Boller & Cody News...

Although the news that Dan Cody has officially been cut from the Ravens may not surface for a few hours, a little birdy has said that the announcement is only a matter of time.

That same birdy also said that Kyle Boller has a torn labrum and is out for the year, which means that Boller has likely played his last game as a Raven, if not, his last game in the NFL. Apparently he is going to get a second opinion, and he should since this is such a serious injury. But it doesn't look good.

And that depends on how you felt about Kyle.

Me? I liked him. He always played hard and gave his best even though a lot of times it simply wasn't good enough. He never threw teammates or coaches under the bus when he had a legit reason to and he never took credit for any success he may have had. He had a ton of heart and took a beating in Baltimore, both on the field and off.

Boller has basically been the poster boy for what we don't want to do with Joe Flacco.

Now the Ravens appear to be in the hunt for another QB. The birdy said that the Ravens were in talks with the 49ers, which leads me to believe that the Ravens were looking to bring former Terrapin QB Shaun Hill back to Maryland. Hill played well in 4 games last year with the Niners and would be a decent option backing up Smith or Flacco.

Then there is the obvious Miami connection with Cam Cameron, who was the head coach there last year when the Dolphins took John Beck in the second round. Beck looks to be the odd man out in Miami with Henne, Pennington and McCown currently looking like the QB's who will make their roster, so the Ravens may not even have to trade for Beck.

As for Dan Cody, he was a rare early round draft pick disappointment. In 3 years he's played in 2 games and looks like he'll miss more time in '08. The Ravens also traded for former Raven Marques Douglass today, which makes Cody even more expendable.

So there you have it. The Ravens may not be that good this year but they are making some eye-opening moves and things are getting interesting. And as we've seen in the past, things usually are interesting, regardless if the Ravens are winning or losing.

Preseason Game #3

Well, that was interesting.

Minutes before the game started, rookie QB Joe Flacco was named the starter and played the entire game. Turns out Troy Smith has tonsillitis and Kyle Boller has a sore shoulder. Both are not expected to be back at full strength by the opener, so it looks like Flacco could be the starting QB by default after all.

This leaves me to wonder if the Ravens will attempt to sign another QB, one who is healthy, and part ways with Kyle Boller. Healthy, Boller isn't of much use to the team any more.

At any rate, we got to see a lot of Joe Flacco in this game, and after a first half where he struggled to complete passes and maintain drives, he turned in a decent if not solid second half complete with a touchdown. His final line was 18-37, 152 yards, 1 TD and 0 INT with most of the yards coming in the second half.

Derrick Mason proved that he still has a little something left in the tank at age 34, catching 6 passes for 85 yards and the only Ravens TD of the game. It looks like Mason will again be the #1 WR as third-year WR Mark Clayton continues to find his way in Cam Cameron's offense after an impressive rookie season.

As for the running game, fullback Laron McClain had the most carries (8) and yards (41) while rookie Ray Rice only managed 20 yards on 5 carries after an impressive game 2 as the starting RB in Willis McGahee's absence from an injured knee. The Ravens haven't run very much this preseason, which is something Cam Cameron usually accounts for by designing a lot of screen passes.

It's also unknown how much of Cameron's playbook was used during the preseason. By the looks of it, hopefully the Ravens didn't get past page 1. The offense, as always, has looked sluggish and uninspired through 3 preseason games.

The defense looked the same. The Rams moved the ball on the Ravens defense at will, though granted, a handful of regulars including Chris McAllister, Ed Reed and Kelly Gregg were no-shows.

The third preseason game is usually the game that is the most like the regular season as starters play longer and game plans are drawn up and executed. The fourth game doesn't look like it'll offer much of anything except more Flacco as Boller and Smith get healthy.

From the looks of it, this is going to be a long season, but one of development if the Ravens can get Flacco in as the starting QB around the mid-way point.

Until then, it's Troy Smith's show.

I also just did a game-by-game look at the Ravens schedule and my most conservative approach had them going 2-14.

Ouch.

Preseason Game #2

The Ravens lost to the Vikings 26-15 last Saturday night, and while most people say preseason games are useless, I think we came away with a better impression, good or bad, of what this team is going to look like come week 1.

The most impressive thing about the game was rookie RB Ray Rice. He improved from a disappointing game last week and turned in a really solid performance as the starting RB with Willis McGahee out with a knee injury. He ran 8 times for 77 yards and a TD. He also caught 3 passes for 17 yards.

I must admit, after the first preseason game, I was a little worried about Rice not hitting holes hard and breaking tackles. Those doubts have been erased when I saw Rice explode through holes and barrel through defenders. I still wish the Ravens had more at the RB position than just McGahee and Rice, and wouldn't be against them signing a Cedric Benson (as mentioned in an earlier post), but it does at least look like Rice can handle the load in McGahee's absence.

The QB battle hasn't really shaped up to be much of anything, with both Troy Smith and Kyle Boller struggling to find consistency in Cam Cameron's new offense.

On the bright side, Troy Smith did show some flash, eluding a sack and then scrambling for 17 yards on one play. He had 35 rushing yards on the night. Kyle Boller was his usual self, starting off well before spiraling down into terribleness. He completed his first 8 passes before 4 straight incompletions and the INT. Rookie Joe Flacco actually had some time to throw this game and fared the best out of the Ravens QB's. He went 10-15 for 75 yards, and put the team in position to tie the game late in the 4th quarter.

It does look like Smith is the guy at this point, due to his mobility behind an inexperienced (ie, weak) line, but he still needs to work on timing and accuracy. And that may have more to do with the WR's at this point. None of the WR's slated to make the team, outside of KR Yamon Figures, had a catch.

On the other side of the ball, The Defense was pushed around all night. They made Tavaris Jackson look like Fran Tarkenton, especially on Jackson's 23-yard TD pass in the first quarter. Granted, most of the first string wasn't starting, or didn't play for long, but it would have been nice to see even the non-starters on defense stop the weak-passing Vikings.

Overall it was a disappointing night. The Ravens were never really in the game beyond the first quarter and the highly-touted QB "battle" has become more of a ear-flicking contest.

From the looks of it, the 2008 season is going to be a long one.

Guess who's block

The Ravens signed 37-year old fullback Lorenzo Neal yesterday.

You might remember Neal from when he blocked for running backs with the Saints, Jets, Bucs, Titans, Bengals and Chargers.

Neal has blocked for a 1,000 yard rusher each year since 1996. That may speak to the quality of running backs he's blocked for (Corey Dillon, Eddie George, LaDanian Tomlinson, etc.) more than Neal's impact on them, but regardless, Neal has established himself as a premiere FB in the NFL.

At 37, it's unknown if he can still block defensive linemen and linebackers effectively, but I'm willing to bet the veteran still has something left in the tank. Being reunited with Cam Cameron, his former OC from San Diego might energize him too.

Willis McGahee is a top level RB when healthy, and Neal should make him even better, giving him bigger holes to run through, while offering his services to rookie Ray Rice as well.

And while the signing of Lorenzo Neal doesn't exactly make this team a playoff contender, it does bring some stability to an otherwise questionable offense that desperately needed it.

McGahee to have surgery...

RB Willis McGahee is scheduled to have surgery on his left knee today.

In the long-run, this will help McGahee stay healthy as his knee has bothered Willis as far back as last season. He missed the last 2 games of the 2007 because of it.

However, in the short-term, this handcuffs the Ravens at the RB position, as McGahee will probably miss the first few weeks of the season.

Rookie RB Ray Rice has a lot of potential, but based on his performance last Thursday in a preseason game against the Patriots, he has a long way to go to lives up to it. He rushed for only 12 yards on 6 carries.

Now I'm not about to change my opinion on Rice based on one lousy preseason game, but it would be nice if the Ravens' RB options outside of Rice were more than special-team specialists P.J. Daniels and Cory Ross.

Last time I checked, RB's Shaun Alexander, Cedric Benson and Travis Henry were still free agents and all could be had for cheap. They all would offer the Ravens some depth at the RB position to start the season and bring a veteran presence to the Ravens while McGahee gets healthy.

Of the three, I would look to sign Benson, who is still young, and hungry to erase his time in Chicago. A former 4th overall pick in 2005, Benson was a bust with the Bears over the course of 3 years, never topping more than 674 yards in a given season. Benson was so disappointing, that the Bears drafted Tulane RB Matt Forte in the second round and then signed Kevin Jones of the oft-IR ilk to replace Benson.

Despite Benson's troubles living up to his draft pick status, I would still prefer him over Shaun Alexander, who has failed to stay healthy in the last 2 seasons and is clearly on his way out of the league -- and Travis Henry, whose off the field problems caused him to get cut by each of the Bills, Titans and Broncos.

The other option is sticking with Rice, who's been impressive in training camp, but will have to play well against the Vikings come Saturday to ease my doubts about the Ravens current running game situation.

Here's to hoping Rice will perform, and become the answer while McGahee gets healthy.

The more things change...

On the surface, the new-era John Harbaugh-led Ravens didn't look much different than the old-era Brian Billck-led Ravens.

Only 204 yards of total offense. A game where the defense dominated the game. Conservative play-calling...

But upon closer look, the Ravens cracked down on false start penalties, and penalties overall, and appeared to be a fresher, more disciplined team.

The Good

1. The Defense looked strong all night, even when it was chock-full of third and fourth string players. They recorded 5 sacks, 3 interceptions and pressured the New England QB's all night.

2. Newly acquired CB Fabian Washington recorded 2 INT's.

3. The Special Teams gave the offense good field position all night, as Yamon Figurs had 100 total return yards.

4. The Offensive Line played surprisingly well, only allowing 3 sacks, and 2 of them came late during garbage time. The pocket collapsed a few times and Smith was able to elude the sack, but overall, this young and inexperienced bunch played decently.

The Bad

1. The QB Position - No one set themselves apart from anyone else. Kyle Boller perhaps had the best night, statistically speaking, completing 11 passes out of 15 attempts for 102 yards. However, he had a fumble and a very ugly INT. Troy Smith looked the best out of all 3, with a more compact throwing motion and putting passes where they needed to be, but some were not caught by the WR's. Smith was only 5-12 for 74 yards but looks like he knows what he's doing. Joe Flacco entered the game too late to do much of anything, and fared pretty badly, getting sacked twice, fumbling and not completing a pass. There's always next time.

2. The Running Game looked tedious all night. Ray Rice led the team with 12 yards on 6 carries as Baltimore only had 35 rushing yards for the entire night.

3. The Wide Receivers had several chances to make big plays but didn't go for the ball or keep feet in bounds. A long Boller-to-Figurs pass was a tad underthrown, but Figurs didn't make a solid attempt to catch the ball, which was batted down by the defender. A long Smith-to -McCarens pass would have put the Ravens close to the goal line, but McCarens didn't keep both feet in bounds.

The Ravens won 16-15. They take on the Minnesota Vikings in preseason game #2 at home on August 16th, 7:30 p.m.

What to look for tonight...

We all know that the NFL preseason is a necessary evil. It lasts as long as one quarter of the regular season and the ticket prices are the same as regular season games. Players are vulnerable to injury and that doesn't even factor in the meaninglessness of it all.

Like Allen Iverson once said, "We talkin' about practice. Practice."

However, one good thing the preseason does is give fans an excuse to watch football. And as the Ravens take on the Patriots tonight, there are a ton of things to watch for as the starters filter out of the game and we are soon left watching players who will likely be bagging groceries in a month.

The 2008 Ravens are surrounded by question marks, from the rookie head coach, down to the largely untested offensive line. And tonight we get our first chance to see a cloudy situation get a little clear -- or even more cloudy.

1. Offensive Line - when Jonathan Ogden retired, an already weak and inexperienced OL took an immediate hit. Without Ogden leading them into battle, the Ravens' 5 starting offensive linemen have only 7 years of experience between them. However, what this group lacks in experience, they make up for it with potential, with all but Gaither being drafted in the first 4 rounds. Even back-up C Chris Chester was drafted in the second round.

Tonight they will be without LT Jared Gaither and RT Adam Terry, both expected to miss another week, so we will be able to get a good look at Chad Slaughter, who the Ravens recently signed. Slaughter was out of football for all of last year but played with Oakland in the past. Filling in for Terry will be Mike Kracalik, who went undrafted in 2005 before being signed by the Jets. Rounding out the OL will be LG Ben Grubbs, C Jason Brown, and RG Marshal Yanda.

2. Quarterback - with elder statesman Kyle Boller starting, you'd think that the offense would benefit from being led by a veteran, but that probably won't be the case. Not behind this patchwork OL. And let's not forget, Boller has his own problems. However, we could see some flashes of what Cam Cameron can do with an offense led by Boller, and the deep pass is hopefully something that Cameron has added to the playbook. Boller has a huge arm, but Billick never took advantage of it during his time here.

Troy Smith is likely to come in at the end of the first half, and like Boller, he's not going to light up the scoreboard behind this OL, which will probably be made up of second and third stringers by the time Smith gets in the game. Smith can scramble and has that X-factor that Boller sorely lacks, so it may be fun to see Smith running (for his life) and making plays on his own. Remember, Cameron has been designing plays to take advantage of Smith's mobility during the offseason, since Smith is expected to be the starting QB come September 7th, but it's unlikely we see much of that tonight.

By the time Joe Flacco comes into the game, it's likely to be more of a glorified sandlot game than the NFL. But that will be the perfect spot for Flacco to get his feet wet. The Ravens' future hangs on Flacco, so taking time with his development is crucial. And after watching Colt Brennan play extremely well for the Redskins in the Hall of Fame game, it could be equally as exciting to watch Flacco play tonight in garbage time.

3. Defensive Line - after losing Adalius Thomas to the Patriots and Trevor Pryce to injury, the Ravens pass-rushing ability seemed to disappear in 2007. Pryce is back, but no one has filled in for Thomas. Yet. Hopefully the Ravens will be able to pressure the QB in '08 and doing so tonight would ease a lot of fans' minds. Plus knocking Tom Brady down and then watching him yell at his offensive linemen is always fun to watch, preseason or not.

4. Running Back - Willis McGahee will not play tonight due to a bothersome left knee, so it is Ray Rice time, baby! Rice has excited thus far in training camp, and we are sure to see a lot of the former Rutgers star in action tonight along with returning back-up RB's Cory Ross and PJ Daniels.

5. Secondary - Largely due to the non-existent pass rush, the secondary suffered in 2007. Samari Rolle battled epilepsy the entire season, which left fill-in Corey Ivy exposed. So the Ravens traded for former Raider Fabian Washington during the draft, and we should get a look at him tonight. Washington is likely to work wonders for our secondary depth. In the meantime, hopefully Rolle can come back strong to bat down passes along with Chris McAllister.

At safety, Ed Reed needs to check his ego at the door and get back to his dominant self, and hopefully a change in coaching style will help. Dawan Landry was also a disappointment last season, and the Ravens responded by drafting former Golden Domer Tom Zbikowski in the third round to sure up the position. He's sure to get a lot of looks tonight.

So there, you have it. Five huge things to watch for tonight as you fall asleep on your couch with the game on. And that doesn't even factor in the special teams, which will benefit from Yamon Figurs coming back from injury and the overall feel of the team under rookie head coach John Harbaugh. Will there be the usual dozen false start penalties under Harbaugh?

Let's hope not.

Just another thing to watch for.

Fear of the Unknown

Since we've basically got 2 QB's in Troy Smith and Joe Flacco that we know very little about, I figured I'd post some videos of Smith and Flacco in action.

Smith

Flacco
Unfortunately, we know all to well what Kyle Boller can and can't do.

Mostly what he can't do.

Enjoy!

Boller named starting QB. Kind of...

The Ravens' first preseason game just got a little more interesting. Kyle Boller has been announced as the starting QB.

Boller and second-year QB Troy Smith have battled it out thus far in camp, and reports are that neither have exactly established a firm grasp on the starting job. Meanwhile, first-round draft pick Joe Flacco has demonstrated poise and polish that have put Boller and Smith to shame.

However, chances are the Ravens won't repeat the same mistake twice, and name Flacco the starting QB when the regular season begins. They did the same thing with Kyle Boller in his rookie season and some may say that Boller never recovered from the shock of being thrown to the proverbial wolves.

Troy Smith, who is a former Heisman Award winner when he played at Ohio State, is the hands-on favorite to win the starting job, only because Boller has played himself out of the starting job and Flacco will likely carry a clipboard during most of, if not all of, his rookie year.

Smith played well in limited time last year, and looked night and day better than Boller, despite not exactly lighting up the scoreboard. However, his poise in the pocket and smooth delivery when throwing the ball impressed the organization. He can also move very well out of the pocket and word is offensive coordinator Cam Cameron has been designing plays this offseason to take advantage of Smith's mobility.

Boller being named the starting QB of the first preseason game is probably more of a strategy than anything else. Rather than toss a relatively inexperienced Smith out there against the Patriots first team defense, Boller will be asked to jump on a live grenade. Plus, he played one of his best career games last year versus the Patriots. So at least there's that.

In 2008, Boller will likely be taking his farewell tour, and I am sure that stadiums across America will be packed to see the living legend one last time as a Raven. Unless Boller grows a huge birthmark on the side of his face and starts playing like Drew Brees, Cameron's former success story, Boller will be playing football in either a different uniform, or a different country, in 2009. It's likely that as the preseason progresses, Troy Smith will be given more and more snaps with the first team. Hell, maybe even Flacco will get a start too.

But starting Boller in the first preseason game means little other than using him as a human shield for Smith and Flacco.

Good luck Kyle. I'll always be rooting for you while wearing this shirt (it's made for men too).