oldno82

I have to agree that we get a competent backup and use the middle rounds to see if there's a guy who could start in a few years. Hopefully one will show up on Ozzie's BPA list.

I've been wanting a quality backup ever since Bulger retired. If we can't draft one in the mid rounds, go for a journeyman to fill in until we do get one. Crap, maybe we need both.

The glass is 2/3 empty now and rightly so. But one things this season worked out to the Ravens good advantage: OT Rick Wagner is going to be a good one: "..Wagner had a superb season in his first year as a starter (second overall). He is rated as the best pass-blocking right tackle in the league by Pro Football Focus (PFF). He was second overall at right tackle behind New England’s Sebastian Vollmer.." http://www.baltimoreravens.com/news/article-1/Tackle-Rick-Wagner-Moves-To-Injured-Reserve/2a99af5f-a19e-4342-9781-bb7bbaa2c141] Funny. Back last summer I thought RT was our Achilles Heel and that the secondary was loaded. It couldn't have turned out more inaccurate if I tried.

Well stated varaven. There's a lot of good points in what you said. The biggest is that we might have to suffer through a couple more mediocre years before all the missing parts can be assembled in the secondary and on offense.

Agree with that, varaven45. The team desperately needs several playmakers; some on Offense and some in the secondary. I think the OL and DL look gassed as tsylvester said. Lack of practices is probably responsible for many of the injuries in the NFL right now. It's a long season and I think teams need to run more practices in camp and during the week. Inconsistency of pass rush is mystifying. One week they're hot, then a week or two later it disappears. The Texans said they watched a lot film about the Ravens where the team is vulnerable to a pass rush up the middle. I don't know if that falls on Zuttah or not but we need to be more stout in the middle of the Offensive line. That's another reason why this team finds it so hard to get a 3rd and 1 for a first down by running it up the gut.

They sure did and I don't know when was the last time I've seen the Ravens beaten so badly physically.

Absolutely on the mark va. No point in going to the playoffs where they would just embarrass themselves more.

Couldn't agree more. There was no 'fire' in either game by the Ravens.

A hefty raise definitely with a long term contract and whatever other perks he wants. And maybe the title Rex Ryan used to have: Assistant Head Coach.

"Black Monday" is the day after the NFL regular season ends and when head coaches get fired. It might also be the beginning of the end of Gary Kubiak's one-year tenure as the Ravens' offensive coordinator. Kubiak downplayed questions on Thursday about him getting another opportunity to become a head coach, but there has to be some owner out there willing to give him a second chance. Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco is having a career season in his first year with offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak. (Wesley Hitt / Getty Images)"I don’t think about that one at all; I can tell you that," Kubiak said Thursday. "I'm consumed with what I'm doing. Every opportunity I've ever had in my life, hopefully it’s because I'm doing a good job and working my tail off where I'm at. "So, I think if you worry about those things, you don’t enjoy what you're doing at the time, and boy, am I enjoying what I'm doing right now." His credentials are impeccable. Kubiak has appeared in six Super Bowls, winning three as an assistant coach, and has mentored Hall of Fame quarterbacks John Elway and Steve Young. If he lost his fastball during the 2013 season, his last year after eight years as the head coach in Houston, then he regained it this season turning the Ravens' offense from one of the worst to one of the best in the NFL. lRelated Ravens Insider As he readies for homecoming, Gary Kubiak expresses no bitterness toward Texans See all related8So, if I were Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti, I'd give Kubiak just about anything he wanted to keep him in Baltimore. A new Mercedes? No problem. Keys to The Castle? Here you go. New contract extension? Done already. The Ravens can't afford to lose Kubiak. Of all the team's free-agent acquisitions during the offseason, he has been the best. Without Kubiak, the Ravens allowed 48 sacks as quarterback Joe Flacco threw 22 interceptions last season. They averaged just 83 rushing yards per game. As he readies for homecoming, Gary Kubiak expresses no bitterness toward Texans With Kubiak, the Ravens are ranked 10th in total offense, averaging 239.4 passing and 136.8 rushing yards per game. When Kubiak was the offensive coordinator in Denver, he turned no-name running backs such as Olandis Gary and Reuben Droughns into 1,000-yard rushers. He has worked the same magic again this season with Justin Forsett, a journeyman running back who has 1,128 yards after 14 games. But maybe the most important reason to keep Kubiak is his relationship with Flacco. There seems to be a respect that Flacco has for Kubiak that he didn't have for predecessors Cam Cameron or Jim Caldwell. Maybe it's because Kubiak played quarterback in the league and the others didn't, but the results are obvious. Flacco communicates better with teammates and coaches on the sideline. His decision-making is quicker. His technique is better as far as getting a quicker release and planting his back foot in the ground. Flacco's game is more consistent now, no longer inconsistent from game to game and week to week. That's the least you'd want from a player in which $120.6 million has been invested. Now, imagine if the Ravens lose Kubiak?... READ MORE: http://www.baltimoresun.com/balnews-mike-preston-20130507-staff.html

16-13 Ravens

When will all these injuries come to an end??

Unless you're drafting way up you can't really do much positional need filling. The Ravens have done so well since 2008, they've been drafting from the back of the pack. That's probably why Ozzie drafts BPA. I admit that shopping for the BPA isn't very exciting to me but it's worked for the Ravens very well.

Really anything goes this Sunday. I can see a blowout by the Ravens or a close win for either team.

Are there any details on what kind of 'foot injury' he has?

It just keeps getting worse. I didn't know Taliaferro was hurt that bad.

Well maybe the offense stays awake this game because they know Kubes will want to beat the team that fired him.

I've been around a long time and I've never seen a team's secondary as decimated as ours is. And new guys I've never heard of keep rotating in as the previous ones go down. When you think about it, it's pretty amazing the defense has held up as well as it has. The DL and LB's are doing just a great job.

True enough. But he's overpaid and Jernigan is ready to play. Now if Ngata is willing to revise his contract for less money (like Brady did a while back) it would be worth considering.

Those all sound good to me. I would add Suggs.

It's a real cliffhanger. Somehow, someway I think we make the playoffs. Just a gut feeling.

If they can trade Ngata, go for it. If not, cut him. I don't think it's a great idea to pay a DT the $16,000,000 he'll be owed. Plus, even with dead money there would be cap savings.

Well I'm worried about Houston away and Cleveland. We should win all 3 games that are left but this year's team performance has been almost impossible to predict.

Agree...neither one is at 100% anyway.