<![CDATA[Baltimore Ravens Message Board & Fan Forum - Voted Baltimore's Best - Ravens 24x7]]> http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/ en Sat, 18 May 2013 12:01:01 GMT vBulletin 5 http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/images/misc/rss.png <![CDATA[Baltimore Ravens Message Board & Fan Forum - Voted Baltimore's Best - Ravens 24x7]]> http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/ Bruce Irvin Suspended Four Games http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109069-Bruce-Irvin-Suspended-Four-Games&goto=newpost Fri, 17 May 2013 23:54:45 GMT http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/9287069/bruce-irvin-seattle-seahawks-susp... http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/92...ded-four-games

If reports are true, this is the sixth Seattle Seahawk suspended for violating the league's performance enhancing drug policy, SINCE 2011!!

I'm looking at you Mr. Carroll, alias TONY LARUSSA!!! You moneyballing mother fucker! ]]> Ravens 24x7 The Excellector http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109069-Bruce-Irvin-Suspended-Four-Games Falcons Board still debating Flacco vs. Ryan as if it made any difference at all. http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109067-Falcons-Board-still-debating-Flacco-vs-Ryan-as-if-it-made-any-difference-at-all&goto=newpost Fri, 17 May 2013 20:53:22 GMT Since it is the slow season i thought I would check out what some of the... Since it is the slow season i thought I would check out what some of the other message boards were saying about their rookies and off season moves. I go to the Falcons Board and this is the first thread I see:



http://boards.atlantafalcons.com/top...er-per-nflcom/

It is bonkers. I like Matt Ryan and wish him well, but I am so glad i am not a Falcons fan. ]]> Ravens 24x7 somedumbguy http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109067-Falcons-Board-still-debating-Flacco-vs-Ryan-as-if-it-made-any-difference-at-all Ravens have largest defensive front in football http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109066-Ravens-have-largest-defensive-front-in-football&goto=newpost Fri, 17 May 2013 20:37:19 GMT http://extramustard.si.com/2013/05/10/the-ravens-defensive-front-seven-weig... http://extramustard.si.com/2013/05/1...hy-of-one-ton/

People worrying about Arthur Browns size (even though he weighs 241 lbs) should stop worrying, because he's surrounded by a bunch of elephants. According to that article we are close to weighing a ton up front. Hopefully this will help us improve our run defense, which was embarrassingly bad by Ravens standards last year, teams were running up and down on us all over the park. It seems that this year we are getting back to winning in the trenches on both sides of the ball, the Oline and the Dline look strong this year, both were areas of major weakness last year in the regular season. ]]> Ravens 24x7 leachisabeast http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109066-Ravens-have-largest-defensive-front-in-football <![CDATA[M&T Among League's Best]]> http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109057-M-amp-T-Among-League-s-Best&goto=newpost Fri, 17 May 2013 14:20:53 GMT Here's an article on M&T Bank Stadium (LINK) which includes a poll regarding suggested modifications.

Please comment and vote away. We plan on presenting this to the Ravens marketing department.

Thanks! ]]> Ravens 24x7 TL24x7 http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109057-M-amp-T-Among-League-s-Best Analytics in the NFL http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109055-Analytics-in-the-NFL&goto=newpost Fri, 17 May 2013 13:20:46 GMT Story from yesterday's USAToday. I found it very interesting although it's a long read:

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports...s-nfl/2164723/

Couple extracts:

Quote:
"That's the value of it," Banner says. "It's one thing to say a guy had nine sacks. How many times was he blocked by the tight end, rather than the right tackle?"
On trading up to get Julio Jones
Quote:
"We knocked off statistic after statistic," Dimitroff says.

He says the offer didn't hinge on the first- and second-round picks dealt. "Everybody understands the first- and second-round picks," he says. "We needed to figure out the value of the other picks."
What did the research reveal? Less than 15% of fourth-round picks become starters.
]]> Ravens 24x7 Ravenswintitle http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109055-Analytics-in-the-NFL Another Surgery for Gronkowski. http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109051-Another-Surgery-for-Gronkowski&goto=newpost Fri, 17 May 2013 04:26:28 GMT If this wasn't a major concern, it is becoming one now.

I can now see why Ozzie Newsome took Gronkowski off of his board. Drafting Sergio Kindle didn't help, lol, but I can see why Gronkowski wasn't in the mix.

Back injuries are tricky. Your back is such a foundation. There are a plethora of injuries that can stem from back issues, whether they are directly related or indirectly related. For example, a person can feel significant sciatica down the leg, even to the toes, but that is a symptom that starts from an injury in the lower back.

Rob Gronkowski is a great football player, but he is also a meathead with injury issues. The team doctors are probably facepalming it on a regular basis with him. ]]> Ravens 24x7 The Excellector http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109051-Another-Surgery-for-Gronkowski OT-Baltimore Shindig http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109049-OT-Baltimore-Shindig&goto=newpost Fri, 17 May 2013 00:08:42 GMT All day music festival. Gotta see my boys Clutch. ... All day music festival. Gotta see my boys Clutch.

http://www.theshindigbaltimore.com/

My question is...what's this area like? Sketchy, parking, etc. Don't think I've ever been around Carroll Park. ]]> Ravens 24x7 DrUnk http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109049-OT-Baltimore-Shindig Pro Bowl or Bust for KO http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109048-Pro-Bowl-or-Bust-for-KO&goto=newpost Thu, 16 May 2013 23:08:44 GMT http://www.baltimoreravens.com/news/article-1/Pro-Bowl-Or-Bust-For-Kelechi-... http://www.baltimoreravens.com/news/...7-05b22fb654e4

Quote:
A couple weeks after the Super Bowl, Osemele got a call from Castillo, who was marveling at the playoffs tape he was reviewing. Osemele dominated.
Quote:
Osemele has been a constant presence at the Under Armour Performance Center. He was one of the first players back in the building, running and lifting. He said Strength & Conditioning Coach Bob Rogucki has followed him around the weight room.

The 6-foot-5, 333-pounder said he feels a lot stronger, faster, quicker, more flexible and durable already this offseason. He’s come a long way from a year ago when he was a rookie trying to adjust to the NFL.
I'm extremely excited to see KO at guard with a full off-season under his belt and having the playoff experience. What I always found interesting was that McKinnie has really vouched for KO's potential and I don't think it's a stretch to say we could be looking at the best Guard combo in the league next year. ]]> Ravens 24x7 Justlovemybirds http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109048-Pro-Bowl-or-Bust-for-KO Best and Worst Interactions with NFL Players? http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109046-Best-and-Worst-Interactions-with-NFL-Players&goto=newpost Thu, 16 May 2013 20:08:26 GMT Discuss Discuss ]]> Ravens 24x7 baltimorebred http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109046-Best-and-Worst-Interactions-with-NFL-Players Matt Stover http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109045-Matt-Stover&goto=newpost Thu, 16 May 2013 19:20:38 GMT The 5th All Time leading kicker in NFL history came out to the job to talk... The 5th All Time leading kicker in NFL history came out to the job to talk to us recently.

Matt Stover is a pretty decent speaker and right funny too. He talked about his org that helps counsel players on their financial responsibilities. How do you go from being the highest paid DE to flat broke in 5 years? How do you avoid a fall like that? He said "It's all about being a Man and building character". He asked us "When do you have to be a Man?" He said he was always told you had to be a man "In the Bedroom, on the Ballfield, and in the Billfold". He added that seeing as he fathered two children born on the same day exactly one year apart, he must have "pretty good aim for a kicker". ;)

We all know Stover was pretty clutch in game winning kicks over his 20 year career, but he was asked about how he was treated in the locker room after missing a potential game winner. He said the worst miss he ever had was a 19 yard attempt in Cleveland as time expired. The LOS was the 1 yard line and he missed it. :slaphead: He said Bill Belichik used to flood the field (Imagine that!) and everywhere around the EZ was a mess, but that was no excuse. Browns LB Clay Matthews (the GB guy's Dad btw) came up to him and said "That's not your fault. If I hadn't missed the gap on the TD play earlier you wouldn't even have been in this situation. I knew where I was supposed to be and I picked the wrong spot. I don't know what I was thinking." He said that was a prime example of taking responsibilitry and showing character.

When Billick came to the Ravens, Stover missed 50% of his attempts at the start of the year. He said one time Coach came up to the sideline as Matt was lining up for a 54 yarder and yelled "Hey can you hit that?!!!" Now what the hell are you gonna tell the coach when he asks you something like that in that situation lol. Stover yells "Yeah" and promptly misses the kick. So he goes to see Billick in his office and presents him with a plan. Prior to every game he would kick 15 balls from each end of the field, testing the wind, field conditions etc. Then he would tell Billick what he needed to be successful; 35 yard line on one end of the field, 32 on the other for example - and Coach Billick would stick to it. The rest is history.

One of the guys asked him about Billy Cundiff's miss at the end of the AFC Championship game year before last. He said that wasn't Billy's fault. Matt said "A kicker needs 17 seconds to do this" - and he paced off the distance from the hold, stepped sideways, took a breath and got set. He said "Cundiff only got 9." He said the kicker can call time but who out there is going to ice themselves?

At the end of his talk I told him about the R-A-V-E-N-S cheers that we've done after every score since 1998 and he said he remembered. On FG's you have to hurry the hell up to get the cheer in before the music starts blaring again. After a couple years we figured out Matt was pretty damn automatic inside the 30, so I'd check the spot and start moving my big ass to the landing to do the cheer without even looking at the actual kick - Stover was that reliable. In fact he was so good that shit went on for years. (At this point in the story Stover is just beaming and quietly saying "Thank you" over and over again). Almost a decade later, I saw Matt lining up for about a 45 yarder and I walked up to the spot to lead the cheer. I started yelling and waving my arms to fire up the crowd to do the cheer and just a few Fans were yelling. I hollered "What the hell's a matter with ya's?" and one of the Fans said "Dan - he missed." Suddenly it ocurred to me that after all these years of taking this dude for granted, he had failed my trust exactly ... once.

The point of Mr. Stover's speech was that the responsibility you show as a man is how you build the strength of your character, and your character affects everyone around you. How you accomplish that and how successful you are is between you and your Maker. "But what do I know" he said "All I did was kick a ball". ;) ]]> Ravens 24x7 Real Fan Dan http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109045-Matt-Stover Best front offices in NFL.... http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109041-Best-front-offices-in-NFL&goto=newpost Thu, 16 May 2013 17:10:36 GMT Jason La Canfora has Ravens at the top.... Jason La Canfora has Ravens at the top. :)


We all knew that though, but it's nice to see others notice as well ]]> Ravens 24x7 nickh0801 http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109041-Best-front-offices-in-NFL According to Football Outsiders, Ravens were 3rd worst tackling team in the league http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109036-According-to-Football-Outsiders-Ravens-were-3rd-worst-tackling-team-in-the-league&goto=newpost Thu, 16 May 2013 14:51:00 GMT http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/baltimore-sports-blog/bal-sports-blitz-b... http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/b...,1751721.story

Good discussion piece.

Not surprising to see who lead the team and the league in missed tackles.

We need our linebackers to do a better job though. ]]> Ravens 24x7 Raveninwoodlawn http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109036-According-to-Football-Outsiders-Ravens-were-3rd-worst-tackling-team-in-the-league Lunch with John Harbaugh http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109028-Lunch-with-John-Harbaugh&goto=newpost Thu, 16 May 2013 02:10:42 GMT I attended a vendor presentation today with about 20 others. They hired... I attended a vendor presentation today with about 20 others. They hired John to come in over lunch and speak a bit, then to do a Q&A session and take pictures and chat afterwards. He signed footballs for everyone, gave away hats and signed a bunch of other stuff (like my SB ticket). Super nice guy, a little shorter than I thought but he has a presence. Thought I would share some of the Q&As, much of which is not new to many of us but he had some interesting twists.

Book Foreword
He started by reading 2+ pages of text he wrote as a foreword to a book that’s being written (about the season I suppose). It was a summary of the trials and victories. He was quite proud of his work and asked us if we thought it was good (it was).

Cameron
He said the parting was very mutual. They both knew that he wasn’t taking the offense where it needed to go, and Cam agreed with John that it was the only move to make. Still gushes what a great guy he is.

The SB Blackout
He acknowledged that he went overboard with the league official near the end of the blackout (giving him the business). Explained that the NFL wanted to restart play at a certain time and that they were going to take the Ravens’ booth phones away and not give our coordinators time to exit the booth and come down to the field. SF’s phones were dead since the beginning and their people were on the field already. Told the official (paraphrasing) “you’ve already screwed us over with the rock-hard practice field and now you want to screw us again? We’ve already waited 35 minutes, take what time is needed and get it right!”

Jim Harbaugh
He said Jim avoided him all during the lead-up to the game…to the point of excess. In NOLA, John wanted to talk to PK David Akers (John coached him for 10 years in Philly) and Jim wouldn’t let him, saying that John was up to no good. Said the Ravens were much looser as a team that week. I got a distinct impression that Jim is still in denial, and that John was enjoying it all. Obviously tremendous competitiveness between them.

The Last Stand
John said he ordered Pees to not let SF run it in…to blitz every down and make Kap throw it. I asked if the Washington game (when Collins was able to walk in the tying TD) influenced him. He said no, but the Philly game did – recall that Vick (similar style to Kap) ran it in on us late in that game.

Torrey, McPhee
John spent some time talking about the family losses the team experienced. He painted a picture on Torrey’s…got a call at 1:30am and was told that Torrey was in the facility crying his eyes out. Was told he had to drive to Virginia to see his mother. John seemed annoyed that anyone would seriously consider letting him drive, that the team would get someone to drive him. He just assumed that Torrey wasn’t playing against NE. Torrey actually changed his mind a couple times before deciding to play.

The Exodus
He was asked about the players that left. Said it was all economics. Ed wanted $6MM and wasn’t backing off it. Pollard, he got visibly irritated that the public perception was that he was only dumped because he was outspoken. Said he has an open mike policy but with that comes responsibility “not to come off sounding like an idiot”. Said Pollard was $2.5MM and that they knew they could pay less and get the same production.

Rookies
He’s excited about the draft class. Especially the fact that they are all great people, they all love football and they are workout warriors (which he loves). Noted that the Ravens have a part-time stretching coach on staff and all of them were in at 7am learning stretching techniques (you could tell he really liked this).

Leaders
John was asked who would take Ray’s place. He said there would be players to fill the void in their own way – Ray Rice, Joe, Oher (emphasized that he’s been a real leader already), Sizzle. Said that when he came on in 2008, he didn’t understand Ray and thought the dance was too self-promoting. Ray told him why he did it – the fans and the players wanted him to – but he would stop if John wanted him to. John said “No, that is OK, keep doing it”.

2013 Season
John made no bones about it – that the team is better now, and will surprise a lot of people next year. ]]> Ravens 24x7 camdenyard http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109028-Lunch-with-John-Harbaugh OT - Mark Clayton Retires http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109025-OT-Mark-Clayton-Retires&goto=newpost Wed, 15 May 2013 22:16:16 GMT Another Raven disappointment, though not in the class of Rolando... per... Another Raven disappointment, though not in the class of Rolando...

per his Twitter and Facebook.

FWIW, he was a bit of a bust here, but he worked hard, had some nice games, and had a pretty terrible injury in St Louis when his career looked to be on track.

Wish him well. ]]> Ravens 24x7 RavenScallywag http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109025-OT-Mark-Clayton-Retires Pollard all but says he has a grudge with Harbaugh... http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109023-Pollard-all-but-says-he-has-a-grudge-with-Harbaugh&goto=newpost Wed, 15 May 2013 20:39:00 GMT The plot thickens... ... The plot thickens...

http://baltimore.cbslocal.com/2013/0...-in-baltimore/

* - This was mentioned on PFT, which is where I got my inflections below from. Can't listen to the interview right now

Notes:

1. Said he would NOT be attending the White House visit
2. Said he would celebrate with his teammates all day
3. Praised Bisciotti and Ozzie
4. Said he just "doesn't want to be in the room with certain people"

So, if it's not any of his teammates, and it's not Ozzie or Bisciotti...only two guys I could imagine would be Harbaugh or Pees.

Well, in any case, this makes me miss him less. ]]> Ravens 24x7 RavenScallywag http://russellstreetreport.com/forum/showthread.php?109023-Pollard-all-but-says-he-has-a-grudge-with-Harbaugh