TE Dickson Looking For Bigger Role In Offense

Baltimore Ravens tight end Ed Dickson is sometimes the forgotten man in the teams offense. Recently surpassed on the depth chart by his teammate and counterpart Dennis Pitta, Dickson has to be wondering "what about me?"

When drafted by the Ravens in the third round of the 2010 draft Ed Dickson was though to be the heir apparent to tight end Todd Heap for the Baltimore Ravens. Dickson is big, fast and athletic and he was drafted for his big play ability in the passing game. However, the Ravens drafted a tight end in the fourth round of the 2010 draft as well, current starter Dennis Pitta. Pitta has since surpassed Dickson on the depth chart as the number one tight end and become the favorite target of quarterback Joe Flacco.

The Ravens have many stand out players on offense like running back Ray Rice, full back Vonta Leach, Pitta and wide receiver Torrey Smith so it is easy to see why Dickson may have become the forgotten man. In his first season Dickson seemed to have a leg up on Pitta but some unfortunate dropped passes combined with the sure-handed Pitta caused the offensive game plan to turn away from Ed. Now, he is trying to get himself back on track.

"I always feel like I can have a bigger role in the passing game," Dickson said with a grin after Friday’s practice.

"My injury kind of threw me off, and that trickled through the whole season," Dickson said. "It’s definitely a confidence thing. When you get hurt and haven’t been out there for a little while, Joe loses a little confidence because you haven’t been out there."

The Ravens new offensive coordinator Jim Caldwell sees potential in Dickson and will surely find ways to use him in the passing game in 2013 as he and Pitta could combine for a deadly tight end combination.

"Both guys can stretch the field. Both guys can catch the ball and run," Caldwell said. "Obviously, we will utilize them in a number of different ways."

For now Ed is happy that he is able to spend some extra time with his quarterback in the off season so he can become a bigger part of the game plan. However, once the season starts, the only thing that will make him happy is to erase some of the drops that have caused him to fall of the radar so early in his career. The only way to do that is to replace them with memories of catches. The NFL is a "what have you done for me lately" league and Dickson plans on doing a lot this season.

"We’re building right now to become eye to eye," he said. "I’m trying to get that three-way going: me, him and Pitta. I’m trying to be in the circle.