“In the National Football League system, run-first offenses and sustained winning models are considered especially heinous. In Baltimore, Maryland, the dedicated fans who support the front office and coaching are members of an elite squad known as the Purple Patrol. These are their stories.”
DUN DUN.
With the NFL trade deadline officially in the rearview mirror, I’ve noticed more irate Ravens fans than ever before…
…after the 5-3 AFC North leaders added All-Pro Linebacker, Roquan Smith.
Once again, it all comes down to the wide receiver position. Simply put, the Ravens didn’t add one, and fans deemed that addition to be absolutely paramount to success. The irony of that rationale for a 5-3 team coming off back-to-back wins, and the three losses largely pinned on defensive shortcomings and back-to-back Lamar Jackson uncharacteristic turnovers… it’s certainly something.
As a result of the ‘trade that never happened’ the narratives are really flying from this fanbase, too.
The Ravens don’t care about wide receivers, they never have!
They’re punishing Lamar Jackson for not accepting a contract!
They only care about defense, not the offense!
Should’ve traded for Claypool, he has Andre Johnson potential!
Dead serious about that last one, by the way.
While all of this can be easily disproved, the reality of the trade deadline was simply that Roquan was available… but can you say the same for wide receivers? Can you assuredly prove that Eric DeCosta & Co didn’t make a valiant effort?
Or is the reality that you didn’t get what you deemed to be the only thing that matters, so you’re going to throw completely unwarranted slander at the Ravens GM like Anakin Skywalker’s infamous “I HATE YOU!” when he refused to accept the truth from Obi Wan Kenobi?
Sorry about that, I’ll put the lightsaber away…
The reality is right there Ravens Flock, you just need to accept it: there were just two wide receivers moved yesterday.
In the first, Chase Claypool went to the Bears for a second-round pick – the Bears’ early second, not the Ravens potentially late second that they’d acquired – which is not only an insanely high price, but also a trade the Steelers never would’ve made with the Ravens.
The other trade was for Calvin Ridley… who isn’t eligible to play til 2023, and doesn’t help the Ravens this season. There was also the trade of Robbie Anderson to the Cardinals a few weeks ago, but Anderson has proven to be fairly non-existent, even without Hollywood Brown active, as Greg Dortch and Rondale Moore are getting more looks and love from Kyler Murray.
Oh, and Kadarius Toney! The oft-injured, checked-out wide receiver that created more drama than plays in New York. He’s now a Chief, as KC bought on potential more than anything.
So what does it all mean? It means that D.J. Moore wasn’t traded, nor were Elijah Moore, Denzel Mims, Kendrick Bourne, Nelson Agholor, Jerry Jeudy… any wideout that would step in to be a WR1/2 in Baltimore.
But does it mean that Eric DeCosta didn’t make the calls to check in? Absolutely not. Maybe EDC made the call and the price tag was too high (if Claypool was a high Round 2, can you even imagine what a good wideout goes for?) Maybe he made the call and the other team said no (Moore was never getting traded). Maybe he made some of those calls but not all of them.
Nobody knows! And that’s okay!
The only thing that matters is that the Ravens got better this week. The defense adding Smith, Tyus Bowser, and David Ojabo will prove to be a huge boost to the unit. Offensively, the Ravens are finally starting to find their stride on the ground, while Lamar showed that he can spread the ball around last week without Bateman and Andrews (although I expect Andrews back on Monday), and it looks like we’ll get to see DeSean Jackson here soon as well.
The team got better, and provides even more posts-season promise. How they did it and where it improved is immaterial.
And if that’s still not good enough for you?
Odell Beckham Jr. sweepstakes are underway! Can’t wait for that vitriol-fest when he signs elsewhere!
One Response
Respectfully, this article is a little disingenuous. Seth Roberts, Dez Bryant, Sammy Watkins, …during Lamar’s tenure, that is what the FO has done to address the position that has shown a need for some time. Instead of making a move for any of the elite, they went for people on their couches. This looks even worse when compared to the decision making in terms of the position across the league. Then, going into this year, the FO chose to enter it with the least experienced and shallow WR corp in the league during a supposed “SB window”, saying “we like our guys”. Fast forward, the corp is hurt and underperforming, see Robbie Anderson, an archetype that is non-existent in the WR corp, go for two late pics and the response? Desean Jackson off of his couch. Lets’s not forget Andy Isabella as well
TLDR – it’s not just that fans feel the FO neglects the position, it’s that when they try to address it, it’s almost disrespectful to the team and fans when they do