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  1. #1

    Ravens 08 draft: Your thoughts....

    Now that we have a HC in place.. and before long coordinators.. TBA. Just have a quick thought on the upcoming NFL 08 draft and possible Ravens draft scenarios. I think after the coaching staff is in place and have evaluated each player and position depth.. They should see that the 08 Ravens and beyond have some areas to address. In my opinion although we have a top ten selelction. I can make the case for trading down from the 8th spot to 11-15 and pick up addt'l selection. Draft needs (not by priority ) QB,WR,CB,DE,LB. Some say QB with the first selection. I think you find a good one in round 2. I like Tenn Erik Ainge as a possible selection. Again just wanted to see other view points on the matter. Have at it.





  2. #2

    Re: Ravens 08 draft: Your thoughts....

    Interesting thoughts, though I for one never understand the Ainge infatuation. He'll look great, then he goes and forces a short pass all the way to the outside when the inside slant on the same side is utterly wide open. Not even a man covering the receiver wide open. Result, int TD, game. Pass.

    With the current staff you never know. Don't freak, but I could see the Ravens not picking a QB first day. Yes, there is the same brain trust running the draft show, but there may be different visions of who has what potential and who might stick around.

    Really too wide open at the moment and too much depends on the teams in front of the Ravens, ie the Patriots. The Pats are notorious for trading down and ravaging other teams in draft deals. I expect this year to be the same. The Ravens may have to make some plays to go from 8 to 7 if they really like a player or if some guy they covet slips. The Pats might pillage a team in exchange for the pick or might just pick the guy. It's going to be ugly.

    A 3-4 DE would be an ideal acquisition with the drop off from Pryce to Edwards. It might also be worth getting a CB, Rolle is dinged up, Cmac is coming back from knee surgery. Pittman is starting to look better, but it's going to be rough back there. A TE could come in to replace Wilcox at #2, there might be an early round QB of the future, there might be a 5th round QB of development behind Boller, Smith, and McNair who might not leave.

    Will JO retire? Will JO half-ass like he seemed to at times this year?

    There are a lot of questions and the draft will likely answer many of them. The new coaching staff might greatly improve the development of guys like Chris Chester. The new evaluative staff might give up on some players.

    I for one am excited to see what happens, this is a big transition year for the Ravens and not just in coaching staff.
    Just win baby...





  3. #3
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    Re: Ravens 08 draft: Your thoughts....

    Let me preface this by saying I know little about the players in the draft outside of what I read on mock sites...

    At spot #8, we're in a strange situation. Chris Long, Matt Ryan, and Jake Long will be gone, so your elite need players are out. At the same time, #8 seems to high for a Brian Brohm, Mike Jenkins, and Ryan Clady. That's why I see us moving...If the right deal exists to grab a pick in the top 4, we take it and go for Matt Ryan or Chris Long. If not, I think we drop down, grab some extra picks,, and look for a gem to slide a little.

    As for needs, our top 3 have to be DE, CB, and QB...with WR just a little behind. QB is one of those positions where you can't just grab the best guy available, you need to know this guy is going to fit your scheme to the letter and you need to anticipate his development. Less so for a DE, CB, or WR. With that said, I think we wait on a QB and try to find one we like all around.
    .
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    “When I think of a Baltimore Raven - we go in there, we take your lunch box, we take your sandwich, we take your juice box, we take your applesauce, and we take your spork and we break it. And we leave you with an empty lunch. That’s the Baltimore Raven way.” - Steve Smith Sr.


    Call me a Special Teams coach again. I dare you! I double dare you, MFer!





  4. #4

    Re: Ravens 08 draft: Your thoughts....

    As for needs, the biggest needs are DL depth, secondary depth, WR and QB. The Ravens need a playmaker at WR. The current receiving corps is adequate, but none of those guys are going to scare opposing DCs.

    As for names, it's too early to tell. After the Senior Bowl and Combine, players will start to emerge and move up the boards. Other players will drop. For instance, who is the top rated CB? Is it Antoine Cason? It depends on how he times in the 40. If he runs in the 4.4s, he could be the top rated CB. If runs in the 4.5s, he drops...possibly out of the first round.





  5. #5
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    Re: Ravens 08 draft: Your thoughts....

    Just watching Combine practices on NFL Network and Mike Mayock's #1 rated CB is jumping out pretty nice in practices and looks great on film:

    Leodis McKelvin - CB - Troy


    Great speed, very discipined in his back pedal, reads plays well, great first step, just looks really good. Poor ball skills are a concern, he's sometimes so fast off his first step he overruns a route. Looks comfortable in press and off.

    A name to keep an eye on from a smaller conference.





  6. #6
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    Re: Ravens 08 draft: Your thoughts....

    I guess I just don't understand the aversion to Troy Smith?! The guy is a born leader, and has a lot of talent. I would use my first draft choice to go after a 'can't miss' RT; pass rush DE; or CB. Give Troy a shot!
    "Grab those pusillanimous sons-a-bitches by the nose and kick 'em in the balls.." General George S. Patton





  7. #7
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    Re: Ravens 08 draft: Your thoughts....

    Quote Originally Posted by ravenjoe View Post
    I guess I just don't understand the aversion to Troy Smith?! The guy is a born leader, and has a lot of talent. I would use my first draft choice to go after a 'can't miss' RT; pass rush DE; or CB. Give Troy a shot!
    Yes fair enough give Troy a shot but don't have him as the only guy in camp when he has proven absolutely nothing thus far than having some measure of "promise", we need a viable alternative to him as competition and so that we aren't left out to dry with just Smith as our only option.





  8. #8

    Re: Ravens 08 draft: Your thoughts....

    Quote Originally Posted by UKRavenStockers View Post
    Yes fair enough give Troy a shot but don't have him as the only guy in camp when he has proven absolutely nothing thus far than having some measure of "promise", we need a viable alternative to him as competition and so that we aren't left out to dry with just Smith as our only option.
    Umm, Boller will be here too, it makes too much financial sense... BUt Boller should be gone after Next year... Troy can't be the only guy we are hanging the future of the franchise on, and realistically, I'm not nearly that hopeful... I'd give him a 15-20% chance of being a reliable starter, 5% o fbeing a star, and maybe 60% of being a backup.
    I thought Yanda, Pryce, Suggs, CMaC and Rolle all are good enough to wait. Boller sucks and Troy hasn't been good yet.
    QB is the ONLY way to go, IMO.





  9. #9
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    Re: Ravens 08 draft: Your thoughts....

    Again, I don't think we should reach for needs...If Matt Ryan wows us and he's there take him. If not, move onto another need and find someone else who wowed us. Someone will fall, they always do. At worst, Dennis Dixon in Day 2!





  10. #10

    Re: Ravens 08 draft: Your thoughts....

    If Ryan is there at #8 I think they will pull the trigger and here's why:

    Unless Boller turns into a Matt Hasselbeck caliber QB he is gone for sure after 2008.

    Unless Smith shines in pre-season he is still a backup at best and you are still searching for a legit starting QB. The chances of Smith being the starer next year are slim at best. The year after...maybe.

    You can't pass on a guy that is considered the best at his position in the draft by many experts. If you pass on Ryan you are stuck w/ Boller/Smith in 2008 and then the picture will be muddy for 2009 and beyond.

    Unless they think Woodosn or another QB is a legit starter they can develop and draft in later rounds, I don't see how they could not draft Ryan if they don't trade down and he is on the board at #8.

    FM





  11. #11

    Re: Ravens 08 draft: Your thoughts....

    I actually think that Dixon on day 2 is a pretty good worst case scenario.... that said, at 8 we will be reachign for need. In fact every team from about 5-15... that is assuming McFadden, Long, Long and Dorsey are the first 4 to go. If they are not, then somone(ATL?) has alredy reached for need. I actually think that Ryan is probably the 5th or 6th highest rated player overall, independantr of need, btu that not to say I don't thinkthere are 10 people of nearly equal talent level, fairly significantly lower then the first four.

    You see, we Could Reach for Ryan or Brohm and have a few intriguing options at QB going forward, we could reach on Jenkins or McKelvin and have a solid fall back for our prime outside guys, as well as a day 1 nickel, we could reach on Campbell or Gholsten and increase our pass rush, Reach on CLady and have a whole ton of Young options all over the OL, maybe go BPA and get KEnny Phillips to cover for Landry's obvious coverage deficiencies... I think Sedrick Ellis may be gone, but he's another fair value pick there at 8.

    A lot of ways to go, it's hard to say though, until we find out who our coordinators are(4-3? 3-4? 46?) and what we are doing wiuth Suggs..





  12. #12

    Re: Ravens 08 draft: Your thoughts....

    This draft blows chunks...





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