Biggest surprise of the year?

[January J]

Anything Raven related- what has been your biggest surprise of the year?

The outcome of our draft? 

Justin Tucker being nearly perfect? ( not a surprise for me )

The release of Forsett?

The defense being top 5 in numerous categories?

Wallace or weddle? 

Flacco leading the league in pass attempts?

The lack of snaps for Buck Allen or Correa?

 

For me it HAS to be the play of Zach Orr. Out of nowhere this UDFA is leading our team in tackles and making plays all over the place. He's just like a pitbull and has a nose for the ball with a relentless motor. Tavon is a close second, but Orr has surprised the heck out of me. What say you?

[Ravens4Real]

How horrible and inept the offense has been all season. Some said in the offseason that this was the best group of skilled players the Ravens have ever assembled. Oh, how that turned out.

Defense is a good surprise. I will consider them the best in the league if they can perform these next two weeks.

I don't know how Tucker being perfect wasn't a surprise. He was terrible last year at long ones. Now it seems like the are almost automatic. Only problem is, he's been perfect and we are in close contested games even with him being perfect. If he has an off game, which then we'd probably lose because our O is poo, people around here would blame him for ruining the season. And that would be totally unfair.

[K-Dog]

Lack of production from offence. 

[Gtown Purple]

Impact of our overall draft.

[Glen1024]

I knew we'd improve up the middle of the defense with smith out of there.The offensive was bad last year and with the same staff coming back I just knew they would struggle. I would go with tavon young and really the play of the entire secondary webb and weddle too

[usmccharles]

How bad this offense has been.  Just...so...bad

[Cillmatic]

I REALLY thought the offense would take off this year. That's the biggest shock for me, followed by our 2nd and 3rd round picks not producing for the second year straight and the emergence of Tavon Young.

[usmccharles]

1 minute ago, Cillmatic said:

I REALLY thought the offense would take off this year. That's the biggest shock for me, followed by our 2nd and 3rd round picks not producing for the second year straight and the emergence of Tavon Young.

I can understand Kaufusi not producing...i mean, he broke his leg.  But KC....still blows my mind more than anything

[Tank 92]

I think what surprises me the most is the lack of a consistent rushing attack. That's been the biggest thing holding back the offense.  I don't know whether it's a personnel, technique or scheme issue but our O line's run blocking has been putrid. Maybe the coaches didn't prepare or adjust properly to the rule changes, don't know. 

[Adreme]

1 hour ago, usmccharles said:

I can understand Kaufusi not producing...i mean, he broke his leg.  But KC....still blows my mind more than anything

KC is not a this year pick, he is one of those picks you basically red shirt for a year/year and a half and when ready hope he can light the world on fire.

Im far more surprised at the production out of the later rounds of this draft.  It basically drastically reduced the amount of needs for the Ravens entering next years draft to basically a new center (seriously if a good one is in the first round grab it) and maybe a 3rd corner.  After that I would not expect any of the Ravens draft picks or free agents next year to even need to be anything which is the hallmark of a terrific drafting class.

[usmccharles]

3 minutes ago, Adreme said:

KC is not a this year pick, he is one of those picks you basically red shirt for a year/year and a half and when ready hope he can light the world on fire.

Im far more surprised at the production out of the later rounds of this draft.  It basically drastically reduced the amount of needs for the Ravens entering next years draft to basically a new center (seriously if a good one is in the first round grab it) and maybe a 3rd corner.  After that I would not expect any of the Ravens draft picks or free agents next year to even need to be anything which is the hallmark of a terrific drafting class.

For a second round pick i find that mind blowing.  I honestly dont believe the FO thought they would get zero production form him this year.  If thats the case, why is he a second round pick. 

[frozen joe flacco fan]

For me, the biggest surprise is the return of Dennis Pitta to the starting lineup. Next to that, I'd say the play of Tavon Young is a pleasant surprise.

[Tank 92]

1 hour ago, usmccharles said:

For a second round pick i find that mind blowing.  I honestly dont believe the FO thought they would get zero production form him this year.  If thats the case, why is he a second round pick. 

He did go into the draft a year early and is only 22.

[Militant X 1]

27 minutes ago, frozen joe flacco fan said:

For me, the biggest surprise is the return of Dennis Pitta to the starting lineup. Next to that, I'd say the play of Tavon Young is a pleasant surprise.

Pitta's return is a big surprise to me as well.  I was one of the main cats in here calling for him to retire after those hip injuries.  He proved me wrong and I'm glad!

GO PITTA!!!

Edited December 23, 2016 by Militant X 1

[usmccharles]

1 hour ago, Tank 92 said:

He did go into the draft a year early and is only 22.

I dont really see what that has to do with what i said

[usmccharles]

1 hour ago, Militant X 1 said:

Pitta's return is a big surprise to me as well.  I was one of the main cats in here calling for him to retire after those hip injuries.  He proved me wrong and I'm glad!

GO PITTA!!!

While it is a shock to me as well that he came back and played, to me he isnt worth what he is making. 

[Tank 92]

5 hours ago, usmccharles said:

I dont really see what that has to do with what i said

Just trying to point out what maybe was a part of their thought process. I seriously doubt they thought his production would be as little as it has been, but I'm also pretty sure they didn't think he would be a starter at a young 22 either. Maybe they just valued his potential that highly. Guess we'll find out next year.

 

[Glen1024]

Not sure why so many are surprised by the offense....tressman had Marshall and Jeffries at receiver Bennett at tight end with forte coming out the backfield and that offense was terrible in Chicago. The guy was a bad hire and the regression on offense should've been a surprise to no one.

[Rav'n Maniac]

For me, I am impressed with Orr's play this season. This dude is just straight up balling.

[trevorsteadman]

I was hard on Orr from the get go... I went into the season believing that 2nd inside linebacker spot would be the weakest part of the team. He proved myself wrong and made myself and a lot of people on the forums eat their words from preseason. He has been the defensive MVP all year. To be honest this team has one of the best linebacker core in the NFL. They have pro bowl caliber players on each level of defense and that is why this team has been near the top on defense all year. I think youth at the outside linebacker position and another solid corner could thrust the Ravens defense to be the best for awhile. 

[GrimCoconut]

16 minutes ago, trevorsteadman said:

I was hard on Orr from the get go... I went into the season believing that 2nd inside linebacker spot would be the weakest part of the team. He proved myself wrong and made myself and a lot of people on the forums eat their words from preseason. He has been the defensive MVP all year. To be honest this team has one of the best linebacker core in the NFL. They have pro bowl caliber players on each level of defense and that is why this team has been near the top on defense all year. I think youth at the outside linebacker position and another solid corner could thrust the Ravens defense to be the best for awhile. 

I'd argue Jimmy Smith, CJ Mosley, and especially Eric Weddle would be much more deserving of defensive MVP before Orr. 

[nextgen_RavensFan]

Stanley is my biggest surprise, When healthy, the guy solidifies his spot and gives Joe some much needed time. Not to mention Yanda being so good after his move on the line. 

[GrimCoconut]

My biggest surprise is how well Suggs has started to play.  Going off of that, I'm surprised by the pressure we're getting because I didn't even expect that much. 

[trevorsteadman]

34 minutes ago, GrimCoconut said:

I'd argue Jimmy Smith, CJ Mosley, and especially Eric Weddle would be much more deserving of defensive MVP before Orr. 

You could argue that. Many fans here aren't huge on Jimmy Smith (even though I think he is the most underrated corner in the league). Weddle has been huge for the team as well I could see that. Mosley has made some plays but he has also seemed to get burned on some plays in pass defense (as expected I guess that is his weakest part of his game) and Orr has 52 more tackles than Mosley and 15 assisted tackles more than Mosley. 

You can argue anyone here and I could agree to an extent. I am saying Orr just because he is the biggest surprise. My personal favorite on the team is Jimmy Smith. When the team goes from the #1 defense in the league to the #27 defense in the league when ONE player is out (Jimmy Smith) you know how valuable he is.

[Somerset Ravens]

The contributions from our rookie class has been impressive this season. Stanley, Young, Judon, Pierce, Dixon, Lewis and Moore have been a big part of our team. I am looking forward to see how their careers develop.

[GrimCoconut]

8 minutes ago, trevorsteadman said:

You could argue that. Many fans here aren't huge on Jimmy Smith (even though I think he is the most underrated corner in the league). Weddle has been huge for the team as well I could see that. Mosley has made some plays but he has also seemed to get burned on some plays in pass defense (as expected I guess that is his weakest part of his game) and Orr has 52 more tackles than Mosley and 15 assisted tackles more than Mosley. 

You can argue anyone here and I could agree to an extent. I am saying Orr just because he is the biggest surprise. My personal favorite on the team is Jimmy Smith. When the team goes from the #1 defense in the league to the #27 defense in the league when ONE player is out (Jimmy Smith) you know how valuable he is.

Yeah, true. The only reason I said Mosley over Orr is because when we lost Mosley earlier this year and Orr took over I don't think the defense looked as good. I know the defense really struggled initially once we lost Mosley on that boneheaded fumble in the end zone smh

[trevorsteadman]

21 minutes ago, GrimCoconut said:

Yeah, true. The only reason I said Mosley over Orr is because when we lost Mosley earlier this year and Orr took over I don't think the defense looked as good. I know the defense really struggled initially once we lost Mosley on that boneheaded fumble in the end zone smh

Yeah the talent drop off from Mosley or Orr to McClellan or Correa is a giant talent drop. 

[usmccharles]

3 hours ago, Tank 92 said:

Just trying to point out what maybe was a part of their thought process. I seriously doubt they thought his production would be as little as it has been, but I'm also pretty sure they didn't think he would be a starter at a young 22 either. Maybe they just valued his potential that highly. Guess we'll find out next year.

 

Ah,  gotcha.   It just still blows my mind with the players that were still on the board that we could have gotten,  the CB Alexander,  wasn't he available?  I know we have a thread for him,  I just still am Shocked that we have had no return  on a healthy second round pick.  

[nextgen_RavensFan]

1 hour ago, GrimCoconut said:

My biggest surprise is how well Suggs has started to play.  Going off of that, I'm surprised by the pressure we're getting because I didn't even expect that much. 

Great point, that has been our saving grace all year. Relieves our corners pressure to have to cover for a longer period of time. What a pleasant surprise.

[TurkishRaven]

For me it's the defense. Tbh I was expecting to see Dean Pees fired this season, especially after that horrible defense last year.