Heading into Training Camp, the Ravens like all NFL teams had a lengthy list of goals and objectives. Among them naturally was to emerge from camp healthy, to shape the players’ bodies into playing condition and to learn more about the talent acquired in the off season to give the roster the necessary depth to withstand the rigors of a NFL season.
Unique to the Ravens were certain positional battles.
Curiously the Ravens did little in the offseason to repair a much maligned offensive line. Instead of augmenting the line with youth and acquired free agent talent (with the exception of second round pick Chris Chester), the Ravens chose to stick with the personnel they had believing that another season together, the restoration of health and conditioning, another season under the tutelage of offensive line coach Chris Foerster and the addition of a new quarterback would change things for the better.
Time will tell if the Ravens big roll of the dice here will pay off but early indications are the team’s trust in the offensive line may be rewarded. If not, that roll could spell craps for many in the organization.
Only one position on the offensive line was a lock heading into camp – the left tackle position held by perennial Pro Bowler Jonathan Ogden. The remaining four positions were enveloped in question marks.
Did camp provide us with any answers or are there more questions?
Let’s take a look.
Edwin Mulitalo by his own admission was not ready for the 2005 NFL season. Gout in one knee, a problematic shoulder and the loss of his father combined to form a perfect storm that obliterated Mulitalo’s offseason conditioning program last offseason and it left him well behind the proverbial eight ball from day one.
“When I came into the [2005] season, it was a case of me playing into shape, said the veteran guard and former Pro Bowl alternate. “I really didn’t have an offseason. And obviously there were the off the field things, the family issues. It was kind of on my mind. You try your best to not let those things affect your play but sometimes it does. You don’t want to really give less to the game but it shows when you watch the film.”
This year Mulitalo has drawn the praise and admiration of teammates and the coaching staff with a NFL rebirth of sorts. The left guard position is once again Mulitalo’s to lose.
The position of center promised to be an interesting camp battle. The incumbent Mike Flynn struggled mightily in 2005 and Jason Brown the heir apparent was said to be in better shape, lauded by line mates for his powerful leverage and possessing the intelligence needed to direct the line calls. During OTA’s, Flynn sat out often with a troublesome knee enabling Brown to take snaps with the first unit. Signs seemed to be pointing towards a changing of the guard at center.
Yet as camp opened, it became apparent that the job was Mike Flynn’s to lose. Brown has seen little time with the first unit and is clearly No. 2 on the depth charts. The remaining preseason games could affect Flynn’s grip on the starting job, particularly if aggressive blitzing defenses like the Eagles expose the same problems that plagued Flynn and the entire line in 2005.
At right guard it was thought that Keydrick Vincent and Brian Rimpf would duke it out. That hasn’t happened as Vincent has emerged as the starter based upon merit, Rimpf’s hamstring injury and rookie Chris Chester’s inexperience. The organization sees Rimpf as an inexpensive swing player who can fill in at any of the interior spots and who in an emergency could play right tackle.
Chester is a player that the Ravens brass is very excited about and it would surprise no one if given a chance to start, he never looks back.
The right tackle position was supposed to be a dog fight between Tony Pashos and Adam Terry. The trouble is only one of the two seems to have any real fight in them – Pashos. The 2003 fifth round pick out of Illinois has been a beast in the weight room and in conditioning and has worked very hard to refine his game.
Ravens Director of College Scouting Eric DeCosta has certainly taken note.
“Nobody has worked harder than Tony Pashos over the last couple of years”, said DeCosta. “I give Tony a lot of credit. He has lost a lot of weight, about 35 pounds. He’s worked on his feet and he’s always been real smart and tough but limited athletically but he’s worked on that. One of the reasons we had a little more success on offense towards the end of last year [as in] the Minnesota game and the Green Bay game, I give a lot of credit to Tony. He’s not a great player but he’s a good player and he plays hard. For an offensively lineman, that’s one of the big things — consistency, effort, intelligence and overall toughness.”
The right tackle job is Pashos’ to lose and there’s no evidence that he will. There’s too much fight in him and not enough of it in Terry to alter the depth chart at right tackle for the time being.
Staying with the offensive side of the ball, there was some question heading into camp as to who will win the starting full back position. Alan Ricard was released and subsequently picked up by Buffalo. Ovie Mughelli is in the Ricard mold – a one dimensional player with a reputation as a bulldozer leading back. Justin Green was drafted in 2005 and while not exceptionally skilled in any area, he is versatile and has shown improvement as a blocker, particularly as a pass protector.
The sense here is that Green will emerge as the winner. Mughelli has yet to live up to his collegiate reputation as a blocker and the Ravens appear to be shying away from the days when they dictated their play calling with their personnel packages. Green’s versatility works better for Jim Fassel’s multi-look offense. Not only that, the traditional fullback is something the Ravens are veering away from. Daniel Wilcox has been featured as the H-back and has done a nice job as a lead blocker on the move. And perhaps most importantly, Jamal Lewis appears to be adapting well to running out of a single back formation.
Another position open to competition heading into camp was the No. 3 wide receiver slot. Clarence Moore’s inability to get on the practice field during camp coupled with his one-dimensional game not only has him out of the running for the No. 3, it has his job in jeopardy. In all likelihood, the Ravens will keep Moore somehow but he won’t threaten Demetrius Williams or Devard Darling in the battle for the third receiving option.
When camp opened, Darling had a comfortable lead on Williams. Darling played well in OTA’s and he seemed to be gaining separation from defenders, something that had eluded him in 2004 and 2005. Plus when you consider that Williams was behind in his preparation, unable to participate in OTA’s due to NCAA rules, Darling appeared to have the slot locked down.
Locked down that is until recently.
Darling has slumped a bit in camp while Williams has come on like gangbusters. From the day he first arrived and performed in rookie camps up to tonight’s game, Williams has consistently demonstrated an ability to adjust to poorly thrown balls and to make plays in traffic. You will hear it said often that players know players and when asked about Demetrius Williams, Samari Rolle said that Williams reminded him of Chad Johnson.
Enough said!
While the depth charts might still list Darling at No. 3, if the recent trends continue Williams will snatch that perch if he hasn’t already in the minds of Jim Fassel and receivers coach Mike Johnson.
On the defensive side of the ball, most positions were already accounted for when camp opened. At defensive tackle the Ravens would employ a rotational system that starts with Kelly Gregg and Haloti Ngata and continues with Justin Bannan, Aubrayo Franklin and Dwan Edwards.
The only real questions that the team hoped to answer during camp were at the safety position opposite Ed Reed and the nickel and dime back positions used in sub packages. The Ravens look like they’ve answered two of these three questionable areas.
The nickel back at this point is Corey Ivy’s job to lose. He has surprised some coaches with his tenacity and cover skills from the slot. The dime back position appears to belong to UDFA Ronnie Prude, a pleasant camp surprise. A hamstring injury has limited third round pick David Pittman who was originally expected to be the nickel and sixth round pick Derrick Martin has been overmatched at times.
At safety the early favorite to replace Will Demps was Gerome Sapp. However, rookie fifth round pick Dawan Landry is seeing more time with the first unit as of late and appears to have a slight edge on Sapp. The next 3 preseason games will likely determine the winner in this battle. B.J. Ward could also re-emerge. Ward is a playmaker who too often lacks focus. Yet he can be an enforcer and isn’t afraid to lay the wood on opponents or even teammates for that matter. Prior to suffering from migraines in camp, Ward’s erratic play gave migraines to a few Ravens coaches, particularly Brian Billick.
Billick and his staff will soon be forced to make some hard choices. Training Camp 2006 is in the books and now the jockeying for position on the depth chart will come down to how the players battling to be starters and those on the bubble perform during the next three preseason games.
Some will say that such games are meaningless and boring. For those players fighting for their careers, it is hardly meaningless and boring.
