[News] Eisenberg: Not A Sexy Pick, But A Very Sound One

[eek]

3 minutes ago, RavenFanInNewEngland said:

You Obviously weren't paying attention!!! There's a fella named Bolles out of Utah that went 20th. But he wasn't even the best one. The Saints took Ryan Ramczyk at number 32.That dude is a beast! And with little doubt will be a consistent pro bowl selection. If we can't protect Joe, and run the ball... we don't win.

Bolles doesn't fit the getting bigger on the o line part, he's a tad bit undersized for a OT. There will be some Ok Linemen going today and tomorrow.

[nj_ravens]

Like the article. But how is that we waste a first round pick for a back-up corner??? I surely hope he proves the masses wrong, but today this looks like a silly and sad move. Did anyone watch the press conf live last night? Body language speaks incredibly loud.... and from what JH's body was telling us, it was easy to hear him saying "this is not what I was looking for today". And at the moment I was still choking back the throw-up in my mouth.

He's a backup corner THIS year, but he isn't going to stay a backup corner. Webb will retire soon, and Jimmy is injured half the time, Carr is a veteran stop gap. That leaves Humphrey, Young, and Canady for the future. This was a good pick based on who was there. Get your head out of the sand.

[eek]

38 minutes ago, whobilly said:

Agree. As of now we have ONE legitimate WR on the roster in Mike Wallace and he's not gonna scare anybody.

we could get Zay Jones, JUJU or Cooper tonight have faith

[nj_ravens]

  23 minutes ago, RavenFanInNewEngland said:

"Yeah, it's a very sound pick if you haven't thrown up in your own mouth in a while and forgot what it's like."
My sentiments exactly! Unbelievable! There were very talented OT's and pass rushers on the board. What a "whiff"!!!

Definitely don't see who these talented OT's are.

And apparently neither did any of the other teams, since basically none of them were drafted on day one.

So either every team in the league whiffed, or fans are wrong again. I'll let you decide which one is more likely (hint: its the latter).

Taking at tackle at 16 would have been a reach. By far. This guy doesn't know anything.

And besides all that, our real OL target should be center, and both of the top guys are still available.

[nj_ravens]

Clearly no one is going to be able to agree as to whether or not this was a good pick. I think there is something that we could all agree on here. Im feeling pretty thankful that we didn't Takk (not that i thought there was chance to take him that early). He looked absolutely ridiculous.  I had to come back and edit this one.  After reading some articles about it there seems to be a lot  of people that admired him for that.   There are also some people that thinks that ra ra bs is directly coordinated to being a good football player.  I couldn't disagree more on both of those issues. 

It's not ra-ra bs. Ben Boulware, and dare I say, Ray Lewis are Ra Ra bs type of players. He was just happy he fulfilled his promise to his grandmother, who was his acting mother and father. The pain of losing a parent, let alone your only one, is excruciating. Not many people know, I do. I respect him for channeling the pain into something positive.

[balfan23]

Understandably, when you pick someone at 16 that most analysts had in the 30s on their big boards, your not going to get a lot of post-round 1 love in the press. All I can hope is that our guys see something that the analysts don't and we'll all warm up to this pick.

Bottom line is this dude's gonna need to perform and honestly, if he isn't a starter across from Jimmy to start the season, that will add to the disappointment. I know many will say you can't expect CBs to start right away, but you normally hope that when you pick 16 you are getting a day 1 starter. 

[terpmaniac]

I know what .lets fire Ozzie and Harbaugh and let the "message-board" crowd make the picks from now on because we all know so much more then they do. There you go. All our draft issues solved!

[Crusader]

I really don't care who the Ravens pick today as long as they are the best player on the board. We need some 5-stars and at the moment we don't have any.

Why start now?

[cmillionard3]

Have you seen how the league is nowadays you need secondary. The Bengals just got John Ross to go alongside A.J Green, we see AB twice as wwell, and Browns have coleman and now Ndjoku. We got against Ben,Carr, and Brady to get to the super bowl. And when Jimmy eventually goes down we need depth. Have y'all forgotten the 2014 AFCD game already...? This was a solid pick. We weren't gonna reach on no OL. I wouldn't have minded a trade back but this is a solid pick. He'll eventually be our other Corner on the outside by year 2 if not earlier. so every one just calm down. There's still plenty of talent for Day 2 and 3.

[#20=DA MAN!!]

I'm sure glad some of you guys dont make decisions for the team. We have always drafted best player available with a hint of position of need. Humphrey was a great pick. We get the 2nd best corner for 4-5 years on a rookie contract when his position is usually thr 2nd-3rd highest paid position on the team with a fragile Jimmy, and carr basically on a 1 year contract, and next year you will be happy we made this pick. Oz has been doing this for years. When we got brandon williams, we still had ngata so he didnt play much right away, but how many people are crying that we just paid Bwill and dont have ngata? Exactly. We didnt need him then but we sure as heck do now!!! We tried to trade up for either barnett or reddick but it didnt work out, so we took the BPA to us at that tme because no offer was worth trading back. CLE did have a good draft, but when you lose as much as they have over the years and have multiple 1st round picks in a loaded draft such as this one, its hard not to pick impact players. Today, like DeCosta said, will make or break our season. This is the time to find some day 1 starters and quality players. If you guys want splashy drafts, then maybe you go root for another non winning team because we dont make splash picks, never have really. Can anyone tell me the last top 5 WR to win a super bowl? Im gonna say 2010 Jordy Nelson, and even he wasn't a top 5 WR at the time he won the super bowl. So quit with all this team bashing on said teams site, and have faith in your team. Gosh, you guys kill me

[liljj500]

A lot of you sound ridiculous. Jimmy Smith gets hurt last year and what happens? We get Torched. Brandon Carr is a good player in a sense of reliability but deff gives up a lot of plays (OBJ). Tavon Young is a young player who's only gonna get better but his size is somewhat of an issue and that showed last season when he was matched up against Dez Bryant. So its nice to have a Marlon Humphrey on standby. A good size DB with speed and physicality. Ppl keep saying "Mike Williams did this.. Mike Williams did that". Obviously y'all haven't played Corner before. It's a very tough and demanding position. You're not gonna stop a receiver from catching every pass. So what he got beat a few times in that ONE game. It happens. That's like saying Julio Jones or Antonio Brown won't beat a corner 1-on-1 a couple times.But I'm sure Humphrey wouldn't be matched up with a teams #1 receiver every play. And do y'all not remember we have Weddle and Jefferson to back him up down the field? .... I will say this, I would've liked to see us choose Foster despite the injury concerns but I am in no way mad about this pick. We definitely do need a receiver tho. I would like to see us snatch the WR JuJu Smith-Schuster from USC in the 2nd or 3rd round.

[cobrajet]

I don't understand why so many fans are down on this pick. I had this guy as my #3 CB behind Sidney Jones (before he got injured) and Lattimore. This guy reminds me so much of a healthy Jimmy Smith and has no injury concerns at this moment. He has the athleticism and body to develop into a beast. Yes he will have some growing pains, but the guy can make a tackle and will not let anyone intimidate him unlike other CB's that were still on the board. I really liked Allen and thought he was going to be our pick when he fell to us, but I am very okay with Humphrey.

[Crusader]

Scouts report:" Issues playing the deep ball are a concern. From off coverage, overreacts to route fakes and opens the door to a big play. That's why they picked on him during the title game.“Remember when scouts reported Perriman dropped easy passes and what is he doing now? Humphrey is going top make a great special teams player.

[cobrajet]

Pick is solid, but I'm getting VERY VERY concerned about our offense.

The talk of the town has been how we need to protect our NFL highest paid QB, how we need to improve our O line and how we need to get bigger and stronger in the trenches. So far the state of our O-line has gotten worse than it was last year.

EVEN IF we do manage to build up the line in the draft and by picking up some FAs and Flacco is kept upright in the pocket, he has almost no WRs to throw the ball to. Do not be mistaken, Perriman is not a proven starter until he is. And Wallace is 2nd WR at best. The rest of the group are just place holder at the moment. Even last year, when Flacco did get time to throw at times, more often than not he didn't have anyone open which resulted in dink-and-dunk plays and 3 and outs. And the situation has gotten worse with the departure of SSS.

I honestly don't know what the plan is here so I won't judge, but it'll require a 2nd and 3rd day of draft for the ages to give this offense a better shot than it did last year.

Lamp and Robinson are still on the board along with all the top Centers. Ozzie may still pick up Mangold if we miss out on day two on some quality o-lineman. As far as WR goes, JuJu and Zay are still on the board and Boldin is not signed yet. I will wait to see what Ozzie does, because I have confidence that we are not going into the season without adding a few guys in these positions of need. These three picks tonight could be awesome ones.

[rmcjacket23]

  1 hour ago, rmcjacket23 said:

  1 hour ago, RavenFanInNewEngland said:

"Yeah, it's a very sound pick if you haven't thrown up in your own mouth in a while and forgot what it's like."
My sentiments exactly! Unbelievable! There were very talented OT's and pass rushers on the board. What a "whiff"!!!

Definitely don't see who these talented OT's are.

And apparently neither did any of the other teams, since basically none of them were drafted on day one.

So either every team in the league whiffed, or fans are wrong again. I'll let you decide which one is more likely (hint: its the latter).

You Obviously weren't paying attention!!! There's a fella named Bolles out of Utah that went 20th. But he wasn't even the best one. The Saints took Ryan Ramczyk at number 32.That dude is a beast! And with little doubt will be a consistent pro bowl selection. If we can't protect Joe, and run the ball... we don't win.

1. Bolles is expected to be a Guard in the Pros. Many guys who played Tackle in college slide inside in the Pros. Certainly not uncommon.

2. Nobody cares about Pro Bowlers. Horrific evaluation metric for any player.

Basically one Tackle goes in the first round, and it was the last pick.

I rest my case.

[BiggMack91]

  3 hours ago, BiggMack91 said:

People are crazy if you don't think this man will have an immediate impact on our secondary we will have the best secondary in the league next year our D-line will have all day to get after the QB 50 sacks next year #1 D next year lets go ravens nation

He got Torched in College. With an epic Front 7 in front of him? Please explain how that translates to stopping Ben and Brady, not to mention being the 16th pick

you sound like a cry baby we play press zone blitz most of the time and he's great at that get real and he provides great depth at the CB position

[law215]

If that kid is out there reading this blog, what would he think about Ravens fans?

It's OZ that should be the focus. Show the kid some love. Not guys like Webb that a lot us forgive repeatedly no mater how CAP he eats up while stopping no one.

If Joe plays like he did last year, it will not matter who they draft. FYI- Joe had more weapons last than any season. Yet, some fans always blame the play-calling, O-line, receivers, etc.. Better offense needs better QB play.

Perriman is a 1st round guy, Pitta is been getting paid even when he is not playing, Wallace has speed, Yanda is a HOF, Stanley is 1st round LT, Lewis is solid.

Joe is one of the highest paid dudes in the league and eating up cap space allocated to offense. It's time to stop thinking all the answers are to surround him with the best of everything and put responsibility on HIM to make guys better.

[billiejean]

3 hours ago, sizzlingdoom said:

LOL. Looked ridiculous? What do you mean? I missed it, I wasn't watching when he was picked

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5msbq_eLd-U

Check it out. I can't understand how any journalist who saw that speech could write articles commending the guy with headlines such as,  '"Takkarist McKinley wins hearts with draft speech to late grandma" and  "Takk McKinley wins the night with emotional interview about his grandmother".  I think the best way to describe it is bizarre or cringe worthy.  very very strange

 

[billiejean]

1 hour ago, nj_ravens said:

It's not ra-ra bs. Ben Boulware, and dare I say, Ray Lewis are Ra Ra bs type of players. He was just happy he fulfilled his promise to his grandmother, who was his acting mother and father. The pain of losing a parent, let alone your only one, is excruciating. Not many people know, I do. I respect him for channeling the pain into something positive.

Well you just proved my point.  I am not saying that being a ra ra player isn't good thing.  Ray was great at it.  My argument from my previous comment was that, "There are some people that think that ra ra bs has a direct correlation with better performance/skill level".  To break it down what I am getting at is that being a ra ra guy has absolutely no bearing  on the skill level of a player. There are plenty of guys who aren't vocal who are great players, and there are plenty of guys that are vocal that are not great players.  And as i mentioned before you proved my point by sighting Ben Boulware.  He is a ra ra guy but isn't a great player.  He is projected to be taken in the 7th round and very well could go undrafted.  I am not minimizing his loss and clearly I am in the minority with my position on this.  It just seemed over the top to me and like it was more a publicity stunt than anything else.  It is odd to me because he seemed angry which isn't an emotion that I could see manifesting itself when paying homage to your grandmother.  

 

[billiejean]

46 minutes ago, law215 said:

If that kid is out there reading this blog, what would he think about Ravens fans?

It's OZ that should be the focus. Show the kid some love. Not guys like Webb that a lot us forgive repeatedly no mater how CAP he eats up while stopping no one.

If Joe plays like he did last year, it will not matter who they draft. FYI- Joe had more weapons last than any season. Yet, some fans always blame the play-calling, O-line, receivers, etc.. Better offense needs better QB play.

Perriman is a 1st round guy, Pitta is been getting paid even when he is not playing, Wallace has speed, Yanda is a HOF, Stanley is 1st round LT, Lewis is solid.

Joe is one of the highest paid dudes in the league and eating up cap space allocated to offense. It's time to stop thinking all the answers are to surround him with the best of everything and put responsibility on HIM to make guys better.

There are a lot of people that make comments intended to be direct messages to players mentioned in articles.  But they fall on deaf ears I am afraid to say.  Its a bit bizarre really as the instances of players coaches and front office members reading these comments are few and far between.  I agree with what you are saying though its not his fault that people are unhappy with the FO decision to take him.

[b93333]

We drafted a back-up CB for at east the early part of the season. Most likely he will be a starter for years to come in the future. If the FO can build a solid OL we might still have a pretty decent year.

[nj_ravens]

Understandably, when you pick someone at 16 that most analysts had in the 30s on their big boards, your not going to get a lot of post-round 1 love in the press. All I can hope is that our guys see something that the analysts don't and we'll all warm up to this pick.

Bottom line is this dude's gonna need to perform and honestly, if he isn't a starter across from Jimmy to start the season, that will add to the disappointment. I know many will say you can't expect CBs to start right away, but you normally hope that when you pick 16 you are getting a day 1 starter. 

Yea, and when they made those predictions, were they considering Conley's mess and Sidney's injury? We picked the second best corner available. He might not start at first but he will be a starter eventually.

Sure, you want someone who CAN start right away, but it's better if you don't HAVE to.

[nj_ravens]

  6 hours ago, sizzlingdoom said:

LOL. Looked ridiculous? What do you mean? I missed it, I wasn't watching when he was picked

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5msbq_eLd-U

Check it out. I can't understand how any journalist who saw that speech could write articles commending the guy with headlines such as,  '"Takkarist McKinley wins hearts with draft speech to late grandma" and  "Takk McKinley wins the night with emotional interview about his grandmother".  I think the best way to describe it is bizarre or cringe worthy.  very very strange

 

Did you're mother or father die when you were young? Mine did, so I get it. In his case, he had no father, his mother left when he was little, raised by his grandmother and then SHE died leaving him with basically nothing but football. He lived a tough life (bouts of homelessness IIRC, Richmond was a tough area of Oakland) and survived and got out, and in the moment of fulfilling his dream and promise he was emotional. That type of passion and motivation is what breeds great football players. You just don't get it.

[woolly61]

  2 hours ago, law215 said:

If that kid is out there reading this blog, what would he think about Ravens fans?

It's OZ that should be the focus. Show the kid some love. Not guys like Webb that a lot us forgive repeatedly no mater how CAP he eats up while stopping no one.

If Joe plays like he did last year, it will not matter who they draft. FYI- Joe had more weapons last than any season. Yet, some fans always blame the play-calling, O-line, receivers, etc.. Better offense needs better QB play.

Perriman is a 1st round guy, Pitta is been getting paid even when he is not playing, Wallace has speed, Yanda is a HOF, Stanley is 1st round LT, Lewis is solid.

Joe is one of the highest paid dudes in the league and eating up cap space allocated to offense. It's time to stop thinking all the answers are to surround him with the best of everything and put responsibility on HIM to make guys better.

There are a lot of people that make comments intended to be direct messages to players mentioned in articles.  But they fall on deaf ears I am afraid to say.  Its a bit bizarre really as the instances of players coaches and front office members reading these comments are few and far between.  I agree with what you are saying though its not his fault that people are unhappy with the FO decision to take him.

"Its a bit bizarre really as the instances of players coaches and front office members reading these comments are few and far between."

Are you kidding me?

Do you, and other "brilliant" football minds who post on this site, really believe that the Ravens' players, coaches, and front office should be reading the comments and taking the advice of "well-informed" fans who are sitting at home on the couch in order to improve their performance on the field? Please, oh please, Steve Bisciotti, hire these football "geniuses" immediately so that the Ravens may hope to win a few more games next year; wait, check that, bring home the Lombardi Trophy.

Just as Donald Trump said during the campaign that only he could solve all the country's problems so only the "brilliant" posters on this site can solve the Ravens' woes.

[balfan23]

1 hour ago, nj_ravens said:

Yea, and when they made those predictions, were they considering Conley's mess and Sidney's injury? We picked the second best corner available. He might not start at first but he will be a starter eventually.

Sure, you want someone who CAN start right away, but it's better if you don't HAVE to.

True ... but the hopes would be that he can be better than Carr in pretty short order ... and we may have to if we suffer an injury (which has been the norm, not the exception). 

[Crusader]

I would put Marlon on A.J Green the first game "You want to be the best, play against the best" . Ravens are going to lose anyway

[ellicottraven]

It sure wasn't a sexy pick but neither was it a sound one. The sound pick would've been OJ Howard assuming Foster and Allen were undraftable for other reasons.

[ellicottraven]

I would put Marlon on A.J Green the first game "You want to be the best, play against the best" . Ravens are going to lose anyway

I can't see us beating either the Bengals or the Steelers. With Garret and Peppers on the Browns defense, I don't see Flacco beating the Browns either. We are in for a very long season this year and if it does it doesn't bode well for John Harbaugh.

[ellicottraven]

This is the least excited war room I've seen for a first round pick. Does anybody else concur or am I seeing things?

[billiejean]

48 minutes ago, nj_ravens said:

Did you're mother or father die when you were young? Mine did, so I get it. In his case, he had no father, his mother left when he was little, raised by his grandmother and then SHE died leaving him with basically nothing but football. He lived a tough life (bouts of homelessness IIRC, Richmond was a tough area of Oakland) and survived and got out, and in the moment of fulfilling his dream and promise he was emotional. That type of passion and motivation is what breeds great football players. You just don't get it.
 

Again im not minimizing the difficult life he has had or the passing of any of his family members as I have said before.  My point has nothing to do with that.  My point is that this guy attends the first round of the NFL draft and he knows that there is a fair chance he is going to get drafted.  In anticipation of this he brings a picture of his grandmother which is nice gesture.  I have no problem with any of that.  I have a problem with him immediately going up to a camera and proceeding to shout aggressively at it.  And then he turns to Deion and in an even louder voice he says "Come on Man".  He then proceeded to turn up the volume a bit more and say G D. He then turns back to the camera and shouts a few aggressive lines about getting to the QB.  And then in the interview he again says another obscenity (the one that starts with F).  There is nothing for me to get.  My problem has nothing to do with his past.  It has everything to do with the moment that he was on stage last night.  You are trying to justify the fact that this guy aggressively barked obscenities at the top of his lungs into a camera that broadcast his actions to a nationwide audience (including kids) because he has had a difficult life.  

"That type of passion and motivation is what breeds great football players"

And with regards to your assertion above, there may be a correlation between a difficult upbringing (to serve as motivation) and great football players but it is not a causal relationship.