Re-Tooling the Baltimore Ravens

[GreatWhiteNorthRaven]

So I added the D and a more in depth Summary of how I'd go about it. I really wanna hear thoughts. I'm one of those guys that loves sports games for the GM features and fantasy rebuilds and what not, so this stuff intrigues me. We all have different ways to do it, so let's get everyone's opinion out there.

Quaterback

Currently on roster: Joseph Vincent Flacco (2018), Matt Schaub (2015), Vet to be signed as back up

The problem: Basically a nil for this group. We have a franchise QB. He tore his ACL, which sucks ass. He should be back for next season, so I'm not going to put any heavy investment into a backup. Schaub is garbage, but is fine for a backup.

Solution: Schaub expries after this year so the question is where do we get a QB? My approach is to sign an average QB who can give good practice reps and serve as a serviceable back up in the event Flacco goes down again. Though I am mostly on the train that if Flacco goes down we're pretty much screwed. Unfortuantely, we can't invest a high draft pick in a promising rookie or sign a big money backup becuase we're broke.

Running Back

Currently on roster: Jarvarious Allen (2018), Justin Forsett (2017), Raheem Mostert (2015 - I think?), Terrance West (2015 - I think?), Terrance Mcgee (2015?), Juice (2016)

The Problem: Forsett is one of those guys that completely benefits off scheme. He has looked pretty good when the OL is playing well, but I don't think he's a long term soloution. We're going to find out in the coming weeks what Buck has. So as much as losing Forsett sucks, it will be good to see Buck. I hope West gets brought up to backup because I'd like to see him too. However, the problem is we don't have a long term #1. I think we need that no matter what our offensive philosophy is. Forsett, Allen and West would be a solid group of backups to a #1. Juice is exactly what we need at FB so no need to do anything there. He's here for at least another year.

Solution: With running backs I prefer to get one in the draft. We all know how wear and tear can work on a running back and paying a big contract to a FA could end badly. The Ray Rice scenario was a fluke. No crystal ball on earth could have seen that one coming, but we are seeing the effect of a big money contract. Personally, I'd like to see us draft a game breaker. They are suffering from diminishing value in the draft, but hell I'd even spend a 1st on the right guy if he was going ot give us that game changer in the back field.

Wide Receiver

Currently on Roster: Aiken, Kamar, Brown, Marlon, Butler, Jeremy, Clay, Kaelin, Givens, Chris, Morgan, Joseph, Steve Smith SR, Campanaro, Michael, Cam Worthy, Darren Waller, Breshad Perriman.

Problem: Holy jesus where do I begin? This group is a mess. SR looked fantastic this year and that was with next to nothing opposite him. Imagine we had a #1? I think Flacco would have put up a career number in every category. SR came to play. Honestly, the rest is trash. Nothing but depth. Maybe Campy could be a good change of pace slot guy (ie: Cole Beasley) to pull of an occasional big play, but he's going to suffer injury problems from the looks of things. Then there's Perriman. he'll be back next year, but who knows what we're getting so for the purposes of this I'm just going to classify him as a rookie first rounder instead of saying "future #1" or "bust".

Solution: INVEST INVEST INVEST. What I would like to see is another high draft pick (rounds 1-3) on a possession guy to compliment the skills that Perriman has. A guy who is going to make the catch and has solid hands. The role SR had this year was that Flacco could just throw it up and hope he'd hop up and get it. He's going to need that moving forward. Secondly, a FA signing for an actual starter. This may not happen this year becuase of our cap situation and being crippled by dead money, but in the next 2 years I would like to see an actual investment in a FA. This would give us a potential look of 3 starting quality guys who compliment one another and then some depth (resign Aiken and Campy? Decent depth). Right now we have nothing and the future is not bright. I would demand a FA signing and a high investment.

Tight End

Problem: Really the only huge negative I can find is Pitta's dead money. Again, freak injury. Not much you can do about that as a FO. I like this group. I think we have three guys to put out there and they can all make plays. We don't have a legit #1, but they seem to be working fine. With a WR group that can actually get some yards it opens the field even more. Williams and Boyle both have some potential and Gillmore can do his job well.

Solution: With Boyle looking good I wouldn't invest right away. We have Boyle, Williams and Gillmore till at least 2017. No need to waste a roster spot or a draft pick. It's also a cheap group as they're all on rookie deals, which is great for the next 2 seasons.

Offensive Line

Currently on Roster: Monroe (2018), Yanda (2019), KO (2015), Zuttah (2018), Hurst (2017), Wagner (2016), Wesley (2015?), Urshel (2017)

Problem: This group is interesting. We are likely going to see KO leave this year, which opens a hole. Zuttah could be cut. Monroe can't stay healthy. It's a bit of a hot mess.Health at LT is the problem. All healthy and in the right scheme the grouping of Monroe-KO-Zuttah-Yanda-Wagner was top 5 in the NFL. We haven't seen the same thing this year. I'm hesitant to blame it on personnel. I think it's a mixture of Monroe being gone and scheme. We're for sure going to see KO gone IMO. That opens a depth hole.

Solution: This ones tricky. Monroe isn't going to be cut, though his dead money would be lower after this season, but the man can't stay healthy and I don't trust Hurst to be a starter. I really don't know what to do here. I think we need to let KO go. We can use Urschel there as a starter and roll out Monroe-Urschel-Zuttah-Yanada-Wagner next year. This would be my decisions, but open to suggestions/input. My goal would be to use a mid round pick on a depth guy that can play G/T and then have Jensen. Giving us Jensen (G/C), Swing guy (G/T) and Hurst (T) backing up the 5 starters. No investment in FA IMO because it will need ot be allocated elsewhere.


Offense Overall
Honestly, we're 2 players away from a great unit. When you have a franchise QB you'll always be at least average. Add 2 play makers and a healthy line, this could be a top 10 unit. Yes I realize we still put up good numbers this year, so add play makers to the group and it would be very good.

[GreatWhiteNorthRaven]

Defensive Line

Currently on Roster: Canty (2016), Carl Davis (2018), Jernigan (2017), Williams (2016), Urban (2016), KLM (2016), Guy (2016)

The Problem: To me, this group is like the TE's. A solid group with good depth. I know DL is always a position to be drafting, but we don't need another investment this offseason. One could argue not next year either. Williams will hopefully be retained and Urban/KLM will serve as depth. There's no studs right now, but solid guys who can do very well with a good surrounding cast. Right now it's a good group cost-wise as most are rookie deals. Canty can't go after this year if it frees up money.

The Solution: Cheap FA help for depth or a late round pick on a guy like Tyson who will provide a little depth. No need for high investment in the next 2 drafts IMO. It needs to go elsewhere.

Outside Linebacker

Currently on Roster: Upshaw (2015), Smith (2018), Suggs (2018), Doom (2017)

The Problem In a word, aging veterans and injuries is the problem. I think Suggs will come back, but should be a more rotational guy, which means we need some fresh blood. Simple, we need to draft a good pass rusher, end of story.

The Solution: Investment in this years draft. First 2 rounds. Now is a perfect time to bring in a young guy. With Suggs and Doom there to be a mentor, it would be great for a top guy to come in, less pressure and takes pressure off Suggs and Doom. Smith can do Upshaw's job so let him walk in FA and save the money. Roll out next year with Suggs and Doom as starters and Smith and Top draft pick as the depth. I think we're in a great position to replace Suggs. If we find an adaequate replacement we can keep Suggs around and benefit from his leadership, mentoring and situational pass rushing. Some could argue he's an expensive situational pass rusher, but they're rare and they take investment. Plus Smith and the new guy will have cheap contracts.

Inside Linebacker

Currently on Roster: Brown (2016), Mosely (2018), Orr (2016), Smith (2017), Mclellan(2015)

The Problem: Another group that I think suffers from the lack of a good scheme. Mosely looks like a sophmore slump, but we know what he has in him. We need someone opposite him adn the answer, IMO, is not Darryl Smith. We need a good sideline to sideline coverage guy who can make a tackle, but can also stick with slot receivers/tight ends. That isn't Smith. Mosely can lock down the middle. Orr and Mclellan can be ST guys. When we drafted Brown we thought he was exactly what I just described our need ot be. Quick sideline to sideline guy who can tackle. Unfortunately, I think he's a bust.

The Solution: This ones tough. We simply don't have enough high level picks. My suggestion: try and find a stop-gap in FA. Not sure who, but we can't invest high in the draft. Other solution: take a risk on a 5th-6th round guy and hope we hit. I think this is going to be a weak position because I can't justify the investment unless we get a stop gap FA on a deal that works with the cap. Welcoming all thoughts on this one.

Cornerback

Currently on Roster: Smith (2019), Webb (2017), Arrington (2017) , Vaughn (2015), Walker (2018), Wright (2015), Davis (2016)

Problem: Basically, see WR. It's a mess. I think we need 1 very good player or 2 above average players. If you think about it if we have an ultra athletic guy to compliment Smith with Webb, Davis, Arrington rotating in the slot we could be alright.

The Solution: Invest through draft. Top 3 rounds this year? I don't know, it's hard becuase there's a few positiosn I've said that about, but this is critical. We need athleticism and guys who have our mentality. I also think these guys suffer from our scheme and I think Smith is more capable then what we've seen, so hopefully Pees' is canned and we can bring in a guy to play to our guys strengths. Imperative is getting Smith going. He was signed as our franchise CB and whether we agree or disagree, we need to build around him and make him better. That's just good asset management. I actually like Davis and hope he comes back healthy next year. I dont know. I see promise with this group

Safety

On Roster: Hill (2016), Lewis (2017), Brooks (2017), Levine (2016), Trawick (2015)

The Problem: Lewis wasn't what we thought he would be. What this group needs is a ball hawk. I like Hill, but I think we need that threat deep. We also need an atheltic guy so we aren't getitng burnt. If you look at the best secondaries they have good safeties. I think Hill can hold his own, but we need another and Lewis isn't the answer. I donteven think scheme will fix that. I thought Brooks might be the answer. I really did. I liked his skillset, but he cant' stay healthy and isn't performing. So we need someone with his traits that can ball. It will help the corners our tremendously.

The Solution: When comparing to the corners, I think we have more talent at corner. So maybe we invest in a Safety early in the draft instead of corner? We havent been able to hit on a FA and I dont think we will. I think this is a draft position and I would priortize it over corner. We need a guy to play with Hill that is going to do what we thought Brooks may have been able to do.


Overall:

We are not that far off from a winning team. We have holes, of course, but not unfixable ones. Mostly becuase we have a few real Franchise players (Suggs, Flacco, Yanda, etc.). That gives us a leg up when re-tooling.

2016 Draft Priority
Purely my opinion, looking forward to others analysis:

1) S
2) WR
3) Pass rusher
4) RB
5) CB
6) OL depth
7) DL depth

FA Priority
1) WR
2) CB
3) RB
4) OL depth

Summary:
- QB: We good
- RB: Draft
- WR: Draft AND Sign FA
- TE: We good
- OL: Draft depth/sign cheap depth
- DL: We good
- OLB: Draft high
- CB: Draft high unless we draft a S, then sign depth
- S: See CB


Hit me with your thoughts fellas.

[blah3]

Defensive Line


2016 Draft Priority
Purely my opinion, looking forward to others analysis:

1) S
2) WR
3) Pass rusher
4) RB
5) CB
6) OL depth
7) DL depth

FA Priority
1) WR
2) CB
3) RB
4) OL depth

Summary:
- QB: We good
- RB: Draft
- WR: Draft AND Sign FA
- TE: We good
- OL: Draft depth/sign cheap depth
- DL: We good
- OLB: Draft high
- CB: Draft high unless we draft a S, then sign depth
- S: See CB


Hit me with your thoughts fellas.

I would drop safety down the list on priority and RB as well. Both positions that are not as valued in draft.

Pass Rusher, CB and WR are the most important areas that need improvement. They also generally have a high draft value (Esp. rusher and CB, but with the way Ravens draft WR they would need to get one high to get it right).

I really also think the OL needs at least one position that would be a major upgrade. Tackle is most important, but if you cannot get one I'd take a good guard and move Yanda out to tackle. I'm not a big Zuttah fan, but with so much overhauling going on I could live with one more year of him.

So in draft I would hit first (not necessarily in that order)
Pass Rusher, (my preference would be DE)
CB
WR

Then look for OL and DL in later round/comp picks.

I think a quality FA WR is needed cuz even if Perriman works out, there is a need there for him to learn. Plus can't rely on a rookie WR to make big impact in first year.

Fill in with bargain vets by FA at LB and Safety and DL.

[@SumthingObvious]

Defensive Line

Currently on Roster: Canty (2016), Carl Davis (2018), Jernigan (2017), Williams (2016), Urban (2016), KLM (2016), Guy (2016)

The Problem: To me, this group is like the TE's. A solid group with good depth. I know DL is always a position to be drafting, but we don't need another investment this offseason. One could argue not next year either. Williams will hopefully be retained and Urban/KLM will serve as depth. There's no studs right now, but solid guys who can do very well with a good surrounding cast. Right now it's a good group cost-wise as most are rookie deals. Canty can't go after this year if it frees up money.

The Solution: Cheap FA help for depth or a late round pick on a guy like Tyson who will provide a little depth. No need for high investment in the next 2 drafts IMO. It needs to go elsewhere.

Outside Linebacker

Currently on Roster: Upshaw (2015), Smith (2018), Suggs (2018), Doom (2017)

The Problem In a word, aging veterans and injuries is the problem. I think Suggs will come back, but should be a more rotational guy, which means we need some fresh blood. Simple, we need to draft a good pass rusher, end of story.

The Solution: Investment in this years draft. First 2 rounds. Now is a perfect time to bring in a young guy. With Suggs and Doom there to be a mentor, it would be great for a top guy to come in, less pressure and takes pressure off Suggs and Doom. Smith can do Upshaw's job so let him walk in FA and save the money. Roll out next year with Suggs and Doom as starters and Smith and Top draft pick as the depth. I think we're in a great position to replace Suggs. If we find an adaequate replacement we can keep Suggs around and benefit from his leadership, mentoring and situational pass rushing. Some could argue he's an expensive situational pass rusher, but they're rare and they take investment. Plus Smith and the new guy will have cheap contracts.

Inside Linebacker

Currently on Roster: Brown (2016), Mosely (2018), Orr (2016), Smith (2017), Mclellan(2015)

The Problem: Another group that I think suffers from the lack of a good scheme. Mosely looks like a sophmore slump, but we know what he has in him. We need someone opposite him adn the answer, IMO, is not Darryl Smith. We need a good sideline to sideline coverage guy who can make a tackle, but can also stick with slot receivers/tight ends. That isn't Smith. Mosely can lock down the middle. Orr and Mclellan can be ST guys. When we drafted Brown we thought he was exactly what I just described our need ot be. Quick sideline to sideline guy who can tackle. Unfortunately, I think he's a bust.

The Solution: This ones tough. We simply don't have enough high level picks. My suggestion: try and find a stop-gap in FA. Not sure who, but we can't invest high in the draft. Other solution: take a risk on a 5th-6th round guy and hope we hit. I think this is going to be a weak position because I can't justify the investment unless we get a stop gap FA on a deal that works with the cap. Welcoming all thoughts on this one.

Cornerback

Currently on Roster: Smith (2019), Webb (2017), Arrington (2017) , Vaughn (2015), Walker (2018), Wright (2015), Davis (2016)

Problem: Basically, see WR. It's a mess. I think we need 1 very good player or 2 above average players. If you think about it if we have an ultra athletic guy to compliment Smith with Webb, Davis, Arrington rotating in the slot we could be alright.

The Solution: Invest through draft. Top 3 rounds this year? I don't know, it's hard becuase there's a few positiosn I've said that about, but this is critical. We need athleticism and guys who have our mentality. I also think these guys suffer from our scheme and I think Smith is more capable then what we've seen, so hopefully Pees' is canned and we can bring in a guy to play to our guys strengths. Imperative is getting Smith going. He was signed as our franchise CB and whether we agree or disagree, we need to build around him and make him better. That's just good asset management. I actually like Davis and hope he comes back healthy next year. I dont know. I see promise with this group

Safety

On Roster: Hill (2016), Lewis (2017), Brooks (2017), Levine (2016), Trawick (2015)

The Problem: Lewis wasn't what we thought he would be. What this group needs is a ball hawk. I like Hill, but I think we need that threat deep. We also need an atheltic guy so we aren't getitng burnt. If you look at the best secondaries they have good safeties. I think Hill can hold his own, but we need another and Lewis isn't the answer. I donteven think scheme will fix that. I thought Brooks might be the answer. I really did. I liked his skillset, but he cant' stay healthy and isn't performing. So we need someone with his traits that can ball. It will help the corners our tremendously.

The Solution: When comparing to the corners, I think we have more talent at corner. So maybe we invest in a Safety early in the draft instead of corner? We havent been able to hit on a FA and I dont think we will. I think this is a draft position and I would priortize it over corner. We need a guy to play with Hill that is going to do what we thought Brooks may have been able to do.


Overall:

We are not that far off from a winning team. We have holes, of course, but not unfixable ones. Mostly becuase we have a few real Franchise players (Suggs, Flacco, Yanda, etc.). That gives us a leg up when re-tooling.

2016 Draft Priority
Purely my opinion, looking forward to others analysis:

1) S
2) WR
3) Pass rusher
4) RB
5) CB
6) OL depth
7) DL depth

FA Priority
1) WR
2) CB
3) RB
4) OL depth

Summary:
- QB: We good
- RB: Draft
- WR: Draft AND Sign FA
- TE: We good
- OL: Draft depth/sign cheap depth
- DL: We good
- OLB: Draft high
- CB: Draft high unless we draft a S, then sign depth
- S: See CB


Hit me with your thoughts fellas.

Solid write up....really agree with most. Honestly believe Rd 1 would be CB/Pass rush...I think being in top 5 we are likely to have our choice at the the top CB or the top Pass rush....Considering who else may be in the top 5 could certainly entertain numerous possibilities.

Where I dont agree with most is RB. I think RB may not be a big need as of yet. Have really enjoyed Buck in many aspects this year and getting the workload when Justin when down against a solid front 4 of the Rams D w/ 2 of our offensive line starters being out was promising. I think with him, Tali, Forsett (not the typical legs of a 31 yr old back), possibly West....we may be ok there to look at solidifying other pieces of the draft.

[GreatWhiteNorthRaven]

Solid write up....really agree with most. Honestly believe Rd 1 would be CB/Pass rush...I think being in top 5 we are likely to have our choice at the the top CB or the top Pass rush....Considering who else may be in the top 5 could certainly entertain numerous possibilities.

Where I dont agree with most is RB. I think RB may not be a big need as of yet. Have really enjoyed Buck in many aspects this year and getting the workload when Justin when down against a solid front 4 of the Rams D w/ 2 of our offensive line starters being out was promising. I think with him, Tali, Forsett (not the typical legs of a 31 yr old back), possibly West....we may be ok there to look at solidifying other pieces of the draft.

These next few weeks could completely make my point moot.

I agree, I think it's more of a personal preference for me. I just like the idea of having a star RB. I'm biased in that respect. Completely understand your point. We do have a wide array of talent.

As ofr priority, I could see CB, WR, DE as the top 3 for this draft. I just want WR in the top 2 rounds.

[@SumthingObvious]

These next few weeks could completely make my point moot.

I agree, I think it's more of a personal preference for me. I just like the idea of having a star RB. I'm biased in that respect. Completely understand your point. We do have a wide array of talent.

As ofr priority, I could see CB, WR, DE as the top 3 for this draft. I just want WR in the top 2 rounds.

yes WR in the top 2 rounds would be great....being at the top of the 2nd round would be a great for those fringe guys that fall out of the first round. We have a knack for talent falling to us.

[GreatWhiteNorthRaven]

yes WR in the top 2 rounds would be great....being at the top of the 2nd round would be a great for those fringe guys that fall out of the first round. We have a knack for talent falling to us.

It's going to be a whole new ball game for the FO. Not to mention if we have a top 5 pick and a QB slips. I'm all for moving back 2 or 3 spots and picking up an extra mid pick. Trying to get an extra 3rd this year could let us get CB, WR, DE, plus 1. Hell another WR would be gravy

[GreatWhiteNorthRaven]

One point I do want to make is that any sort of rebuild, retool, whatver you want to call it is CONTINGENT on scouting. We need to hit this year. We're in a very critical spot as an organization. We're not at any sort of "point of no return", but we could go down that road if we another bad draft.

Can't stress that enough.

[Rxdoxx]

I thought you might alter the 2 of the top picks to O once you factored in the D :)

Canty is 765K dead money next year but we save 2.1mil by cutting him, not real sure he stays in the rotation

Suggs could be our version of the Lion's Haloti next year
I don't want to dis him, but he is getting older/slower and now has 2 Achilles.... we are not going to see the Suggs of old ... he will be steady, solid but his pro-bowl years are long gone.
Suggs takes Canty's spot, we need to replace Suggs spot, and depending on how high we draft it could be our #1 pick.

I'm of the opinion what we switch Webb to S .... have been down this path many times before, and have had such a crying need for CBs that it wasn't really an option.
But instead of drafting a S, we try to convert Webb like Rod Woodson and get the CBs in the draft (at least one and FA the other)

D is going to be harder to project assuming we have a new DC, but CB is still a glaring need and has been with Asa, Chykie, Franks, Melvin,
In the last 12 years we have drafted 3 CB in the 1st 3 rounds (and remembering that teams have at least 2 on the field at a time....) Jimmy Smith (2011) Lardairus Webb (2009) David Pittman (2006)

We had Starks in 1998 and CMac in 1999 both as #1s
When we drafted Pittman in the 3rd (2006) we took DMartin in the 6th
Chykie with a 5th rounder in 2011
Asa with a 5th rounder in 2012
Marc Anthony with a 7th in 2013
and last year Tray Walker with a 4th.

It is a passing league now and we are band-aiding in CBs

Greg has mentioned we are thin with depth, and the most glaring has been CB for the past several years we are one or two injuries away from chaos
Sunday in the Cardinals game we saw Patrick Peterson go out with an ankle and the Cardinals lose, Ravens need depth especially with the injuries that happen to a position that relies on being healthy enough to run, jump, cut at peak efficiency )otherwise you bump, grab, push hold .....

As much as I want exciting playmakers like a Bosa, my brain says we need CBs (after a new DC)

[Gabrosin]

You forgot Taliaferro in your RB roundup. I'm pretty sure we're set at that position. Like ILB and S, it's not that we couldn't upgrade, it's that we've got some competent play potential from the players we have, and the overall value of those positions is lower than the places where we're really hurting. Given limited resources to solve our problems, I'd prefer we invest elsewhere.

Our #1 investment this offseason should be at defensive coordinator. If you can find the next Ryan or Pagano and apply a more aggressive scheme, a lot of the problems in our secondary would disappear.

Barring some fluke wins, we're going to be drafting in the top five. Bosa would be my preference, but if we can't get him, we should be looking at pass rushers and left tackles. Taking a CB with that first pick should really be a fallback option, as it's not going to solve our issues in the short term, at all. If Bosa's not there, Laremy Tunsil or Ronnie Stanley would be our best bet.

Taking a WR in the second would be ideal, where we can catch a borderline first round pick and roll out that player and Perriman for Joe to throw to next season, hopefully alongside a competent veteran, be it Senior or someone else from free agency.

[GreatWhiteNorthRaven]

You forgot Taliaferro in your RB roundup. I'm pretty sure we're set at that position. Like ILB and S, it's not that we couldn't upgrade, it's that we've got some competent play potential from the players we have, and the overall value of those positions is lower than the places where we're really hurting. Given limited resources to solve our problems, I'd prefer we invest elsewhere.

Our #1 investment this offseason should be at defensive coordinator. If you can find the next Ryan or Pagano and apply a more aggressive scheme, a lot of the problems in our secondary would disappear.

Barring some fluke wins, we're going to be drafting in the top five. Bosa would be my preference, but if we can't get him, we should be looking at pass rushers and left tackles. Taking a CB with that first pick should really be a fallback option, as it's not going to solve our issues in the short term, at all. If Bosa's not there, Laremy Tunsil or Ronnie Stanley would be our best bet.

Taking a WR in the second would be ideal, where we can catch a borderline first round pick and roll out that player and Perriman for Joe to throw to next season, hopefully alongside a competent veteran, be it Senior or someone else from free agency.

Interesting point about the LT. I dont think we'd cut Monroe, so I dont know how I feel about paying Monroe and not playig him or drafting a guy in the 1st and not playing him.

Unless we tried to trade Monroe to a LT-hungry team

[srobert96]

My priorities would be:
CB
OLB
WR
Safety