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Ozzie says it so well.... "For 17 years, we could point to No. 52 and tell the other players: 'Follow his lead. Practice like Ray practices. Prepare like Ray prepares. Be a great teammate like him.' It was our privilege to have him as a Raven. We are all better for having him here. His play on game days speaks for itself. Even in that small group who have the honor of being a Hall of Famer, Ray stands out. When you talk about the great players of all time, no matter position, he is among the greatest of the great." Ozzie Newsome, general manager who drafted Lewis in 1996:..http://www.espn.com/blog/baltimore-ravens/post/_/id/43009/ray-lewis-enters-hall-of-fame-as-greatest-leader-in-team-sports-history Fabulous 17 years of watching the greatest MLB to ever play. Even in the down years, it was worth the price of admission to watch him play. I screamed every time he came out of the tunnel, got my game face on and took up my position as the 12th man. The Ravens were feared and had a chance to win against every opponent because of how well he elevated and inspired the level of performance of those around him. Preston says it well.... We're a fortunate group of fans.

I'm more at ease now because Steve showed up alone. It shows that he really cares about the current situation and the fans. It's called Accountability. If it was just about making money, then he wouldn't have shown up alone for a possible lynching. His passion to build an outstanding team and organization remains.

According to Preston Ozzie will still be very much involved.... The whole article is very revealing. They are committed to upgrading the scouting department. They admit that all the raiding has taken a toll and that they failed to address their losses.

It will be sad to see Ozzie go. He had a huge hand in the success this franchise has had. Every team has down years, but not many have had as good a long term run as the Ravens have had. He's too young to go. He can build a Super Bowl winner somewhere else. When a franchise is successful then they get raided by the other franchises hoping to duplicate that success. The Ravens have been raided long and hard and it's been showing in the product that they put on the field. The CAP era does not allow them to keep the good players that they draft and develop. Without talent, no staff of coaches can put together a winner.

This should turn things around....

1. Has Joe Flacco has lived up to his end of his contract? 2. Do you think the Ravens are managing their CAP well? 3. Are you putting an entertaining product on the field?

It's hard to figure. When the Ravens have been drafting late, because they were successful in making the playoffs, the talent pool gets watered down by their pick. When they have been drafting mid round, because they have been average or below....they didn't make any splash's. And they should have. So it's got to be talent evaluation process, the evaluators and who makes the final decision. I'd say that's broke. Fix it for the fans please! Here's a dismal stat.... That involves everybody. Players and coaches. GM and scouts for lack of talent. All of us have agonized for years that when it's 3rd and 7, they run 5 yard routes. Bench anybody who doesn't run to the sticks. BURN THOSE PLAYS!!!! FORBID THEM!!!!

Jeff writes a very good article here.... He goes on to point out the accomplishments of these scouts with the Ravens and now Philly. Philly has been mediocre for years. Connect the dots. Now...the Ravens did get even a little bit. They got Harbaugh.

AGREED. Really looking forward to this game.

As a fan, you live for those moments. The blocked FG and Mitchels return in the Ravens/Titans playoff game. The Flacco to Jones Mile High Miracle. You never forget them.

He's not NFL caliber. Speed rushers will destroy him.

You keep Haley and ditch Tomlin and the DC.

They do it after that meeting. Right now they are practicing how they will walk into that meeting announcing no changes except 1. There will be a new mascot next year until they get their swagger back.

Too late to get interested. The Ravens are committed. Why didn't they ditch the DC?

The Ravens gave up 23 points total in 3 playoff games and 1 Super Bowl. The held the #1 offense to 3 points. They held the #1 rushing offense to 32 yards. The Giants O put up 45 points in their championship game. 0 points in the Super Bowl. The Giants OC? Shawn Peyton. Nobody could have pushed the Ravens D around like the Steelers did to the Jags.

Flacco. He gets hurt before the season starts, takes 8 games before he can play ok....by then it was too late. He had no rapport with any player. This season was on the rocks before opening day.

How about a Fan Trauma Center? Load it with counselors.

I kept trying to see something in Carr all year. At best I'd say he was OK. His roster spot is a position to upgrade if possible. All I heard about him before he was a Raven was that he never got injured. And I knew the Dallas secondary couldn't cover so I wondered what the big deal was. My guess is the Ravens were tired of running out 57 new players a season in the secondary because everybody got hurt. The solved that problem. Now, find a guy who can cover, make the play and stay healthy. All I can say is I witnessed one of his seasons where he never got injured. He dressed up for the Ravens secondary. A ton of guys can say that.

Yeabut.... as for the winners.... they blocked, they tackled, they threw, they caught, they ran. They played all out for 60 minutes. Some of the losers did too.

They are the new Ravens. Very Confident Bullies.