Offensive Line

**eastjacket** · 03-07-2013, 05:28 AM

The Ravens front office should continue upgrading offensive line. We saw what Flacco could do when protected, Brady-like performance.

**leachisabeast** · 03-07-2013, 05:47 AM

Welcome to the boards Mr captain obvious!

**The Excellector** · 03-07-2013, 06:18 AM

Four fifths of the offensive line are really set. Michael Oher looked better at RT and that was in short notice. Given an entire off-season to prepare for RT, I would expect that improvement to continue. Marshal Yanda is arguably the best Guard in the league. The team has been very high on Gino Gradkowski since they drafted him. This was expected. Kelechi Osemele seems to fit LG best. Let's keep him there. Find your LT. Is it McKinnie? Is it Long? Is it a draft pick? Is it a combination of the two?

**pslholder96** · 03-07-2013, 07:45 AM

Originally Posted by leachisabeast

Welcome to the boards Mr captain obvious!

That is so wrong

**GOTA** · 03-07-2013, 07:52 AM

McKinnie and a draft pick is the way to go. I'd love to go into next year with McKinnie, KO and a draft pick as options for the position. Long is out of out price range and isn't that good. Baker has had a lot of injuries. Most of the other good tackles have had success on the right side and it's tough to know if they can play effectively at LT. McKinnie on a short term deal with some young guys who could replace him at some point makes the most sense.

**Ravenswintitle** · 03-07-2013, 07:55 AM

I tend to agree; find a way to keep McKinnie around on the cheap for one more year but draft someone to groom. They're not going to spend top bucks on the Oline like some other teams

**pslholder96** · 03-07-2013, 07:56 AM

Originally Posted by GOTA

McKinnie and a draft pick is the way to go. I'd love to go into next year with McKinnie, KO and a draft pick as options for the position. Long is out of out price range and isn't that good. Baker has had a lot of injuries. Most of the other good tackles have had success on the right side and it's tough to know if they can play effectively at LT. McKinnie on a short term deal with some young guys who could replace him at some point makes the most sense.

Agree. Hopefully with Mckinnie he fits Ozzie's criteria of right player, right price..........and right attitude. Regardless of what we do with Mckinnie we've got to address the LT position in the draft. It's funny how this position has become a problematic one since Ogden retired. We've been spoiled.

**GOTA** · 03-07-2013, 08:06 AM

Originally Posted by pslholder96

Agree. Hopefully with Mckinnie he fits Ozzie's criteria of right player, right price..........and right attitude. Regardless of what we do with Mckinnie we've got to address the LT position in the draft. It's funny how this position has become a problematic one since Ogden retired. We've been spoiled.

We sure have been spoiled. I expect the same issues MLB and Safety. On the flip side we have a franchise quarterback which has become the most important piece of the puzzle.

**bmorecareful** · 03-07-2013, 08:10 AM

I have a sneaky suspicion that we're all going to be disappointed yet again in how the FO handles the OL this offseason. I think they will allow the market to set McKinnie's price and they will have no qualms whatsoever letting him walk if his price is a penny higher than what they want to pay. That will leave us in essentially the same position we were for most of last season--which was once again a crisis of their own creation.

The Ravens are still fumbling about trying to replace Jonathan Ogden, and still following the same approach they used when JO was here. They simply do not prioritize the OL and never have. They will gladly spend draft picks on offensive linemen, but rarely first rounders (which are usually reserved for high-impact defenders). They do a good job of developing their mid-round picks for the most part but very rarely re-sign them, so they're constantly cycling through players and re-shuffling. The same is true now; they committed long-term to Yanda, but the other 4 OL positions have been continuously in flux.

I expect the Ravens to go into 2013 with Oher at LT, backed up by the developmental LT of the future. They will add an interior OL who can play guard and center to back up and "compete" with Gradkowski, who will be the starting center in between KO and Yanda. At RT, they will likely give Jah Reid one last shot to get healthy and win a starter's spot (I think he fits better at RT than LG) but he will be pushed by Jack Cornell or a cheap FA in camp.

**pslholder96** · 03-07-2013, 08:18 AM

Originally Posted by GOTA

We sure have been spoiled. I expect the same issues MLB and Safety. On the flip side we have a franchise quarterback which has become the most important piece of the puzzle.

Not to go off on a tangent, it blows my mind why Flacco gets criticized so much because we've certainly never been spoiled by the QB position over the years. It's almost like we've been desensitized by bad QB play so when Flacco comes along we don't know how to react.

The more I think about it LT has to be huge priority like right now. We've got protect our 120M investment.

**wickedsolo** · 03-07-2013, 08:20 AM

Originally Posted by bmorecareful

I have a sneaky suspicion that we're all going to be disappointed yet again in how the FO handles the OL this offseason. I think they will allow the market to set McKinnie's price and they will have no qualms whatsoever letting him walk if his price is a penny higher than what they want to pay. That will leave us in essentially the same position we were for most of last season--which was once again a crisis of their own creation.

The Ravens are still fumbling about trying to replace Jonathan Ogden, and still following the same approach they used when JO was here. They simply do not prioritize the OL and never have. They will gladly spend draft picks on offensive linemen, but rarely first rounders (which are usually reserved for high-impact defenders). They do a good job of developing their mid-round picks for the most part but very rarely re-sign them, so they're constantly cycling through players and re-shuffling. The same is true now; they committed long-term to Yanda, but the other 4 OL positions have been continuously in flux.

I expect the Ravens to go into 2013 with Oher at LT, backed up by the developmental LT of the future. They will add an interior OL who can play guard and center to back up and "compete" with Gradkowski, who will be the starting center in between KO and Yanda. At RT, they will likely give Jah Reid one last shot to get healthy and win a starter's spot (I think he fits better at RT than LG) but he will be pushed by Jack Cornell or a cheap FA in camp.

I really hope that this is not what happens.

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**bmorecareful** · 03-07-2013, 08:36 AM

Originally Posted by wickedsolo

I really hope that this is not what happens.

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Let me make one thing clear though; I'm not just bashing the FO for how they've handled the OL. Gaither is really at the heart of all of this as much as anything else. He was a huge steal in the supplemental draft and if he would have panned out every year would have been like 2009, when we had one of the best OL in the league. It was NOT the FO's fault that Gaither turned out like he did.

I do blame them for their undying allegiance to Michael Oher. I don't think they WANT him to play RT; I think they would much rather he play LT, and so they keep trying to force the issue. They would not have played McKinnie at all last year if it weren't for Jah Reid's toe injury, and I don't know how much their minds were really changed by the playoff run... and if you look at Filmstudy's grades from the playoffs, you'd be surprised to find that we really didn't get great play out of both OTs in ANY game. The interior OL was what really allowed Flacco to step up and make plays even while pressure was coming in from the edges. They got by last year without elite OT play and they'll do it again next year

I think that's going to be the key to the OL next year. They have to preserve the elite pass protection and run blocking they got from the interior OL and they need to add youth and talent at the OT position, even if it's raw talent. The Castillo hire is another signal to me that they're going to try to make chicken salad out of chicken shit on the OL; that's what he's done his entire career.

**Beau Petard** · 03-07-2013, 09:08 AM

bmore-
I think I understand what you have posted in this thread, and not trying to be confrontational, but I think "The Ravens are still fumbling about trying to replace Jonathan Ogden..." may be a bit of a harsh judgement considering the quality of JO. IMHO, any team would be fumbling about trying to replace him. Obviously the FO is not without its issues, and many posters have offered very well-thought out criticisms. Also, you have made it clear that you're not bashing the FO. I just wanted to offer a small caveat.

**leachisabeast** · 03-07-2013, 09:30 AM

Originally Posted by wickedsolo

I really hope that this is not what happens.

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You just paid your QB, that would be silly to start Jah Reid and Michael Oher at both OT spots IMO, and very very risky.

**lobachevsky** · 03-07-2013, 09:38 AM

Originally Posted by leachisabeast

Welcome to the boards Mr captain obvious!

Oh I dunno, I thought that Cap'n O's post was just chockful of useful information & profound insights...

Originally Posted by Ravenswintitle

...find a way to keep McKinnie around on the cheap for one more year...

And while they're at it, cure AIDS, end world hunder, & make peace in the Middle East--any of which is more likely to happen.... Face it, McKinnie has his ring, his buds are either gone (#52) or on their way (#20), & he wants/needs every dollar he can get. Some team will pay him more than the Ravens.

Originally Posted by bmorecareful

I have a sneaky suspicion that we're all going to be disappointed yet again in how the FO handles the OL this offseason. I think they will allow the market to set McKinnie's price and they will have no qualms whatsoever letting him walk if his price is a penny higher than what they want to pay. That will leave us in essentially the same position we were for most of last season--which was once again a crisis of their own creation.

Concur...damn it all.

I expect the Ravens to go into 2013 with Oher at LT, backed up by the developmental LT of the future. They will add an interior OL who can play guard and center to back up and "compete" with Gradkowski, who will be the starting center in between KO and Yanda. At RT, they will likely give Jah Reid one last shot to get healthy and win a starter's spot (I think he fits better at RT than LG) but he will be pushed by Jack Cornell or a cheap FA in camp.

Sounds about right. And the season's fate may hinge on whether the "developmental LT" manages to break into the lineup before Flacco ends up on IR...damn it all.

**ActualSpamBot** · 03-07-2013, 09:43 AM

Originally Posted by lobachevsky

And the season's fate may hinge on whether the "developmental LT" manages to break into the lineup before Flacco ends up on IR...damn it all.

Oher has played tackle for us on one side or the other for virtually all of Joe's career and neither has yet to miss a game, much less finish the year on IR. I get that Oher isn't a top tackle, but the histrionics about him are getting ludicrous. He's a replacement level starter on the left side and an above average to very good right tackle. Treating him like he's a worthless turnstile is underselling his value.

**jonboy79** · 03-07-2013, 09:57 AM

Originally Posted by ActualSpamBot

Oher has played tackle for us on one side or the other for virtually all of Joe's career and neither has yet to miss a game, much less finish the year on IR. I get that Oher isn't a top tackle, but the histrionics about him are getting ludicrous. He's a replacement level starter on the left side and an above average to very good right tackle. Treating him like he's a worthless turnstile is underselling his value.

I actually agree, though a BIT less optimstic...

I am scared to death that we will see Oher on teh left and Jah reid on the right to enter week 1...

But, at the same point I am fairly comfortable we will draft a guy who at least possibly projects to LT.

I'd be much happier with Oher left on the right side for once... IF Oher/Fo/Coaches can finally sttle on him bign RT starter/LT backup then I am fine nearing the top of the market for RT's as a second contract after thsi year. I am warming to the idea of taking ab athletic prospect like Terron Armstead.

**wickedsolo** · 03-07-2013, 10:05 AM

Originally Posted by ActualSpamBot

Oher has played tackle for us on one side or the other for virtually all of Joe's career and neither has yet to miss a game, much less finish the year on IR. I get that Oher isn't a top tackle, but the histrionics about him are getting ludicrous. He's a replacement level starter on the left side and an above average to very good right tackle. Treating him like he's a worthless turnstile is underselling his value.

You'd think Oher was Oniel Cousins.

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**leachisabeast** · 03-07-2013, 10:05 AM

Michael Oher was actually fairly good in pass pro this year, it was his run blocking that was atrocious.

**wickedsolo** · 03-07-2013, 10:09 AM

Originally Posted by leachisabeast

Michael Oher was actually fairly good in pass pro this year, it was his run blocking that was atrocious.

Which is a big reason why I would love to see them draft Michael Williams or Sims. Good blocking TE's with decent receiving skills.

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