The Magic 8 Ball Tackles The Ravens
It seems like each season the Ravens add some veteran player during training camp. Do you expect the same this summer? Joe from Whitehall
With the release of Eugene Monroe the Ravens created $6.5M in cap space and they now sit comfortably at $12.25M under the cap. Traditionally the Ravens are a team that spends to the cap but they may want to carry money over into 2017 to re-sign a player like Brandon Williams (or get him done now) who will be an expensive ticket given the Eagles recent re-signing of interior defender Fletcher Cox (6 year, $102,600,000 contract including a $26,000,000 signing bonus, $63,299,000 guaranteed). Cox isn’t as stout against the run as Williams but clearly a better pass rusher.
As for who they could add, a reserve offensive tackle and an inside linebacker to play beside CJ Mosley would be my focus if I sat in Ozzie’s chair. If for some reason Ronnie Stanley struggles or is bitten by the injury bug (a regular visitor at Owings Mills), the Ravens should dress Joe Flacco in a Kevlar suit if James Hurst is their best option at left tackle.
With Daryl Smith gone, the job for CJ’s sidekick is wide open and the nominees aren’t particularly exciting. Zach Orr lacks experience. Albert McClellan is about as fast as a cigar store Indian and Arthur Brown is the Ravens answer to “Where’s Waldo?”
As teams get into training camp and less expensive players are outperforming high-priced vets, said vets become available and are more willing to accept bargain basement contracts when faced with unemployment.
John Harbaugh said a lot of great things about Eugene Monroe at a recent presser. Did the Ravens dump him because of his strong advocacy for medicinal marijuana in the NFL? Why didn’t they trade him and get something in return? Fred in Pasadena
Harbs reminded me of a politician when discussing Monroe following his release from the Ravens and if everything he said about the enigmatic tackle were true, he’d still be a Raven. Besides the medicinal marijuana, Monroe had his own agenda and that was far more important to him than the team. Here’s how Monroe spells the team: “TeIam”. So you see for him there is an “I” in team.
Regarding the trade, from what I’ve heard the Ravens tried diligently to make a deal with the NY Giants for what is likely to have been a 6th, possibly a 7th round pick. But Monroe wasn’t very amenable to the new contractual terms presented and it killed the deal. Now he and his agent can peddle his services to the highest bidder. I’m guessing he’ll wait until there’s an injury at his position somewhere around the league. That keeps Eugene off the practice field and on Twitter touting cannabis – something that helps get him to his happy place.
Did you see CBS’ Jason LaCanfora’s QB List? He has Joe Flacco in his second tier of quarterbacks, described as “Top pros, proven winners” along with Drew Brees, Tony Romo, Eli Manning, Philip Rivers and Carson Palmer. Are you on board with this? Mark in Catonsville
My top 10 quarterbacks in the league TODAY in order are:
• Aaron Rodgers
• Tom Brady
• Ben Roethlisberger
• Cam Newton
• Russell Wilson
• Drew Brees
• Philip Rivers
• Andrew Luck
• Carson Palmer
• Eli Manning
I think Jason has Tony Romo ranked too high and he has Andrew Luck ranked too low. And I also think that Jason is showing some slight homerism ranking Joe Flacco as high as he does.
Don’t get me wrong, Joe has the ability and I do think that if and when we revisit this subject a year from now, he’ll be in the top 10. But the truth be told, Joe hasn’t been consistent. He had a remarkable playoff run in 2012 and clearly without him the Ravens don’t come close to having a second Lombardi in their trophy case. But there’s no denying the inconsistencies.
Yes Joe’s offensive coordinator has been largely a revolving door, and yes he hasn’t had the quality of wide receivers that the others have enjoyed. But those legit excuses are no longer in play. Now he has plenty of offensive weapons and he’s in Year 2 with OC Marc Trestman. Joe will have his chance to be among the league’s best and allow his play to match his pay.
