oldno82

Probably best to avoid the Lamar to Hill handoffs this game!

Just saw where Jackson missed practice Thursday. Yahoo Sports says due to illness.

I dunno...sometimes I think Harbs just looks kind of beaten down on the sidelines, at least from the shots the Networks use of him. He is 61 and has been at this for a long time. I just don't see the exuberance he showed just a few seasons ago. The man is an outstanding motivator though his knowledge of x's and o's is lacking. We'll see. Maybe they win that Super Bowl and he hangs it up. That said, winning the SB is pretty far down the road right now. We''ll have our hands full over the next 5 games.

Was reading online today, where it appears likely right now that both MacDonald and Monken will have head coaching jobs in the NFL after this season. I wonder what the odds are that Harbs decides to hang it up and one of those two is Bisciotti's replacement coach. In order for any of that to happen though, I think the Ravens have to finish as division champs and play well in the AFC Championship game. If we do another late season el foldo they both might have to remain here. My guess is that both are gone elsewhere next year regardless and Harbs stays put.

Well you know what the Grinch did in the end? He brought all the presents back to Hooville. I take that to mean they'll cough up the game to us in the second half. Course. the wind and rain may have something to do with this game too.

The Jaguars defense wasn't real impressive in the Cincy game. Could be they had one of those 'off' days I was mentioning above. They didn't handle the Bengals backup QB who produced a monster game. Actually, Bethard was fairly impressive himself. Both defenses stunk as the score shows. Here's hoping our D holds up through the next 5 games! That's going to be key for us as well as having to have a decent run game to open up play action, etc. Stanley really has me worried. He hasn't shown he can protect Lamar's blindside, what with all of Stanley's leg/ankle issues. I'm hoping the bye week has restored some of his previous ability, but I have serious doubts. We need everybody to step up their game for the rest of the year and into January if we want to have a decent post-season run. If the defense can hold together and if the O-line can give Lamar time to throw, we'll do alright. Like all the quarterbacks I've seen this year, if you give him time to throw, he can be deadly.

I think what the season has shown so far is that it's very difficult for all the teams in the league to maintain unending consistency. We sure have but so have all the other contenders. No one team is 12-0 or even 11-1 this year. And a lot of 9-3 teams have just barely won or lost games they should have cruised through. The Ravens aren't much different than any other contender. They can come out and blow you away or just as easily barely escape with a win and a few losses thrown in. I don't think there are any exceptions. And all teams are struggling with injuries. There has been a disproportionate share of quarterback injuries this year, just as one example. So, let's keep our fingers crossed that Lamar and all the other players on the team stay healthy for the stretch run. It's going to be a bumpy ride and I don't think we'll know who's won what until at least the regular season is over. Bumpy, exciting and at times frustrating!

And then the Browns went down to the Rams in LA. Joe did well but couldn't save them and had a late game meltdown. Both the Steelers and Browns games showed that any team can lose to anybody in this league this year. And then the Chiefs lost to the below .500 Packers. I'll have to be a little more forgiving in the future when the Ravens don't crush somebody they ought to. Every team can have a bad game in the parity league.

No I think all forms of it should be outlawed. It is going to get someone injured for sure besides the fact that it turns a play, potentially any play, into a rugby scrum where there is no skill involved just muscle mass. I don't like it and want to see it made illegal.

It was a pleasure watching the lowly Cardinals take down the arrogant Steelers today by a score of 24-10. Steelers offense and defense was definitely off. Pickens got hurt again and Trubisky came on and didn't deliver. Hard to believe the Steeler defense is supposed to be so good but they couldn't overcome a weak Cardinals team. Also of note, the game was played with not one but two weather delays for lightening and thunderstorms. The stadium was virtually empty for the second half.

I agree...no matter what happens between now and then, the Steelers game will be an old fashioned slobberknocker like back in the days of Suggs, Lewis, Rothlessxxxeerger, Polamalu and Hines.

Yeah I think it's going to be bumpy. That schedule is fierce. There are no wimps on it now that the Rams are catching fire. We will, finally, find out if this team is for real or just another run-of-the-mill NFL franchise. Hell, the final schedule is as tough as the playoffs!

The offense undoubtedly has a lot of weapons. Sometimes they score in spite of themselves but they will be strongly tested too after the bye. I think the defense will play at least competently down the stretch though maybe not as 'shut down' as they have been. The inconsistency on offense is our weak point. Monken has got to help with that.

Agree that the bye is here just in time. They've got to be tired with the schedule they've had so far and it's only going to get tougher down the stretch. Much tougher. Va is right too...time to hit on all cylinders. But can they do it? Some games, yes. Most games, no. So far. If this really is a good offense, we'll find out after the Rams game. They won't be able to hide after that one. The Defense is really playing well even with uneven performances from the offense. Thing is, I think we have a really good offense talent wise, but not performance wise. The offense underachieves OR is limited by offensive line woes. I'm afraid Stanley has lost it and Moses is aging. OT play is hurting us in the passing game. We now have excellent receivers even with Mark out and a good rotation in the backfield. No NFL team is perfect this year but we are 9-3 and it isn't because we've played up to our potential. You're right Tsyl in that we should be 12-0. To be fair, though, I haven't seen a dominant team in the whole league this year and the won lost records reflect it. I think as was mentioned above by you guys that we just aren't successfully making adjustments when opposing teams begin to realize what the offense is doing. Is that on the coaching? Would seem so. Is Monken having difficulty making mid-game changes? We certainly seem to start off OK in nearly all games, then frequently go into a funk offensively.

Somewhat intense but the kind of game where you kind of felt it was under control. LAC is a good team and they have some potent weapons. Their defense played better than their year to date stats show but in the end the superior team won out. Glad it was us and now off to a 14 day well deserved respite before we run that gauntlet of season ending games.

If we show up fairly rested and hungry for victory, we'll beat them. Sloppy play could kill us. Overall, we have more talent than they do.

I think the key to this game is for us to emphasize the run and short passes to move the chains, score points, and keep Herbert, Williams and the rest of the Chargers' high octane offense off the field. As good as the Chargers offense is, their defense is that bad.

No it doesn't address his overthrowing deep balls (although he did hit OBJ on 1 of the 3 he threw deep last game), but he does seem to have a good grasp of what and how the offensive parts mesh together and it shows his work ethic. Hopefully he'll connect more often on his deep throws in the next few weeks. Hopefully..

*^%$#!!! Try this: At the Ravens’ sprawling headquarters and practice facility in Owings Mills — 200,000 total square feet, with its indoor field and weight room accounting for about half of it — Lamar Jackson takes a seat at a long table inside one of the first-floor meeting rooms inside “The Castle,” as the massive complex is affectionally known. At the head of the table is first-year quarterbacks coach Tee Martin. Jackson sits to his immediate left, backup Tyler Huntley next to Jackson and No. 3 quarterback Josh Johnson to Martin’s right, while assistant quarterbacks coach Kerry Dixon mans the computer further down the table. While the stadium is where the magic happens for Jackson and the 8-3 Ravens, this is where much of the work takes place for the quarterback. [ Ravens TE Mark Andrews has an ‘outside chance’ to return from ankle injury this season ] “Lamar’s like any other student,” says Martin, who spent the previous two seasons as Baltimore’s wide receivers coach and 25 years ago was the quarterback for national champion Tennessee. “He comes in with his bookbag, takes out his notepad, takes out his pen or pencil and just about every word that comes out of my mouth he’s taking it in. “If there’s something that hits his brain a certain way, he’ll ask a question. He’s very good about being clear to make sure there’s clarity to whatever it is that you’re saying. He’s not shy about asking questions. He doesn’t play around in meetings. He’s a creative thinker. He’s meticulous about things. When you put a play in, he has this blank stare, because he’s playing the play in his mind. A lot of guys can’t do that.” Most in the NFL also haven’t done what Jackson has this season. [ Ravens linebacker Tyus Bowser launches nonprofit to help disadvantaged youth in Baltimore City ] His 69.5% complete rate is the fifth-highest mark in the NFL, his 2,441 yards passing are 10th and his 8.1 yards per attempt ranks fourth. Jackson’s 535 rushing yards, meanwhile, lead the league and are nearly 150 more than the next closest quarterback, the Vikings’ Josh Dobbs, and his five rushing touchdowns are the third-highest total in the league. But the evolution of Jackson, who was the NFL’s unanimous Most Valuable Player in 2019, has reached another level this season beyond just statistics. Thursday night against the Bengals, the Ravens were facing third-and-7 from Cincinnati’s 11-yard line with 28 seconds remaining in the first half. Baltimore had its receivers stacked in a two-by-two formation against man coverage. At the snap, Jackson looked to his right, where wide receiver Zay Flowers, tight end Isaiah Likely and running back Justice Hill were all well covered. So he looked left, where he had Nelson Agholor breaking over the middle and Rashod Bateman working on the outside against Cameron Taylor-Britt. Agholor was open but going away from Jackson as he broke the pocket to his left. Jackson’s movement to the left also forced cornerback Mike Hilton to make a choice: play Jackson one-on-one, or the passing lane. He chose the former, moving toward the quarterback and in doing so opened a window in the end zone for Bateman, who cut in, with Jackson flinging a dart for a touchdown. Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson, second from right, celebrates a touchdown to wide receiver Rashod Bateman, right, with wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr., left, and wide receiver Nelson Agholor in the second quarter of Thursday's game against the Bengals. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun) The score put the Ravens up 21-10 at the half and helped bury the Joe Burrow-less Bengals in a hole they couldn’t get out of. There were other plays where Jackson’s progressions stood out, too. Earlier on the drive, he found Odell Beckham Jr. on a corner-stop route for 15 yards after his eyes moved Cincinnati corner Chide Awuzie back toward the middle of the field. And earlier in the second, he connected with what appeared to be his third option in Beckham for 29 yards to set up the Ravens’ second touchdown. [ Ravens WR Odell Beckham Jr., with legs back underneath him, is starting to look like his old self ] Of course, it helps to have playmakers around him. Flowers is second among rookie receivers in catches (53) and fourth in yards (588). Beckham has started to show signs of his old self the past few weeks. Bateman is healthy and has made some crucial catches. There was also ever-dependable tight end Mark Andrews, until he suffered what is likely a season-ending ankle injury in the first quarter Thursday night (though coach John Harbaugh offered a glimmer of hope Monday). Then there is the new scheme under offensive coordinator Todd Monken, who has empowered Jackson to have more input and control and opened the playbook up more the more comfortable the quarterback has become. It took some time and is still a work in progress, but the Ravens have found an identity and rhythm over the past month, scoring 34, 31, 37, 31 and 38 points in their past five games. “He was a very quick study,” Martin said of Jackson. “He’s a quick learner. He doesn’t need a lot of reps to learn things and he sees the game a certain way. Coming in, the terminology, once we got over that bridge of what we used to call it to what we call it now, things that are different, things that are new, introducing him to those concepts and ideas, it all became his own from that point on. “We talked about empowering the quarterback as far as protections, as far as being able to change routes. He loved it.” “I’m more vocal than I was before,” said Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson, quieting the crowd during Thursday's game against the Bengals. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun) There’s been a noticeable growth within the walls of the quarterback room as well. “I’m more vocal than I was before,” Jackson said. “Early on [in my career], I was just wanting to learn the ins and outs of defenses in the NFL. But now, [with] me just seeing them each and every week — different defenses every week — I’ve got a lot more questions. I see certain things, and then I want to just tell Coach Monken, ‘We should try to put this in the game plan’ [and] stuff like that.” The other quarterbacks can see a difference, too. [ Where the Ravens turn after injury to TE Mark Andrews on controversial hip-drop tackle ] Huntley, whose locker is next to Jackson’s and who signed as an undrafted free agent with the Ravens two years after Baltimore drafted Jackson in 2018, says the former Heisman Trophy winner has taken command in meetings and in the huddle. “He’s just coming into himself, on and off the field, doing what he needs to do to make himself better, putting in the work,” Huntley said. Johnson, who has played for an NFL-record 14 teams and is in his third stint with the Ravens, sees Jackson for the dynamic playmaker he is but also as someone whose football IQ is high. “He’s who he’s advertised to be,” Johnson said. “He’s been dominant since he’s gotten in to the league. To me, the proof is in his play. If you question who he is as a player, I question how much you know about football. I don’t know what the public thinks of [Jackson]; I know what I think of [Jackson]. I respect him to the highest.” Backup quarterback Tyler Huntley, center, says Lamar Jackson, left, has taken command in meetings and in the huddle. (Kenneth K. Lam/Baltimore Sun) Still, Jackson has endured more than a few hiccups this season. He has fumbled 10 times, losing six of them. He has also thrown five interceptions. And he has been sacked 27 times, which is on pace for the most of any season in his career, after, in many cases, holding onto the ball too long. But he has also shown his toughness. This season, he has taken a handful of notable hits, including a few earlier this month against the Browns. Then against the Bengals on Thursday, he injured his ankle at the end of the first quarter and was examined in the team’s medical tent. [ Ravens wide receivers step up after Mark Andrews’ injury in win over Bengals: ‘It’s going to take everybody’ ] It was momentarily frightening for a franchise that had already lost Andrews and seen Jackson suffer leg injuries each of the past two seasons. But he emerged with a thumbs-up and didn’t miss a play. “We all know who he is,” Beckham said of Jackson. “He’s the leader of this team, and everybody feeds off him. So, when we see him come back out, it makes you … whatever you have going on, you feel like you’re hurting, he’s out there, [so] we’ve all got to be out there. It was a big leadership moment by him.” Baltimore Ravens Insider Weekly Want the inside scoop on the Ravens? Become a Ravens Insider and you'll have access to news, notes and analysis from The Sun. By submitting your email to receive this newsletter, you agree to our Subscriber Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy. And perhaps will ultimately lead to his biggest season yet.

Yep, I dvr all the games every time and then watch them from the beginning after I've recorded about 30-40 minutes skipping all commercials as I watch. I usually catch up to real time in the 4th quarter.

https://digitaledition.baltimoresun.com/html5/desktop/production/default.aspx?pubid=99644e1a-52da-4fe3-8f78-a84e4fe4d386&edid=59721d6c-498f-4aa5-83a2-644b1b372703 Talks about his development at QB...

It does bug me that we have that tendency to let weaker teams hang around and hang around until some fluky thing happens in the 4th quarter and we lose. I don't see a big margin victory this time. I think our team is very tired at this point and the 3000 mile plane ride won't help. We really need that bye week. Hopefully they push through the fatigue and bring back a win.

Yes. I'm waiting to hear what the specialist in NC says, but it is a glimmer of hope. It'd be nice if he could return somewhere in the playoffs if we get that far.

Also, didn't the NFL later make landing with your body weight on the QB a personal foul penalty? Was it just the QB or was it anybody? Anyway, we're veering off-topic here as the issue with Mark and Lamar was the hip drop which is currently not illegal but is responsible for an outsized portion of serious injuries. The NFL needs to forbid it. The game is tough enough on the players who get hurt incidentally. It doesn't need a tactic like Logan Wilson was using.

Good read and reply, Tsyl!