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THE GRAPEVINE: Random Thoughts As Training Camp Approaches

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Jonathan Ogden will be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday, August 3, 2013. Ogden as you know is the original Raven and we should all be proud that he will be the first inductee from our championship franchise.

Perhaps like many of you, I was on the fence about the Ravens’ choice of Ogden prior to the 1996 NFL Draft hoping instead Ozzie Newsome would select RB Lawrence Phillips from Nebraska. But then as the draft approached the thought of having a premier bookend at left tackle for a decade seemed like a solid choice over a diva running back with issues, seemed like the wise choice.

Yet it’s interesting that with only 11 days standing between now and the induction, little has been said or written about JO. Not much fanfare either or banter about roadies to Canton, OH.

Is it because he played a position that only receives attention when a mistake is made?

Was JO so good we took him for granted?

Was it because he played on a poor offense for nearly his entire career?

All of the above?

Whatever the reason I hope the attention directed towards JO climbs considerably and soon!

Haloti Ngata has regularly created quite a stir on The Vinny & Rob Show on 105.7 The Fan – but for all the wrong reasons. Vinny Cerrato incessantly paints a picture of Haloti Ngata as an overweight, lazy player who isn’t playing to the level of his contract.

Yet Cerrato doesn’t give Ngata any credit for fighting through a series of injuries while playing alongside a player who arguably shouldn’t have been anything more than a far-end-of-the-bench reserve (Ma’ake Kemoeatu).

Maybe Cerrato would like it better if the Ravens paid an extremely overweight defensive tackle with serious maturity issues a staggering 7 year, $100M deal with $41M in guaranteed money. You know, like that Haynesworth guy he signed while a GM in DC. You know, the team (Washington Redskins) that was penalized for salary cap violations when one Mr. Cerrato was supposed to keep guard over those things…

For the record here’s a recent picture of Haloti taken at a Thompson Creek Window Company photo shoot last week. You be the judge if he’s out of shape.

QUICK HITS: Speaking of Haloti Ngata, The Sun reports that the Ravens tackle crushed his conditioning test (which probably left Cerrato crushed). Unfortunately Jacoby Jones did not and as a result his status has been parked on the “Non-football injury list.” Look for Jacoby to come off that list as early as today when he passes the test as effortlessly as he performed the Cha-Cha…Matt Elam is an interesting guy to follow on Twitter (@ElamVsElo) although admittedly I sometimes feel the need for an interpreter…

Fans and the media sometimes get a bit too excited about the PUP list. Most players are assigned to the “active” PUP list. The “active” PUP is for players who may, or will, be activated during Training Camp. A player on “active” PUP does count toward the applicable preseason roster limit (90 or below, depending on the limit at that time).

Last season Haloti Ngata, then rookie offensive guard-tackle Kelechi Osemele (back spasms), defensive end Pernell McPhee (minor knee surgery), wide receiver David Reed (anterior cruciate ligament surgery) and offensive guard-tackle Jah Reid (strained right calf) all spent time on “active” PUP.

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