Can we all officially say it

[RavensNest8483]

I would still add that Flacco's got some lingering injury issues that are probably affecting his throws.

 

I would also add that the routes have a lot to do with it. Again, we all saw Flacco bitching at Cams on the sideline - twice even yesterday. He was asking for shorter, quicker routes. And our offense doesn't run them. It's sad.

 

Flacco was bitchin at CAm? I was at the game and couldn't see the sideline very well, was this shown on tv? Cam passing scheme is pretty garbage if you ask me. Even when we were down 17 with like 2 minutes, the routes were still to just go beyond the first down marker....no route even went into the endzone.

[dc.]

I forget which series... I believe the one that ended when Flacco's pass was batted-down at the line... as they broke to commercial, Flacco was walking past Cam and clearly gave him some lip.

 

Then when they came back from commercial, they showed Cam and Joe near the benches and Joe just going off (not entirely in anger, but clearly not happy). I remember reading his lips at one point saying "if they are there I can get the throw off" or something, while motioning his hand in front of him (downfield).

[geo]

I forget which series... I believe the one that ended when Flacco's pass was batted-down at the line... as they broke to commercial, Flacco was walking past Cam and clearly gave him some lip.

 

Then when they came back from commercial, they showed Cam and Joe near the benches and Joe just going off (not entirely in anger, but clearly not happy). I remember reading his lips at one point saying "if they are there I can get the throw off" or something, while motioning his hand in front of him (downfield).

 

I think it migth have been after the first or second drive in 4th Q, either with a Heap or a KW incomplete..? If not it has to be the first pick.

 

Btw it is still odd when you see the name Stover with a score in the gamebook, and it is not a Ravens score.

[colincac]

We absolutely need a WR who can stretch the field consistently. Pair a guy like that with Mason, and we will be fine. And yes, I also noticed Rice wearing down this year, he dropped and fumbled a lot at the end of the year. We need to get McClain more involved in the power game and keep Rice fresher. If we can do that, and just add a weapon at WR, I like this offense a lot.

[Spen]

I forget which series... I believe the one that ended when Flacco's pass was batted-down at the line... as they broke to commercial, Flacco was walking past Cam and clearly gave him some lip.

 

Then when they came back from commercial, they showed Cam and Joe near the benches and Joe just going off (not entirely in anger, but clearly not happy). I remember reading his lips at one point saying "if they are there I can get the throw off" or something, while motioning his hand in front of him (downfield).

 

I saw that too, I'd love to have heard it all.

[papasmurfbell]

This is exactly what I was saying last yr at fa and then again in the draft.

[yagersports]

Joe absolutely needs to work the middle of the field. That is the glaring weakness in our offense. After that, I would say we need WRs. There's absolutely no point in obtaining any playmaking receiver if Joe is not going to work the middle of the field. I also don't know if it's necessarily Joe's fault that the middle of the field is being worked. If Cam is calling all sideline routes, how can he? However doesn't the QB have the ability to audible into a better play to take advantage of a defense?

 

I'm thinking that Cam has been calling the sideline plays because of two reasons:

 

1. I don't think that our receivers run any type of decent route over the middle for Flacco to throw to. I really don't. I don't see our receivers getting seperation and demanding the ball, it just doesn't happen.

 

2. I don't think Flacco is extremely comfortable throwing the pass over the middle. I think Flacco's strengths are the out and deep ball, of which teams have caught on to. This explains the late season drop in production. Teams were getting film on Flacco's tendencies. I remember watching the Packers game and no one Packer's defender was between the hash marks once the ball was snapped and it was clear Flacco was going to throw. It was ridiculous, but the Pack absolutely knew where Flacco was going with the ball. Joe will need to improve on this if he wants to be a better QB in the league, and I'm sure the coaching staff has addressed this.

 

I like Cam as our offensive coordinator, he calls plays that agree with our strengths and doesn't work outside of the strengths. That's very important, coaches that push the envelope of a players' ability often end up looking very stupid, losing games, and ultimately unemployed. I respect a coach that sticks with what they know and what their team does.

 

Having said that, I am sure that Cam wants our offense to be more dynamic and I am absolutey positive that they are going to work on and fix our one dimensional passing game. One positive I did like about Flacco this year is that he could actually run a no huddle offense. Besides the breif stint by McNair, we all know it's been a very very long time since we've seen that done lol.

[papasmurfbell]

We need a new young TE to work the middle and some real slot wr's to do the same. That will open up inside. If we can fill all the zones in a D with a legit recieving threat the O will be much better.

 

Look in NO. I do not think anyone of the guys down there catching the ball are superstars. But they all do catch the ball so you are left with no tendencies to key on.

[thundercleetz]

We need a new young TE to work the middle and some real slot wr's to do the same. That will open up inside. If we can fill all the zones in a D with a legit recieving threat the O will be much better.

 

Look in NO. I do not think anyone of the guys down there catching the ball are superstars. But they all do catch the ball so you are left with no tendencies to key on.

 

You are right, the Saints have a lot of quality receivers that allows Brees to spread the ball around, but living down here in New Orleans and watching most of their games I must say that Marques Colston is a superstar receiver, or pretty close to it. He does everything you would want a number one receiver to do (soft hands, goes over the middle, can stretch the field, and goes up strong for balls in the air), he bailed Brees out on bad passes into double/triple coverage multiple times this season. Robert Meachem is also quickly becoming a very good receiver as well, he has that same aggressive playing style where he does not get beat for balls in the air. IMO, Meachem would be the best receiver on the Ravens by far. For all you fantasy players, he is going to blow up next year.

[papasmurfbell]

I like both Meachem and Colston. They are quite good. I just would not put them on the level of either Johnson, Wayne, Jackson, Marshal (when not nuts), or a few others. They are both at that next level. But in that they play there with all the weopons and not Detroit with only 1 it is conjecture.

[thundercleetz]

I like both Meachem and Colston. They are quite good. I just would not put them on the level of either Johnson, Wayne, Jackson, Marshal (when not nuts), or a few others. They are both at that next level. But in that they play there with all the weopons and not Detroit with only 1 it is conjecture.

 

Don't get me wrong, I like Meachem, but he is nowhere near as good as Colston. Meachem is kind of a one-dimensional deep threat at this point, but he is quickly diversifying his game. Colston is the total package (he is also a very good blocker). He might not be at the level of a Fitz, Calvin or Andre Johnson, Marshall, or Wayne, but he is a tick below that. And that is not a knock either, the guys I listed above are HoF talent, Colston may not have that type of talent, but he is perennial Pro-Bowl talent. I would definitely say he is better than guys like Sydney Rice, Vincent Jackson, Miles Austin, Anquan Boldin, and Chad Ochocinco.

 

I guess the point I am making is that Brees does have a legitimate #1 receiver, but he also has multiple solid #2 guys. I think if there is anything to take away from the Saints, it is that Henderson, Colston, Meachem, and Moore are all homegrown talents, and only Meachem was a #1 pick (they also drafted Donte' Stallworth who gave them a couple years of solid production). They just kept drafting until guys panned out. This is something we should have been doing at the position the past few years.

 

We just have to hope that guys Justin Harper, Marcus Smith, and Eron Riley can come in next year and compete. Who is to say one of these guys cannot be our Miles Austin or Colston next year? Very unlikely, but we have nothing to lose giving them a fair chance when you already have your receivers dropping seven passes in a divisional playoff game.

 

Harper is a guy who I think should have gotten field time. Yes, his hands were terrible, but Clayton and Mason had plenty of drops themselves. The bottom line with Harper is that he knows how to get open and has very deceptive strides that allow him to get behind the coverage. All the coaches kept saying how good of a job he was doing in practice emulating the opposing team's best receiver. And Harper was said to put in a lot of film study watching these guys trying to pick up what he could. Harper should have at least been given a shot.

[varaven45]

Don't get me wrong, I like Meachem, but he is nowhere near as good as Colston. Meachem is kind of a one-dimensional deep threat at this point, but he is quickly diversifying his game. Colston is the total package (he is also a very good blocker). He might not be at the level of a Fitz, Calvin or Andre Johnson, Marshall, or Wayne, but he is a tick below that. And that is not a knock either, the guys I listed above are HoF talent, Colston may not have that type of talent, but he is perennial Pro-Bowl talent. I would definitely say he is better than guys like Sydney Rice, Vincent Jackson, Miles Austin, Anquan Boldin, and Chad Ochocinco.

 

I guess the point I am making is that Brees does have a legitimate #1 receiver, but he also has multiple solid #2 guys. I think if there is anything to take away from the Saints, it is that Henderson, Colston, Meachem, and Moore are all homegrown talents, and only Meachem was a #1 pick (they also drafted Donte' Stallworth who gave them a couple years of solid production). They just kept drafting until guys panned out. This is something we should have been doing at the position the past few years.

 

We just have to hope that guys Justin Harper, Marcus Smith, and Eron Riley can come in next year and compete. Who is to say one of these guys cannot be our Miles Austin or Colston next year? Very unlikely, but we have nothing to lose giving them a fair chance when you already have your receivers dropping seven passes in a divisional playoff game.

 

Harper is a guy who I think should have gotten field time. Yes, his hands were terrible, but Clayton and Mason had plenty of drops themselves. The bottom line with Harper is that he knows how to get open and has very deceptive strides that allow him to get behind the coverage. All the coaches kept saying how good of a job he was doing in practice emulating the opposing team's best receiver. And Harper was said to put in a lot of film study watching these guys trying to pick up what he could. Harper should have at least been given a shot.

 

 

Cleetz,

 

Not to mention that Harper is a Hokie... he's got to be good ! All kidding aside, its time for all these young guns to step up. They alone, however, wont be enough.

 

We still need to draft or acquire a deep threat, a big strong possession guy, and a slot guy.

If we do that, then we will have given Joe some weapons to complement his current arsenal of Rice, Heap, McGahee, Mason. Then we will be looking at a real O. Until then, its just talk and speculation.

 

It should be am interesting off-season.