ravensfanatic77

Nope...still silly! You clearly didn't read what I said! If Gresham, Graham, Odrick, or Wilson (that equates to a stud TE, 2 DL who will provide pass rush, and a stud CB) are gone then ya gotta go with a WR! VALUE/NEED/BPA...covers it all! By succeeding what do you mean? Reaching the playoffs and only being to one Super Bowl? Wins are great but success is measured in multiple championships buddy... Get a clue! You need multiple receiving targets to solidify a passing game! Not one capable WR and scrubs...sorry that just isn't the key to developing a threatening vertical game that sets fear in defenses! Touches? Really? Again...did you listen to what I said? Not many rookie WR come in and light the league on fire...by year 2 and 3 they begin to shine! If you bring a solid rookie in as a #3 or #4 WR this year to learn the offense and build rapport with Flacco then he will be ready to really step up his game and take a larger role next year...NEXT YEAR...2011 where like I said our WR corps that is so much improved for the 2010 season already will be thinned out immensely since neither Stallworth, nor Clayton, nor D. Williams are under contract for 2011...also who knows if Mason will even honor a 2 year deal! Is all this sinking in yet?

Agreed! Plus a rookie WR to groom behind some solid veterans! Give me Gresham in the 1st...if he's not there and neither are Kyle Wilson, Brandon Graham, or Jared Odrick...ya gotta take Benn, Thomas, or Tate...preferably you trade back into the late 1st or early 2nd and take whichever of the 3 is still on board!

Goodness...what a silly comment! For starters, with all the depth this WR class has it's not wasting a pick! Our WR corps looks much better than last year, sure! But let's see...Stallworth has a 1 year deal, Clayton has 1 year left too, Mason is 36 years old and will only sign a 1-2 year deal (who knows if he doesn't just retire after year 1!)...So that leaves us with only Boldin for sure heading into the 2011 season; and he will be 30 by then. If WR is BPA at any pick you still take them. We need youth and talent regardless of who we already brought in. Give me Benn, Tate, or Thomas in 1st round if Brandon Graham, Jermaine Gresham, Jared Odrick, and Kyle Wilson are all gone! Damn, if we could trade a lil further back in 1st or early 2nd to get one of them that would be even better! Why? Because they are great value there and are talented, productive WR that will mesh well with our current WR corps and be important for the following seasons! Joe Flacco needs a young WR to grow with him! You must always think about the present but more importantly the future when drafting! Like I said, after this year our WR corps could be depleted again! Same can be said for people thinking Gresham would be a horrible pick! The guy is a freak and is going to be an elite receiving TE...something we haven't seen from Heap in a few years!

http://insider.espn.go.com/nfl/insider/news/story?id=4976721 Ten logical cap casualties for 2010 Roy Williams, WR, Dallas Cowboys Williams' tenure in Dallas has been an unmitigated disaster, with the Cowboys giving up far too much in terms of draft picks and cash to acquire and retain the former Texas star. At this point, he's the team's third receiver (behind Miles Austin and Jason Witten), and there's no reason to believe he's going to get much better. Williams is owed a guaranteed $9.5 million bonus this season, but if the Cowboys cut him, that bonus won't be applied to the cap over future seasons. They'll also save nearly $3.5 million in salary this year, a figure that will go up to nearly $33 million by the time his deal ends in 2014. How much do you think denial is worth to Jerry Jones? What do ya think? Think Oz is just waiting to see who hits the Free Agent market after teams start to release players? I would think that Boldin and Williams would make a formidable duo! Williams is a tall big WR 6'3", 215 lbs with tons of talent. He has underperformed some over the years but in a 6 year career he has put up reasonable numbers: 319 cathes 4678 yards 14.7 average 37 touchedowns 220 first downs Pairing him with Boldin might really put us over the top! What do you think?

Despite acquiring Seneca Wallace, the Browns are still in need of another QB as they released Derek Anderson today! That leaves them Brady Quinn and Seneca Wallace as only QBs on roster. Could they still potentially be in market for trading for Troy Smith? Hopefully for us they are, but I view Wallace and Smith as very similar QBs so the odds he is moved to Browns in unlikely...perhaps the Bills where Donte Whitner is lobbying for him to come to Buffalo!

I'd prefer not Cowboys either, they have the 27th pick and it would be harder to get a stellar OT at that point!

As of right now, sure our WR corp is better than last year, but it isn't vastly improved just yet! Boldin is a huge upgrade over Mason, but after that we don't have much else. As good as he is, Boldin has never been a #1 WR nor has he had to do it alone. In order to make significant improvement we need to add 1 more FA (Mason or Antonio Bryant) and then a draft pick (not necessarily a 1st rounder, but another rookie WR will help add depth).

From NFL.com "Roundup: Would Ravens deal Gaither? Posted: March 7th, 2010 | Adam Rank | Tags: Arizona Cardinals, Baltimore Ravens, Brodney Pool, Buffalo Bills, Cleveland Browns, Dallas Cowboys, David Carr, Donte Whitner, Eric Smith, Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts, James Ihedigbo, Jared Gaither, Kerry Rhodes, Mike Holmgren, New York Jets, San Francisco 49ers, Seattle Seahawks The first wave of free agents have already landed, and now the news is giving way to speculation. Could a large number of high-profile names be on the move? Perhaps. Here are some of the hottest rumors along with some updated information about free-agent visits. * After trading for WR Anquan Boldin on Friday, could the Ravens be working to make another deal? Ravens T Jared Gaither could be on the move after the team only offered him a first-round tender. The Baltimore Sun is reporting that four teams could be in the running for Gaither (the 49ers, Seahawks, Cowboys and Colts)." http://blogs.nfl.com/2010/03/07/roundup-carr-a-brown-gaither-whitner-on-the-move/ If the Seahawks make the offer we'd get the 6th pick and if the 49ers sign him we'd get the 13th pick...those are fair trades for a man taken in the 5th round of a supplemental draft! Sure Gaither has shown a lot of potential and upside, but he also carries a lot of nagging injuries that seem to never full heal! It would be great to keep our young, talented line together, but if we were to lose Gaither it wouldn't be the end all be all! Let's just hope if we lose him it isn't to a poison pill offer sheet that was used by the Vikings on Steve Hutchinson!

Yea, no top tier comp picks for us this year! We lost way more than we gained, but we still won't get a good comp pick! Not to mention, Denario Alexander is garbage! Clarence Moore all over again with this dude! STAY AWAY!!!

Well there is no way that the latter portion of this comment could be accurate! This is an incredibly deep CB class with a lot of value: Joe Hayden, Florida (Top 12 pick) Kyle Wilson, Boise State (May be the next Raven @ #25) Devin McCourty, Rutgers (Also may be the pick @ #25) Kareem Jackson, Alabama (Mid 1st to Early 2nd) Patrick Robinson, Florida State (Late 1st to Mid 2nd) Perrish Cox, Oklahoma State (Mid to Late 2nd) Chris Cook, Virginia (Late 2nd to Early 3rd; Keep your eye on this guy!!) Donovan Warren, Michigan (Late 2nd to Early 3rd) Jerome Murphy, South Florida (Early to Mid 3rd) Amari Spievey, Iowa (Early to Mid 3rd) .....and on, and on, and on! Trust me the CB class this year is one of the stronger classes of the draft behind O-Line and D-Line! WR and TE isn't too shabby either. Fortunately for the Ravens this year, their biggest positions of needs are the strongest in the draft!

Yea, besides familiarity, I dunno why anyone would choose staying with the Texas over coming to the Ravens. Sure, Andre Johnson is a more legit #1 than Q at this point, but Flacco has way more upside and accomplishment that Schaub and our offense has more weapons than Houston's! Oh well...moot point at this point. Spear, I completely agree! Bryant would be a great compliment to Q. We definitely need a deep threat to stretch the field opposite Q. Q and Heap can take care of the intermediate game and over the middle plus screens with Q while Bryant can work the deep game! Not sure how any one can be comfortable with our WR corps as is! Stallworth is not the solution at #2. He would be a great complimentary slot WR or 4th WR if Clayton ends up in the slot. If we don't bring back Mason (which at this point I would prefer we don't) then we definitely need to target Bryant. If we get Bryant then we don't have to address WR in the first 2 rounds of the draft! We can then focus on TE, CB, or DL. Speaking of the draft! After giving up 2 early mid round picks for Boldin...does anyone else see us trading down in the 1st round or even into the early 2nd round?

So I know I am just crying over spilled milk, but the Texans signed Walter for 5 years @ 21 million... "The Ravens chose Boldin over Denver's Brandon Marshall, who is visiting Seattle after not drawing any interest from the Ravens, and free agent Kevin Walter, who later re-signed with the Houston Texans (five years, $21 million)." http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/ravens/bal-boldin0305,0,766836.story Would have been a solid pick up at that price...oh well...on to the next move!

Well there goes the Boldin/Walter pipe dream.... Kevin Walter re-signs with Texans Less than two hours after the Ravens traded for Anquan Boldin, Kevin Walter re-signed with the Houston Texans, according to the Houston Chronicle. If the Ravens couldn't complete a trade for Boldin, they were expected to pursue Walter, one of the top free-agent wide receivers. Terms of the deal weren't disclosed. http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/ravens/blog/2010/03/kevin_walter_resigns_with_texans.html

I mean that 5.8 doesn't count against our own FA right? Only ones we obtain from other teams...please correct me if I am wrong! Yes, D. Thomas is a beast and would be a man child on our team! I swear, dude is gonna be the 2nd coming Calvin Johnson!

Granted it wouldn't count against the "final eight" rule if we resign Mason, but what other big time FA out there could be pursue to give the $5.3 mil to? Antrel Rolle? Probably not! Dunta Robinson? Doubt it, plus I think he has already signed with Atlanta! Leigh Bodden? Potentially... T.O.? No thanks! Antonio Bryant? Maybe...but I would much rather have Walter than the aforementioned FA! Have you heard of the phrase "if you don't use it, you lose it!"? Well let's solidify the WR corps and go after Walter! I'd rather give the contract to the guy that clearly has more than 1, maybe 2, more seasons left in the tank! Don't get me wrong, I respect and appreciate everything Mason has done these past few years but I would rather get younger at the position especially if talent and production come with that youth! And no...I will not consider the late bloomer comparison between Mason and Clayton! For starters, Mason was a late bloomer because he was special teamer for the first 5 years of his career! Clayton on the other hand, has been in the starting line up since day one basically! Clayton has really shown little to date to support your claim that he can be a solid #2 for us. I do not think we should view him as a later bloomer! He is oft injured and has one leg that is a foot longer than the opposite...what kind of WR can perform with that physical anomaly! 1)Boldin 2)Walter 3)Rookie (A.Benn,D.Thomas,G.Tate) 4)Stallworth 5)Clayton 6)Marcus Smith That is my WR dream team for us next year...at this point!

Can we get a source on the contract parameters? I think we should forget Mason at this point and go after Kevin Walter! He is younger and will pair with Boldin much better than Mason! Tough to give up a 3rd and a 4th rounder, but getting a 5th plus Boldin is well worth it! 2 more WR, one through FA and a 1st or 2nd round draft pick and we are in business! By the way, am I the only one here hoping that someone goes after Clayton at this point?

Here's an interesting player to keep your eye on: From ESPN insider: While the Patriots will remain linked to the whole Brandon Marshall fiasco, there might be another Marshall that is on their radar as well. The Carolina Panthers placed a second round RFA tender on CB Richard Marshall this week, and that's not a huge bounty to give up in exchange for a promising young player at one of the sport's most vital positions. Albert Breer of the Boston Globe thinks that the Patriots could make a strong push for Marshall depending on the negotiations with Leigh Bodden. What do you guys think about looking at Richard Marshall for CB? He's a former 1st rounder out of Fresno State, and is only 25 years old. Productive last year with 88 tackles and 4 INT. Has good size at 5'11" and 190 lbs according to ESPN. Is he worth a look?

McGahee does have some value to this team, you're right! But not enough that it should negate us thinking about trading him in a package for a CB like Cromartie! That is just crazy! We need a starting CB with Cromartie's skills more than a back up RB with McGahee's skills! Perhaps combining McGahee and a 2nd/3rd rounder was too much...but a 4th rounder seems fair for both teams, I guess! There is plenty of RB depth this year in the draft that we can tap into in the 3rd-5th rounds to replace McGahee anyways! For example: Jonathan Dwyer, Georgia Tech, 5'11", 234 Montario Hardesty, Tennessee, 5'11", 204 Toby Gerhart, Stanford, 6'0", 237 Ben Tate, Auburn, 5'11", 214 LaGarrette Blount, 6'1", 245 .......Among others!

I agree! Now is the time to make our move for Marshall! Getting someone of his talent for the 25th pick in the draft is a no-brainer. With his talent and production he is worth a top 5 pick at this point! Did I mention he is only 25? We need to sign him to a 6 or 7 year deal and make this happen. Furthermore, as an unrestricted FA...Kevin Walter should also be considered! He would be a beast as a #2 next to Marshall or a slot WR if we also retained Mason. Not to mention he is only 28 years old! So sick...think about it: 1. Marshall 2. Mason/Walter 3. Walter/Stallworth 4. Stallworth/Clayton 5. Clayton/Rookie 6. Rookie I mean you can almost book the AFC championship game off that alone! Now, what about McGahee and a 2nd or 3rd rounder for Cromartie? If we pulled that off with the above scenarios...we have one hell of a ball club overnight! Remember, Cromartie is only 25 years old too! I know we don't like trading away draft picks and the Ravens are great at drafting, but to get elite players and positions of need who are still well in their prime if not there yet for a couple draft picks is a no brain decision. Please correct me if I am wrong, but I don't think restricted FA acquisitions and trades have no restrictions as a "top 8" team as opposed to the UFA rules...right?

Sounds like I hit the nail on the head on my previous post regarding Gaither deserving no more than a 1st round tender ONLY. He really isn't that great of a LT at this point, sure he has potential...but it doesn't hurt to see what other teams think. We can either match their offers or get a 1st rounder in compensation. Oher is going to be a much better OT than Gaither.

I agree Spear...a 2nd rounder is a solid deal for Boldin. Especially since our 2nd round pick is a late 2nd round pick! More than likely by the time we select in the 2nd round Bryant, Benn, Thomas, Tate, D. Williams, Taylor Price, and Brandon LaFell will all be gone and they are really the only WR, at this point, that I would consider in the first 2 rounds!

I would treat TO as a last resort option! He's old as dirt and a bitch! Not to mention he screwed us over once before so we should definitely not open our doors and our wallet for his aged services. I would rather sign Kevin Walter than TO!

With all indications pointing towards an uncapped year in 2010, this should allow for a very interesting year for restricted free agency. Teams, hopefully the Ravens, can make this into a chess match and try 'undertender' players to accumulate draft picks. The following is from BaltimoreRavens.com: "The clock is counting down for the Ravens to offer tenders to their 17 restricted free agents, as March 4 is quickly approaching. The Ravens certainly have a lengthy list of RFAs, and considering their free-agency limitations due to the “Final 8″ plan, they would benefit by re-signing as many as possible. In what is shaping up to be an uncapped 2010 season, restricted free agents are players with three, four, or five accrued years of service. At the expiration of an RFA’s contract, the player’s old club retains the right to either match an offer he may get from another team or to receive draft choice compensation from the club making the offer. The qualifying offer is based on the level of draft choices the old club wants to receive, and it is based on the veteran’s tenure. For three-year vets, a $1.101 offer earns the right of refusal, $1.684 earns a second-round pick as compensation, $2.396 is a first-round tender, and $3.043 is worth first- and third-round picks. For four-year players, $1.176 secures refusal, $1.759 would be a second-round pick offer, $2.521 is a first-round tender, and $3.168 is good for first and third selections. And for five-year veterans, $1.226 is first refusal, $1.809 is the second-round pick tender, $2.621 goes for the first-round offer, and $3.268 gets the first and third. Here is a list of the Ravens’ RFAs… Third-Year: LB Antwan Barnes, QB John Beck, LB Prescott Burgess, OT Jared Gaither, TE Edgar Jones, FB Le’Ron McClain, QB Troy Smith, G/T Marshal Yanda Fourth-Year: G/C Chris Chester, P Sam Koch, S Dawan Landry, G/T Tony Moll, WR Demetrius Williams Fifth-Year: WR Mark Clayton, K Billy Cundiff, OT Adam Terry, CB Fabian Washington" When looking at our RFA, there are definitely quality players that are either starters or big time role players; both being valuable to us and for other teams. This draft is extremely deep, with talks for a rookie wage scale looming many juniors decided to jump up to the NFL this year. As a result, there is a huge influx of talent with ridiculous value throughout. My question is, opposed to other years when the draft isn't as deep and a salary cap exists should we try and 'undertender' starters and role players in hopes of picking up more draft picks. For example, any other year Jared Gaither would be tendered the highest tender with 1st and 3rd round compensation. What if this year though, we gave him the second highest tender in hopes of someone attempting to sign him and we get a second first round draft pick? It is a win-win situation for us! Either no one bites and we retain him for less money or someone bites and we can either match their offer and sign him long term or lose him and get another 1st rounder for this year. Gaither is young and has the makings of a great tackle but I don't see why we couldn't take the risk of playing this game. There are plenty of other OT prospects that may even be better than him. Also, if he were to leave we could move Oher to LT and draft a true RT or maybe Iupati from Idaho, a natural LG who is so gigantic he is being projected as a possible RT. This is just one scenario. The following is how I would tender all of our RFA with a plan outlined: Antwan Barnes, 2nd round tender...should be retained, if not get the better end of the deal! John Beck, 2nd round tender...same as Barnes. Prescott Burgess, lowest tender...no one will give up a draft pick for him if tendered higher so no point to tender him higher. Jared Gaither, 1st round tender ONLY...see above explanation. Edgar Jones, lowest tender...same as Burgess Le'Ron McClain, 2nd round tender (possible 1st round)....same as Barnes, but hope to DEFINITELY retain, would consider matching any offer unless given 1st round tender. Troy Smith, 2nd round tender...same as Beck, QBs should be retained for at least a tender with compensation. Willing to let go if someone signs. Marshal Yanda, 1st round tender...a must keeper, would only let go if someone wants him bad enough to give up a 1st rounder! Chris Chester, 2nd round tender...found some value as a blocking TE on goal line situation and can play any interior line position...has value to the team and therefore requires a compensatory tender. Sam Koch, 2nd round tender...another must keep player, can't see anyone giving up a 2nd rounder for him though so this should be a safe play. Dawan Landry, 2nd round tender...could come or go, couldn't care either way to be honest. Hasn't been the same since his spinal injury so if someone wants him for a 2nd rounder I am all for it. Tony Moll, lowest tender...'nuff said for this cat! Demetrius Williams, lowest tender vs 2nd round tender...someone would more than likely sign him for lowest tender so it just depends on if the Ravens care if he walks for free... Mark Clayton, 2nd round tender...This is someone we want to tender low enough that we'd want someone to sign him! With Mason, Stallworth or board for next year (Mason will be back guys) and adding another vet through trade or FA and 2 draft picks and Marcus Smith coming back from injury Clayton has no spot...therefore, we get compensation for him to leave or he stays around 1 more year for cheaper than he would any other year when we may give him a 1st round tender. Billy Cundiff, lowest tender...Not even certain to be back next year so this should be sufficient. Adam Terry, 2nd round tender...Stay or go, who cares? At least this way if he signs we get compensated. Would not even consider matching though if he is signed. Fabian Washington, 1st round tender...Given our CB situation with 2 of our top 3 CB having season ending ACL injuries (Washington and Webb) we will need to retain him for depth. Would only let walk if getting a solid 1st round draft pick in compensation. Well, I know this post was kind of long winded but given the likelihood of an uncapped year it makes restricted free agency an even bigger mind game and I have a lot of thoughts about how we could seriously benefit from it this year! What does everyone think? Am I on to something or just crazy?

Agreed! At this point he has a ton of mental baggage and did not physically show like everyone thought he would! The same could be said for Dezmon Briscoe from Kansas. These are 2 WR who definitely hurt their stock over the weekend but could end up being steals in the 3rd-4th round...remind anyone of a Brandon Marshal situation? Talented college WR with lots of baggage...prima donna's...slipping into the mid rounds? At this point, if we go WR in first round the only plausible options are Benn, Tate, and Thomas. Personally, I don't think any of them will be BPA according to Ravens draft board though! I feel the Ravens will have players like TE Gresham, DE Graham, DE Dunlap, CB Wilson, CB McCourty, CB Robinson and DT Williams (among others) rated higher that have a great chance of still being available. They would be better served by staying true to their board, as always or trading back in the first or early 2nd and pick up more picks and then take one of the aforementioned WR. If they go with BPA (other than WR in the 1st) look for these WR in the 2nd round: Taylor Price, Ohio Damian Williams, USC Brandon LaFell, LSU 3rd round: Mardy Gilyard, Cincinatti Jordan Shipley, Texas Riley Cooper, Florida David Reed, Utah Carlton Mitchell, USF Marcus Easley, Connecticut Andre Roberts, Citadel and of course you an start looking at Mike Williams and Dezmon Briscoe in 3rd round...

Haha I think Al Davis will trade up from #7 overall to #1 overall to draft Jacoby Ford...or Bruce Campbell for that matter!