What If It Wasn't Cam?

[HotInHere]

I am getting ready to duck as I ask this question. Clearly just about everyone on this board -- including myself -- is pretty well convinced that Cam was holding this offense back, and now that he is gone, this offense will be among the top offenses in the NFL. In other words, what we saw under Caldwell for the last few games plus the playoffs is what we can expect to see this year. But what if we are wrong?

A few things to remember... The offense under Cam wasn't inept. They regularly put up 30 points. At times they looked like world beaters. What was maddening was that at other times they looked completely lost -- for halves, for entire games even, and often against sub-par opponents. They would go through stretches where three-play drives were derailed by errant throws, dropped passes, missed blocks, and untimely penalties. And even under Caldwell, the same disappearances occurred (e.g. the first half of the AFCC, the second half of the SB, and of course the entire Denver regular season game.)

So if we see the same thing, e.g. we get two first downs in the entire first half of the Browns game, who gets the blame then?

[MinnesotaRaven]

I think you could have added WR's to an option.

[Mista T]

Easy one: Ozzie, for giving away our best WR, merely to save $2 million

[NCRAVEN]

Easy one: Ozzie, for giving away our best WR, merely to save $2 million

It was only 2?

[RavensRule21215]

It was only 2?

The difference between 4 & 6. Supposedly, the Ravens were willing to pay Boldin $4M, but not $6M, so yeah...a $2M differential.

[Haloti92]

It was only 2?

We saved $6M in the end, but we attempted to keep him for only $2M less.

I guess it depends on how you look at it or phrase it, in terms of what happened.

[RavensRule21215]

Door #6: It was Cam -- plain and simple. But what happens beyond that is everyone's responsibility. Everyone has a part to play, and everyone needs to do his job in order for the offense to work, from the O-line coach to the field general to the front office. That's why it's a team sport. In Cam's case, he overshadowed so many bases it's fair to pin the blame primarily on him. Now that he's gone, it's a different story.

[RavensNTerps]

Easy one: Ozzie, for giving away our best WR, merely to save $2 million

So if the offense is bad and we have Boldin, it is Cameron's fault.

If the offense is bad and we don't have Boldin it is Ozzie's fault.

Got it.

[Ravenswintitle]

There will be times when they struggle, it's coming. The game is about ebb and flow and there will be ups and downs in each game and each season.

Each situation will have to be viewed independently before I'm willing to say who's 'at fault'.

[Haloti92]

So if the offense is bad and we have Boldin, it is Cameron's fault.

If the offense is bad and we don't have Boldin it is Ozzie's fault.

Got it.

I don't really see any inconsistency with that stance (not that I necessarily fully agree with it). Because in between those two things was: offense was great, no Cam, we win SB, and Boldin contributes mightily.

[steelerhater]

[QUOTE=RavensNTerps;645051]So if the offense is bad and we have Boldin, it is Cameron's fault.

If the offense is bad and we don't have Boldin it is Ozzie's fault.

Got it.[/QUOTE

We could've had a few years of how Boldin looked in the playoffs if Cam knew how to use him correctly. It blows my mind how the Ravens trade for one of the best possession receivers in the game and Cam keeps sending him on 9 routes down the sidelines. Its like bringing in Dan Marino to run the read option.

[mfdoom42]

Easy one: Ozzie, for giving away our best WR, merely to save $2 million

Boldin never had a great season in Baltimore, and the $6M (not $2M) that was saved in cap space was used to acquire Elvis Dumervil and Michael Huff. Move on.