Big Name Wide Receiver Might Not Make The Difference

Offense is young. The O-line needs more experience as well. Flacco needs better receivers (not a single superstar). The Ravens spent the last half of the decade playing the game that won in the first three or so years of the decade. Defense could more readily dictate a game before the Colts had the PI rule interpretation changed. My opinion is the rule change allowed average receivers to perform much better – hence you see decent QBs who can pass doing well. The Ravens, for want of a better QB or now for lack of decent receivers, never adjusted to the new game. This year was tough because the defensive weakness were precisely where the game now favors the offense – in the secondary. Webb looks like he was coming on and Carr did OK. I hope they can find another decent CB and a decent receiver or two to help Flacco and the Ravens start playing football that acknowledges the rules favor teams that have a competent passing game. They better do it in a hurry, as the defense is getting old.

Although bringing in a big name receiver might not make a world of difference, its still something the front office needs to address. Because how could bringing in a guy that’s better at his position then anyone we currently have, be a bad thing. Mason, Clayton, and Williams could all potentially not be playing for Baltimore next season. So I ask you, what better time to overhaul the receiving corps?

We still need a burner ( a pure speed guy who can stretch the field), a tall possesion receiver (maybe kelley washington is good enough), and a tall high pointer(someone Joe can throw to in the endzone for fades and such). None of current WR’s fit any of these molds great yet. We need to have an amazing draft at the skill positions. This is a WR heavy draft and there are some great picks to be made. Maybe we can sign Malcom Floyd too and get that high pointer.

Also on the wish list: Dexter McCluster out of Ole Miss, looks like the next Chris Johnson. He’s only rated a 66 out of 100 on scouts inc which would make him a 4th rounder. Once he runs the 40 at the combine his stock will go way up though.

Mark my words. This guy is unreal. With him and Rice on the field at the same time you might not have to throw more than dinks and dunks. I saw him for 2 seconds on a short college film clip and that’s all I needed to see. He is blazing fast and super quick. He also has a great message to DB’s after he scores -"You’ve just been Mccluster f……….! " LOL.

Looking at the Manning/Flacco photo it’s obvious why Joe isn’t as good as Manning. He needs bigger shoulder pads. It’s all in the shoulder pads.

I agree with Bruce and it isn’t always a change in receiver that will send you forward. Our crew this year was servicable and they got usually got open when Cam wanted them to get open. Without the deep plays they just got sat on. If you notice, when we targeted Heap he usually caught it (no YAC of course). When we threw to D-Will he was usually open (dropped of course). When we went to Clayton he had decent separation. Mason was there all day for Joe. It comes down to being cool in the pocket.

1/2 of Favre’s TD’s aren’t the designed play. He extends the play and looks for the 4th and 5th opportunity. Joe isn’t there yet and may not be mobil enough to do that. Joe needs to know when to step up in the pocket and when to roll out. He’s better off stepping up and buying 1 more second because he’s not quick enough to roll out.

Great receivers will help but they will not fair much better without Joe improving his vision and footwork.

Agree but hesitant with getting burned by an injured Boldin.

I like you comment about ’what’s the point having Flacco..without receivers." So true. If you wanted to dink and dunk and hope for 3rd down success, then Troy Smith was a better answer. Flacco is built to go donw field. I dog Joe but I do realize he is being used at barely 3/4 capability.

Garcon is a burner and physical. He’s in his second year and still is getting better. Once his route running gets tweaked he’ll be home run hitter.

I’ve always like Breaston, fast, versatile, runs good routes, not afraid to go over the middle, and Qb friendly WR that finds the soft spots. Can help in the return game too.

Doucet finally got a real oppurtunity and took advantage of it. He’s tall, physical and fast.

None of these guys are guarenteed # 1’s. But they all get the important YAC that our current group gets none of. The only player on our team that makes ppl miss is Rice(and McGahee sometimes).

I think it’s a shame we didn’t get to see more of Marcus Smith this year. He seemed to be having a really good camp up until he was injured, and with the amount of playing time the likes of D Williams and Kelley Washington saw this year, it could’ve been a big year for him. He seemed to be a good prospect with decent size (6ft 1, 215lbs), so hopefully he’ll get his chance next season. I also like the look of benn, but Thomas from Georgia Tech looked like a beast last season when they decided to pass the ball.

Jackson to Leave Joe and the Ravens?

Ravens Quarterbacks Coach Hue Jackson could be coaching former Oakland No. 1 overall pick JaMarcus Russell instead of Baltimore’s Joe Flacco next season.

Oakland Raiders insider Jerry McDonald confirmed that Jackson was in Alameda, Calif., the location of the Raiders’ team headquarters, talking to team officials yesterday.

"The Jackson visit, I’m assured, is a lock," proclaimed McDonald, an NFL writer for the Bay Area News Group.

While the Raiders deny talking to anybody for the head coaching position, the Oakland Tribune established Jackson spent several hours interviewing for a job other than the one still held by Tom Cable. Both NFL.com’s Jason La Canfora and ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that Jackson is a candidate for the offensive coordinator position.

"Jackson wouldn’t be in the building if he’s not a serious candidate to be something," McDonald said. "Since [Raiders executive] John Herrera said earlier today the Raiders have interviewed no head coaching candidates but have fielded calls from assistants, we’ll assume the reports about him being interviewed as a candidate for offensive coordinator are accurate.

"Whether Jackson is under contract or not doesn’t matter much. The Ravens simply deny permission if he’s under contract, or perhaps they’ve already agreed in writing he could leave for a coordinator’s spot. He’s not here unless he’s available to be hired."

You most likely need to get him through the draft, since the new CBA won’t let you add a FA until someone signs a player off your roster (and for that same amount of cash).

Anyway, comparing any QB to Manning or Brees is seriously flawed off the bat. Unless, you honestly think Flacco is as good as them, or as developed as them, having that argument is a poor one to have. Flacco simply is not them, and might never be, considering Peyton is the best QB the NFL has ever seen IMO.

Wayne, Colston, and Moss would be good no matter where they went. Crayton is still bad. Austin is a rare case of unknown hidden talent (see Brady). As far as the Vikings go…I don’t see validity in that argument considering their QBs last year were Tarvaris Jackson (SUCKS!) and Gus Frerrote (SUCKS!). Any QB could have made that situation better. But, they didn’t just get “any” QB, they got a guy who holds many of the all-time passing records and a sure 1st ballot HoFer.

Anyway, all these teams you listed have a great WR. Colts-Wayne, Pats-Moss, Saints-Colston, Vikings-Rice, Cowgirls-Austin. Every year that the Ravens go by without drafting/signing a true #1 WR, I breath a sigh of relief. So please, don’t sign Marshall, Boldin, etc and don’t draft anyone.

You can never point the finger at one player when your team fails so I can’t blame Joe Flacco for the disappointing season. There that should make the Flacco supporters happy. Yes he had good numbers here and there and yes he is young, and yes he shows promise BUT I am not a believer. I want a QB to show leadership. I want to think when we have two minutes left and need a TD that “Yes we will win this game!” Face the facts – Flacco is NOT a leader. A gifted athlete he is. A possible winner some day in the NFL maybe. I am sorry folks but this is the NFL not little league – we need results now, not 3 years from now. You make it or you don’t, you find ways to win or you don’t. I keep hearing that Flacco is still young or that he was injured. Well both may be true but they are excuses. I admit he had 6 dropped passes in the last game and no one can blame Joe for that. Think about that one drive we were able to muster. He threw the ball straight between the numbers of the Colts CB and it was dumb luck that it wasn’t 7 points for the Colts.

The offensive line shows promise. Someone said Ogden used to handle Freeney – the last few times he faced Freeney he was eaten alive. The man is tough to block and Gaither is going to be fine. It still seems Flacco is a sitting duck back there. Maybe he should watch some Fran Tarkenton videos and find out how to scramble. I am not saying bench him, I am just wondering when he is going to take charge. No one said “Ray Lewis is just a second year player, he may be a leader one day.” That man lead from day one and that is what true leaders do. Stop making excuses for Joe.

Ok so the question was will a big name WR help Flacco? OF COURSE it would! Maybe Manning can make great receivers now but I don’t think Joe can. We NEED someone who scares the opposing defense. We NEED someone the other team thinks could break the game open every time he runs a route. Fear is a great motivator and if you must double team a great receiver every play – someone is not going to be able to cover another receiver as well. Clayton shows me nothing. Yeah he has a good game once in a while but he is a third receiver. Someone is not getting open out there and we need someone who can go out and get open fast and hold onto the ball. Act like Mason will retire soon because he will. Clayton, Williams and Washington are not good enough to get a Super Bowl. Get Brandon Marshall and get him now. He does have an attitude but he caught 100 passes and he is big. We need at least one tall receiver. Boldin is injury prone. Some college guys may be good but it is hit or miss. Throw Marshall in there and watch Joe find him. I don’t trust Newsome to find a great receiver. Getting Mason was a great move but name me another memorable receiver the Ravens have ever had aside from Mason. Michael Jackson? lol By the way, how much did we pay LJ Smith to do absolutely nothing this year? Give Joe a few real targets and it can only help! I will support Joe but believe he needs better targets.

I prefer to get one through the draft, but won’t be upset if they prefer a vet.

That said, we simply need one reciever for Flacco to get used to. Mason is a great reciever, but defenses aren’t scared of someone whos well over 30 and close to retiring. In order for him to to progress, we need a deep reciever, one that can make difficult catches on some of Flacco’s poor throws.

Flacco is on track to be a great QB for his era, but these years are quite valuable to his growth, and it could severely impact his potential if he doesn’t have a big play WR to grow with.

I am not going to say get rid of Flacco. He is better than most of the QBs the Ravens have ever had, I hope he develops into an all-time great. I will say that those second year stats everyone loves to point at don’t tell the whole story. It reminds me so much of the Bert Jones situation in the 70’s. Everyone said “Look at all those completions!”, but I kept thinking then, as I do now, that a HUGE chunk of those completions were 1 yard passes to Lydell Mitchell where Mitchell made the extra yards on his own. It is great having a go to halfback who can catch the ball – I love that but many of those great stats of Joe’s can rest firmly on Ray Rice’s shoulders. 58 more receptions for Joe than last year – I know where they went. Still Joe had to get them to him so he gets credit for that. I think I am more upset at the 7 losses and in ANY of those a sharper QB who is a leader could have won them. Stats don’t always show interceptions in the red zone when we needed points desperately. He needs to be a leader. This is the Ravens – show some passion! I don’t want to hear next season “Well he’s only in his third year…” Lead the team Joe!

Wayne, Harrison, Sanders and the golden grill had a little to do with Mannings success.

who wants joe to be a rah rah guy. just don’t get put on your head every 3rd and 4+.

I say we sign Moss and TO and draft Bryant in the first round. Fixed.

We need to work out a deal with Indy to send our receivers to Manning for a year so we can guage if they suck or not and end this Flacco or receiver situation.