Speical Teams 2020

[21xxxv]

After Rosburg's retirement I was most concerend on how the Special Teams unit would endure in his absence. Looking back I feel this team regressed. Again, not too surprising to a degree, but I never saw the inprovemnet in coverage teams or the returns teams. You could say that Thomas was an improvemnet over Jones and his fumbles. But, we've been somewhat spoiled in years past with stellar ST's play, besides kicking and punting. If 2020 is to be a successful Ravens year like we anticipate, this is an area that EDC and Harbs may need to re-evaluate and by all means tweak.

[Desert Raven]

The kick return game is dreadful they need to find someone explosive, game intelligent, and not a fumbler even if his only job is KR/PR. It could make a huge difference to have that Jacoby Jones/Jermaine Lewis type again and not these different Lamont Brightfuls

[PTORaven]

i would like to see Hill get another chance at returning. maybe one NFL offseason will be enough for him to get it together. also wondering if they're gonna find ST work for Trace McSorley or if that was all just pre/post-draft hype how he'd be useful on ST

[PTORaven]

in theory i like kicking to the front of the endzone and forcing them to return. i think the rule change bringing kickoffs out to the 25 instead of the 20 has backfired in terms of trying to reduce the number of returns. starting at the 25 is too valuable for the offense that kicking touchbacks are a bad thing now where 10 years ago touchback % was one of the marks of a great kicker. that said, it is only useful if you routinely (maybe 80% of the time) pin them within the 25. too many times teams were starting at the 28, 32, 35...

if they can get kickoff coverage down to where teams almost always get tackled around the 20 (plus the occasional half-the-distance penatly) then they should continue. but if we see what we saw this year, f***ing knock it off and kick it through the endzone. that Jets game sticks out in my mind. Jets came in with the best KO return stats in the league. by the end of the first quarter Ravens ST coach should've seen enough that he had Tucker boot it into the stands the rest of the game.

[Blovius_Maximus]

Hopefully there are some rules changes that will make kickoffs more meaningful. Kickoffs have now replaced extra-point attempts as the time to refresh your beverage.

Switching from a fan's perspective, when kickoffs are meaningful isn't a team's roster construction also more important? Let's see teams decide whether it's in their best interests to keep a marginal starting linebacker versus a special teams ace DB, or vice versa. Summer cutdowns are more interesting when you know that supply of players include more potential starters but for special teams performance.

Styles make fights. The NFL is more fun when more teams have unique styles, when teams place different emphasis on different aspects of the game or different types of players. Special teams is (or was) a part of that. Dare I say it: Make Special Teams Great Again.

[PTORaven]

ST is one downside to having amazing (best ever for our franchise?) depth and talent at CB, where most of the CBs are too valuable (Smith, Peters, Humphrey, Tavon Young) or too old (Carr) to be ST contributors. not often that you have to go all the way to the 6th string CB to find someone you'd put on ST

[52N19]

I’m not sure it’s our punt returner that is the problem more so then the oppositions gunners seem to get no resistance. The PR doesn’t have a chance.

[WrongBaldy]

Speical for sure