thundercleetz

This is encouraging news, but I still expect Webb to start the season on the PUP list. While he cannot make his injury worse, he can complicate matters by coming back too soon. Often times the other knee will overcompensate for the injured one putting the player at risk. Obviously, the trainers are aware of this though. Webb's game is built around speed and quickness, he will not be the same player if he is 100%. What this report tells me is that Webb should be recovered for a target date of Week 6, not Week 1. This is still very encouraging though considering we were not certain if we were going to see Webb at all in 2010.

HOLY DIVER!!!!!

I don't remember being much of a fan of the Clayton pick either. But do you remember the other players that we were hoping would drop? Mike Williams out of USC and Thomas Davis out of Georgia. The 2005 draft was not a very good one. Look at the first round, a lot of busts. What I did find interesting is that Eric DeCosta admitted that they had Mark Clayton and Roddy White rated very closely and had a very difficult time deciding who to pick at #22. It is easy to say we made the wrong decision, but would Roddy White have had the same career playing with Boller and McNair? Maybe. He did make Chris Redman look like a Pro Bowler. Nevertheless, that first round in '05 was not a very good one. Derrick Mason? Trevor Pryce? Both of these guys have been very solid signings for us. That is the thing though, we knew McNair would only give us one year, two years max. It was a risk we took. We had an old team and we needed to make an immediate run at the Super Bowl. It got us in a very good position to win the Super Bowl being 13-3 with a first round bye. There is no such thing as guaranteeing a Super Bowl. That team was as close to Super Bowl ready as one team could be. We just ran into a better team in the eventual Super Bowl winning Colts. We took a one year risk with McNair and it nearly paid off. Ozzie knew that going in. Ozzie could not help that McNair's shoulder gave out in the second season. The guy could barely throw the ball ten yards.

People get mad at you not because you think for yourself, but you do a very bad job of thinking for yourself. All you ever do is complain and wine and then say what you would do with your 20-20 vision. Your current assessment of what you would do just proves how little you know about how everything actually works. This is not Madden.

I got to give it to your Habs, millz. I thought Halak just caught the perfect storm and hit a hot streak to beat the Caps. But no, he has kept up his amazing play throughout the playoffs and beat two of the most dangerous and talented offensive attacks the NHL has seen in years. The Habs team defense has been splendid. Very disciplined, they hustle, and they block shots before they can even get to the net. This could be a team of destiny this year.

Ok genius, what would you have done with this team? And what team in the NFL is in really good shape by your measurement?

Ngata. Redding has shown in the past he has that type of ability. And we drafted Arthur Jones with the hope he could develop into an interior pocket pusher. Hopefully Mattison makes adjustments to his gameplans as well to make his blitzes more effective. It is not a guaranteed thing, but you have to like the potential.

The "Kyle Boller experiment" lasted about two-and-a-half years before we got McNair. Ozzie got a DT because our defensive line was starting to age, that is nothing to do with what Ray said out of frustration. I agree with Geo, I think your comment was arrogant. You have 32 teams competing for the same goal. Everyone has their holes, and every team has their cycles where they have weak spots on their team. The best teams are the ones who can hide their weaknesses. The Pats secondary were a bunch of late round draft picks who filled in for injured starters for their second Super Bowl. The Colts were able to mask a very soft interior defensive line for their Super Bowl. And the Saints were able to get great production out of backup offensive linemen last season. You just need to get it through your head, no team can be solid at all positions. Sometimes I seriously wonder why you are even a Ravens fan. You say you enjoy to process of building the team because of your major, but if that were true you should be able to understand competition between teams to get the best players, the process of players aging, and the limitations the salary cap (now the economy) has on what teams can do.

I agree with Force. While it would be nice to get a guy back with whom we are comfortable with, Ozzie and DeCosta have proven that our personel guys are replaceable, DeCosta is clearly the guy to replace Ozzie, as evident by the fact that we denied Seattle's request to interview him. Then throw in guys like Hortiz and Vince Newsome, and we are fine.

Thanks for warning me! I am just not watch the Ravens this year then because I am only going to be disappointed. We have not delt with major problems over the years? How about QB, WR, and the offensive line? What about the aging defensive line? This is the NFL in the salary cap era, when these positions I mentioned were problems, we were set at CB with Cmac and co. It is the cycle of the NFL salary cap. The bottom line is that the NFL playoffs are a crap shoot. It is all about who is hot and who is healthy among a bunch of other things. Teams that looks like studs now become duds and vice-versa (yes, which could very well be us). If we make the playoffs in good health, you take it one game at a time. The offensive line is thin? Can you name our RT the year we won the Super Bowl? In case you can't, Harry Swayne. I don't think I am worried about the offensive line. Chester filled in solidly as a starter last season, and Yanda has durability all along the line. Cousins may not be a solid starter, but he was decent in spot play last season. If we could win the Super Bowl with Harry Swayne, Cousins should be OK granted we aren't a wreck elsewhere. David Hale has been in the system for a few years and could be ready to step up if called upon. And Ramone Harewood was looking impressive before he got hurt (although I am not expecting anything). Bottom line: we are in a lot better shape than most teams at the offensive line. Pass rush (extending to corner play) is certainly the achilles heal at this point. Are the additions of Kindle, Redding, and Arthur Jones enough? Are Barnes and Kruger ready to step up? What kind of year are we to expect from Suggs? Is Mattison going to be able to make the adjustments from year one to year two? These are certainly big questions marks. As bad as our pass defense was last season, we still finished 8th best in the league. Say our stats were padded by a few gimme games, but so was everyone else's. The fact remains that we are still going to be able to stop the run, and probably end up as a top five defense as always when it is said and down. If the offense improves with the additions we've made, you have to like our chances in a sudden death playoff. We proved last year we could play with anyone, the same should be the same this year. The bottom line: this team is a lot more talented than last year's team.

Have a bad day today?

As good as Gaither is, he only played in 11 games last year. If he continues to take time off like this he is going to be even more so vulnerable to injury. If this is the case, get rid of him for a player that can help make this team better for 16 games. On the flip side, if I know Gaither is going to be 100% come playoff time, I am keeping him, franchise him next offseason and trade him away.

As good as Gaither is, he only played in 11 games last year. If he continues to take time off like this he is going to be even more so vulnerable to injury. If this is the case, get rid of him for a player that can help make this team better for 16 games. On the flip side, if I know Gaither is going to be 100% come playoff time, I am keeping him, franchise him next offseason and trade him away.

Donte Whitner?

I heard Ed wanted to see if this is something that would heal with rest, but the injury ended up being worse than he thought and needed surgery if he was going to play.

Max, you have to take into account that the pass rush will be improved with Kindle and Redding in the mix and Kruger entering his second year. Spear, where did you hear that Clayton might play some corner?

Look at these Dennis Pitta highlights. This is why we stayed true to our board and drafted him, the man can flat-out play! Pita's aggressive running style, his ability to catch the ball in stride, and his ability to play the flex receiver reminds me a lot of Dallas Clark. I am impressed by how easy and effortlessly he makes catching the ball in stride look. He definitely does not look like someone who has limited athleticism as most of the scouting reports say. He may not have the fastest top speed nor be very elusive, but he gets to his top speed very quickly and runs with authority. This guy will make an impact! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ga1ln7L3qUw&feature=related

I loved the new format! Being in central time, the draft did not end too late for me on Thursday night, and the early start time (5 PM) on Friday was great (I got to watch before and at happy hour). I actually liked this format better than the Saturday/Sunday format. I know people have off work on Saturday, but the draft takes up ALL DAY. I like it being broken up. One, the draft starts two days earlier than usual. Two, it puts more anticipation and emphasis on the first round. And three, that second day (second and third rounds) become much more emphasized as well and we get to know some very good players that would probably be overshadowed in the Saturday/Sunday format. I'm a fan, sign me up for next year!

Outdated news. Aaron Wilson no longer works for PFT, he said Heap is staying.

I heard we liked Cook from UVA and Kareem Jackson a lot. Jackson was gone by 25 and Cook was gone before we picked in the second round.

I agree with Spear. Even though the Jets have put a lot of talent around Sanchez, I am of the opinion that he is an average QB. The Jets will be good, but I don't think they are elite just yet.

Max, that 2004 draft had a lot of picks, but they were late rounders. A 2, 3, 4, 5, and two 6's do not compare to two 2's, a 3, a 4, and two 5's. This draft was also a lot deeper than the 2004 draft.

Good list, lets see how everything shakes out!

What scares me is that they say "at this point." To me it seems like this knee is a ticking time bomb. Luckily, microfracture surgery is a lot more advanced than it was five years ago. It is something that could probably be taken care of over an offseason.

Hahah I hate that too! He does this every year.