Mark my words......

[RavensNTerps]

I have sooo many problems with this thread I'm not sure where to begin. I guess I'll go with the fact that it shouldn't even be here. There is a forum that is dedicated to QB talk.

It kills me that Kyle is still such a lightening rod. He fractioned the Ravens on-line community possibly permanantly. The Boller Wars at YBR was a big reason that many of us came here. And the fact is that people get still get defensive whenever he is brought up or if someone criticizes him like for example how Dave jumped on PR/SB when he made the "fumbles and bumbles" crack.

And to be fair it is an honest criticism- Kyle does fall down and fumble more than other QBs on average. Also, where is the outrage when someone calls Orlando Brown "cyclops", Gary Baxter and now Samari Rolle "toast", Grbac "the Grbacle", TT and PJ "stonehands", or Moore a pussy. There isn't any because it is pretty much all true. The fact that none of these nicknames got banned but Dawson's Creek, Ebola, and whatever other nonesense WSO spewed out got eliminated over at YBR shows how sensitive people get when criticizing Kyle.

It is clear that Kyle has improved a little. He started stepping up into the pocket occasionally. However, the fact that that is considered a big and near groundbreaking improvement in a guys 4th year is also pretty telling.

I also get the impression that the staunchest of Boller's supporters have never really embraced McNair. You support McNair because you are good fans and want what is best for the team. But the speed at which people turned on Steve when Kyle played well this past season or at times when McNairs arm looked dead was astonishing. We want from 6-10 to 13-3 and Steve McNair is a huge part of that.

I like Kyle as a person and I do like all you guys as posters, even if you are holding on to the dream too long. Kyle held this team back when he was starting and he is incredibly shaky on the road. McNair's biggest imact on our record was playing a steady game on the road. I can't imagine how bad Kyle would be in the pressure packed playoffs. If you had to bet your life on Kyle raising his game for the playoffs, making plays and eliminating mistakes would you? Do you think he could out duel Brady in Foxborough? I wouldn't and I don't.

Ultimately, Kyle Boller is a tease. A guy with all the physical abilities in the world, but someone who it just doesn't click for, for whatever reason. Fans always get sucked in by tantalizers (Bill Simmons coined this term). Then after years and a million arguments later those supporters still don't get why he didn't put it all together. The simple, but frustrating answer is it just doesn't happen for some people. I said it in another thread, but Kyle's best chance of success is to stay here since he knows this system, but I just don't think that is going to happen for him. I think he will probably bounce around on a couple of teams like Harrington or Pat Ramsey and be out of the league before he is 30.

If god forbid McNair gets hurt and Kyle has to come in I hope he leads us all the way to a victory in AZ. I'll root for him because he is our QB. But the dream of him being our franchise guy is dead. It's best if we just let it go.

I disagree, a tad. Yeah, we went from 6-10 to 13-3, sure. But the 6-10 was a MASSIVE underachievement. It's not like we were the Browns. Hell, not saying we make the playoffs that year or anything, but I bet if Boller doesn't get hurt we finish at least 2 games better.

I'm not AGAINST McNair. But he didn't strike me as anything special, period. He didn't impress me in any single game, really, otehr then bits and flashes here and there. In fact, quite often, he looked like he couldn't make a lot of throws (the deep ones aren't my concern). My observance of that has very little to do with my support of Boller.

I'm not FOR one and against the other. But it's also not as cut and dry as people make it out to be. I honestly believe the offense has the potential to be more explosive under Boller, but that McNair should start.

[Baltoman07]

McNair didn't exactly make every Sunday a heart pounding experience. It seems to me when the rush was on he just threw a 3 yd pass. It seemed like he had no stomach to run the ball anymore, which is understandable considering a) his age, b) his previous injuries and c) the fact that he is a millionaire and doesn't really need to risk a crippling injury. I really enjoyed the games Boller played. Boller makes me wear my carpet out but when he makes plays it's really fun to watch.

[ExiledRaven]

with the recent DUI incident and McNair, if a suspension comes down, Boller would then have that 4 game trial at the beginning of the season like it or not for all of us.

I'm really concerned about that...but if it does happen and he does't play well, then the community should be united much more than the 29%-71% Boller is gone after this year. that should push it to 5-95 at least.

[Greg]

If Boller gets a 4 game stretch anywhere and doesn't perform competently to good in all those games he should be gone. If he performs very well in 3 and lays a clinker in 1 that would be good enough for me. But that is all for another day, let's just see how drunk these guys were.

If they are .10 than pfft. If they are both over .15 then McNair should get a 4 game suspension.

[OriAl]

I think, after Boller posted QB ratings of 100+ in four of his last five games, the brain trust would certainly be open to keeping him here beyond this season (if he wants to play for the moron fans who cheered his injury, that is.) The Ravens lose nothing by having Smith behind Boller, just as the Chargers kept Rivers behind Brees. McNair didn't really turn our offense into something spectacular last season (especially in the biggest game of the season), he's an older QB who's taken a lot of hits, and now there's this DUI thing that hopefully won't result in a suspension, but who knows? Boller may get a few games to show his stuff without McNair being injured.

What happens if Boller does start the season, and plays well (offense scores a lot of points, and he makes few mistakes?) That would be a good dilemma to have.

[ExiledRaven]

Once Boller leaves, I wonder if Tex will actually have to come up with something new to talk about

[dbcw]

I don't understand how people can say McNair did nothing special with the offense. While it wasn't "TOP 10", it wasn't 30th or below where it used to reside under our previous starters.

Boller is not going to be successful anywhere else because he is not a leader. Quarterbacks need to be leaders, not role players.

[dbcw]

I think most of Boller's success as a back up came because he was not the QB the defense spent a week scheming against. He was like a change-up pitch in baseball.

[festivus]

Boller is not going to be successful anywhere else because he is not a leader. Quarterbacks need to be leaders, not role players.

Do you have anything more than opinion to back this up? From any source, or anything you've seen, or are you just making it up because it suits your conclusion? Because everything I've heard or read suggests his teammates, particularly the young receiving corps, likes him.

I mean, I really wanted to avoid posting to this thread again, but this kind of stuff sticks in my craw. Tell me he's occasionally inaccurate, I'll say fine. Tell me he's occasionally butterfingered, I'll tell you yes, I've seen it.

But hell if he won't take wicked shots to make his throws, or cut some db to make a block, or jump up after getting crushed, or throw the ball downfield to try to make a play, or dive onto a loose ball. Those are things a *leader* does, and he does all of them.

Drive him out of town if you want, but keep it honest.

[Greg]

I think most of Boller's success as a back up came because he was not the QB the defense spent a week scheming against.

This is such a load of BS. Does the fact that the offense had spent all week preparing to be run by a different QB matter? If the offense changed that dramatically with Boller in there wouldn't that also be a problem for the offensive players?

And to quote Tex without reading a single word: "Boller sucks - CLICK - Boller sucks - Click - Boller sucks - CLICK - Boller sucks - Click - Boller sucks - CLICK - Boller sucks - Click - Boller sucks - CLICK - Boller sucks - Click - Boller sucks - CLICK - Boller sucks - Click - Boller sucks - CLICK - Boller sucks - Click - Boller sucks - CLICK - Boller sucks - Click - Boller sucks - CLICK - Boller sucks - Click - Boller sucks - CLICK - Boller sucks - Click - Boller sucks - CLICK - Boller sucks - Click - Boller sucks - CLICK - Boller sucks - Click - Boller sucks - CLICK - Boller sucks - Click - Boller sucks - CLICK - Boller sucks - Click - Boller sucks - CLICK - Boller sucks - Click - Boller sucks - CLICK - Boller sucks"

[dbcw]

festivus,

If you can show me one quote by any of his teammates saying "He's our leader out there," when referring to Boller, I'll take it back. But I have never heard or read of any Raven player speak of him in that regard. On top of it, I have never seen him orchestrate "his" offense as if he was the leader.

Taking shots, blocking, and throwing bombs down field are traits of a football player who plays hard. No one has ever said he doesn't play hard. He just doesn't play well.

According to Websters, a leader is one who "has commanding authority or influence". McNair has it. Ray has it. Dilfer had it. Boller does not. You can see it on the field and you can see it on the sidelines by the way the team reacts to each of them.

Plain and simple, Boller is a follower.

greg,

anything is possible

[Art-Florida]

In spite of all the profound pronouncements, some of us do not agree.