Anquan boldin

[ballhawk]

Q is down at the castle for voluntary OTA's, sharing his knowledge with the young WR's and putting in work.

A lot of talk lately about how underwelming his 2 years with the team have been, and i was just wondering what some of you guys thought about it.

His numbers have been pretty mediocre for a #1 wr. They dont even hold up when looking at what derrick mason brought to this team. Does the leadership he brings and his threat as a downfield blocker offset what he has lacked in receptions and yardage? Is it all camerons fault? Was he worth the draft picks and salary? Is he a better option in the slot than dickson/pitta at this point? Does he have a future with the team beyond 2012?

A lot of question marks surrounding our "#1" WR these days, IMO.

[The Excellector]

To begin, Anquan Boldin still is a great WR. However, a majority of the blame should actually fall on Ozzie, because Boldin never represented a fit for this system. We were all excited when he was acquired and came up with every excuse in the world as to how he could be a successful deep threat, myself included. However, he was never systematic fit. In Arizona, they ran a plethora of three WR sets, with Boldin in the slot, for a quick passing game.

So, I COULD say that he's been misused. However, I don't expect many coordinators to modify their systems without the proper pieces to run the original system in the first place. Green Bay has been running a modified WCO from the jump. Other than them, the only other team that has modified its system for the talent around it, worth note, is New England, when they had Moss. It just does not successfully happen that often. Most successful teams will find the right pieces for their system.

We've seen Cam stick Boldin in the slot when they do go 3 WR. However, he really hasn't been given the pieces to do that consistently.

Otherwise, Boldin is the exact type of player to fit in here, and I've been glad to have him.

[Haloti92]

Boldin had a decent year, as far as Ravens go, last year. He missed two games, but had he not, he would have finished with 1013 yards (projecting). His YPR was a yard and a half higher than Mason's ever was while here (15.6 for Boldin vs 14.1 best for Mase).

But I agree that we need our #1 to be more in line with the better teams' #1s in terms of production. But I am not sure that will happen with Cam here.

[highwater]

I don't consider his two years here "underwhelming" -- maybe those who think that had expectations that might have been a little lofty. I certainly still think it was a good trade. I was always a Mason fan but I don't know what you mean when you say Mason brought more to the team than Boldin.

Having said that, I'm all for upgrading the passing game, but it goes beyond the WRs. I still remember Greg Cosell's somewhat scathing indictment of Cam's offensive game plans last year, which as I recall was that the plays and formations were all so predictable. I'm not confident that will change this coming season but I wish it would.

[ballhawk]

Compared to mason's production when he came over in 2005, boldin just hasnt hit it off here like mason did. Look at the numbers side by side. When we signed him for 4 years i definately expected four 1000+ yd seasons. Im pretty underwhelmed. Boldin was a highlight machine before he showed up in the land where receivers come to die.

[wickedsolo]

I don't consider his two years here "underwhelming" -- maybe those who think that had expectations that might have been a little lofty. I certainly still think it was a good trade. I was always a Mason fan but I don't know what you mean when you say Mason brought more to the team than Boldin.

Having said that, I'm all for upgrading the passing game, but it goes beyond the WRs. I still remember Greg Cosell's somewhat scathing indictment of Cam's offensive game plans last year, which as I recall was that the plays and formations were all so predictable. I'm not confident that will change this coming season but I wish it would.

I know a lot of it has to do with Boldin just not being a great fit in Cam's offense, but if you look back at his stats he's down across the board in a lot of different areas since coming to Baltimore.

[GOTA]

I don't consider his two years here "underwhelming" -- maybe those who think that had expectations that might have been a little lofty. I certainly still think it was a good trade. I was always a Mason fan but I don't know what you mean when you say Mason brought more to the team than Boldin.

Having said that, I'm all for upgrading the passing game, but it goes beyond the WRs. I still remember Greg Cosell's somewhat scathing indictment of Cam's offensive game plans last year, which as I recall was that the plays and formations were all so predictable. I'm not confident that will change this coming season but I wish it would.

When you pay someone in the top 10 at their position you are expecting a top 10 performance. The Ravens can't be pleased with how things have turned out since they had to lay out a lot of money and cap space without the return that money should get you.

[saintmatthew]

When you pay someone in the top 10 at their position you are expecting a top 10 performance. The Ravens can't be pleased with how things have turned out since they had to lay out a lot of money and cap space without the return that money should get you.

He's brought a lot in term of leadership and motivation on the offensive side of the ball. I've read a couple times how he got the offense's head in the right place on the sidelines at crucial times. I can't remember all the specific times but I remember the Arizona game last year being one of them. No we haven't gotten a lot of flash from him but I feel his presence has very important.

[bmorecareful]

To begin, Anquan Boldin still is a great WR. However, a majority of the blame should actually fall on Ozzie, because Boldin never represented a fit for this system. We were all excited when he was acquired and came up with every excuse in the world as to how he could be a successful deep threat, myself included. However, he was never systematic fit. In Arizona, they ran a plethora of three WR sets, with Boldin in the slot, for a quick passing game.

So, I COULD say that he's been misused. However, I don't expect many coordinators to modify their systems without the proper pieces to run the original system in the first place. Green Bay has been running a modified WCO from the jump. Other than them, the only other team that has modified its system for the talent around it, worth note, is New England, when they had Moss. It just does not successfully happen that often. Most successful teams will find the right pieces for their system.

We've seen Cam stick Boldin in the slot when they do go 3 WR. However, he really hasn't been given the pieces to do that consistently.

Otherwise, Boldin is the exact type of player to fit in here, and I've been glad to have him.

Quality post. I agree 100%. Boldin is a good player, but has been a bad fit from the start for us. He just doesn't fit the scheme at all. If he were used like he was in Arizona--playing strictly off the line at flanker/in the slot, catching short passes over the middle, roaming and finding holes in zone--he would be great. But we don't use him like that; we have him play the sidelines and go deep.

He's also physically not quite the player he was in Arizona, but he has been healthier overall here, perhaps partly as a result of sending him across the middle less often. Overall, is he worth the money? In a vacuum, probably not, but it is what it is. I certainly think this team needs to be working aggressively towards finding better options at WR in the draft, hopefully some guys who fit the scheme better.

[The Excellector]

Lee Evans getting hurt messed them up bad.

[landspeed]

Simply put, cam cameron does not use him correctly. Not even close.

[GOTA]

Boldin is in year 3 of a 4 year deal. He won't be here next season because he's due to make $6 million. They'll put that money into another free agent WR instead.