[News] Eisenberg: Ravens Rookie Class Evolving Into Difference-Maker

[BR News]

At the end of Baltimore’s 5-11 season, the Ravens knew they needed new blood and more playmakers.

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[Steve32]

This year's rookie class I believe will be one of our best ever, in terms of Quality and Quantity.

[harfordravenfan]

25 minutes ago, Steve32 said:

This year's rookie class I believe will be one of our best ever, in terms of Quality and Quantity.

Completely agree with you there

[CaliRavenFan]

I hope Flacco goes up to KC and lets him know that now is the time to let Taz out and he gets that edge back he had in camp. I think the smart move with Dixon would be letting him rest until week 5-6, just because he has already injured that same knee twice and I would hate to see him do serious damage to it.

[billiejean]

1 hour ago, CaliRavenFan said:

I hope Flacco goes up to KC and lets him know that now is the time to let Taz out and he gets that edge back he had in camp. I think the smart move with Dixon would be letting him rest until week 5-6, just because he has already injured that same knee twice and I would hate to see him do serious damage to it.

The talk about how good KC looked was in OTAs and the beginning of TC when there was no contract. They really did him a disservice by talking him up the way they did because now fans think he has lost some of his spark. Changing from OLB or DE to ILB is a huge move. Sure you look good in 7 on 7 drills or in shells, but when you put on the pads you realize how much more traffic there is in the middle. It is also more difficult to read and react to keys in the middle. He will get there it is going to take time thought. I personally would like to see him get some work in passing situations coming off the edge or through the middle. I still really think his most natural position is at OLB, but with not a lot of depth at ILB it makes sense to put him there in order to get the guy on the field.  And Flacco is not one to tell someone that is time to "Taz out".  Thats just not his thing.  You can be a leader without yelling screaming and banging your helmets together.  At some of the more cerebral positions the last thing you want to do is get your adrenaline pumping.

Edited September 6, 2016 by billiejean

[b93333]

After the last two drafts we desperately needed some help. We didn't get much with rounds two or three but round four and five are looking good.

[ellicottraven]

If Stanley and Alex Lewis can protect Flacco's left side from sacks, hits and hurries Sunday, we can feel comfortable that they will continue to progress. I believe they'll be better than good. I cannot wait to se how Moore does as well. I doubt he'll suit up on game day though. I believe Tavon Young and Canady are going to be here a long time and Matt Judon is going to shock the world with his penetration and effort.

[trevorsteadman]

Correa caught on strong early and has disappeared as of late. Makes me wonder if he calmed it down and learned from Mosley of how long the first season is. I remember the article on here about how Mosley was telling Harbaugh that he was getting tired but there was still like 4 or 5 games left and Harbaugh told him to take it one game at a time. I wonder if Correa will just go into week one as a dark horse player with a role and see if he excels.

[stixfix69]

To be honest, KC really didn't show me much, as Judon, Henry, and Pierce were consistent throughout the pre-season games, and Z.Smith showed great improvement from last year...On the offensive side i felt Dixon could be like a RR, great hands, and can run between the tackles, Moore's handles looked strong, as he snatched the ball, like Boldin does, and Lewis i knew would be nasty, and could actually be the answer at RT next year if Wagner signs elsewhere....JMO....

[billiejean]

Correa caught on strong early and has disappeared as of late. Makes me wonder if he calmed it down and learned from Mosley of how long the first season is. I remember the article on here about how Mosley was telling Harbaugh that he was getting tired but there was still like 4 or 5 games left and Harbaugh told him to take it one game at a time. I wonder if Correa will just go into week one as a dark horse player with a role and see if he excels.

it will be interesting to see how much playing time he will get and at which position.

[billiejean]

To be honest, KC really didn't show me much, as Judon, Henry, and Pierce were consistent throughout the pre-season games, and Z.Smith showed great improvement from last year...On the offensive side i felt Dixon could be like a RR, great hands, and can run between the tackles, Moore's handles looked strong, as he snatched the ball, like Boldin does, and Lewis i knew would be nasty, and could actually be the answer at RT next year if Wagner signs elsewhere....JMO....

Totally agree with you here. I think the position switch has really stunted KCs development. There is a lot more traffic that you have to worry about in the middle. Hopefully he carves out a roll for himself on passing downs somewhere on the defensive front.

[Ravenous_Ravens]

To be honest, KC really didn't show me much, as Judon, Henry, and Pierce were consistent throughout the pre-season games, and Z.Smith showed great improvement from last year...On the offensive side i felt Dixon could be like a RR, great hands, and can run between the tackles, Moore's handles looked strong, as he snatched the ball, like Boldin does, and Lewis i knew would be nasty, and could actually be the answer at RT next year if Wagner signs elsewhere....JMO....

To spend a second round pick on a player then ask them to switch positions is just delaying their progress. It is difficult enough to make the leap to the next level without having to relearn a new position. It should really be a stretch goal to play another position. Either that or draft an ILB to play ILB.

Feels as though the potential he has is being squandered on making a project.

Also whatever was said to him about the intensity in the practices, please remind him on game day he has the green light to amp it up again. The guy obviously has the motor and drive to get after players, just safe it for the opponents not your team mates.

[law215]

I think KC is fine. He did a lot of things that don't get recorded. He got pressure to force QB to step up, covered his guy, and set the edge well. He was never going to start ahead of vets so he'll have time to get stronger .

Watch out for Moore and Perriman. When on the field, they will be on the opponent's 3rd CB or safety. What combination of your top 2 CBs cover? The shifty (Smith Sr, Aiken) or the speed of Wallace, Perriman, or Moore? Joe in the shotgun with 3 or 4 WRs will give defenses fits. Stanley will be tested right from the jump. The Ryan brothers will blitz on his side until Ravens prove they can make a play. There will be opportunities for big plays.

[Steve32]

  1 hour ago, stixfix69 said:

To be honest, KC really didn't show me much, as Judon, Henry, and Pierce were consistent throughout the pre-season games, and Z.Smith showed great improvement from last year...On the offensive side i felt Dixon could be like a RR, great hands, and can run between the tackles, Moore's handles looked strong, as he snatched the ball, like Boldin does, and Lewis i knew would be nasty, and could actually be the answer at RT next year if Wagner signs elsewhere....JMO....

To spend a second round pick on a player then ask them to switch positions is just delaying their progress. It is difficult enough to make the leap to the next level without having to relearn a new position. It should really be a stretch goal to play another position. Either that or draft an ILB to play ILB.

Feels as though the potential he has is being squandered on making a project.

Also whatever was said to him about the intensity in the practices, please remind him on game day he has the green light to amp it up again. The guy obviously has the motor and drive to get after players, just safe it for the opponents not your team mates.

They drafted him as a pass rusher.
Trying him out at ILB was because we had an opening there.
It's not like they moved him from OLB to DB.
Good grief!

[purpledown]

Hope Dixon can come back as good as he was in preseason, he may be the steal of the draft.Still have a wait and see attitude on Perriman.

[sami]

its not that KC is that bad, its just that Orr is that good.

[stixfix69]

  2 hours ago, Ravenous_Ravens said:

  3 hours ago, stixfix69 said:

To be honest, KC really didn't show me much, as Judon, Henry, and Pierce were consistent throughout the pre-season games, and Z.Smith showed great improvement from last year...On the offensive side i felt Dixon could be like a RR, great hands, and can run between the tackles, Moore's handles looked strong, as he snatched the ball, like Boldin does, and Lewis i knew would be nasty, and could actually be the answer at RT next year if Wagner signs elsewhere....JMO....

To spend a second round pick on a player then ask them to switch positions is just delaying their progress. It is difficult enough to make the leap to the next level without having to relearn a new position. It should really be a stretch goal to play another position. Either that or draft an ILB to play ILB.

Feels as though the potential he has is being squandered on making a project.

Also whatever was said to him about the intensity in the practices, please remind him on game day he has the green light to amp it up again. The guy obviously has the motor and drive to get after players, just safe it for the opponents not your team mates.

They drafted him as a pass rusher.
Trying him out at ILB was because we had an opening there.
It's not like they moved him from OLB to DB.
Good grief!

you do realize the OLBer we usually draft are DE in college, because in a 3-4 you have to have 260+ OLBer, so to ask a player who is as athletic as KC to play ILBer isn't a tall order, but like most rookies, it's a process that takes time....No one said he wasn't going to be good, but the idea of having play ILBer was because we have a lot of depth with OLBer/pass rushers, and don't have the depth at ILBer, so that is why he was getting a lot of reps there, as that would be the best position for him to get PT.....Good grief.....

[Steve32]

  2 hours ago, Steve32 said:

  3 hours ago, Ravenous_Ravens said:

  4 hours ago, stixfix69 said:

To be honest, KC really didn't show me much, as Judon, Henry, and Pierce were consistent throughout the pre-season games, and Z.Smith showed great improvement from last year...On the offensive side i felt Dixon could be like a RR, great hands, and can run between the tackles, Moore's handles looked strong, as he snatched the ball, like Boldin does, and Lewis i knew would be nasty, and could actually be the answer at RT next year if Wagner signs elsewhere....JMO....

To spend a second round pick on a player then ask them to switch positions is just delaying their progress. It is difficult enough to make the leap to the next level without having to relearn a new position. It should really be a stretch goal to play another position. Either that or draft an ILB to play ILB.

Feels as though the potential he has is being squandered on making a project.

Also whatever was said to him about the intensity in the practices, please remind him on game day he has the green light to amp it up again. The guy obviously has the motor and drive to get after players, just safe it for the opponents not your team mates.

They drafted him as a pass rusher.
Trying him out at ILB was because we had an opening there.
It's not like they moved him from OLB to DB.
Good grief!

you do realize the OLBer we usually draft are DE in college, because in a 3-4 you have to have 260+ OLBer, so to ask a player who is as athletic as KC to play ILBer isn't a tall order, but like most rookies, it's a process that takes time....No one said he wasn't going to be good, but the idea of having play ILBer was because we have a lot of depth with OLBer/pass rushers, and don't have the depth at ILBer, so that is why he was getting a lot of reps there, as that would be the best position for him to get PT.....Good grief.....

Good grief... that is what I said. They tried him out at ILB because there was an opportunity there.

[mearzunkies]

7 hours ago, billiejean said:

7 hours ago, CaliRavenFan said:

I hope Flacco goes up to KC and lets him know that now is the time to let Taz out and he gets that edge back he had in camp. I think the smart move with Dixon would be letting him rest until week 5-6, just because he has already injured that same knee twice and I would hate to see him do serious damage to it.

The talk about how good KC looked was in OTAs and the beginning of TC when there was no contract. They really did him a disservice by talking him up the way they did because now fans think he has lost some of his spark. Changing from OLB or DE to ILB is a huge move. Sure you look good in 7 on 7 drills or in shells, but when you put on the pads you realize how much more traffic there is in the middle. It is also more difficult to read and react to keys in the middle. He will get there it is going to take time thought. I personally would like to see him get some work in passing situations coming off the edge or through the middle. I still really think his most natural position is at OLB, but with not a lot of depth at ILB it makes sense to put him there in order to get the guy on the field.  And Flacco is not one to tell someone that is time to "Taz out".  Thats just not his thing.  You can be a leader without yelling screaming and banging your helmets together.  At some of the more cerebral positions the last thing you want to do is get your adrenaline pumping.

He did just what you said he isn't when he jumped on KC. Joe has emotion, he can normally keep it in check though. I do not disagree that Joe should approach KC and tell him loo, these are not our players. Take care of business between the whistlers!

[mearzunkies]

  4 hours ago, stixfix69 said:

To be honest, KC really didn't show me much, as Judon, Henry, and Pierce were consistent throughout the pre-season games, and Z.Smith showed great improvement from last year...On the offensive side i felt Dixon could be like a RR, great hands, and can run between the tackles, Moore's handles looked strong, as he snatched the ball, like Boldin does, and Lewis i knew would be nasty, and could actually be the answer at RT next year if Wagner signs elsewhere....JMO....

To spend a second round pick on a player then ask them to switch positions is just delaying their progress. It is difficult enough to make the leap to the next level without having to relearn a new position. It should really be a stretch goal to play another position. Either that or draft an ILB to play ILB.

Feels as though the potential he has is being squandered on making a project.

Also whatever was said to him about the intensity in the practices, please remind him on game day he has the green light to amp it up again. The guy obviously has the motor and drive to get after players, just safe it for the opponents not your team mates.

This!

[mearzunkies]

  3 hours ago, Ravenous_Ravens said:

  4 hours ago, stixfix69 said:

To be honest, KC really didn't show me much, as Judon, Henry, and Pierce were consistent throughout the pre-season games, and Z.Smith showed great improvement from last year...On the offensive side i felt Dixon could be like a RR, great hands, and can run between the tackles, Moore's handles looked strong, as he snatched the ball, like Boldin does, and Lewis i knew would be nasty, and could actually be the answer at RT next year if Wagner signs elsewhere....JMO....

To spend a second round pick on a player then ask them to switch positions is just delaying their progress. It is difficult enough to make the leap to the next level without having to relearn a new position. It should really be a stretch goal to play another position. Either that or draft an ILB to play ILB.

Feels as though the potential he has is being squandered on making a project.

Also whatever was said to him about the intensity in the practices, please remind him on game day he has the green light to amp it up again. The guy obviously has the motor and drive to get after players, just safe it for the opponents not your team mates.

They drafted him as a pass rusher.
Trying him out at ILB was because we had an opening there.
It's not like they moved him from OLB to DB.
Good grief!

I agree and was about to tackle this position myself. Well said. He did not totally change positions. His personal abilities make him a fit at both.

[OzzieBisciotti]

love it- Eisenberg chugging the purple kool-aid

[CaliRavenFan]

If you watch any of KCs college tape he fits ILB way better than OLB in the NFL. He was getting blown back against the college guys because he isnt big enough to set the edge. Having him learn ILB is not a waste because its utilizes his speed but it will just take time.

[stixfix69]

  2 hours ago, stixfix69 said:

  3 hours ago, Steve32 said:

  4 hours ago, Ravenous_Ravens said:

  5 hours ago, stixfix69 said:

To be honest, KC really didn't show me much, as Judon, Henry, and Pierce were consistent throughout the pre-season games, and Z.Smith showed great improvement from last year...On the offensive side i felt Dixon could be like a RR, great hands, and can run between the tackles, Moore's handles looked strong, as he snatched the ball, like Boldin does, and Lewis i knew would be nasty, and could actually be the answer at RT next year if Wagner signs elsewhere....JMO....

To spend a second round pick on a player then ask them to switch positions is just delaying their progress. It is difficult enough to make the leap to the next level without having to relearn a new position. It should really be a stretch goal to play another position. Either that or draft an ILB to play ILB.

Feels as though the potential he has is being squandered on making a project.

Also whatever was said to him about the intensity in the practices, please remind him on game day he has the green light to amp it up again. The guy obviously has the motor and drive to get after players, just safe it for the opponents not your team mates.

They drafted him as a pass rusher.
Trying him out at ILB was because we had an opening there.
It's not like they moved him from OLB to DB.
Good grief!

you do realize the OLBer we usually draft are DE in college, because in a 3-4 you have to have 260+ OLBer, so to ask a player who is as athletic as KC to play ILBer isn't a tall order, but like most rookies, it's a process that takes time....No one said he wasn't going to be good, but the idea of having play ILBer was because we have a lot of depth with OLBer/pass rushers, and don't have the depth at ILBer, so that is why he was getting a lot of reps there, as that would be the best position for him to get PT.....Good grief.....

Good grief... that is what I said. They tried him out at ILB because there was an opportunity there.

my bad, long day.....:)

[billiejean]

35 minutes ago, CaliRavenFan said:

If you watch any of KCs college tape he fits ILB way better than OLB in the NFL. He was getting blown back against the college guys because he isnt big enough to set the edge. Having him learn ILB is not a waste because its utilizes his speed but it will just take time.

Yea I wasn't implying that it was a waste, just as you said it will take time. But I don't agree that he fits ILB way better than OLB. With his height and burst he will make a fine OLB. He needs to add some bulk just like Suggs did. Suggs wasn't great at setting the edge in college either. KC is playing at ILB because its his best chance to see the field. With Orr looking as good as he has it going to be tough to get on the field.

Edited September 7, 2016 by billiejean

[billiejean]

1 hour ago, mearzunkies said:

He did just what you said he isn't when he jumped on KC. Joe has emotion, he can normally keep it in check though. I do not disagree that Joe should approach KC and tell him loo, these are not our players. Take care of business between the whistlers!

Yea Joe jumped on KC because he almost took out his favorite target.  I know Joe has emotion but how often do you see a quarterback go up to a rookie on the defensive side of the ball and tell him to "taz up" (whatever that means).  I can guarantee you that Joe gets on guys in the offensive huddle.  And I can garentee that he yells at people in practice on the offensive side of the ball who he thinks are slacking, or made a wrong read, or lined up wrong.  And we know that if some rookie wants to play who is mas macho, in a practice, with one of his favorite targets he is going to tell him where he can shove it. But having Joe go up to KC and tell him come on, fire it up, play harder, take it to em, get pumped get pumped, snap into a slim jim, that QB on the other team said something about your mother, THIS IS WAR, hustle, hit and never quit, win from within, or any other cliches you can think of, isn't going to do anything for KC.  Now if Suggs wants to take the Rook aside and give him some encouragement, I'm all for that.

[TheConquerorWorm]

15 hours ago, CaliRavenFan said:

If you watch any of KCs college tape he fits ILB way better than OLB in the NFL. He was getting blown back against the college guys because he isnt big enough to set the edge. Having him learn ILB is not a waste because its utilizes his speed but it will just take time.

I think you need to rewatch his tape. Rarely does he even get pushed off the line of scrimmage.....

https://youtu.be/ZnNA895wzJ0

Not a highlight reel...

Edited September 7, 2016 by TheConquerorWorm

[sizzlingdoom]

After the last two drafts we desperately needed some help. We didn't get much with rounds two or three but round four and five are looking good.

We didn't get much from round 2 and 3? 3 got hurt, impossible to predict. And we didn't get much from round 2??? That's pretty interesting considering the season hasn't started yet.....Can't believe the way people overreact to PREseason. KC sucks and Butler is a star right?! hahaha jeez