ravensromp
Practice Squad
There will be no Ravens success without Lamar Jackson success. Their priority mission must be to help Lamar Jackson succeed. That’s Job 1, Job 2, and Job 3. Yes, we’ve had defensive losses, important ones. Even with Sizz & Z Smith, our pass rush last year blew hot & cold. We also lost our top linebacker, a defensive team leader. But this team’s future is tied to LJ’s future. If we’re going to operate a contrarian, run heavy offense, we’ve got to be all in. No half measures. We need to continue the offensive makeover begun last year.
I still don’t know what we have in Jackson. He made plays where I remember saying ‘Wow. This guy really is a quarterback.” Those plays were followed by plays with unforced ball handling errors or off-target passes thrown with funky mechanics. Harbaugh & Roman tell us they’ve broken down and rebuilt the offense around Lamar’s unique abilities. But we don’t really know what an LJ O looks like or the profile of the players who best fit it.
Dallas a few years ago, and the Colts last year, demonstrated the dramatic change that a dominating offensive line can quickly make. They didn’t do it with smoke, mirrors, or prayer. They used multiple high draft picks to accomplish it. Stanley, Brown, and Yanda provide a solid foundation. Left guard & center are lacking. Alex Lewis has convinced me he’s unable to stay healthy and is just another guy when he does play. And, while I give Skura & Hurst their props for making an NFL team after not being drafted and showing they have some NFL-level skills, they’re merely adequate performers (and if they make the team as backups, fine).
We need better. It’s not only that we have a QB young in years and short on experience. We’re running upstream in a passing downstream league. An adequate offensive line is not good enough. We need a dominating, bad-ass, one. That’s what gives LJ the best chance for success. Quality starter upgrades at both left guard and center are essential from this draft.
Ford, Bradbury, McCoy, Risner, Lindstrom, and Jenkins can all help us there. All draft season I’ve been on Ford, because of his size, power, and physical playing style. Plug & play, and get out of the way! Bradbury’s been getting much of the center love. He’s the opposite, a technician and elite mover, who can routinely make reach blocks others can only dream of. Risner’s an underrated “plays like a Raven” favorite, another big, powerful guy (which is why I like him ahead of Bradbury or McCoy, even if he doesn’t move as well), who plays tough and nasty. That’s what I envision our offensive line to be. I want defenses to take a battering when they play us! If our scheme is more oriented to zone concepts, than Bradbury or McCoy are fine fits. We need to get one of this top group. In the 3/4, Dieter, Jordan, Evans, Davis, or McGovern, are available to compliment the earlier pick and complete the job.
Our perpetual search for a top starting wide receiver continues. Other than Snead in the slot, our WR depth chart is . . . I’ll be polite . . . short on productive contributors. The draftable receivers are varied and many, each with identifiable strengths and just as identifiable warts. It’s easy to find ones you like, hard to know with confidence who can be a difference maker for us, especially with the offense we propose to run. Joe Hortiz’s comment, admittedly made at the “Liar’s Luncheon’, of liking guys who “can contribute when they don’t have the ball” rings honest and implies a preference for the big, physical, types who can make the contested catches they’re likely to get, and are just as happy and able to block. So, Hollywood, AJ, or DK (all intriguing players for sure when looked at in a vacuum) seem unlikely fits here. Harry, Hakeem, Harmon, Arcega-Whiteside, and Boykin are some of the names that fit that profile best. And let’s get another receiver, with speed, who’s a weapon any time the ball is in their hands.
Two interior offensive lineman & two receivers among our top picks. We’ll just have to see how the board shakes out for getting pass rush help and ILB depth. It’s time for the young defensive players we’ve recently drafted there to step up.
The ‘Big Uglies’ Draft:
22 Dalton Risner, C (on the expectation that Ford and Bradbury are gone; alternate pick, McCoy)
85 Riley Ridley, WR (good all around pro skill set, wish he was faster) (Myles Boykin, off the chart measurables, wish he had more production)
102 Michael Dieter, G (typical well-schooled Wisconsin lineman who can play all the line positions) (Michael Jordan, Bobby Evans, Nate Davis, Connor McGovern)
113 Mecole Hardman, WR/KR (Speed kills! Big-play guy with the ball in his hands) (Emanuel Hall, Terry McLaurin, Gary Jennings)
123 Maxx Crosby, Edge (productive, athletic pass rusher, needs to get stronger) (Justin Hollins, same MO)
160 Sione Takitaki, LB (stout, physical, aggressive inside backer to compliment the skills of Young & Onwuasor) (Josiah Tauaefa, TJ Edwards)
191 Armon Watts, DL (late blooming ascending DL rotation man with interior pass rush skills)
193 Ashton Dulin, WR/KR (speedy, good-sized, developmental receiver & returner) (Ryquell Armstead, RB, inside bruiser with good speed to add to the RB mix)
There’s a Grand Canyon between 22 & 85. A trade down, getting a 2d round pick, works beautifully for us. A trade with the Pats, for example, 22 & 102 for 32 & 64, still allows us to take one of the top IOLmen, and have a better pool of receiver choices, from among Arcega-Whiteside (contested catch wiz), or Kelvin Harmon, Hakeem Butler, Deebo Samuel. And the rest along the same lines as before.
Ugly, I know. But this should give us a powerhouse offensive line to build our offense on, additional receiving options, and some defensive prospects to make up for our losses.
I still don’t know what we have in Jackson. He made plays where I remember saying ‘Wow. This guy really is a quarterback.” Those plays were followed by plays with unforced ball handling errors or off-target passes thrown with funky mechanics. Harbaugh & Roman tell us they’ve broken down and rebuilt the offense around Lamar’s unique abilities. But we don’t really know what an LJ O looks like or the profile of the players who best fit it.
Dallas a few years ago, and the Colts last year, demonstrated the dramatic change that a dominating offensive line can quickly make. They didn’t do it with smoke, mirrors, or prayer. They used multiple high draft picks to accomplish it. Stanley, Brown, and Yanda provide a solid foundation. Left guard & center are lacking. Alex Lewis has convinced me he’s unable to stay healthy and is just another guy when he does play. And, while I give Skura & Hurst their props for making an NFL team after not being drafted and showing they have some NFL-level skills, they’re merely adequate performers (and if they make the team as backups, fine).
We need better. It’s not only that we have a QB young in years and short on experience. We’re running upstream in a passing downstream league. An adequate offensive line is not good enough. We need a dominating, bad-ass, one. That’s what gives LJ the best chance for success. Quality starter upgrades at both left guard and center are essential from this draft.
Ford, Bradbury, McCoy, Risner, Lindstrom, and Jenkins can all help us there. All draft season I’ve been on Ford, because of his size, power, and physical playing style. Plug & play, and get out of the way! Bradbury’s been getting much of the center love. He’s the opposite, a technician and elite mover, who can routinely make reach blocks others can only dream of. Risner’s an underrated “plays like a Raven” favorite, another big, powerful guy (which is why I like him ahead of Bradbury or McCoy, even if he doesn’t move as well), who plays tough and nasty. That’s what I envision our offensive line to be. I want defenses to take a battering when they play us! If our scheme is more oriented to zone concepts, than Bradbury or McCoy are fine fits. We need to get one of this top group. In the 3/4, Dieter, Jordan, Evans, Davis, or McGovern, are available to compliment the earlier pick and complete the job.
Our perpetual search for a top starting wide receiver continues. Other than Snead in the slot, our WR depth chart is . . . I’ll be polite . . . short on productive contributors. The draftable receivers are varied and many, each with identifiable strengths and just as identifiable warts. It’s easy to find ones you like, hard to know with confidence who can be a difference maker for us, especially with the offense we propose to run. Joe Hortiz’s comment, admittedly made at the “Liar’s Luncheon’, of liking guys who “can contribute when they don’t have the ball” rings honest and implies a preference for the big, physical, types who can make the contested catches they’re likely to get, and are just as happy and able to block. So, Hollywood, AJ, or DK (all intriguing players for sure when looked at in a vacuum) seem unlikely fits here. Harry, Hakeem, Harmon, Arcega-Whiteside, and Boykin are some of the names that fit that profile best. And let’s get another receiver, with speed, who’s a weapon any time the ball is in their hands.
Two interior offensive lineman & two receivers among our top picks. We’ll just have to see how the board shakes out for getting pass rush help and ILB depth. It’s time for the young defensive players we’ve recently drafted there to step up.
The ‘Big Uglies’ Draft:
22 Dalton Risner, C (on the expectation that Ford and Bradbury are gone; alternate pick, McCoy)
85 Riley Ridley, WR (good all around pro skill set, wish he was faster) (Myles Boykin, off the chart measurables, wish he had more production)
102 Michael Dieter, G (typical well-schooled Wisconsin lineman who can play all the line positions) (Michael Jordan, Bobby Evans, Nate Davis, Connor McGovern)
113 Mecole Hardman, WR/KR (Speed kills! Big-play guy with the ball in his hands) (Emanuel Hall, Terry McLaurin, Gary Jennings)
123 Maxx Crosby, Edge (productive, athletic pass rusher, needs to get stronger) (Justin Hollins, same MO)
160 Sione Takitaki, LB (stout, physical, aggressive inside backer to compliment the skills of Young & Onwuasor) (Josiah Tauaefa, TJ Edwards)
191 Armon Watts, DL (late blooming ascending DL rotation man with interior pass rush skills)
193 Ashton Dulin, WR/KR (speedy, good-sized, developmental receiver & returner) (Ryquell Armstead, RB, inside bruiser with good speed to add to the RB mix)
There’s a Grand Canyon between 22 & 85. A trade down, getting a 2d round pick, works beautifully for us. A trade with the Pats, for example, 22 & 102 for 32 & 64, still allows us to take one of the top IOLmen, and have a better pool of receiver choices, from among Arcega-Whiteside (contested catch wiz), or Kelvin Harmon, Hakeem Butler, Deebo Samuel. And the rest along the same lines as before.
Ugly, I know. But this should give us a powerhouse offensive line to build our offense on, additional receiving options, and some defensive prospects to make up for our losses.