PRESEASON ADDS INSULT TO INJURY
Hey TL,
WHY?
It’s bad enough season ticket holders are obligated to pay FULL PRICE for two home preseason games but to have the NFL schedule both games AT NIGHT ON WEEKNIGHTS ROYALLY SUCKS!!!
I don’t mind using vacation days for the day following a Ravens REGULAR SEASON night game, but I won’t spend my vacation days during the preseason. I’ll probably go watch a quarter or half before going back to the boat and going to bed. 4am comes awfully early!!!
The NFL certainly finds creative ways to STICK IT [TO] THE FANS!
Mitch, Ellicott City
Mitch,
I recently switched from Comcast cable and internet services in part due to ongoing technical difficulties but also in part due to the attitudes that are adopted by a quasi-monopoly and their employees. They just didn’t seem to care about losing my business. I also recently tried to buy a Microsoft product online. I was given a product key that was supposed to activate the product. I had an immediate need and this online activation was attractive to me.
It didn’t work and when I tried to call the agent for Microsoft, there was no number available. If I couldn’t have the software immediately, the offer failed to fit my needs. I did call Microsoft and they washed their hands of it saying I had to deal with their agent. When I asked for a phone number they said there was none and I had to email them. I did to no avail. The software was eventually delivered to my home — $150 and two weeks late.
My point is this…when the next sucker is in line to replace your departing business because options are extremely limited, monopolistic companies do what they do and have very little conscience about their actions. As much as I love the NFL, as much as you love the NFL, there is a bit of take it or leave it in their behavior just like with Comcast and Microsoft. I’m sorry to say that they don’t really care that you have to get up at 4AM. In so many words they say, “Deal with it or we’ll find someone else who will!â€
And that’s why we happily pay full price for games that matter very little.
Don’t rock the boat…don’t tip the boat over,
TL
GET STARKS
TL,
Why wouldn’t the Ravens consider giving Pittsburgh their first round choice and sign tackle Max Starks? We obviously need a right tackle. There is much speculation as to who they might draft at #29. We could get a really good third year pro and force the Steelers hand.
Thoughts?
Tim – Catonsville
Tim,
The key to success in the NFL in my opinion is to draft well, to have faith in the players drafted and let them play. Personally I don’t think Starks is worth a No. 1 pick. I would much rather have Adam Terry take a shot at the position and keep my No. 1 than to give it up to a division rival for a former third round pick. I think Starks is decent and perhaps he even has some upside. But I wouldn’t recommend the Ravens paying him the top dollar he will likely command when he becomes a free agent. If Pashos was able to earn $10 million in the open market in bonus money, I have to think that Starks will earn even more. Given that, I’d rather have the pick. Furthermore, if the Steelers would make that deal (and they would) that to me is an indication that they would prefer the pick to Starks. Therefore, why shouldn’t the Ravens?
Not Starks Raven Mad,
TL
THE 2007 NFL DRAFT AS I SEE IT
Tony,
The draft as I see it…
In the first round, I think that the Ravens really like Aaron Ross, the cornerback from Texas and if he is available they will take him. I agree with the national media that he may be a risk because he only started in his senior year, but he looked great at his pro day- he has a good backpedal and the good ability to shift his hips plus decent speed.
If Ross is not available, then I like a defensive end who can morph into a linebacker like Jarvis Moss from Florida.
The third choice would be an offensive lineman like Staley or Blalock. If they are not available then look for another corner and draft Arron Sears in round 2. Note that only 3 teams in the league have number one draft choices at both tackle positions. Though important investing two number one picks at tackle is a lot. In fact, New England has one number one-Mankins and one number two-Matt Light and the rest plus backups are second day people.
If they do go for a lineman in round 1 then in round 2 I see them taking Josh Wilson as the cornerback. Though only 5’9" he has great speed and smarts plus he could spell BJ Sams. But that may be risky.
Now for quarterback. If Kolb is available in round 2 then might hold off on the cornerback and move in to take Kolb provided they get the offensive lineman in round 1. If Kolb is not available I would wait for Edwards in round 4 or Tony Korrodi in round 5.
Your thoughts?
Greg
Greg,
Not to sound cliché-ish but if Aaron Ross is the best player on the Ravens’ board at No. 29, they will make the pick unless they choose to trade down. Jarvis Moss is a nice player and showed it last year but there are questions surrounding his character. He was an underachiever early during his collegiate career and he also tested positive for marijuana. I don’t see him as a Raven.
The Ravens like Joe Staley but they don’t expect him to be on the board when the Ravens are on the clock. Blalock or Sears should be there and I believe their interest in both players is sincere. Josh Wilson shows promise and can be a dangerous return specialist but I don’t see him as a Raven. He is probably a third round pick and the Ravens at this time don’t have a pick in the third. I do see them looking for a replacement for B.J. Sams because a Sams’ suspension could be looming.
The Ravens don’t like to reach and Kolb in the second is a reach in my opinion. I think Trent Edwards in the fourth would be a value pick but I don’t see him lasting to the back end of the fourth where the Ravens now have two picks. Tony Korrodi has a big left arm but is a developmental prospect. The fifth round might be a bit early for him since the leap from Central Missouri State to the NFL would be characterized as quantum.
Aren’t we finished with those leaps of faith?
TL
WNST SERVES A PURPOSE
Tony,
I read the WNST story and the update that you attributed to the Sun. Who said what to whom and who is denied access is really not the saddest part.
Everybody knows where WNST fits and the slot in life that it fills. Remember that every creature, no matter how small, serves a purpose of some sort in the ecosystem. Taking WNST into the equation is like trimming off the fat from a piece of meat – you like what is there but have to work around the parts that are too much.
The saddest thing in all of this is that an organization with such a history and that I loved with a passion for so long IS CAPABLE of what is alleged. And worse, the Sun can be Pravda for the Orioles, so who knows what is real.
Based on the players, anything is possible and all of it is probably truthful to some degree. If this were a story on the Ravens I would give no credibility to it for a second because of the organization and what it projects. But for the Orange-and-Black, this is exactly the kind of thing that can happen given the pettiness and the reputation that has grown. It makes me sick that it can even exist for what I would love to cheer.
It should not even exist as an issue. Frankly, if I were involved with the Ravens I would never give [Mike] Preston the time of day for the one-sidedness that is passed as journalism. But that goes to show the difference in the organizations. I wish we did not even have to remotely believe that the Orioles could do it, but right now, how does anybody know?
A shame. A real shame.
Steve, Westminster
Steve,
Most businesses would welcome the opportunity to work with the media as part of an effort to gain free publicity to promote their products and services. Not the Orioles. And you are right, it is a shame. It’s a shame for the young players who show promise and who otherwise might benefit from the support of our city. It’s a shame for Sam Perlozzo, a decent man who has worked hard for this opportunity. And it’s a shame for the children who know the Orioles as nothing more than losers and the ugly red-headed stepchildren when compared to the favored sons, the Baltimore Ravens.
If not for a Camden Yards’ lease and a lucrative deal with MASN, would the Orioles today (less the alcohol induced fogginess) be any different than the Irsay owned Baltimore Colts of 1983?
Angelos doesn’t mean Angel O’s,
TL
NO GAME OF TAG HERE
TL,
The bears slap the franchise tag on Lance Briggs, and the redskins offer them their #6 pick for Lance Briggs and the bears #31 pick.
My question is why the Ravens would not franchise Adalius Thomas when there is so much value to be had while using him as trade bait. I know the front office of the ravens does not like to franchise players that they intend on keeping, but it seems as though they could have gotten a very reasonable draft pick(s) for him even knowing he would not remain a Raven.
If the Patriots gave up a 2nd and 7th for Wes Welker, what would they have given up for Adalius?
Rory Hyland
Rory,
The Ravens are very reluctant to use the franchise tag unless it is for a player with maturity issues who they’ve love to keep but isn’t worth the risk of a long-term investment (circa 2003 Chris McAlister). For someone like AD, a player who played hard, provided leadership, contributed significantly and gave back to the community, it’s so hard to stand in the way of his good fortune.
You raise a good point and it is a question that I asked Eric DeCosta. I pointed out the John Abraham deal the Jets made last season for Atlanta’s No. 1. DeCosta said that they could have pursued that but you have to find a trading partner and if you can’t, you may have to absorb a franchise tag salary or trade the player for less than market value and in doing so, you are viewed less favorably by players and agents and that negative goodwill could impact the club’s ability to enter into favorable negotiations in the future.
No question that AD has value…but the Ravens believed that in the grand scheme of things, taking one on the chin for a great guy like AD was worth it in the long run.
To the future,
TL
