Click on my profile, look at my started threads. Take a look at my "Bold Predictions thread." Then get back to me.
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(with deep apologies to CincyCat, a class act bengals fan!):
Living in Cincinnati, you really learn to appreciate what we have with our Ravens. Being landlocked here, I often have to defend my Ravens against some of their more outspoken (and drunk at tailgating) fans.
This is quickly accomplished by mentioning that Reagan was president the last time they won a playoff game.
Even more embarassing, Flacco in his 1st 4 years, earned more playoff wins than the entire Bengals franchise history. My Brother in Law was a huge Flacco basher and this helped to keep him in check.
Five minutes after we hoisted the Lombardi, though, I received a text from him that simply said: "I was wrong about Flacco".
Actually, it was bittersweet. I had stored some of his more caustic e-mails about Flacco with the intention of returning them to him in the eventuality that Flacco won a SB (MVP was a bonus). Some mentioned the "Dilfer Curse" and we'd "never win a SB with Flacco at the helm". The more recent ones referred to "Flake-O, the nerd" and put him in the group of "loser QB's like Romo, Cutler, etc.that will never see a title".
I was going to throw them in his face, but couldn't after his humble "I was wrong" admission, so I decided to take the high road as he had done. Oh well.
after the ravens run this year and their competitivness the last several years i am convinced winning is as much about culture as it is talent. i didn't realize newsome was so young.he is in his early 50's. as long as bisciotti is around baltimore will be a competitor. it starts at the top.
The Ravens Organization is the Real Gold Standard when it comes to the NFL!
Please share this with your Bro. in law
http://www.youtube.com/v/ktDO_LtGSLM
I think this applies to him as well as many other critics as it relates to what Joe would say to them.
I'd be ecstatic with a long-run average anywhere close to a Super Bowl every 8.5 years. There are 32 teams in the NFL, so that's about 4x as many as the average franchise will see.
I think we're witnessing an era of great Ravens football right now, and we should enjoy being around for the history that the organization is creating. There's no guarantee it will last forever, and if history is any indicator it won't. To Colts had a great ride during the Unitas years, but eventually the team faded and even moved. The Orioles had an incredible run of sustained winning, but organizations inevitably change, and since then they've become a sub-par organization.
Looking at some of the greatest runs of success in NFL history, those teams eventually faded and sunk into periods of mediocrity. After winning 5 Super Bowls in a pretty condensed period, the 49ers only had 2 winning seasons from 1999-2010. The Cowboys have a great history of success, but they've been average since 1997. Even the Steelers were generally terrible before 1972 and very average from 1980-1991, and they've pretty much set the standard for sustained greatness in the Super Bowl era.
And quite frankly the Ravens haven't accomplished anything on the level of those organizations yet.
The Ravens are set up well with a young and highly competent owner and the FO is set up well with Ozzie. Hopefully DeCosta will step in and continue that. I think we're in an era of great Ravens football that could last a while longer. Enjoy it! Things inevitable change over time.
Are you seriously counting 68 as a championship year? Sorry, choking to the freaking Jets in one of the biggest upsets in sports history is nothing to brag about and should not be counted as a Baltimore championship even if it was before the merger and technically we were "NFL champions".
All I have to say is enjoy this run and really appreciate the effort our FO does to keep our team competitive. While I hope it doesn't happen if we don't make the playoffs next year just watch some our spoiled fanbase calling for John and Ozzie's head and asking for the roster to get blown up.