Week 8: Finally a WIN! Ravens beat the Broncos ending their winning streak

FINALLY!! We got a win! This was a great win & confidence builder. Ray Rice & the offense played well again. Our special teams rookie: Lardarius Webb, had a huge return for a TD. Our defense shut them down on the run & forced a fumble recovery early in the game. Overall they played well & got a well deserved win. Hauschka even redeemed himself kicking a 43yd field goal. Another redemption was Mark Clayton who caught several huge passes to get us down the field. The Broncos were shut down most of the game, Orton couldn't connect with his WRs & we did a decent job keeping targets out of his sights. A lot of the tight defense came from an improved coordination from Mattison. "The linebackers gave defensive coordinator Greg Mattison credit for putting them in the right position. Johnson said the Ravens were more “multiple” this game and he was freer to “do more things than normal,” like blitz." -BR.com Our defense definitely came out to play, Jarret Johnson is emerging as a new play maker in the pass rush & coming up big with a huge sack. We showed we are still a leader in defense & our offense is a force as well. Now we just have to do the same thing next week as we play the Bengals again next week & have to get a win to get back to a lead in our division.

Week 7: Ravens BYE, time to regroup & get to work fixing problems

Things we need to work on:

Offense: Flacco seems to be taking too much time finding a reciever or making a descision to either get rid of the ball, run it, or throw it away. A lot of times he gets sacked because our line can't hold the Line Backers forever. The camera needs to pan our so we can see whats actually going on in the back field because I feel there's guys open but Flacco isn't getting it to them. And if they aren't open maybe Cameron needs to go back to some Wildcat plays with multiple RBs & QBs on the field. I haven't seen Troy Smith but once this season & I think a lot of our success from last year stemmed from confusing the defense. It's gusty but if it works it gets wins.

Defense: SECONDARY!! Are these guys NFL players? We really need to rethink our secondary. Washington has been a thorn in our sides since he replaced Rolle. He can not make a tackle except accidently. Foxworth is a little better but I haven't seen anything spectacular from him either. We depend on these guys to stay on top of WRs so our Offense can get to work, but if they keep allowing TDs then the Offense has to do double the work. I think we need to put in some of the Rookies & see how they perform. They can't be any worse than what we have now. I thin the other issue may be from poor coordination. I think Greg Mattison is not coordinating as well as Ryan did. With a subpar secondary I think you need to call the plays for these guys to be ready. They need to be told where to go depending on how the offense is set up. He may need to step down & let someone else in that can call the plays a little better. But ultimately it'll be up to Harbaraugh to decide.

After all is said & done I think this bye will be a good time to regroup & fix things to end our losing streak. We face the Broncos next who should be a good team to regain some confidence. Although undefeated I think we will play better especially since we're at home again.

Week 6: Vikings pull a close win making Ravens 3-3

A close game that ended with a missed 44yd field goal gave the Ravens another loss. Bumping us to 3rd in the AFC with the Steelers & Bengals ahead of us! This was a hard hitting game where, in the end, we were just outplayed. Our offense played a little better making a couple drives late in the game. Farve destroyed our (already terrible) secondary giving the Vikings an early lead in the first half. The second half of the game new secondary guys came in who don't see the field as often. But I felt they played better than Washington & Foxworth usually do. The first TD was a result of both those guys running into each other as the WRs crossed...isn't that a peewee football move? Washington really needs to be benched & they need to let the Rookies step up. Obviously, he isn't doing his job when we're ranked 25th in the league against the pass. Even the 2nd string Walker came in but he caused 2 critical penalties that gave the offense an easy TD. Rice was our only answer to Andrian Peterson. He had 2 TDs, one a 33yd rush. Petersan ran for 69 yards but had another 60 yards receiving. He also got 1 TD but we did a relatively decent job shutting down him & Chester Taylor. In the end it was really a battle of the kickers Longwell kicked a 40yd field goal earlier which gave them a 3pt lead throughout the rest of the game. Hauschka had the last couple seconds on the clock to kick a win, but kicked wide & gave us another loss. Ray Rice said after the game "It is frustrating,But at the same time, 3-3 going into a bye week is not always the worst thing in the world. I think we were in the same position last year, if I am not mistaken. I don’t like to compare this year’s team to last year’s team. One thing we are doing is establishing our identity. -BR.com

Week 5 Loss to Cincinnati bumps us down in AFC N

The play on the left was one of the defining moments that caused this loss. Although awesome, Lewis was penalized for unneccessary roughness giving the Bengals a chance to get 15 yards closer to the end zone & for the game winning TD pass. This game was tough for our offense, we didn't really make any significcant drives as Flacco usually does. I think it was mainly because of the absence of our lineman Gaither who was carried off the field the last game with a back injury. With a week line Flacco seemed flustered getting the ball off & had trouble looking for open recievers. He made a lot of short passes & only with the help of Ray Rice was he able to get a TD. The first half of the game our Defense wasn't playing as well as they usually perform in the Red Zone. Our defense was 3rd against the rush but the first TD came from Cedric Benson who ran the first TD in for Cincinnati. In the end we basically beat ourselves again with penalties. "On first-and-10, Ravens cornerback Chris Carr was flagged for illegal contact, which negated an incomplete pass. Later, linebacker Ray Lewis earned a 15-yard penalty that was enforced from the 50-yard line for unnecessary roughness. Then, a Palmer throw fell to the turf on third-and-16 with 43 seconds remaining, but cornerback Frank Walker was tabbed for pass interference. " -BR.cm You can't make those mistakes in the 4th & expect to pull off a win. The only praise of the game went to Ed Reed who had a 52 yd interception for a TD & a forced fumble before halftime. The rest of the squad did little to help gain a win. The loss puts the Bengals tied with us for 1st in our division. Next week we need to pull a win over Farve.

Only hate from last week!

Raven's Robbed a Win over New England in Week 4

This was the classic referee calling everything for the apposing team to ensure they would win. Any time we come close to beating a team in their home town the refs have to call every little minuscule thing to make sure it doesn't happen. The main calls I'm referring to are 2 roughing the passers & an unbelievable personal foul: unsportsmanlike comment from the bench (coach Harbaugh). I have never seen a game where the ref's call a personal foul from the bench, especially if it's the coach yelling about the other bullshit calls that we were getting that whole day. I like to see them try that with coaches like Ditka or Butkus. The whole game was one long drawn out penalty. We started the game off terribly with Chris Carr fumbling the kickoff into the Patriots hands at the 20. Luckily out D held them to only 3 points, but these points kept us 3 behind the whole game. Next we had an odd injury from one of our O-Linemen that weakened the line & created more pressure for Joe. We had numerous penalties, which was the main reason the Patriots won, giving them chance after chance. Not to mention just handing them 1st downs, that we otherwise would've gotten punts off of. The game had a slight chance of a comeback with Suggs knocking the ball out of Brady's hand & Dwan Edwards recovering for a TD. But the final shit hitting the fan was Mark Claytons dropping a perfect pass on 4th & almost goal. If he had made that catch we would've probably won. All these little penalties plagued us the whole game, so you can't fully blame Clayton. Although as an NFL WR you have to make the catches that are perfectly thrown into your chest on 4th downs to make that completion. I know he's gonna catch hell for it, so he'll get his punishment. Even with all these factors overall the offense played their usual greatness & the defense played good. The secondary did fairly well, although they needed to tighten up in the second half on Moss like they did the first half. This was a heartbreaking loss but we have to look to next week now vs Cincinnati, who are nipping at our heals with the same 3-1 record as us & a win over the Steelers. We are going to have to shut down Palmer & double up on Ochocinco. This game is at home too, so we will have that advantage, but we will need the secondary to tighten up even more since they are going to pass. Let's Go Ravens!

Week 3 Browns get obliterated...as per usual

This was basically a massacre, we had 4 INT on Anderson & Quinn, everyone got TDs: Rice, McGahee, & Mason. We played well & it was a good redemption game for our secondary, who still aren't quite up to the same level they were last year, but with several key losses you can't expect to see the same exceeding results. Flacoo threw like a champ as usual & the browns did little to shut him down. Overall we were heavily favored & proved why. The Browns lived up to their shitty reputation & continued their loosing streak. Mangini you couldn't do it in NY & you still can't do it in Cleveland. Just because you were under Belicheck's wing for all those years doesn't mean you're going to do as well without him & the Brady, Moss weapons. So great win for us & on to a real threat New England. Let's see if we are up to the challenge.

Week 2: Ravens pull out a close win over Chargers 31-26

This was a great game between 2 similar teams evenly matched. McGahee/Rice vs Darren Sproles, both had huge runs, Sproles more than other doing double time of returning punts. Rice & Sproles have similar builds both are a small bulky 5'7" that seem to find holes for several gains. Both of us have decent QB's able to throw long bombs, but also misfire with interceptions. Both our teams secondaries are less than good, as we saw with Vincent Jackson's TD with 3 Ravens covering him (including Reed who recently reported sat out practice this week). Our defense did a better job shutting their offense down in the redzone than theirs did us. Specifically the game winning shut down by Ray Ray (video shown above), this was huge & Lewis said, "That was probably one of the greatest plays of my career because of my team, because of what we did as a team." That hit ended the game & confirmed the win. Suggs & Ngatat did get sacks on Rivers, but they weren't the usual bone crushing shattering confidence sacks that we needed to shake Rivers up. Our offense played well as usual which is turning our team more into an offensive threat rather than our traditionally renowned defensive. Overall it was a close nail biting game, but in the end Ravens get the win. Coming up next week Cleveland Browns come to Baltimore. We'll see if Anderson can keep his composure in a sea of black & purple. GO RAVENS!

Week 1 Ravens beat Chiefs

Week 1 we beat the KC Chiefs but.. as usual I have some praises & criticisms.

A few notes about the game. First off, Flacco played like a champ & proved he is a leader. He came back this year & played like he did last. He definitely stepped up & rose to the challenge he was given back when he was surprised as starting QB. Flacco was definitely Joe Cool this past Sunday moving & rocketing passes into the end zone. There were several close calls where Joe was deep in a closing pocket but he kept his head up & hit his receivers. The terrible defense from KC also gave Joe massive amounts of time, but even with or without the time he kept his composure.

Second, McGahee & Heap finally step up. McGahee has been battling injuries, seems like for the past 2 years & he didn't seem to come back like his original self til last Sunday. After Rice was announce as starter I think McGahee realized he's got something to prove again & definitely proved it last game. Also, Heap, in the past has been a force as one of the top TE's in the league, but with his battling injuries the last couple seasons we haven't seen alot from him. I think Newsome's draft with Oher gave Flacco the extra protection he needed to open Heap up again & he definitely came through.

Looking towards Game 2 @ San Diego
After our game against KC & SD's game over OAK I'm a little worried.
our secondary played terribly (I'm hatin' mostly on Washington he can never stick with the WRs!) vs SDs secondary played semi-well, granted it was against OAK & they did mess up on the long pass last quarter but, overall they played pretty well shutting down the run game & short passing.

Offense:
We're going to have to pass alot & make most passes long. Doubt we're gonna be able to run much, looked like SD did pretty well stopping that game (then again McFadden & Bush is no McGahee & Rice). Also the short pass game got shut down so if Heap gets the same attention he's gonna have to keeps his hands like glue to get the yards. Overall I think our offense should be fine as long as Flacco plays like he did vs KC. Also if McGahee moves like he did.

Defense:
We gotta shut down Rivers before he gets the bombs off, like 10000x's faster than we did with Croyle. Hopefully Gooden will be able to play, its obvious we really need him. Washington has gotta step up, Foxworth looked fine, but i really feel like Washington needs to be benched, is Rolle gonna heal? Also are we gonna play Kruger? He played amazingly in the preseason they need to get him in there! Overall the D will step up for this game because the lack of D last, but they really gotta step it up we need points from offense & D like the old days!

Then there's special teams... what the heck blocked punt to TD (has that ever happened to us before?!?). I know this wont happen again but seriously.

Ravens Win over Falcon 20-3 ending perfect pre-season

"At the end of Thursday night’s battle of the birds, it seems that Baltimore checked everything off the list and even added a 20-3 victory in the process. At the conclusion of their first undefeated preseason since the 2000 Super Bowl year, the Ravens now shift their focus to the Kansas City Chiefs and the regular-season opener on Sept. 13.

Jason Cook celebrates his TD with Justin Harper “We had certain things we wanted to accomplish for each one of those games, and we really felt like we accomplished, in each one of those games, the things we wanted to accomplish,” said head coach John Harbaugh earlier this week. “Those are very specific things to each position and each side of the ball. But also, with that, we want to win the game if we can.”

The Ravens had success early, and the fact that they did it with what could be considered their junior varsity, the outlook for both sides of the football is promising.

With Baltimore’s second-string offense facing the Falcons’ starting defense, quarterback John Beck led the Ravens on a 14-play, 91-yard scoring drive on his first series.

Baltimore’s backup defense, which featured cameos from starters Suggs and linebacker Tavares Gooden, held quarterback Matt Ryan and the top Falcons offense to 32 total yards.

Two plays later, Williams, who finished with four catches for 77 yards, drew a pass-interference penalty on cornerback Brent Grimes that cost the Falcons 26 yards and moved the football to Atlanta’s 25-yard line.

Williams could have used a big night, considering that he rode on the team plane to Atlanta with a surgical mask because he was battling flu-like symptoms and was overlooked in the starting lineup last week in favor of Kelley Washington.

It was Williams again who hauled in a 19-yarder over his shoulder to get within the red zone, and Beck found rookie fullback Jason Cook on a short pass in the flat. The 245-pound undrafted free agent then rumbled 5 yards to the end zone.

After Suggs left the game with two series of work, accumulating three tackles and a sack, the Falcons got on the board in the second quarter with a 45-yard field goal from veteran kicker Jason Elam. But, the three-pointer capped a nine-play drive that only went 32 yards.

Steve Hauschka split the uprights from 33 and 46 yards. His performance may have cemented his status as Baltimore's permanent kicker for the 2009 campaign." -BR.com

Ravens beat Jets: 24-23 preseason game 2

Chalk another Win for us this preseason with a close win over the Jets & their new head coach ol' Rex Ryan (our former defensive coach). Early in the game Haloti Ngata had a pick six interception to show Sanchez that we are a force to be reckoned with & this isn't college ball. It was a close game towards the end, our 2nd-3rd string secondaries allowed rookie Mark Sanchez (recently announced as their starting QB) a few TDs. Overall it was another great game that showed we are still building, learning, & regaining our steps to reach the superbowl that we came so close to last year.

Battle of the Beltways: Ravens win 27-0

Ravens destroyed the skins last Friday with a 27-0 win at home to start the 2009-2010 year. The pre-season game gave some players the chance to get on the field & show what their capable of, as well as giving the starters a little warm up before they have to face some "real competition". Over all it was a good game, Paul Kruger (who's recently become a target from Rex Ryan for taking number 99, Michael McCrarey's old number) showed real potential & proved he may be worth keeping on the field for the whole season. We saw passing from all 3 QB's Flacco, Smith & veteran John Beck, with 15 different recievers making receptions. The defense, that seemed to have left with Rex, proved they still are here, only allowing one Redskins drive to last over 22 yards & a 58-yard march that ended in a lost fumble. This test was a good practice to try the whole team's capabilites & see what kind of talent we have to work with. Next we'll get the chance to shut ol' Rex up, we play the Jets Monnday 08/24 @ 5pm Pacific. Let's show him we now have offense that can stop his defense & a defense that doesn't need him to succeed.

Vick signs 2 year with Eagles, bullet dodged

Vick agreed to a 2 year deal with Philadelphia last Thursday. He won't be able to play until December, but the press will surely be following him & the Eagles until he steps foot on the field.

How do I feel about this, fine. Let Phillie have him, he is just going to atract 1 press attention & 2 PETA haters. I wouldn't be surprised if fans start a boycott & on the road in hippie cities (SF) people protest (I suggest throwing dog shit). Either way I feel Vick is too old now & McNabb's old too! They have a decent backup, but Vick's skills were going downhill towards the end before his convictions, & not playing for the time he was out of the league couldn't have helped.

We're definitely going to start seeing more Wildcat plays now that they have a decent backup QB. We'll have to wait til December, which may be too late if the Eagles play fine without him for most of the season. Then again if they perform poorly his coming in maybe too late to save the season at that point. Either way the dogs are out, I propose the team name be changed to the Beagles.

Vick a possible option in Baltimore

There are several speculations that Vick will be signing sometime this week. Some people have said that Baltimore may be one of his main options. Is this a good or bad thing? Obviously the controversy & publicity will be sure to follow him (after his whole dog fight debacle). But with Vick could Baltimore benefit? The option of have 2-3 passers at a time on the field is going to make for more Wildcat offense moves. We saw some of the wildcat offense with Smith & Flacco last year, you throw Vick on the field the defense is sure to be thrown off guard. Then again are we going to be having PETA protests every game throwing dog shit etc.? All the speculations should come to a conclusion before the end of the week & then we'll either have to take the lumps now or forget the notion. Let us know Mike.

Ravens get a new Cuzzoach

West coast sub coach came to training camp yesterday. Cousin Snoop came to hang out with some of the players & gave some input on our D for the year. Snoop's actually a huge Steelers fan but I think he's seeing how much better Baltimore actually is. There were a lot of reporters messing up Snoop's shizzle talk which made for some good laughs. Check out the video for Snoop's input on our D-fizzle. I wonder if he hung out with Felicia Pearson while he was in B-more?

Snoop Dogg Feat Pharrell - Drop It Like It's Hot - kewego
Snoop Dogg Feat Pharrell - Drop It Like It's Hot

Keywords: snoop dogg feat pharrell - drop it like its hot

Video from benji27

Mason's unretired finally

I think when Mason claimed he was retiring everyone was shocked & he was like good maybe this will make everyone think twice about my worth. We all saw his leaving as a huge loss to our Offense & realized we need him more than we need to pick up a new WR. After the 3 weeks of waiting Mason officially announced he would stay with us for 2009. I'm glad to get our ol' 12 year veteran back! He isn't the best WR out there, but he is a huge part of our team. He's been with us for a while & I think he's still got a couple more years left in him. (Or at least until we get the cash to get someone else). But either way I'm glad to see him stay, welcome back Mason.

Flacco for Reebok, Mason still undecided on retirement claim

Joe Flacco in the Reebok: NFL Fantasy Files. Nice. Can't wait til the season starts to see these spots on during the games. Next year should be a good sophmore year for Joey, he's always been referred to as "growing" & he doesn't have the ego that most QB get after they know they're good. Humility & talent make for greatness & I think we can see this in Joe.

Back to the Mason drama. He still has yet to sign any retirement papers, so was this a ploy to try to pull in more money & extension on his contract? Some believe this was a tactic to bring in more money, but we'll have to wait & see what he decides. Harbaugh & Mason did meet on Tuesday to discuss his announcement, but there didn't seem to be a resolution as to what he would decide. Harbaugh said, "From a coaching standpoint, I think we have a chance to be a really good team, and if Derrick Mason is a part of it, that makes us even stronger," Harbaugh said. "But if he's not, we're still going to be a really good team. It comes down to Derrick and where his mind is at. He's the only one that can decide that."
Mason should stick with us, everyone in Baltimore loves him, he's kind of getting old, & I don't think he'll get what he wants with any other team. So just come back Mason we need you & you need us, whether you know it or not.

Suggs signed to 6 YEARS BABY!

Finally Suggs held out as long as possible, but its final he's staying here this time for 6 years. The final papers will be signed this afternoon to keep him in Baltimore.


Now since that matter has been dealt with we need to turn our attention to our Wide Reciever problem. Clayton & Williams are currently the top slots. New veteran Washington may be stepping in, if Williams is injured....again. We also have Marcus Smith and Justin Harper, who have yet to be used on the field. If these guys step up we may have some sleepers. One more thing that we have up our sleeves is Troy Smith. WE saw him play little roles in the wildcat offense last season, but at camp he's been all over the field playing a lot of positions. Hopefully this arsenal in our offense is enough to help the pass game.

WTF! Mason retiring? Suggs still not signed!

JockLife.com has reported that Derrick Mason will be retiring from football. Although BR.com has said that, "Still, the 35-year-old receiver has not yet filed his official retirement papers with the league office.

“For any player to retire, he has to send a letter to the NFL stating this,” said Ravens senior vice president of public and community relations Kevin Byrne. “Derrick Mason has not done that.”

Mason did say, “I have been thinking about this since the season ended,” Mason continued. “Emotionally I am just not that enthused. I have not been that enthused to get up and work out…it was getting to that point. This decision has nothing to do with the contract situation; I have made enough money, more than enough money. Emotionally there are things that are more important.

It’s time right now. I don’t know what’s going to happen from here, but it’s going to be really nice to see what life has in store for me. What I want people to remember about my NFL career is that I played hard…played hard in practice and the game. I tried to make everyone better and would do anything to help.” which eludes he will not be returning for another season.

In other team shattering news, Suggs has yet to resign with us!! This will be more devastating to our D, than if Ray left.
"NFL teams have until 4 p.m. on Wednesday, July 15 to lock players sporting the franchise tag into new deals. If not, Baltimore will lose the right to negotiate with the three-time Pro Bowler until the end of the 2009 campaign."
-BR.com
They went on to say that Ozzie & Suggs are working hard on finalizing his deal, but they still have yet to do so. Ozzie clearly expressed his want to keep Suggs in Bmore, but with his contract we're probably going to have to dish out more money (to which we might not have after the other players get paid).

Now if Mason leaves this may put another knot in the finalizing of Suggs. If they want to pick a new guy up (1st stringer) it's going to cost them. The only other options we have are going to have to step up big if they want to fill Mason's 1st string shoes. Things are starting to get hairy & the season is getting close.

Sad Day, McNair found dead

Former Raven's Quarterback Steve McNair was found dead yesterday in what police believe to be a murder suicide case. McNair was the Ravens quarterback for two seasons from 2006-2007. He helped the Ravens reach a 13–3 record and an AFC North Championship in 07'. All his teammates & friends only had good things to say about him during the the time that they knew him. Former Titan & current Raven, Samari Rolle said,
"Steve was the ultimate man, first of all. I played with Steve every year of my career, except for two, and got to know his family during that time. He was such a good family man. My prayers are with them at this tough time. I still can’t even believe it. To lose such a good friend and a good man so soon doesn’t make sense."

“If you were going to draw a football player, the physical part, the mental part, everything about being a professional, he is your guy. I can’t even wrap my arms around it. It is a sad, sad day. The world lost a great man today."
-BR.com
Several other Ravens players reflected on his contributions to the team for the short time he was with us.

He was a great player on & off the field & he will be missed by all.

Washington agress to 1 year

Kelley Washington (formerly from NE) veteran WR came to work out with prospective teams & after seeing his potential the Ravens have decided they want him & Washington decided Baltimore is the place for him. Along with Washington the Ravens also worked out with Jerry Porter & Tab Perry who's expectations fell short after their shotty performances at training camp. The Ravens have been looking to bring in another pair of hands to help out on the pass game. After they didn't take anyone from the draft (as everyone expected/wanted) we've all been waiting to see what Ozzie was going to do about the situation. At first the idea of bringing Boldin in was being thrown around, but I think that in would be the answer but those thoughts were put to rest, since we don't have the $$ he wants & what he wants I don't think he worth. Then Newsome said we already have a receiver on the roster, Demetrius Williams, but once again he is sidelined with an injury...again (how many injuries/lack of playing does it take before you need to get rid of a player?). So with these options not available a couple of veterans were brought in to see if we could get a deal on someone. Washington stepped up & showed he wanted to be part of the team & that he wants to go to work. He also practiced down the beltway with the Redskins, but obviously he came back to Baltimore. The deal hasn't been fully finalized but after a quick physical the deal should be done by next week. Welcome aboard Washington, don't worry you'll actually get to touch the ball now that you Moss isn't on your team anymore. Let's see if you can help us out.

Willie Anderson put to Reserve/Retired list

I think we knew this was coming, Willie Anderson was drafted by the Ravens last minute after the Bengals cut him this past year. He definitely gave our O-line strength making room for our RB's & giving protection for good ol' joey boy, but with our first round pick (Oher) was drafted in Willie's position I think the young blood was destined to take over. Willie has been battling injuries for a while & I think being a 13 year veteran his injuries aren't going to any better. Thanks for your help in Baltimore for the short time you were here.

Neal Leaves Baltimore

Lorenzo Neal agreed to a deal with the Oakland Raiders last Friday. This will be Neal's 17th season playing ball. With the Ravens the Fullback played all 16 games making holes for our RBs to get yards & sometimes getting the ball to get 1st downs himself. He was only with the Ravens for a year but the veteran proved he still got value. Neal was previously with SD so hes going back to Cali & we'll see if he helps out Northern Cali as much as he did with us. With Neal leaving, Ravens are saying McClain will be reverting back to his original FB position (which he was drafted to the Pro Bowl for) . McClain ran the ball last year for the most part, along side of Rice & McGahee, but he said “With the success I had last year at halfback, I'm leaning more towards tailback, but you know me, I’m going to play my role and do whatever I can to help the team. I know they've got a plan for us and it involves the whole 11.” We'll see how this move effects out offense, since performance wise I think McClain was better than McGahee & Rice, but if McGahee can ever get to the 100% he was at 2 years ago he should be able to step it up again. I think this will definitely be affecting our run game next year, hopefully our airborne attack gets better with Flacco.

Draft 2009 Results

Draft 2009 results:

Rd 1, Pick 23 (23)	Michael Oher OT
Rd 2, Pick 25 (57)	Paul Kruger DE
Rd 3, Pick 24 (88)	Lardarius Webb CB
Rd 5, Pick 1 (137)	Jason Phillips ILB
Rd 5, Pick 13 (149)	Davon Drew TE
Rd 6, Pick 12 (185)	Cedric Peerman RB

Michael Oher (OT) picked first round (23rd pick after we traded up from the Patriots) will bring more protection for Flacco. Great pick, we did need more protection on the line & Oher will give it. With the other picks we added more arsenal for the defense which I guess this is a good idea I'm not sure it should have been priooritzed over the much needed recievers but our scouts & Newsome seemed to think so. Finally, we added another TE & RB which I really don't think we needed, but I guess they'll be helpful in the long run sitting on the back burner. So DHB was drafted (I feel way to prematurely & who I wanted mainly because he was from MD & was sick at the combine) by Oakland our chances of snatching him were put to rest. The other WR's that had been on people minds: Kenny Britt (Rutgers) taken by Tennessee, Hakeem Nicks (UNC) taken by the Giants, & Brian Robiskie (Ohio State) by Cleveland I think we're all wondering what Newsome plans to do about our need for more WR's.
He reported to the Sun "I will again say this: We went to the AFC chapionship game with the guys that we had, and Demetrius was not healthy. We get a healthy Demetrius Williams back -- and he's working toward that -- then with the way we're going to be able to protect it, the way Joe Flacco can throw it, the way our running backs can run it, and the way we play defense and special teams, we'll be around at the end of December and January just with the team we have right now. I feel very good about that." - Newsome. So apparently we're just gonna stick with what we got with the WR's. I can't argue too much with this decision, Mason & Clayton did fine last season (even better than usual with Flacco throwing better than our usual QB's). Come next year they should perform just as well if not better now that they know Flacco can get it to them. I think we can hold out on picking up more WR's at least 1 more year before our current WR's ages catch up with their careers. So overall our picks were a OK, not spectacular & not exactly what everyone wanted but still smart (can't get everyone at 26th). Even with all the players drafted you can't look too much into their college & combine stats. When the season starts & the injuries come into play we'll see how these guys adapt to the League & their true potentials.

Anquan Boldin, Baltimore, ehhhhh.....

Now to address all this BS buzz on Anquan Boldin possibly coming to Baltimore. Here's what I thinkz, I don't really think he's that great, I don't really want him, BUUUUUT in Newsome I trust. Also, it's my general belief that Baltimore CAN make players that were sub-par, with some other team, better. I actually don't think we should take him for these reasons:
1. Granted he took a back seat to Fitzgerald (everyone WR in the league did), I feel he's always been some what of a #2 (which we basically already have 2 of).
2. I hope we can get Heyward-bey, but after his sick performance at the combine I dunno if he'll stick around long enough for us to snatch him. Despite this fact I think we can either pick up someone else who can grow with Flacco, & I would rather take my chances with some young blood rather than spend all my money on some older #2.
3. Give that extra money to keep Suggs!! The Turtle deserves it. I know you're just trying to be business men just in case he gets real injured but doesn't he deserve the long term pay he's works for everey game?!?!
Having said all this I still trust Newsome's descision making skills, he hasn't steered us too wrong thus far, so whatever he goes. Let me know Ozzie.

Ray Lewis ≥ A Swat Team's Battering Ram?

Sport's Science is a pretty cool show on FSN. I've seen it a couple times before...pretty interesting. Although, I'm no scientist, I feel there are other factors that play a role with the athletes & the "science" of what they're doing. Anyways, Ray Lewis was recently featured on the show (video on BR.com also) & they compared his Bull Rush vs. the force of a SWAT teams battering ram. I felt like they probably should've done this test against either a Shittsburgh Rothshitberger or any WR but they thought it would test be more affective against the door. Needless to say the door lost, you can check out what happens in the vid above (although I feel like we already knew Ray is sick & will destroy anything in his path, already). I did have one problem with this segment though, in the highlights bull rushes they freaking have a clip of some Colts guy taking Flacco out! WTH not bad enough you show Flacco getting sacked you gotta have a Colts guy doing it. I notice all the networks like showing Flacco getting his, check any of the motages on ESPN or CBS when they show random highlights of the upcoming teams or whatever they'll show a clip of Flacco getting hit. Real Dumb, but that's fine keep showing those clips & ignore his huge 45 yarders thats fine. I guess you gotta keep sucking on those Brady's, Mannings' (both), & Roethlisberger's balls, it only keeps Flacco's passes looking sweeter.

Ravens 2009 Schedule is Up

PRE-SEASON:

1. Thurs, Aug. 13 vs. Washington Redskins......4:30 p.m.
2. Mon, Aug. 24 vs. New York Jets....................5 p.m.
3. Sat, Aug. 29 @ Carolina Panthers.................5 p.m.
4. Thurs, Sept. 3 @ Atlanta Falcons..................4:30 p.m.

REGULAR:

1. Sun, Sept. 13 vs. Kansas City Chiefs...............10 a.m.
   
2. Sun, Sept. 20 @ San Diego Chargers.............1:15 p.m.
3. Sun, Sept. 27 vs. Cleveland Browns................10 a.m.
4. Sun, Oct. 4 @ New England Patriots..............10 a.m.
   
5. Sun, Oct. 11 vs. Cincinnati Bengals.................10 a.m.
   
6. Sun, Oct. 18 @ Minnesota Vikings.................10 a.m.
   
7. Bye
8. Sun, Nov. 1 vs. Denver Broncos......................10 a.m.
9. Sun, Nov. 8 @ Cincinnati Bengals..................10 a.m.
10. Mon, Nov. 16 @ Cleveland Browns.................5:30 p.m.
11. Sun, Nov. 22 vs. Indianapolis Colts................10 a.m.
12. Sun, Nov. 29 vs. Pittsburgh Steelers...............5:20 p.m.
13. Mon, Dec. 7 @ Green Bay Packers..................5:30 p.m.
14. Sun, Dec. 13 vs. Detroit Lions.........................10 a.m.
    
15. Sun, Dec. 20 vs. Chicago Bears.......................10 a.m.
    
16. Sun, Dec. 27 @ Pittsburgh Steelers................10 a.m.
17. Sun, Jan. 3 @ Oakland Raiders.......................1:15 p.m.

Times are in Pacific (for us West Coasters), most of these games are gonna be on the NFL network for us too. Obviously not the Monday Night & Prime Time ones, but probably all the 10am's. Now for my predictions with this year (most of which I can only base on past performances) I'm gonna go ahead and say we have a pretty easy season. I think we can chalk these teams up as W's: OAK, DET (they will never be good), CLE, & CIN. Oakland & Detroit I don't think I need to explain. Although we are in Oakland, they will still be terrible & unless there's some kind of divine intervention, we will kill them. Cleveland will be pretty bad still & Cincinnati with the loss of Housh I predict they may take DET's place with a 0 win year.
Now, for the rest of the games:
KC: has 2nd round pick: could help them get a little better, but we should still be able to take them down.
SD: LT is still there & Rivers (if he can find someone) might be a mini threat but I feel good about this one even though we are away (also predicting at least 1 pick with Reedfense).
NE: away real tough especially with Brady coming back I'm gonna hope for the best but expect the worst.
MINN, eh, Peterson is good, but thats about all we have to worry about with them even away from home.
DEN: with the loss of Cutler I think these guys might be done next year.
IND: this is a toss up I don't really know what to expect with them, I'm gonna say this is a toss up (especially at home).
PITT: going to be tough....again, I don't wanna see anymore inconclusive call this year though!
GB: I don't know about this, Rogers is still pretty good. All I know it will be cold & I don't want to be there
CHI: OK, they may be a real threat this year. Adding Cutler, with Forte, & their D from last year they may be pretty, pretty, pretty good. I don't want to think about this game but hopefully home field advantage can get us a win.

I don't really care about the preseason stuff but I wanna see the Jets & Skins games (Skins just cause they're gonna loose)

Rolle is Back 4 YRs/ 4 Good also Boller peaced out! CYA!

I LIED!!!! Rolle you wanted to go, but leavings so hard when you're team is this good. Yesterday Samari Rolle signed a 4 year deal to stay with Baltimore. Although I think he may be taking a back seat to Carr, I think he will still see the field more than Washington (who I think semi-sucks) & our new guy Foxsworth (who needs to prove his worth to me before I say anything). I still wish we got to keep Leonhard & McCalister who I think were the ultimate, but I guess this new coach & new blood deal will refresh the team to something, hopefully, better. Either way, Rolle is back & I'm expecting him to pick it up this season!! I don't wanna see anymore WR's burning you off the line, I want more interceptions & I want better coverage! You're at the "winding down career" age of 32 so maybe Ray talked you into staying with him here & finishing with a good team. Let's finish on a high note. THANKS! In other celebration news Bollers gone!! w00000000t! The Rams signed him to their team last Saturday. Have fun with that St. Louis, maybe he can do something for your team, other than cower & throw interceptions.

Ravens loose another Secondary: Ivy

Are our players serious?!?! The defensive coordinator leaves & basically our defense explodes. Half the defense become free agents & the other half opt to be released. Last thursday Corey Ivy signed with the Cleveland Browns to reunite with the old team & our old RB Jamal Lewis. But keeping up with our Offense reinforcement we signed Jared Gaither to left tackle. It looks like we're trying to turn the team more as an Offensive threat as well as keeping up with our Defensive strength. Gaither grew up in MD (like our new CB Foxworth) so I think this will add to his playing abilities. We still are waiting on our draft picks so we will have some opportunities to get some good players. Overall I feel that players that come to Baltimore only exceed expectations. Even players that were sub par at prior franchises, when they come to Baltimore they seem to play better than they did before. Hopefully we'll continue our trend of building players to be some of the greatest in the league.

Rolle Out Carr IN! Also Ravens add TE L.J. Smith to the roster

Carr official signed on board with us today. He will be replacing Rolle (who wanted out) who was waived today. Carr looks good to me, to be honest I hadn't seen as much from Rolle as I did from Leonhard this season. McCalister was 10x's better than Rolle but with him on IR Ivy, Washington, Rolle were all doing C-Macs work. Carr was a big part of one of the best Defense's in the leauge. He should be a great addition to our already well known D. In offensive news L.J. Smith from the Eagles will be signing on with the Ravens (according to ESPN). He was pretty good last season (as far as TE's go), he was one of the best back in 2006. If Heap continues to help with the blocking & Flacco gets another pair of hands he could step up our offense drastically. Smith worked with Harbaugh in Philadelphia so that previous relationship should help get the ball rolling with getting Smith some looks. So, the future is brightening up for us.

Ravens still looking for Defensive Secondary & Recievers

Couple new bits of news to announce, the Ravens are currently in negotiations with cornerback Chris Carr (from Tennesee). He hasn't officially signed anything, but there have been reports he will be coming to Baltimore. Carr had 29 tackles & 1 INT last season with Tenn. I feel any player from Tennessee will be a defensive boost for any team. The Ravens secondary is in some need of new blood & any player half decent (I feel) will play better D for us when you got Ray screaming in your face. Now to the offensive scouting. The team is also looking for WR's, Torry Holt (STL) is now free & he seems like a viable addition. Mason & Clayton are Flacco's main go-to guys, other than them our offense is mainly RB's & FB's that run. If we can get some more guys to go down field we could get some more offisive TD's (opposed to our main sccoring methods of INT's & FG's). Another worry is that Mason said he's looking for a contract extension. He's getting older & trying to get an extension might hurt him more than it would the team. Some other WR's on the market are: Marvin Harrison (IND), Amani Toomer (NYG), Shaun McDonald (DET), Lance Moore (NO). All these guys are kind of secondary, but any adds for Flacco to look at will help our stats as well as any of the WR's we pick up (maybe more so on our team than where they were prior).

More Ravens Defense Casualties

Well, more bad news. He had been talking to the media for a while about this, but cornerback Samari Rolle will be put on the waiver list on Monday. Is there no loyatly to this city, the team. Are all you guys businessmen, that just want money & whichever team pays you'll go to! That's fine! We'll rebuild, we'll bring in the people who care about football & want to play. Who care more about the fans than money. So good, you want to go? Go back to Tennessee or wherever, Rolle, we'll be fine! There's still time to think/strategize about what players we need to recruit & before the draft. I trust Newsome's judgment, although we'll have to see how (Ryan's replacement) Mattison picks. Keep the Defensive tradition going in Baltimore!

Good News & New Blood! RAY LEWIS IS STAYING IN BALTIMORE

Now, after all our losses noted we do have some good news to announce. [drum roll] According to the Ravens website, "After a storied 13-year career in Baltimore, Ray Lewis will continue that tenure after the Ravens reached an agreement on a multi-year contract with the linebacker Wednesday afternoon." w0000t!!! It was a little nail biting to think Ray would leave us, but it looks like he's gonna stay. We need the leadership (especially with the new players coming in) & he is our face player. When anyone thinks of the Ravens the main person they think of is Lewis, how can you take that away!?!?? There is still some contract ironing to finalize the agreement over the next couple weeks but basically its official. PHEW! Now to the new hires: we got new center: Matt Birk from Minnesota & new cornerback Domonique Foxworth from Atlanta. These new guys seem pretty decent Birk is a six time pro bowler & I think he'll give Flacco the protection he needs. Foxworth, I don't know too much about. His stats show he's made 1 interception each year, for the 4 years he's been playing. He was on the Broncos but then only in Atlanta for a year (so I don't know what that says). He is from Maryland though, grew up here & played for the Terps, so hopefully that plays a role in his success. We'll have to see what these guys are really capable of come game time, but I think they'll be good for the team. Let's hope Ray can make them better.

More Losses: Rex Ryan taking all defensive players he can in the league

Yes, I'm sorry to announce more players leaving us. Most of these free agents I expected to leave, but now its official. Bart Scott announced last Friday that he would be joining Rex in NY. Then, Leonhard announced yesterday he would join Scott on the Jets no surprise being Rex's favorite (he brought him to Baltimore & started him). Then we had the news of our center Jason Brown who signed with a huge ($37.5 million the most any center has received) contract to the Rams. What the hell is going on here!!! Flacco is saying he's not worried, but I don't think he/we will see these ripple effects until next fall. Now we have to go from here, take these losses into account & salvage what we can for next season. Also, these losses will be a factor come draft day, more to come soon (like a few minutes).

Cya Later Ravens Defense! CYA!!!

Well, Scott decided to go with Rex & the Jets. We also have Leonard & Ivy on the fence ready to hop over the fence to NY. Now they're saying Ray Lewis is adamant about leaving Baltimore too! Give him his damn money!! He's definitely earned it over the years! You're telling me you're gonna let the player go who's jersey is worn my 99% of the cities fans? That's sooooo dumb! I guess this is a business & you don't care about the fans who put their faith & money into this player since the franchise was brought to Baltimore. Lewis and Biscotti need to compromise to keep the fans happy. In terms of the other players, Scott can leave hes in the same position as Ray old, on his way out (sort of) but Lewis is still playing a lot better than Scott (at least last season). Ivy can leave we need a cornerback & I seen Ivy do nothing. McCalister leaving was a bigger deal. Lastly if they're going to pour money on anyone give it to Leonhard. I think he's worth more than any of these players. Lewis should get money but I would try to give a little more to Leonhard to keep him here. He's probably going to go to Ryan though because the only reason he came to Baltimore & played as much as he did.

Got the Franchise BOY!

Yup, we like him, Suggs: THE TURTLE (I call him the turtle cause he looks like a snapping turtle)!!!! He snatches the ball from the QBs & gets those sacks! Ravens officially put the franchise title on Suggs & he was well worth it. It was a question whether he would return since he would be a free agent in a week, but in a recent interview he said he WOULD take the hometown discount Biscotti mentioned earlier to Ray Lewis. I think we need Suggs more than Lewis or Scott. After this season you can see Suggs progressing, where as Lewis & Scott are starting to show their ages. We would love to keep all of them but if they think they're worth more to another team that will pay then let them go. We have a new QB, new head coach, & its a new team ready for a new year.

McAlister gets cut

Chis McAlister hardly played at all this year with an injured knee that put him on the IR list early in the season. But even with the injured knee there were rumors that he had recovered & there were other reasons (maybe Harbaugh related) that he wasn't on the field. McAlister has been a great asset to the team & the first of the defense roster casualties. The only person from the last season that had played cornerback as well as McAlister was either Samari Rolle or Jim Leonhard (although he was technically a safety). Corey Ivy & Fabian Washington were constantly being beat by WRs last season & their coverage was sub par at best. These guys need to step up their game if were going to keep our Defense reputation or else we need to look for someone in the draft.

No more Island Pro Bowl

Several Ravens have enjoyed going to Hawaii after the season has ended to participate in the Pro Bowl. Players such as Ed Reed, Terrell Suggs, Ray Lewis & (Finally an offensive player) Le'Ron McLain all went to the Pro Bowl this year only to receive the news that the Bowl will no longer be held in Hawaii. According to Fox Sports the League has decided to move the game back to the Dolphins Stadium in 2010. Not only that, but they're also moving the date to weekend between the conference championships the Super Bowl. The date change doesn't really make any sense to me. The players already don't play their hardest because its the end of the season & no one wants to get injured. How are they going to have the players that are going to the Superbowl play the weekend before? This is obviously the work of some fat cat bosses to try to get more rating/ affiliates bullshit. No one will watch (still) & I bet the players that are going to the Superbowl either don't show up or if they do don't play, because why take that risk?!?!? Dumb descision.

Fumblerooskie Fun at the Probowl

Even after the football season is over Harbaugh is still having some offense fun at the Pro Bowl yesterday. The AFC took the lead Le'Ron McClain running the ball in with this Fumblerooskie play. It was pretty hilarious to see, but it definitely worked. I wanna see more plays like this in the NFL & more importantly in the Ravens playbook. I say whatever works & wildcat plays are more fun than trying to run the ball up the middle & getting nothing every time.

Superbowl Sobe Spot

So "Sobe" had a superbowl ad with those stupid dancing lizards again & they had a bunch of guys including Ray Lewis doing the ballet "Swan Lake". I understand Ray's career is winding down so he needs to get some endorsements quick, but Sobe?!? Lizzards?!?! Also, it was broadcasted in 3D,which I thought was a fad then went out of style in the 80's (All you cretive directors trying to jump on the 80's style wagon STOP IT!). The commercial looks dumb without the glasses & I'm pretty sure 99% of viewers that didn't have the glasses/ even knew they were supposed to get them (or where). Now my problems with Sobe. First off has anyone tasted that drink it tastes like the worst kool aid flavor without enough powder & no sugar. It's pretty much one of the worst "sports" drinks I've ever had. Now the poblems with Ray... YOU ARE DOING ballet! & WTF with that hat who are you Neyo or Michael Jackson? NO! Take that off!! That's fine, I'm done my complaints (for now). I guess when you're one of the most feared linebacker in the NFL you don't have to worry about looking like a wuss, you can do whatever you want. Either way Ray Ray will get paid & that's all the really matters, well that & the fact he needs to stay with the Ravens til retirement. Stay in Baltimore, NOWWW!!!!

Steelers Win Superbowl.....again

Well, Steelers won the superbowl, again. They are now the only team to win , the most in franchise history. It's getting really annoying/ boring! There were a lot of rediculous plays that went down. 1. Right before the the half Steelers Line backer James Harrison intercepted Warner pass to run back a 100yd touchdown. All they needed to do is get him out of bounds at any point & they could have avoided being down +7. There was no time on the clock left & the Steelers wouldn't be able to get their special teams on the field for a Fiel Goal. But no, had to let him run all the way to the other end zone. The only other amazing thing was that the Cardinals didn't throw to Larry Fitzgerald almost the whole first half. He was one of the best recievers this season. All Warner had to do is put the ball clost to him & its basically +10yds at least. But nooo could't get the offense going til the second half. Overall it was a heartbreaking experience to see Arizona continue not winning superbowls & Steelers getting another Superbowl. I think I speak for most everyone in the country when I say Pittsburgh is the worst city & now the Steelers continue to be the single worst of all time.

Rex Ryan leaves us

Our defensive coordinator Rex Ryan had been in talks with the Jets to become their new head coach & only an hour after our loss he accepted the position. He's been such a great asset to our team keeping Baltimore one of the best defenses in the league for the time he's been with us. It's sad he has to leave & I will miss his defensive coordinating. Hopefully the Greg Mattison the newly named coordinator will be able to live up to Ryan's legacy. Mattison has a college defensive coordinator & has had 18 students become NFL players. We'll see if he the next Harbaugh when it comes to coaching though.

Final Game Concludes a great season

Well, our seasons finally been put to an end. I'm still agonizing over this loss not only was it the end of our season but it was our 3rd loss to the Steelers which was the final nail on the coffin. I feel like this season was reminiscent of our 2000 season when we won the Superbowl. Our defense was playing like they were just drafted & our offense was giving the defense hope by doing better than anyone expected. This game was not the worst we've played but we needed to play 110% & we slipped up a couple times which no one can afford to do in a championship game. I feel the offense started to panic when Flacco threw a horrible pass which Polamalu picked off for a TD. This was the extra twist of the knife already in our hearts. Then with minutes remaining things got even worse when McGahee took a helmet to helmet hit & was knocked unconscious. Later that evening it was announced that he fully recovered & discharged from the hospital but it was a scare when he was not moving & on the gurney.
This season was great but I feel like it was one of our last chances to get another ring. Also, our story would have been so great with a rookie QB & rookie head coach going to the superbowl when no one expected them to accomplish anything. Now we are looking at a huge turnover of coaching & possibly players. Our defensive coordinator Rex Ryan announced his acceptance to be the Jets head coach (only 1hr after our loss WTF). Almost all our best defenders up as free agents: Ray Lewis, Terrell Suggs, Bart Scott, center Jason Brown, Jim Leonhard, Lorenzo Neal, & Matt Stover. Many of these players have said they would love to come back, but I'm positive several franchises would love to pay to aquire them as well. Most of these defenders are getting older & have several injuries so I'm sure retirement is also a possibility. The fact is next year we will be lucky to see what we have seen this year & I only hope we can keep our trademark defensive. For now I'm going to have to root for Warner & Fitzgerald to get the teams first Superbowl championship because the Steelers definitely deserve to loose.

DIVISION GAME vs TERRRRRRIBLE TITANS

I was not looking forward to this matchup again. Titans were the number 1 seat this year with a 13-3 season. With 2 losses because they didnt have all theirl first stingers in. They had beat us before, but only by a field goal, HOW IRONIC! sorry Fisher (shave that grey stache!) not last week! That's right the underdog rookie QB & head coach beat the odds despite all you NASAYERS! no one thought we could do it but we did. There were a couple sketch calls Flacco shouldve got a delay of game on one play, but we didn't & theres no review for that so whatever. We've been getting screwed with bullshit calls all season so now it's our turn to benefit. Also, there was a point we were backed up to the 1yd line and they claimed flacco stepped out of bound but if you look closely at the replay it's clear he didn't. So tomorrow if our 3rd rematch with our old rivals. We need everyone to step it up more than ever and play through the pain. We got a lot of people hurt playing the titans but I believe we can still do it. We need to prove everyone who is still nasaying us that we are who we are. Whatever happens Pittsburgh will continue to be the worst as well as anybody associated or who are fans of the city.