[News] Late For Work 1/3: Five Key Questions And Suggestions For Ravens Offseason

[The Mom Gene]

52 minutes ago, Crusader said:

Just remember the Browns have only one way to go and that's UP.

Exactly...  And the guy we got???  He ain't down, that's for sure.

[The Mom Gene]

11 minutes ago, billiejean said:

They do have the first pick which they could turn into more first round picks, with some seconds and thirds sprinkled in. Its a nice spot to be in.

Now, come on billiejean, they've been there for the past how many years???  and just how many times have they done that?  Thought so.

[Crusader]

Ravens can cut the running backs to save money since Marty does not use them.

[billiejean]

8 minutes ago, The Mom Gene said:

Now, come on billiejean, they've been there for the past how many years???  and just how many times have they done that?  Thought so.

Yea I know, I think I am just envious.  Not of the franchise, but of the draft picks

[RavensDieHard21]

3 hours ago, Drew P said:

Not attempting to go OT and turn this to draft central but did anyone see the game Solomon Thomas had against UNC? If he declares, get him and waive goodbye to Guy.

Thomas is a legit Ozzie pick lol. We will all scratch our heads because we have other needs, but he will be a darn good player I can guarantee that. He singlehandedly destroyed UNC. 

[Drew P]

33 minutes ago, Crusader said:

Ravens can cut the running backs to save money since Marty does not use them.

Check down's, which are 95% of the plays.

[ravens4life86]

Its going to be a busy offseason. Ravens should have upwards of 20million in cap room to sign free agents and our own. Dumervil,Webby,Arrington,Lewis all will be gone. Watson or Pitta 5 million vs 3million savings, maybe Zuttah if they can get a better option. Wallace is 8mill if they think hes too expensive he might get cut.

Thats like 24-25mil in cap with 4mil they currently have.
They need to sign a couple gamechangers..
Heres a couple
Chandler Jones DE/Olbr
Stephon Gilmore CB
Eric Berry FS (though kc likely wont let him get away)
Jamie Collins Olbr
Logan Ryan CB
Nolan Carroll CB
Wrs
Terrell Pryor
Alshon Jeffrey
Vincent Jackson
Michael Floyd
Robert Woods

[EdTheMythicalOne]

1) Biggest change needed on offense: Since we know it won't be the OC, I would say it is the philosophy. You have two backs churning over 4YPC and you barely used either one of them. Your passing attack did not take advantage of the skill sets your players have. Our whole off season with Bobby Engram (WR coach) should be teaching our wideouts how to get open against zone coverage and how to beat a press and emphasize fighting for the ball. It is ridiculous with some of the size/speed mismatches we should have that nobody is getting open.

2) I say Williams, Wagner, and Guy are all gone.

3) Dumervil, Watson, Lewis, Wright, and Arrington are all gone. Zuttah might be a late cut if either Skura or Urschel can beat him out for the C position. Webb's not getting cut unless they find a replacement for him first, but that guy is not on the roster.

4) Dixon, West, new blood. I think they are going to draft a pounder. They thought Taliafero could be that guy and maybe he could've been if not for all the injuries, but we need a bulldozer and we don't have it.

5) How can you not address one of your most glaring weaknesses? The Ravens have been trying to address it for years but they just haven't struck gold yet. They'll do something to try to address it again whether that is a key FA signing or a spending a few more draft picks on the position. I think this year the top pick they have goes to a pass rusher. They got their 1st pick O-lineman last season. We've done horribly bad with 1st pick WR's.

[Drew P]

20 minutes ago, EdTheMythicalOne said:

4) Dixon, West, new blood. I think they are going to draft a pounder. They thought Taliafero could be that guy and maybe he could've been if not for all the injuries, but we need a bulldozer and we don't have it.

 

Dixon looks legit. It was the O line that was manhandled the very few times they attempted to run the ball.

 

[Crusader]

  On Tuesday, January 03, 2017 at 2:46 PM, Crusader said:

  On Tuesday, January 03, 2017 at 1:48 PM, The Mom Gene said:

  On Tuesday, January 03, 2017 at 1:31 PM, b93333 said:

If only the Browns were that dumb...

Dude.... You're too funny.  Man, The Browns would give up just about anything to have a guy like that on their team. 

Just remember the Browns have only one way to go and that's UP.

They do have the first pick which they could turn into more first round picks, with some seconds and thirds sprinkled in. Its a nice spot to be in.

Check again Browns have two first round picks.1 and 12. They already have their CB and Lt set.

[Crusader]

  On Tuesday, January 03, 2017 at 3:28 PM, billiejean said:

They do have the first pick which they could turn into more first round picks, with some seconds and thirds sprinkled in. Its a nice spot to be in.

Now, come on billiejean, they've been there for the past how many years???  and just how many times have they done that?  Thought so.

You better check Ozzie picks since 2012. They are building the core.just look at their long term contracts.

[The Mom Gene]

Just now, b93333 said:

The world wants to know what you're smoking!  It must be good.

 

6 minutes ago, Crusader said:

You better check Ozzie picks since 2012. They are building the core.just look at their long term contracts.

They were talking about the Browns, not the Ravens... 

[mearzunkies]

cut all these guys LB Elvis Dumervil: $6 million in savings
S Lardarius Webb: $5.5 million
TE Ben Watson: $3 million
CB Shareece Wright: $2.6 million
C Jeremy Zuttah: $2.3 million
CB Kyle Arrington: $2.1 million
S Kendrick Lewis: $1.8 million
fire all coaching staff start from scratch

Yep because that would be what the Browns would do.

[purpledown]

the Ravens should take Tim Williams if he is there. He is a beast. All the 7 (with the possible acception of Suggs) are expendable.

[Johnny-U]

  4 hours ago, Crusader said:

  5 hours ago, The Mom Gene said:

  5 hours ago, b93333 said:

If only the Browns were that dumb...

Dude.... You're too funny.  Man, The Browns would give up just about anything to have a guy like that on their team. 

Just remember the Browns have only one way to go and that's UP.

They do have the first pick which they could turn into more first round picks, with some seconds and thirds sprinkled in. Its a nice spot to be in.

NO. Picking first because you have the worse record in the NFL IS NOT a nice spot to be in.

[mearzunkies]

1) Biggest change needed on offense: Since we know it won't be the OC, I would say it is the philosophy. You have two backs churning over 4YPC and you barely used either one of them. Your passing attack did not take advantage of the skill sets your players have. Our whole off season with Bobby Engram (WR coach) should be teaching our wideouts how to get open against zone coverage and how to beat a press and emphasize fighting for the ball. It is ridiculous with some of the size/speed mismatches we should have that nobody is getting open.

2) I say Williams, Wagner, and Guy are all gone.

3) Dumervil, Watson, Lewis, Wright, and Arrington are all gone. Zuttah might be a late cut if either Skura or Urschel can beat him out for the C position. Webb's not getting cut unless they find a replacement for him first, but that guy is not on the roster.

4) Dixon, West, new blood. I think they are going to draft a pounder. They thought Taliafero could be that guy and maybe he could've been if not for all the injuries, but we need a bulldozer and we don't have it.

5) How can you not address one of your most glaring weaknesses? The Ravens have been trying to address it for years but they just haven't struck gold yet. They'll do something to try to address it again whether that is a key FA signing or a spending a few more draft picks on the position. I think this year the top pick they have goes to a pass rusher. They got their 1st pick O-lineman last season. We've done horribly bad with 1st pick WR's.

And West is not a bulldozer? 5'11 225. I think he and Dixon moved the pile well this season.

[EdTheMythicalOne]

1 hour ago, mearzunkies said:

And West is not a bulldozer? 5'11 225. I think he and Dixon moved the pile well this season.

No, he's not. There were plenty of times he didn't move the pile. Just because you might measure up to be fairly big doesn't mean you get the leverage or "run heavy."

[EdTheMythicalOne]

3 hours ago, Drew P said:

Dixon looks legit. It was the O line that was manhandled the very few times they attempted to run the ball.

 

Dixon is a great runner, he's got work to do in other areas and he's got to stay on the field. He's not great at blocking or picking up blitzers; but that can be corrected with some time in the film room. He's a rookie so he probably didn't have to do a whole lot of that in college. Not many rookie RB's come into the league knowing how to do this well. Even so, I want a BIG power back I can count on to pound the rock in from the 1 yard line. I want that guy that the other team knows what is coming, but still can't stop it. I want the reincarnation of Gerald Riggs. I want a guy that doesn't pitter-patter his feet behind the line of scrimmage (hello T. West) and just slams it up in the gap and carries guys with him on his way to picking up 3-4 yards. We don't have that guy and this team has been looking for him for a number of years.

[RavenLunatic]

I'll say it again and again. The game is won and lost in the trenches. We lost in the trenches this year time and time again. If Ozzy is smart he will draft top tier linemen to bolster the Offense and Defense.

[#Nevermore]

  9 hours ago, merryjman said:

It was tough seeing the offense this year. After promising not to mess with Kubiak's system, Trestman basically killed the zone run scheme that the O line had worked so hard to learn and master, and had Flacco go out of the shotgun many times. And let's face it: Justin Forsett was not that great a RB, he was just the latest in a series of mediocre backs who looked like pro bowlers behind Kubiak's run schemes! (how many times has Kube done this now?) And Flacco, despite all the legitimate excuses like inconsistent protection, slow receivers, etc. still had some pretty bad individual performances. It's clear more than ever that he is unable to read blitzes and make corrections at the line. (did he do an audible all year?) This doesn't make him a bad QB, but it does mean that the OC has to do a lot of work to get the right play out to him.

 

Agree that pass rush is a big need. Bisciotti said so last year, and he'll probably say it again this year if asked. I am very glad we got Ronnie, as I think he'll be a franchise player for us for a long time. And considering all the Bosa drama, I'm not sure he would have been the right pick. But we need an edge rusher badly.

 

Not sure whether receiver is a need, or whether it's a system issue. I think Pitta, Gilmore, Boyle, Perriman and Wallace (and grudgingly, maybe even Campanaro) make a good corps if we can get a consistent system going.

 

Ozzie always says he can never have enough cornerbacks. Smith is great when healthy and Tavon Young was a nice surprise, so I would hate to see us take a CB with the #16 pick because I'd imagine all the top CB talent would be gone by then.

Pass rusher and corner is deep this year so many teams will adopt the "we will capitalize on the depth" later approach meaning they will pass on the position in the first to grab other areas of need. 

Realistically we need to take one of the two unless for some crazy reason mike Williams or Fournette make their way to us. 

With Garrett and Allen being long gone we hopefully land one of he following pass rushers; Williams from Bama, Harris from Missouri; Barnett from Tennessee; or, CB Sidney Jones from Washington or King from Iowa. I also like Wilson from Florida. 

 

I like Harris from Mizzu and Wilson from Florida, or Jones from Washington. Getting both guys would be awesome. Also we will probably get another 3rd rounder for Osemele leaving. We can use those picks for the a center and guard.

[law215]

The biggest change this team needs is for OZ to start drafting studs in the first couple of rounds again.

What if Perriman was a stud
What if Max Williams was a good TE
What if Kindle or Correa were good pass rushers
What if Elam was a serviceable safety etc....

Time and time again OZ does Ok lineman and with Mid round guys and coaches manages to develop 1 or 2 undrafted players, but the difference in game the Ravens lose are the game breaking plays the other teams makes because they have studs.

How many time we lost close games because of Gronk, Brown, Bell, Big Ben, AJ Green, Dez.?


Ravens need a few studs to balance the scales. Chasing free agents just puts them in further cap jail and overpaying guys like Webb, Smith, Joe who are just average at best.

[RaRaRavens]

15 hours ago, eze17 said:

The only person Harbs needs to answer to is Steve Biscotti. No one else. So I don't expect him to dis anyone publicly, except if he's honest maybe himself for not having players fully motivated and losing to many close games that we could have won. Publicly blaming players and assistant coaches for the teams shortcomings would not only be unprofessional, but come across as cheap and petty. Which despite some other flaws, Harbs is not. Now, behind closed doors, I think the Ravens fully realize that there needs to be some accountability and more than a few underachiving players and staff are going to be looking for new homes. But don't expect public shaming for the fan's benefit.

For many years I figured the same. That these are professionals at the top of their fields and know what the issues are. I'm not so confident anymore. Year after year the same players present the same fundamental or mental shortcomings, game plan presents the same kind of issues year after year, play calling keeps failing for the same reason game in and game out.

 

I think at some point it's fair to ponder whether the issues we the fans think our teams has and we discuss on these boards - constantly vanilla offensive playcalling, abandoning the run game (especially this season), inadequate quality of play from Flacco considering his experience and salary, defense failing to put away games with Pees' bend-but-don't-break style (manifested itself again in the last quarter of this season) to name just a few - are the same issues Harbaugh and the FO determine to be the reasons for our considerably below average performances after the team's SB win (with the exception of 2014). 

 

Because if year after year we stubbornly run head first into many of the same kind of problems as the previous year, then either the braintrust of our team has different idea of issues that need to be fixed or they are incapable of fixing the problems.

[sizzlingdoom]

the Ravens should take Tim Williams if he is there. He is a beast. All the 7 (with the possible acception of Suggs) are expendable.

Suggs isn't in the list of the 7. I would say all 7 are. I say we need Quincy Wilson ALL DAY. Wilson, Jimmy, and Tavon. We'll be back to Raven football

[sizzlingdoom]

We need to get Quincy Wilson. Period

[Rav'n Maniac]

I feel we should offer restructures to all of these high contract players that the team wants to keep. Anyone not accepting should be shown the door along with the players they are not keeping.

[Rav'n Maniac]

As far as FA, I see them offering contracts to Wagner, Juice and Guy, Sorry BWill, it's been real.

[Drew P]

11 hours ago, EdTheMythicalOne said:

Dixon is a great runner, he's got work to do in other areas and he's got to stay on the field. He's not great at blocking or picking up blitzers; but that can be corrected with some time in the film room. He's a rookie so he probably didn't have to do a whole lot of that in college. Not many rookie RB's come into the league knowing how to do this well. Even so, I want a BIG power back I can count on to pound the rock in from the 1 yard line. I want that guy that the other team knows what is coming, but still can't stop it. I want the reincarnation of Gerald Riggs. I want a guy that doesn't pitter-patter his feet behind the line of scrimmage (hello T. West) and just slams it up in the gap and carries guys with him on his way to picking up 3-4 yards. We don't have that guy and this team has been looking for him for a number of years.

Yeah, don't all 32 teams but like I said when you telegraph it and cant block, that guy isnt going anywhere.

[EdTheMythicalOne]

29 minutes ago, Drew P said:

Yeah, don't all 32 teams but like I said when you telegraph it and cant block, that guy isnt going anywhere.

Apparently you haven't seen guys like Gerald Riggs or Craig Heyward run. Those guys are out there and teams find them. The Ravens haven't. They've been too busy trying to find the next Ray Rice rather than a straight up banger.

[Drew P]

6 minutes ago, EdTheMythicalOne said:

Apparently you haven't seen guys like Gerald Riggs or Craig Heyward run. Those guys are out there and teams find them. The Ravens haven't. They've been too busy trying to find the next Ray Rice rather than a straight up banger.

Umm yeah I have but that was ancient history and Google Jamal Lewis the Ravens have had that type of "banger". I am not sure what team has one now maybe Ajayi? I dont think that's the area of opportunity. They need speed to the edge, a healthy line, and BALANCE and they will be fine.

[EdTheMythicalOne]

1 hour ago, Drew P said:

Umm yeah I have but that was ancient history and Google Jamal Lewis the Ravens have had that type of "banger". I am not sure what team has one now maybe Ajayi? I dont think that's the area of opportunity. They need speed to the edge, a healthy line, and BALANCE and they will be fine.

Blount in NE, David Johnson in ARZ, Latavious Murray in OAK,

If you want to bring up Jamal Lewis I would bring up Adrian Peterson and LaDanian Tomlinson.

And I am not talking about Jamal Lewis. He was a bell cow runningback that we ran into the dirt. And if we're talking ancient history, so's he. And he was only that guy up until his 2,000 yard season. After that he was a shell of himself and a completely different runner with the Browns.

So you don't think scoring the football is the area of opportunity? You're fine with kicking field goals all the time because our RB's can't get two yards to pick up the first down or we can't punch it in from 3 yards away from the endzone?

We had a speedy scat back in Forsett and he worked in the right system. I think West and Dixon have enough speed for the edge, we just have to stop being cute about it. They can run off tackle, but not with a pulling G, a TE that can't block, and asking Juice to run half way across the field to make a block on a counter run. We need a banger. We need somebody that makes you pay for tackling them.