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07-10-2018, 03:20 PM #13Hall Of Fame Poster
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Re: Five things that need to go right this season
I will add that the defensive coordinator needs to do a better job than Dean Pees.
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07-10-2018, 03:26 PM #14
Re: Five things that need to go right this season
I had Micheal Pierce in my list at first, but I put him and Urban at 6th or 7th as far as most important. It seems to me that the interior rush is this elusive thing that can't be sustained for an entire season. Urban batting some more balls at the line and Pierce or Henry having an occasional Goose body splash on a QB in the playoffs would be excellent though. If the team can find a competent cover ILB to play next to Mosley, they can send him on a few more inside blitzes, which he is actually pretty good at executing.
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Re: Five things that need to go right this season
I can sign off on the idea of developing a pass rush in general, beyond Suggs, and agree it doesn't have to all be on Judon. But I'd like to see him emerge as the go-to option for life after Terrell, so that the others you mention compliment Judon.
Seeing Kenny Young supplant Peanut and become a reliable coverage LB is definitely in my top ten.
I understand the confidence in the quality of CBs they've accumulated, beyond Jimmie, so you have a point.
But I think Smith is one of those 'playmakers' they've always had on defense who turns a good defense into great when he's on the field.
After he went on IR the last two season the team struggled down the stretch and twice got knocked out of the playoffs on last minute pass plays where defenders were asked to cover a lot of ground. Somewhere I read a compelling stat about their record when he starts versus games when he's out. It was eye opening.
In the infamous '16 Antonio Brown TD catch to end their season, they were in zone coverage and Brown beat Jarraud Powers, in for Smith, to the inside position for the catch before stretching beyond Weddle for the score. Had Smith been healthy they'd be in man and he jams Brown at the line, with help behind him. A big difference.
Granted, they have upgraded over the likes of Powers, and so maybe your confidence is truly justified. I'd rather not have to find out.
It also raises what is probably the #6 must occur on my list: Wink is a difference maker. [See Blah's post, above]
For a few seasons plenty here criticized Pees' schemes. The above-referenced play, with the Ravens sitting back in zone, is a good example. From what we hear, Wink is going to let his corner play man in that situation and make a play on the receiver, even when the receiver is the best in the league. He might even blitz Weddle.
Question is, whether Pees was conservative by nature, or in response to the quality of talent on the field: Brown versus our back-up corner? Put another way, will Wink's confidence in players making plays bear fruit, even if those players are reserves forced to play because of injuries?
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Re: Five things that need to go right this season
Joe Flacco - He can't continue to be a bottom level starting QB. Flacco has to at least be in the top half of the league
Wink - Wink Martindale had 1 previous year as a DC in the NFL and it was horrible. His defense was ranked dead last. The players love this guy. Is that enough? Just playing more aggressive won't automatically equal success. The talent is there but is Wink someone who can put it all together?
Receivers and Tight Ends The Ravens just signed 3 new receivers coming off of a bad 2017, and in 1 case also a bad 2016. They drafted 2 receivers and 2 tight ends. They still currently have a 1st round WR and a 2nd TE who have been horrendous since they entered the league. Some of these moves have to work out. They are going to also have to develop some sort chemistry right away.
Road Games If the Ravens continue to struggle on the road they have no shot this season. Since the 2012 Super Bowl season the Ravens road record is 14-26. They have 4 road games in their 1st 6 this year including 3 in a row. That will bury this team if they don't overcome the 5 year trend.
Depth Injuries are going to happen. Good teams overcome. That's something the Ravens have not been able to do. This team is loaded with recent draft picks who are good enough to start and often enough aren't good enough to even be adequate depth when those in front of them go down. That's not what was expected when they were taken in the 2nd, 3rd or 4th rounds.
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07-10-2018, 04:09 PM #17
Re: Five things that need to go right this season
Five things that need to go right:
1. Brent Urban/Jimmy Smith health
2. Wink Martindale innovation
3. Alex Collins/Ken Dixon 2-headed attack
4. Hurst/Snead/Flacco part of the passing game
5. Offensive line gels, protects, opens holes
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Re: Five things that need to go right this season
The running game is the 1 piece of the offense I have real faith in. Even Buck Allen played his best football in 2017. Adding Dixon to the mix is going to be a solid foundation to build the whole offense around
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07-10-2018, 04:35 PM #19
Re: Five things that need to go right this season
If no 5 gets it done, that's your five a day complete
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07-10-2018, 04:39 PM #20
Re: Five things that need to go right this season
I’m at work so I’ll make this brief. These are “duh” answers but the devil is in the details.
1. Generate pass rush - through personnel and scheme.
2. Run block - forget all the WRs and Flacco’s health and Lamar. This offense will only succeed if we can run the ball effectively. We are not built to be a pass first offense, never have been.
3. Playmakers - someone needs to make electrifying plays, on offense and on defense.
4. Health. This should be #1.
5. TE play - effective TE play is a key component of our offense. If we can get actual PLAYMAKING TE play, it could be transformative.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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07-10-2018, 04:56 PM #22
Re: Five things that need to go right this season
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Re: Five things that need to go right this season
True-ish.
Per GOTA's point, injuries are simply part of the NFL game. So the flip side of this coin, quality of depth, is probably a bigger factor for me.
I guess I'm contradicting myself, because I argued that Smith being healthy is a top-five must achieve. My argument is that he is one of their true playmakers.
But ESMD does, I admit, make a good point.
If the Ravens have a healthy Tavon Young, Marlin Humphrey (or Brandon Carr, if Humphrey ends up as the starter opposite Smith) and Anthony Averett available in the wings--instead of a player the likes of Powers, when Smith goes down--then inevitable injuries can be overcome, even to playmakers.
If you want to pinpoint the positions where we are least sure about depth, it's probably linebackers, offensive linemen (center and tackle in particular), and quarterback.
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07-10-2018, 05:43 PM #24
Re: Five things that need to go right this season
Not to veer too far off topic but this was always one of the thing about Pees that irked me while at the same time actually making sense. His last 3 seasons here, when his starters were healthy, he seemed to be able to have them play competent and at times dominant defense.I think his shortcoming was TRUST in reserve players. It seemed to me that if impact starters went down, then Pees would sometimes drastically change the defensive schemes and calls to account for the reserve players. And that would ultimately lead to 4th quarter collapses when they would play a brand of defense so vanilla and conservative that it was easy for a QB to see the holes and exploit them. When opposing offenses see the Ravens in zone and know that there is nobody back there with ridiculous closing speed, it becomes pitch and catch. Conversely, there were probably a few times where he went with trying to play the same defense with those reserve players, but the difference in skill level was so great that the player was simply overmatched. Think about the late game Chykie Brown vs AJ Green mismatches or the earlier mentioned Rashaan Melvin era.
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