours ago, rmcjacket23 said:

I expect Correa to be the starting ILB opposite Mosley.

I think that he will be rotated into the defense as needed.  This formula worked with J.J. a few years back.

[rmcjacket23]

12 minutes ago, JimmyBlack said:

I think that he will be rotated into the defense as needed.  This formula worked with J.J. a few years back.

Different positions though. JJ was the run stopping OLB, basically played the same role Upshaw did.

We don't really have a "locked in" second ILB right now. Granted, that spot probably won't play too many snaps when we are in nickel/dime personnel, but I expect him to compete with Orr for the starting job inside and potentially win that competition.

Won't be disappointed if he doesn't, but won't be shocked if he does.

[bioLarzen]

  3 hours ago, fusuymada said:

The only position I am concerned about in that starting lineup scenario is Orr at middle linebacker. I think Stanley will be such an upgrade over Monroe and Hurst that he will simply be a non-story. Urschel has proven he can do anything well that they give him and I don't expect that to change soon. I would have preferred we had Hill to go with Weddle in the back of the defense, but he spent too much time with Eugene, so he is suspended. I really don't expect that Webb will be the starting safety when all is said and done. If we don't have any young players that can beat him out for that safety spot, then they should cut them all and start all over again because Webb hasn't lost a step, he has lost two or three and he is too undersized for that position. I know he likes to hit, but if he's up in the box and a 240 pound runner goes head to head with him, they will be carting him off the field. Elam should be that guy as he proved he has the size and hitting ability to play up close to the line but please don't ever ask him to cover anyone because all the way back to Florida if you look at the film, he was not a very good cover guy.

I expect Correa to be the starting ILB opposite Mosley.

"Expect"? Based on what?

[Moderator 3]

2 hours ago, thecommish said:

Any team would be foolish not to sign RR at this point. It would cost them whatever they wanted to pay... it would be a general donation to a charity of DV and great PR even overcoming the stigma that RR had been subject to. If RR can still play then they win and if not it was worth every penny in PR.

i just hope a team like the Patriots do not sign him.

Vet minimum for him is over $800,000, so he isn't free.

Also, roughly half of NFL fans are female (a group the NFL actively recruits) and I suspect many of them would be uncomfortable cheering for Ray.  Despite his many good efforts, that video will live on in infamy.

[rmcjacket23]

29 minutes ago, bioLarzen said:

"Expect"? Based on what?

Said earlier... mostly just a hunch. I will say that part of my rationale comes from the fact that it appears they moved Correa to ILB within weeks of him even starting practicing at OTAs, which generally would tell me that they may have envisioned this when they drafted him. Could be wrong though.

I think they like Correa a ton, and the competition for the second ILB spot isn't really all that tough based on what I've seen.

Like I said, won't be disappointed if it doesn't happen, but won't be surprised if it does.