How Many Times Did We Say This About Cam?

[oldno82]

A lot of us noticed that Cam didn't like the middle of the field. Here's some proof from the Ravens website. The diagrams are particularly telling.

 

Caldwell’s ‘Tweak’ That Changed Cam’s Offense

When Jim Caldwell took over Cam Cameron’s post as offensive coordinator following the Ravens’ 31-28 overtime loss to the Redskins in Week 14, there was no way he could completely overhaul the offense.

Caldwell said at the time he would only make “tweaks,” but those tweaks seemingly made all the difference in the world as the Ravens offense and quarterback Joe Flacco went on a historic Super Bowl run.

MMQB’s Greg A. Bedard pinpointed one of the tweaks.

“So what was Cameron’s problem?” Bedard asked. “His offense didn’t use all the threats in unison, or to their full potential. The Ravens had the pieces to attack all three levels to the defense—Rice, Pierce and fullback Vonta Leach in the short field; Boldin and Pitta in the middle; and Smith and Jones deep—but synergy never materialized because Cameron failed to use Boldin and Pitta in the best way possible.”

The specific area that Bedard says Cameron didn’t use was the middle of the field. Bedard outlined Boldin’s routes in blue and Pitta’s routes in black from two different games before Cameron was fired in the graphic below. He compares those to the routes the two receivers made under Caldwell in the AFC championship and Super Bowl.

Cameron

Caldwell

Look at how many routes run toward the sidelines under Cameron, and then how many break toward the middle of the filed under Caldwell. Lots of shorter seam routes toward the edges of the field (Cameron) versus in-breaking routes down the middle of the field, often deep (Caldwell).

“It’s almost the exact opposite approach,” Bedard noted. “[T]his was a major tweak to the routes being run by Boldin and Pitta.”

He added: “Even if the passes weren’t completed, these routes were complementary to the other offensive weapons. Threatening the mid- to deep-level of the field between the hashes with Boldin and Pitta put pressure on a defense. It made safeties stay closer to home, which opened up the outside for Smith and Jones, and/or it caused the linebackers to drop a little deeper, which helped give Rice, Pierce and Leach a little more room to make a play once they caught the ball. Under Caldwell, the Ravens used all of their weapons in unison, and it was a beautiful thing to watch.”

If using the middle of the field was the key to opening up the Ravens offense and utilizing all its weapons, and Pitta and Boldin are now gone, what will become of the Ravens 2013 offense?

Born is the post-Pitta/Boldin problem.

In an article scheduled to run later today, our own Ryan Mink will examine howDeonte Thompson and Tandon Doss can become the Ravens next slot machines in the middle of the field.

[papasmurfbell]

^{Exactly. Cam wanted things done his way no matter if it was right or not.}

[oldno82]

Right! And regardless of where the personnel strengths were.

[vmax]

OMG!

The LeaRning Triangle!

[cravnravn]

oh lord

[Oldschool739]

Hey folks, he did get us to the AFCCG 2 times, and in the playoffs every yr, so give the guy some credit.

After all, Caldy didn't use his own system, it was Cam's that ultimately won us our 2nd SB....

 

 

Ravens Proud....REPEAT !!!!

[papasmurfbell]

Yeah and had he been replaced earlier they might well have been to a SB earlier. The talent got them to the PO's all those times. They needed a littel push to get the rest of the way.

[Oldschool739]

Or they could have not made all those playoffs like their previous 6-10 season under BB....

Harbs and Cam had the right plan, a sky scraper don't go up in a day, it takes time, a good plan and the right people to accomplish it, and we did.....

So quit complaining about what might have been, it could have been really bad.

And Cam didn't drop that pass right in the bread basket or the chipshot kick that stole the 2011 SB trip from us, it was the players....

 

Ravens Proud.....REPEAT !!!!

[papasmurfbell]

Or they could have changed out Cam after yr 2 and they could have done more. I seem to notice guys doing so much better once Cam leaves them. Now we ha get to see the 3rd one.

[Oldschool739]

You can't disregard all the positives Cam instilled in this teams dreadful offense from yr 1....

Think about it, he took a 6-10 team, a rookie qb and 2 possession recvrs, a terrible oline and a TE on the downside of his career and went to the AFCCG 1st yr.....

And in the playoffs 5 straight....

Name me another OC that has ever done that with any team....Let me help you, NO ONE.....

I for one appreciate what he accomplished with this team that was like a one legged sprinter til he got here...

 

REPEAT !!!!

[papasmurfbell]

OK. Then you are supposed to get better. You adapt to make yourself as good as you can. Billick is a dolt. So being a dolt + 1 you are set?

[oldno82]

More from Ravens Website:

Caldwell Puts More Fingerprints On Offense

As training camp and the preseason continue, we’re starting to see more of Caldwell’s fingerprints on the offense.

He seemed to put an even bigger stamp on it with the Ravens’ signings of two of his former players, Clark and receiver Brandon Stokley.

“The Ravens, though, wouldn't have brought in Clark and Stokley purely on their ties with Caldwell. They fit what Caldwell wants to do offensively,” Hensley wrote. “The biggest change when Caldwell took over for Cam Cameron in December was using the middle of the field. Cameron preferred not throwing in between the numbers because it increased the chances of interceptions. Clark and Stokley have made careers by running crossing and underneath routes.”

The Sun’s Matt Vensel is seeing similar trends. He says Caldwell implemented more horizontal routes that run across the field, and also use more pre-snap motions, bunches and stacks tohelp receivers get separation off the line.