Pr hype

[WrongBaldy]

Funny thing about predicting, it works both ways. My crystal ball hasn't worked since pees arrived. I'm just going to be patient and hope the Ravens return to their winning ways.

The Ravens identity is in a standstill, can't say it's a offensive or defensive team at this time.
Flacco is the sole reason anything good has happened to this team since 2012. There is nothing else to brag about. Can't really name another player we can count on to score or make a defensive stop when needed.

Hoping that changes in this new season, actually praying for it.

:word

[steelerhater]

This board seems to be long on overreaction and short on memory. The 2014 defense, with largely the same players and coaches was 8th in the league in yards, and 6th in scoring defense. Is it really that much of a stretch to think that after a bad 2015, considering all of the injuries and guys not fully recovered from injuries, they're not far from getting back to that level? Heck, they even upgraded the secondary coach with Frazier, and reassigned smoove's punter buddy :D

Sure, naming the #1 defense is a bit of a reach, but some of you are making it seem like the Ravens are doomed to have a bottom-feeding defense for the foreseeable future.

Do you remember how bad that defense was in the 4th quarter and protecting leads? Even Harbaugh said he'd like to see our defense be able to hold a lead for once.

[TxRavensFan]

Do you remember how bad that defense was in the 4th quarter and protecting leads? Even Harbaugh said he'd like to see our defense be able to hold a lead for once.

Yeah I remember. I definitely don't want to rehash the kerfuffle over in the Darien Steward thread, but if you look at the numbers, the Ravens have blown about the same number of 4th Quarter leads as the majority of other teams in the league, and Seattle has actually blown more 4th Quarter leads.

While I agree that there's room for improvement, I think the issues lie elsewhere. To me, being one year removed from a performance that was 8th in yards, 6th in scoring and 2nd in red zone efficiency indicates that they're not as far off as some make it seem.

Of course, they'll only go as far as Pees can take them.

[GaTechRavens]

WTF!!! In that second half they want to hype about, the defense gave up 187 points.
For 16 games that's 374 and would put them smack in the middle at number 16 with the Cowboys defense.
That is not going to get you to the promised land.
11 of the top 12 scoring defenses made it into the playoffs, which includes the Bengals and the Steelers.
To get into the playoffs, we will have to displace one of them, not the Redskins at 17 or the Cowboys.

We need a defensive coordinator that knows what the F$%K he is doing with the talent he has, for starters.
Until that happens, it will take a miracle of offensive TDs that haven't been seen around here for a while.

So, get another pass rusher and corner, and build up the offense with playmakers for Joe.

That would be fine if the defense allowed all 187 points...but we know there were a lot of points that either were entirely not their fault or came with a very short field:

- In the Jaguars game, they gave up a field goal on a 0-yard drive.
- Schaub threw pick sixes against both the Browns and Dolphins
- The Seahawks had a touchdown drive starting on the Ravens' 14 yard line
- The Chiefs had two defensive touchdowns plus another touchdown drive starting on the Ravens' 24.

So make no mistake, that 187 point total is very much inflated by offensive mistakes, and that certainly cannot be applied to other teams to such an extent. Since the Ravens' defense also ranked among the league's best in yards per play during that span, I'd say they actually did play very well as an overall unit in the second half of the season.

[Jsmoove]

That would be fine if the defense allowed all 187 points...but we know there were a lot of points that either were entirely not their fault or came with a very short field:

- In the Jaguars game, they gave up a field goal on a 0-yard drive.
- Schaub threw pick sixes against both the Browns and Dolphins
- The Seahawks had a touchdown drive starting on the Ravens' 14 yard line
- The Chiefs had two defensive touchdowns plus another touchdown drive starting on the Ravens' 24.

So make no mistake, that 187 point total is very much inflated by offensive mistakes, and that certainly cannot be applied to other teams to such an extent. Since the Ravens' defense also ranked among the league's best in yards per play during that span, I'd say they actually did play very well as an overall unit in the second half of the season.

I don't think they used that, I believe they did factor in all that, they are just talking about strictly when the defense is on the field, not the pick 6's or turnovers for TDs. Now the short field do play into that so that I will consider, still what people are forgetting is the level of competition we have played to muster up a number 10 defense in terms of overall stats which don't tell the entire story. Our second half schedule was against opponents who were less than 500, minus the seahawks and chiefs. we got beat by a couple of these teams as well. Now thats something that's alarming, we have been getting beat consistently by bottom dwellers the last 3 seasons, and perennial back up QBs who have no business winning ball games against us.

[Ravens44]

I don't think they used that, I believe they did factor in all that, they are just talking about strictly when the defense is on the field, not the pick 6's or turnovers for TDs. Now the short field do play into that so that I will consider, still what people are forgetting is the level of competition we have played to muster up a number 10 defense in terms of overall stats which don't tell the entire story. Our second half schedule was against opponents who were less than 500, minus the seahawks and chiefs. we got beat by a couple of these teams as well. Now thats something that's alarming, we have been getting beat consistently by bottom dwellers the last 3 seasons, and perennial back up QBs who have no business winning ball games against us.

Yes, that's the point. It doesn't matter who the defense is facing, backup quarterbacks, rookie quarterbacks, teams that stink quarterbacks...they all have career or best game of their season games against a secondary that plays 10 yards off the ball, regardless.
I don't know what everyone is watching, but I do know this is the same situation we had on the other side of the ball when Cam was here. There is no adapting, no changing, no anything, absolute refusal to listen or see or to think it might be the scheme and not putting players in the best position to succeed.

The players, even veterans are still confused as to what to do late in the season and are still talking to each other when the ball is snapped. Players that have played well in the past, are getting worse. There has to be an explanation. It can't consistently be thrown on the players that they suddenly forgot how to play and that it is "technique". Cam refused to adapt his scheme to the actual skill sets of the players. He kept Boldin on the outside when he was better in the slot and in the middle of the field. When Caldwell took over, the receivers didn't suddenly start playing better, they were used differently. Was it perfect, no, but I do recall 1100 yards and 11 TDs and 0 INTs. Using players to their strengths is exactly what a coach is supposed to do.
I don't see any of that on the defensive side of the ball. If we keep our corners 10 yards back, we can't stop anyone. IF we have the corners up close, we can't just have a single safety, making it obvious 20 seconds before the snap what we are doing. Even a green QB knows to look off the safety and throw the other way...blitzers running up to the line of scrimmage 15 seconds before the snap, giving QBs and Olinemen time to adjust. We see it time and time again. They are doing what they are told. Otherwise they aren't out there. The players are frustrated too. And playing better against lesser competition is no indication of being a good defense or fixing anything. To me, it just indicates our players are just much more skilled then the opposition.

When I look at the Bengals, I see a team that is SO filled with elite players, and they should DOMINATE. But they don't. Why is that? When they win, it is because of individual players making incredible plays. Dalton throws a jump ball and Green not only out jumps everyone, he gets away and goes 80 yards to score. IS that great coaching? No, so if those kind of plays aren't made enough in the playoffs against GOOD teams, they go home. And they have gone home, consistently failing in the playoffs.

Personally I can't really tell how good our defensive players actually are...they always seem lost.
We have talked about Stewart and sure, the 10 around him seem to be great...BUT, he is STILL in the right place, over and over again. When he was here, he appeared lost. Always 5 to 10 yards away from the receiver...always. No one on this board was sad to see him go. But his play this season should be a wake up call.
We might have a really great secondary, but they aren't being used correctly. We have been drafting defensive players early in the draft until this last draft, so there should be talent back there OR our personnel people have forgotten how to draft good players. I don't think they have forgotten how to draft. But I do think this team has forgotten how to attack on defense. And that should be the priority.
If Pees looks at the playoff games and see what the top defenses are doing, and if he is willing to adapt, then power to him. But at some point, the eyes need to open, as well as the mind.

Could you imagine the Broncos with that pass rush having their DBs 10 yards off the receivers and letting them run free???? Brady would have moved up and down the field with the short passing game before hardly ever getting hit.

[DonNMass]

Could you imagine the Broncos with that pass rush having their DBs 10 yards off the receivers and letting them run free???? Brady would have moved up and down the field with the short passing game before hardly ever getting hit.

Unfortunately we all know all too well, 14 points, twice, 7, once. Thanks Dean.

[BPF2]

...blitzers running up to the line of scrimmage 15 seconds before the snap, giving QBs and Olinemen time to adjust. We see it time and time again. They are doing what they are told.

This drives me nuts. When we are going to blitz a corner or safety, they run up to the line well ahead of the snap and are bouncing in anticipation of a jump. The worst QB in the league is going to see that and know what's coming. There was a clip before a Bills game of Rex at practice and telling the CB, you can't turn your head and look, they'll know you're coming. Our guys don't turn the head and look. They turn the whole body, take a step closer and start bouncing like a dog on a chain. Who's A) coaching that behavior, and B) watching it week in week out and not saying, hey you can't do that!

[HbgPARavenfan]

Yeah I remember. I definitely don't want to rehash the kerfuffle over in the Darien Steward thread, but if you look at the numbers, the Ravens have blown about the same number of 4th Quarter leads as the majority of other teams in the league, and Seattle has actually blown more 4th Quarter leads.

While I agree that there's room for improvement, I think the issues lie elsewhere. To me, being one year removed from a performance that was 8th in yards, 6th in scoring and 2nd in red zone efficiency indicates that they're not as far off as some make it seem.

Of course, they'll only go as far as Pees can take them.

*As far as Flacco will take them, after he needs 16 game winning drives with 3 minutes or less next year if things dont change.

[Greg]

We may have had the #1 defense in terms of yards allowed in the 2nd half of the season, but we allowed more points to our opponents in those 8 games than those same teams scored on a per-game basis this year (those 8 teams averaged 22.8 points per game, we allowed 23.4 points per game to them, so we were below average against them from a points basis).

For those who prefer points as a statistic, that's mediocre at best, and I certainly wouldn't call it good, so still nothing to be excited about.

Not a fan or Pees but points can be deceptive as well. How many of those points were scored when the defense was on the bench? How does that compare vs. the other games these teams played in?

[Ravens44]

Not a fan or Pees but points can be deceptive as well. How many of those points were scored when the defense was on the bench? How does that compare vs. the other games these teams played in?

Ok, I hear you and I understand. That makes sense. The defense can't be held accountable for the points given up by the offense.
But I will add this...If the offense KNOWS that the defense can't hold a lead, then they know they must score a lot of points. That leads to mistakes if a QB is forcing the ball down the field.
But still, games 9 thru 12 was the softest part of their schedule. And 2 of the final 4 games were against divisional opponents, so those games are always close.

If the defense comes out in 2016 and dominates, I will shut the heck up. That's for sure...except I will give props and say I was wrong. I HOPE I have to do that. I do. But I've seen this before with Cam and it is just Deja vu for me. I would hate to see another year thrown away because it takes so long for the rest of the staff to wake up and see what has been glaringly wrong for years.
Hell, Joe has already been here since 2008. How long will it take for them to get the personnel on both sides of the ball so Joe can lead them again??? It sure didn't take long for them to take all his weapons away. Now he doesn't have a championship defense either.

[Jsmoove]

Again I don't think those point derived from turnovers, i believe they are strictly from when the defense was on the field, now if a turn over occurred and gave the defense a short field to defend then I can over look that. There weren't a lot of situations though. Not to mention how many times the offense took the lead for the defense to give it right back? then that forces the offense to get pass happy instead of playing ball control with the lead? Factor in that, because there were ALOT of those situations.