Ravens Nation

Great post over at Baltimore Sports Report about what Baltimore Ravens haven’t lived up to expectations in 2009:

Time To Shake Up The Ravens?
from Baltimore Sports Report by Zach Wilt

There are clearly parts of the Ravens roster that just aren’t getting the job done.

Do you give up on them? Do you let them grow since the season is likely a wash anyway? Do you put the pressure on them?

It all depends on the player.

Frank Walker – Bye bye. Walker shouldn’t have made the team to begin with. Anyone that followed training camp knew right away what Walker was about. Lots of talk, little coverage. He’s quite possibly the worst part of the Ravens terrible secondary and was so bad that he was benched against the Bengals. He’s taking up a roster spot, which is one of the reasons Baltimore cut Matt Stover. Good riddance Frank.

Domonique Foxworth – Threaten. Two weeks ago I told you that Foxworth was a $28 million bust and I stand by it. He is the Ravens biggest flop since Willis McGahee. Too big of a contract for too little performance. Foxworth is the best of the bad secondary, but for the contract was given he’s not shutting down number one wide receivers.

Fabian Washington – Threaten/bench. Washington covers receivers by grabbing them. I’m convinced his method is to get penalized as many times as possible and it shows.

Trevor Pryce – Cut after season. Pryce has had a great run with the Ravens and an outstanding career, but he’s no longer getting the job done. He gets pressure one time per drive, he’s getting beat in single coverage and gives good quarterbacks too much time.

Kelly Gregg – Cut after season. It would have been a good story is Buddy Lee came back after the knee surgery and stepped up. That hasn’t been the case. He fits into the same category as Pryce, only worse. Gregg is hardly ever putting pressure on QBs and he can no longer stuff the run. He’s part of an aging defense.

Ed Reed – One more big loss and I’d shut him down. Ed might say he’s playing healthy, but come on. He’s undoubtedly playing hurt and if Baltimore wants to hold on to him for future years they need him to get healthy. Whether that requires surgery or just time to recover, Baltimore needs to do what they’ve got to do.

Willis McGahee – Release after season. The only reason to keep Willis now is in case Ray Rice gets hurt. Willis has always had a terrible attitude and his performance in Baltimore has been lackluster.

Steve Hauschka – Hot water. Hauschka has got to be on the hot seat right now. He missed a game winning 44 yard field goal inside and a 38 yard field goal in Cincinnati. That’s two strikes. If he misses another big kick I think he should be gone.

Lardarius Webb has been a star on this team, not only on kick returns, but also in his pass coverage and tackling ability. I would start him next week against the Browns.

Visit Baltimore Sports Report for Baltimore Ravens News.

http://baltimoresportsreport.com/2009/11/10/time-to-shake-up-the-ravens/

This weekend, the Ravens visit the Bengals in a rematch of a Week 5 game that Cincy somehow stole in Baltimore.

This one will operate as an elimination game only if the road team fails to settle the score. If Cincy wins, they’ll move to 6-2, giving them a two-game lead over the 4-4 Ravens that would be, as a practical matter, a three-game lead due to the fact that the Cincinnati sweep would give the Bengals the first head-to-head tiebreaker.

A win by Baltimore, however, would make the division a three-team race — especially if the Steelers lose to the Broncos in Denver on Monday night.

Mike Duffy of www.BaltimoreRavens.com is reporting that Samari Rolle has decided to re-sign with the Ravens two weeks after being released.

Rolle is at Raven’s headquarters in Owings Mills, Maryland today to sign what is believed to be a 4 year contract to return to Baltimore.

The Raven’s cornerback position, once thought of as a weakness, has quietly become very strong. The addition of Foxworth and Carr, and the return of Washington, Walker and now, as reported, Samari Rolle, have helped this unit become one of the best on-paper secondaries before the season has started. With another player possibly being drafted later this month, the team may have one of the strongest defenses yet again next year.

Welcome back Samari.

The Ravens don’t need much, but they could use a good swift kick. And maybe a punt.

The team released kicker Matt Stover at the beginning of March. They made a second-round tender offer to restricted free agent punter Sam Koch. If Koch gets an offer elsewhere, the Ravens could start next season with untested Steven Hauschka as their kicker and a gaping void at punter.

Koch’s net average of 39.9 yards per punt ranked fifth in the NFL, but that doesn’t tell the whole story. At Football Outsiders, we adjust the net average based on field position, so a player who often punts from midfield isn’t penalized for hanging “short” 35-yard punts inside the 20. With adjustments, Koch had the best net punting average in the NFL, topping even Oakland’s Shane Lechler, whose numbers are inflated by lots of punts from deep in his own territory. Thanks in part to Koch, Ravens opponents started their average drive at the 28.34-yard line, the seventh worst field position in the NFL.

Assuming Koch re-signs, the Ravens still have a decision to make at kicker. Hauschka had a fine year in 2008 as a kickoff specialist. His average kickoff (65.9 yards) sailed further than Stover’s (62.5), giving the Ravens another field position boost. Hauschka has the credentials to replace Stover: He was 16-of-18 on field goals at North Carolina State in 2007, made all four of his preseason field goals for the Vikings last year, and booted a 54-yarder in relief of Stover during the regular season. Still, he lacks experience, and the defense-minded Ravens need a kicker capable of picking up the slack when the offense stalls.

The Ravens must retain Koch, and they would be wise to generate some camp competition for Hauschka. A player like Utah’s Louie Sakoda (22-of-24 field goals last year) would provide insurance in exchange for a seventh-round pick. It would be a wise investment. No one wants to dumpster dive for kickers in late August.