Free Agent Tracker -- Post FA News and Notes Here (merged)

[wickedsolo]

Early Doucet would still be my choice for a FA receiver.

[BigPlayReceiver]

No one's been linked to Doucet that I've seen, yet other tier 2 WRs have already signed.
So maybe ARZ is working on him?

A plus: He won't turn 27 until Week 8 or so.

[LukeDaniel]

I know thats not necessarily the popular opinion but the guy was fighting a hamstring injury most of the season. I dont think he played horrible but i dont see where he was much worse if at all than McClain when he was out there. I think coming back early from that hamstring when Ray went down was more damaging than it was worth.

like i said, it still needs to be upgraded, but i dont see the loss of McClain as much worse than if we didnt retain Ellerbe.

I always thought that Ellerbe was the more talented of the two in terms of raw ability, but I think McClain overtook him last year.

I've always liked Jameel. Undrafted Free Agent to starter in two years is an impressive progression on a defense as good as what we have in Baltimore. However, I still think Jameel was misused. We saw those flashes of brilliance from him as a rookie when he seemed to live in opposing backfields making plays all over the place despite limited downs on the field. The next year, when Mattison arrived and the defense lost it's aggressiveness, McClain was sort of the posterchild for that shift in mentality. He went from a young, intriguing pass rusher to a misfit MLB. Jameel has had a great attitude, made the most of his talents, has worked his butt off from a really tough upbringing, and has done whatever the Ravens asked of him. Last year, we saw him even take on a defensive quarterback role during Lewis' absence.

He's gonna get a nice contract. Good for him. Hopefully, if he hasn't already, he can take his mom and his siblings and do enough nice things for them so that their lives never resemble where they were 15-20 years ago. I hate to say it, but I hope that contract is with someone else. I don't see Jameel returning to his 2008 role. He's going to be a MLB heading out for the rest of his career. As a MLB, he's nothing special. Not a playmaker in any way. He struggles in coverage and misses a few too many tackles for my liking. He was the 11th best starter on defense last year. If you're going to commit money to a MLB, I want that player to make an impact, not just be a space filler. Unfortunately, I think McClain is just that type of LB. He's like a lot of starting MLBs in the league. He makes enough tackles to keep his job and get paid, but really doesn't impact the game that greatly. You can draft players like that in the 3rd and 4th round of every draft and pay them far less than you'd be paying McClain. Also, that 3rd or 4th rounder might have the potential to be an impact player. Jameel has shown us he does not have that potential. I'd much rather draft someone, for 20-25% of what Jameel will command, and roll the dice that they turn out as good, or perhaps better, than what McClain provides us.

Great guy and solid human being. Decent football player, but IMO, easily replaceable. The Ravens seemed content to let Bart Scott and Hartwell walk and IMO they were better players than McClain. I just don't see much of a chance that he returns. If he does, it had better be dirt cheap.

[LukeDaniel]

Nakamura gets a 3 year deal from the Panthers. Ouch. I think we dropped the ball on this one.

[Justlovemybirds]

Nakamura gets a 3 year deal from the Panthers. Ouch. I think we dropped the ball on this one.

He wanted to start, he knew it wasn't happening here.

[Knox Harrington]

Is Ozzie going to sign anyone?!? My count is we've lost 4 players and are on the verge of losing at least 2 more

Gone-
Grubbs
JJ
Nakamura
Redding

Soon to go-
Zibby
McClain

[JAB1985]

Early Doucet would still be my choice for a FA receiver.

does he have return abilities? if not what does he offer that boldin and theoretically Doss dont offer us?

[LukeDaniel]

Is Ozzie going to sign anyone?!? My count is we've lost 4 players and are on the verge of losing at least 2 more

Gone-
Grubbs
JJ
Nakamura
Redding

Soon to go-
Zibby
McClain

We signed Chavis Williams.

Grubbs doesn't bother me if we get Mathis.

JJ got too much money for a 2 down player....although I think playing for the Chargers, who play run-first KC, DEN, and OAK six times per year was a good fit for them.

Redding bothers me a bit because I think he was a darn good player and didn't get that unreasonable a contract from INDY (3 years-$10.5 million I believe). I think he proved himself to be the "right player" the last two years and certainly $3.5/year is the "right price" for a player of his proven talents. I wonder if we even made him an offer. Certainly, had we put a figure in front of him comparable to what Indy offered, he would have returned.

Nakamura bothers me too on the surface, but I guess we'll see what Carolina paid him before I get too upset.

[JMUpurkfool]

This draft is going to be really important.

[BigPlayReceiver]

Is Ozzie going to sign anyone?!? My count is we've lost 4 players and are on the verge of losing at least 2 more

Gone-
Grubbs
JJ
Nakamura
Redding

Soon to go-
Zibby
McClain

S'ok. This is not unusual.

[LukeDaniel]

This draft is going to be really important.

I agree. Usually the draft's design is to get a first and 2nd rounder who can contribute and the rest of the players are to fill in down the road. This year we need to find 5 players who can contribute immediately.

[Raveninwoodlawn]

Is Ozzie going to sign anyone?!? My count is we've lost 4 players and are on the verge of losing at least 2 more

Gone-
Grubbs
JJ
Nakamura
Redding

Soon to go-
Zibby
McClain

I swear it's the same shit every year.

"Is Ozzie going to sign anyone"? "Is Ozzie still sleep"? "Are Ozzie and Steve happy with second place"?

[alien bird]

Is Ozzie going to sign anyone?!?

This sounds like the annual refrain from Ravens' fans after three days of free agency.

There isn't a time limit on signing free agents, and the Ravens aren't the only ones to wait for the right player at the right price. I'm pretty sure the front office has a finger on the pulse of what's going on out there and will obtain the guys necessary to be competitive this coming season while maintaining some sanity about both the short-term and long-term outlook for the Ravens.

[alien bird]

This year we need to find 5 players who can contribute immediately.

Some of those guys might have already been drafted and are under contract already. For example, wasn't it Jarrett Johnson himself who kept saying that Sergio Kindle was tearing it up in practice but there's a lot of talent in front of him on the depth chart? Well, maybe it's his time to step up (or Kruger, or Doss, or Jones, or etc, etc, etc).

[Raveninwoodlawn]

Some of those guys might have already been drafted and are under contract already. For example, wasn't it Jarrett Johnson himself who kept saying that Sergio Kindle was tearing it up in practice but there's a lot of talent in front of him on the depth chart? Well, maybe it's his time to step up (or Kruger, or Doss, or Jones, or etc, etc, etc).

Completely agree.

I'm amazed that some here always complain about not giving guys a chance to play at certain positions...the WR spot to be specific...when they are young.

But every other position where we have managed to plug in guys and not see a significant drop off don't get anywhere near the amount of leeway that the WR's get.

We drafted and kept Arthur Jones and Purnell Mcphee for a reason. We drafted and kept Kruger and Kindle for a reason. We always seem to have productive ILB's so I don't know why anyone would worry too much about that.

Not only that, but UFA is not even a week old and the market is F-L-O-O-D-E-D with players...some of you need to stop acting like A...we have unlimited cap space and should keep all our players; B...We don't know how to draft and none of our prospects will be able to step up (we've always had guys step up and produce); and C...If we don't sign one of the big name guys during the first week or 2, that free agency is over and there aren't any quality players out there left.

It's the same song and dance every year, despite being one of the great franchises in the league and doing "nothing but win" (Thanks Drew Forrestor), people still act like this every offseason.

I mean don't you guys see who is going out there and spending all this money? It's the bad teams who can't make the playoffs on a consistent basis...the Steelers, Patriots, Packers, Giants, Eagles, Saints don't routinely go out there and make big signings...yet they are almost always in the playoffs. It's not a coincidence here...

[pslholder96]

Is Ozzie going to sign anyone?!? My count is we've lost 4 players and are on the verge of losing at least 2 more

Gone-
Grubbs
JJ
Nakamura
Redding

Soon to go-
Zibby
McClain

Have you not been paying attention the last 5 years. This is the ravens approach and the right one. Excercise patience ,let the market play itself out and wait for the summer cuts.

[GOTA]

Nakamura gets a 3 year deal from the Panthers. Ouch. I think we dropped the ball on this one.

He wanted a chance to start and we weren't going to give that to him here.

[pslholder96]

Michael Lombardi is reporting that the raiders are expected to release Wimbley.

[ExiledRaven]

Evan Mathis is mulling over a "nice offer" from the Ravens. Heading back to Arizona to think about it and discuss with his family. No mention of other teams (either planning to visit or cancelling planned visits)

http://www.rotoworld.com/content/pla...=230057&spln=1

Torrey Smith Twitter: "Tedd Ginn sighting???"

Ted Ginn would be a great pickup if only to improve the return game. You've also got the (rather remote) chance he'll be able to contribute as a complimentary deep threat in 3 WR situations. It's something this team needs. Makes a lot of sense, especially if the price is right.

[leachisabeast]

So far what the Ravens are doing is basically what Ozzie said at the end of season press conference.

"It starts with the offensive line."

That is certainly what appears to be happening here, already giving an offer to Mathis, and now we have Eric Winston visiting us. This tells me that if and after one or both of them are signed, that the best available bargained WR will be chased by us, perhaps Tedd Ginn is that guy, but I prefer Early Doucet if he's still around and will come at the right price. Another thing he said he wants are pass rushers. "You can never have too many pass rushers.", I would not be surprised if Wimbley was approached by the Ravens. So obviously in the draft the BPA is going to be drafted in whatever holes we have left, I expect it to be defensive heavy, with a WR and a C included.