[News] Late For Work 1/4: Four Important Notes, Opinions And Questions About Standing Pat At Coordinator

[BR News]

Plus, Devin Hester finds his way into the playoffs. Could the Ravens be featured on ‘Hard Knocks’ again? John Urschel named to Forbes' ‘30 Under 30’ in the field of science.

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[jravens1313]

Greg Roman would have been an excellent addition and a real commitment to the running game. He was a winner in SF and made Buffalo respectable on offense with Tyrod Taylor. A guy who knows how to use the talent he is given.

Mike McCoy is more in tune with today's NFL and still produced solid offenses without any talent or help from his GM. We will miss the playoffs again with Marty. That is a fact. It gives me 0 hope in next season.

[jsarrocohome@yahoo.com]

I wish urshel was a good football player

[nj_ravens]

Greg Roman would have been an excellent addition and a real commitment to the running game. He was a winner in SF and made Buffalo respectable on offense with Tyrod Taylor. A guy who knows how to use the talent he is given.

Mike McCoy is more in tune with today's NFL and still produced solid offenses without any talent or help from his GM. We will miss the playoffs again with Marty. That is a fact. It gives me 0 hope in next season.

"He was a winner in SF" (you're thinking of Jim Harbaugh)

"and made Buffalo respectable on offense with Tyrod Taylor" They fired him this year, and then Tyrod played better.

[TheRavengers]

After reading this, I kinda get the logic in keeping Marty around and my one hope was that he can use these next 7 months to drum up a better playbook since he's got the time now. The fact that other players like him, according to the article, is also helpful.

That being said I REALLY hope Harbaugh doesn't come to regret this.

[rmcjacket23]

Greg Roman would have been an excellent addition and a real commitment to the running game. He was a winner in SF and made Buffalo respectable on offense with Tyrod Taylor. A guy who knows how to use the talent he is given.

Mike McCoy is more in tune with today's NFL and still produced solid offenses without any talent or help from his GM. We will miss the playoffs again with Marty. That is a fact. It gives me 0 hope in next season.

1. Obviously Mike McCoy has had significant talent in terms of personnel at just about everywhere he went, including Denver and San Diego. Very laughable to think he doesn't have good players.

2. Really doesn't do John a lot of good to keep firing coordinators. Basically just an admission that you're time with the team is about up. Maybe it is already, but he's not doing anybody any favors by continuously hiring and firing OCs.

[btfan2]

""“Harbaugh is taking into account that not all of the offensive troubles stemmed from Mornhinweg. Quarterback Joe Flacco didn't see the field well and rushed more throws one year removed from knee surgery. The offensive line didn't consistently protect Flacco or open up holes in the running game. And the offense lacked game-breakers at wide receiver, tight end and running back.""

Oh, John your a genius! None of us saw that, really! Did you see your DC throwing games with bend don't, try?
**********************************************************
This really is no surprise. Making constant changes that are not well thought out are stupid.

Maybe Mister Mediocrity 9 years into being a head coach will do his home work and be responsible, finally. Because he has not in the past done his job. Done critical evaluations, done research or made any attempt to help his QB, or to educate or evaluate himself. Get out of that bubble boy and drag you coaches and Joe with you.

I personally think this is all bull. (Bull is all he knows, hopefully we are finally to put up or shut up). Will see.

[RavensDieHard21]

Harbaugh has signed his tender. He either guides us to the playoffs of we will see ya later guy😈

[bioLarzen]

I couldn't care less about how much Harbaugh is risking by retaining Mohrnhinweg - it's his own deal. What annoys me to the extreme is that he uses the team I love and would love to see succeed, for taking risks.
John, go and play risk with something that's yours - not our beloved team please. Don't use my Baltimore Ravens to try and break the age old adage about the definition of crazinbess (doing the same thing again expecting different results).
Please.

[bioLarzen]

After reading this, I kinda get the logic in keeping Marty around and my one hope was that he can use these next 7 months to drum up a better playbook since he's got the time now. The fact that other players like him, according to the article, is also helpful.

That being said I REALLY hope Harbaugh doesn't come to regret this.

Don't we all?

[Raven1995]

There is only one person who can save Harbaugh, Ozzie. He Better have a Great Draft and be Top Heavy in Talent. Rounds 1 thru 3 better be Home runs.

[Tdot.to.Bmore]

Much respect to Harbaugh for sticking to his guns and not listening to all the internet GMs. At the end of the day like the article states even if he were to change coordinators he knew it was a make or break year. Why not stick to someone you know? Why not stick to something that has proven to work in the later half of the year? If it wasnt for our defense who gave up leads and big plays to the giants, Jets, Patriots and Steelers, then this season would have been totally different. If it wasnt for the Oline who couldnt give Joe time or make holes for the running back then the season would have been different.

Alot of ppl are blaming the OC for joes check downs. But in reality thats on Joe himself. He doesnt move in the pocket or roll out of the pocket. Its frustrating to watch some of these QBs in the league make plays with their feet and then you watch joe get flustered and throw for a 2 yeard check down. If the Oline gives Joe time this coming season we will see a drastic change. The weapons are there, all we need is for Joe to have time so our weapons have time to get separation.

AND PLEASE RUN TEH DAMN BALL!!!

[bioLarzen]

"Harbaugh reportedly looked around, but was there really a better option?"

Ahhh, please... Back there in 2008 when Billick was fired, did ANYBODY think about Harbaugh as a good replacement before his name first came up officially? He was the ST coach of the Eagles - how many ST coaches do people know?

There are good enough guys around - they're just have to be found. Just like Harbaugh was found in 2008.

[bioLarzen]

"Some popular potential candidates included Norv Turner, Mike McCoy, Greg Roman and Rick Dennison. Hensley explains why none of them were clearly better than Mornhinweg."

Here we go again. How was Harbaugh "cearly" better than Billick in 2008? How was he a "proven upgrade" over Billick?

If it wil always ber about the risk of picking an unknown option over a proven - although bad - option, Harbaugh will always stay in Baltimore...

[bioLarzen]

"Does Mornhinweg deserve a fair chance to succeed?"

Do the Baltimore Ravens fandom deeserve a chance for an O that's actually not a pain to watch?

[1stStateRaven]

The Ravens need a new offensive philosophy of scoring points. Points, Points, Points. This is in GREAT need of change after an almost two year stretch of close games. It's ridiculous. If it hasn't happened already, you guys are going to end up killing Ravens fans that suffer with heart conditions.

[BmoreB]

He's keeping a guy that can't even get a coin toss right. That's all you need to know about where 2017 is headed. 8-8 here we come, again.

[leziRav]

I couldn't care less about how much Harbaugh is risking by retaining Mohrnhinweg - it's his own deal. What annoys me to the extreme is that he uses the team I love and would love to see succeed, for taking risks.
John, go and play risk with something that's yours - not our beloved team please. Don't use my Baltimore Ravens to try and break the age old adage about the definition of crazinbess (doing the same thing again expecting different results).
Please.

A risk is hiring a new OC and don't know how the team will respond to his scheme and coaching. Your definition of crazinbess is keep hiring OCs every year and expect different results. Harbs has a job to do, being a HC to his team. He is doing his job, he has gut, he is a man. So let wait and see in year. I bet a lot of fans will come here and say how good a HC is Harbs next year.

[B.MORE CAREFUL]

#1 we need a better O-line, everything starts upfront, the run and passing game will be better and consistent, any QB can be good when you have a good Oline and someone like Julio Jones on your team. Idk about yall but Joe has always had average WR's , give him and Pretty good Oline and one real #1 WR and he will be a beast. #2 Pees needs to go, draft either a DE or CB, those are our major key problems since Jsmith cant stay healthy. #3 We cant keep switching OC , how do you expect players to master a play book and be comfortable.

Edited January 4 by B.MORE CAREFUL

[balfan23]

I really think the title of the article needs to state specifically "Offensive" coordinator, because I think standing pat at "Defensive" coordinator is easily as big a risk. The valid arguments for keeping Marty (get at least some degree of consistency and give the guy a chance to have a full offseason, camp and season to put his stamp on the unit) do not apply to the defense.

We've had consistency in coordinator on the defensive side of the ball and our coordinator has put his stamp on that unit. So to think that our shortcomings there are going to get corrected in 2017 seems naive. 

[leziRav]

Harbs and his coaching staffs know what are the issues with this team. They have decided on an approach to fix it. Let not complain and call on failure day one. Let wait and see next season, then we will debate the decision. Marty can change his coaching style to adapt to the team strength. He did that this year and the offense was getting better later in the season ( not to count the bengal game). The organization believes this team is close to be great and needs few players to achieve it. We all can agree on that. So let wait and see what Marty will do next season.

[Raven in ATL]

anyone else like Jabrill Peppers with our 16th pick? would be nice to have not just playmakers, but game changers like we used to with Reed in the secondary.

[balfan23]

In the end, it is John's call (as it should be) and he clearly thinks he has a better shot at getting us to where we need to be by standing pat on both sides of the ball. He has to know that this is a make or break season, so to think he's doing it out of loyalty to anyone on his staff is kind of crazy. 

I'm still glad we have an owner that doesn't dictate football decisions on coaching staff and players to his HC and GM. But he will make the decisions on whether changes need to be made at HC and GM level at the close of 2017. 

[b93333]

Some things to consider... when trying to put a winner on the field. Joe has a salary cap hit of 24.55 M in 2017. If Joe were to be cut after June 1st it would create 47.3 M in dead money (per the Sunpapers). Joe has the highest salary of any NFL QB when averaged over the life of his contract. (per the Cheat sheet) Joe finished the year with the 24th QBR. (per the Sunpapers) Clearly we are stuck with Joe for another 3 years... but he has played poorly for the most part since he signed his mega-contract. The question for our OC and HC is will it be possible to motivate Joe to play up to his contract and anywhere close to it?

[ellicottraven]

Well, Harbaugh just made his bed by sticking with his coordinators. He was in an unenviable position to begin with because no matter what his seat will be flaming hot next year unless of course they win double digit games and make a deep playoff run.

Here's what I think went into his thought process. One there were no awesome options that may have been willing to come to Baltimore in a potentially lame duck year for John in 2017 and two his loyalty to Marty and the fact that his QB wanted Marty who's easy and not hard on players. Marty generally acquiesces to Joe's demands and is easy on him with play calls. Now it is understandable why Flacco would want him but its also understandable why Harbs would want him too. Because he now can hold Flacco more accountable for his on field play. Unless Harbs shows the fortitude and will to confront Flacco when he's playing poorly, this upcoming season will be just as bad if not worse than this year. After all, Flacco was one of the reasons the offense performed as poorly as it really did.

So, now that Harbaugh has made his bed with his coordinators, it would be smart on his part to hire some really good offensive consultants and a dedicated QB coach (that can be in Flacco's ear constantly with validation and encouragement while helping with his up and down mechanics and game confidence). Perhaps Greg Roman or Dennison may be good candidates as QB coach. It sucks for the Ravens that their now 10 yr QB still isn't consistent or is able to diagnose defenses really well and isn't prone to follow a receiver before throwing it. Yes he cannot handle a complex west coast offense and needs a far simpler one where receivers need to be open. So, hopefully Marty can put a system in place that is easy on the head, idiot proof and helps Flacco fully utilize his arm talent while limiting the need for him to need or use football intelligence.

Sorry for the rant, but I feel better now.

Edited January 4 by ellicottraven

[sami]

Much respect to Harbaugh for sticking to his guns and not listening to all the internet GMs. At the end of the day like the article states even if he were to change coordinators he knew it was a make or break year. Why not stick to someone you know? Why not stick to something that has proven to work in the later half of the year? If it wasnt for our defense who gave up leads and big plays to the giants, Jets, Patriots and Steelers, then this season would have been totally different. If it wasnt for the Oline who couldnt give Joe time or make holes for the running back then the season would have been different.

Alot of ppl are blaming the OC for joes check downs. But in reality thats on Joe himself. He doesnt move in the pocket or roll out of the pocket. Its frustrating to watch some of these QBs in the league make plays with their feet and then you watch joe get flustered and throw for a 2 yeard check down. If the Oline gives Joe time this coming season we will see a drastic change. The weapons are there, all we need is for Joe to have time so our weapons have time to get separation.

AND PLEASE RUN TEH DAMN BALL!!!

I agree with you 100%. So many people forget the success weve had compared to most other teams. there are a lot of singular plays on both offense and defense that could have won more games and made us 11 and 5 this year. Some of these fans on here are so quick to want change when the offense has been bogged down with changing OC's.

[leziRav]

anyone else like Jabrill Peppers with our 16th pick? would be nice to have not just playmakers, but game changers like we used to with Reed in the secondary.

I like Peppers, but I am hearing that Malik Hooker is the best safety, the like of Ed Reed. Also I hear that Jamal Adams is also better than Peppers. But all 3 are very good safety. One of them will be there at pick 16th. Also a top pass rusher and top corner will be there too. Basically when will be on the clock, we will have a pool of top 5 safety, top 5 pass rushers and top 5 conerbacks. So Ozzie will have to make a choice. Hopefully we will get a game changer.

[merryjman]

I wish urshel was a good football player

haha yes, at the moment he is just a PR stunt for the Ravens and the NFL to brag about.

[merryjman]

The Catch-22 to hiring a good OC is that after a good year they get offered a head coaching job and leave. Happened to us twice recently with Caldwell and Kubiak, and even Cameron became a head coach in college. So in that sense I'd rather keep an under-the-radar guy like MM who's got a pretty solid record as an OC with the Eagles. Consistency is key, especially with the offensive line and their need to practice blocking schemes. That is what will determine our running success more than anything else, I think. Assuming we run the ball at all, that is :)

[fusuymada]

Mohnhinweg had several months to figure out how to get Joe to turn around and give the ball to one of those guys who stand behind him. He was unable to do it, actually, he ran less than Trestman if you can actually believe that. I have thought about it and I think that Putin is involved. You see, Marty wanted to call run plays but the Russian GRU intercepted the communications, twisted them around and sent them to Flacco as pass plays. We thought they were only out to get Hillary, but no, they went after the Joe Flacco too. No matter how many times Marty said in press conferences the game plan was to run but somewhere between his mouthpiece and Joes headset, it ended up being a pass. Clearly it is Putins fault and the Russians are involved.

Seriously, the real problem is, and I don't think we can fix it, is Joe Flacco came in and never really had a top notch professional qb in front of him showing him what type of work ethic it takes to be a pro football qb, a 120 mil. dollar QB I said it yesterday... 120 mil means that you are in first and out last every single day, you work on off days and during the off season. You can't just take off of football for months and then decide a month before coming back you will start working the rust out of your arm. Maybe after a two week break, a 120 mil qb is throwing everyday, getting with his recievers and backs, is watching film, is studying defenses, is familiarizing himself with new plays and adjustments to the playbook. A 120 million dollar QB does a lot more as far as making himself and his team better than Joe Flacco does. Unfortunately, Kubiak was the only one with the nads to get in Flaccos face and FORCE him to work on footwork, force him to study defenses, forced his nose in the playbook. Everyone else just thinks Joe is a professional and will take care of it on his own. Joe has never had a professionall to show him how to take care of it on his own and what Kubiak taught him I guess he figured he didn't have to work on anymore since Kubiak left. Joe needs to be pushed, he is clearly not the brightest bulb in the pack, he had to be balled out to put any effort into getting to the line when the clock was running out.

Joe needs tough love and a lot of it and if we are stuck paying him at least another 3 years, then someone needs to be assigned the responsibility of making sure Joe gets there early, stays late, works on the things he needs to work on and practice isn't goofing off until press conference time. Joe hasn't learned that yet and his big payday before he learned it convinced him he doesn't need to.