JoeyFlex5
Hall of Famer
the Ravens have made huge strides in the secondary in 2 years. With the additions of Eric Weddle, Tavon young, Tony Jefferson, brandon Carr, and marlon Humphrey, we should absolutely boast the leagues best secondary.
Eric Weddle had an all pro caliber season, he didn't lose a step, he continues to be a master of all trades, he is as heady as they come and it shows on the field. Eric Weddle lines up anywhere and brings results. As seen in 2016, he still has a bit of ballhawk in him, he knows what is coming and positions himself as well as any safety in the league. He knows when to line up deep, when to watch the seam, when to stick to his cover 2 or cover 3 roles, and he assures the rest of the secondary is aware of what's coming. He brings an added element of not only playing the classic deep safety role but also being elite in the 15 yard range, which is where he really makes his money. Being a safety net against the run and guarding The sticks from sideline to sideline to prevent plays from breaking loose and keeping everything in front of him. He is smart and versatile and a natural leader.
Tony Jefferson is of the same mold, boasting less range but far more ferocity in every aspect. He is a hammer against the run, he is a hammer against timing routes, he also positions himself well to make big impact plays, jarring the ball loose often and preventing receptions and having a knack for forcing fumbles. He is an enforcer, he can line up as the moneybacker and handle the run with ease, he can cover deep and lay big hits, and is very strong the intermediate coverage range. What makes Jefferson special though, is his ability to man cover the tight end, when facing an elite tight end he can be schemed to man cover him all day and eliminate him, that is huge. He and Weddle are a great complementary tandem.
Jimmy smith, if he never suffered an injury, he'd be a perennial all pro at this point and we may have another super bowl in 2014. He blanks the most elite receivers in the game on a regular basis. Man, zone, or press, jimmy doesn't get targeted, because NFL qbs want no parts of that.
Tavon young is on the verge of becoming a household name. The shiftiest and most explosive slot corner we have seen in a while, his small stature is a non-issue most of the time, he doesn't get outjumped, he doesn't get outbodied, he mirrors his man, tracks the ball, and explodes to make the play. This kid is special and will be eliminating hot reads to the slot receiver for years to come.
Brandon Carr is nothing special, but he's a reliable, sturdy, healthy veteran. He isn't our typical 5'9" #2 corner who gets torched up
And down the field while the rest of the secondary looks at him like "wtf m8?". In our scheme, in which we put tons of responsibility on jimmy and then make every dbs job as easy as possible, brandon Carr should flourish. He will get help from an elite safety tandem and slot corner, he will face lesser competition than in years past as he draws the easier jobs. He is a big physical guy who can bump and run and is very technically sound. Age has caught up in recent years as he has gotten exposed over the top a few times, albeit against the best of the best like dez and odb, but for what we need from him, he will be the day one starter and serve us well. We needed a serviceable #2 for years and we finally have one.
Marlon Humphrey is a system fit, and that is why I'm excited and confident. I mentioned the scheme earlier in which we isolate jimmy and assign cover 2 and cover 3 roles elsewhere, the emphasis tends to be on the side opposite of jimmy, humphrey will have the ability to attack upfield. No more getting shredded by the dink and dunk, Humphrey will crush west coast offenses by simply playing sound up front, keep the play in front of you and come downhill and limit any gains, he does this as well as a jalen Ramsey, he needs to fix the footwork, my god is that concerning, but I'm confident he can. With safety help and the confidence that his inside is covered, hopefully he's able to play free and loose and make receivers wanna take a seat.
Lardarius Webb is about as good a depth piece as you can find. How lucky are we to have a guy that can play: FS, SS, slot, and #2 boundary corner at a starting level, who is more familiar with our secondary scheme than anyone in the league, and has been a locker room favorite for a very long time... the playoffs are often a war of attrition, as we saw in 2014, and having Webb gives us a massive upper hand, I cannot overstate just how big it is to have a depth guy like Webb, bringing him back for cheap may have been the single smartest move of the offseason.
Now for the big picture. These guys fit the situation and complement each other. This is a group that should have no chemistry issues. We never needed much from a number 2, just don't be a steaming pile of shit(heh pun). Our cover 2 and cover 3 based defense suits these guys, jimmy and Weddle are both studs in this scheme, give them a diverse range to cover and they will make the judgement call and cover wisely, those guys really set the tone with their presence in this defense. Jimmy makes you unable to throw to the X receiver, forcing you to look away from what is typically the easiest target to hit. Weddle is a looming threat everywhere he is, qbs have to have an eye on him at all times, and unlike a shutdown corner, Weddle brings this threat all over the field, the qb must constantly avoid these 2 at all costs, which forces throws in undesirable areas, areas where you have multiple defenders in their zones cluttering their side of the field, tight windows, long armed DLs to force some air under the ball, and rushed throws hopefully from a good pass rush. An elite Tampa 2 linebacker in Mosley ties this thing together with excellent instincts in zone coverage, X factors like a shutdown slot guy to blank the quick release target, a safety capable of man covering TEs, and an elite screen buster on the strong side of the field, and things begin to look absolutely overwhelming for any pass offense.
Where do you go against this secondary? How do you attack such a fitting group of guys? I'll tell ya how... hope jimmy gets injured and that brandon Carr ages faster. Otherwise you aren't passing here. The Baltimore no fly zone! The murder of crows, fly among them and get rekt!
Eric Weddle had an all pro caliber season, he didn't lose a step, he continues to be a master of all trades, he is as heady as they come and it shows on the field. Eric Weddle lines up anywhere and brings results. As seen in 2016, he still has a bit of ballhawk in him, he knows what is coming and positions himself as well as any safety in the league. He knows when to line up deep, when to watch the seam, when to stick to his cover 2 or cover 3 roles, and he assures the rest of the secondary is aware of what's coming. He brings an added element of not only playing the classic deep safety role but also being elite in the 15 yard range, which is where he really makes his money. Being a safety net against the run and guarding The sticks from sideline to sideline to prevent plays from breaking loose and keeping everything in front of him. He is smart and versatile and a natural leader.
Tony Jefferson is of the same mold, boasting less range but far more ferocity in every aspect. He is a hammer against the run, he is a hammer against timing routes, he also positions himself well to make big impact plays, jarring the ball loose often and preventing receptions and having a knack for forcing fumbles. He is an enforcer, he can line up as the moneybacker and handle the run with ease, he can cover deep and lay big hits, and is very strong the intermediate coverage range. What makes Jefferson special though, is his ability to man cover the tight end, when facing an elite tight end he can be schemed to man cover him all day and eliminate him, that is huge. He and Weddle are a great complementary tandem.
Jimmy smith, if he never suffered an injury, he'd be a perennial all pro at this point and we may have another super bowl in 2014. He blanks the most elite receivers in the game on a regular basis. Man, zone, or press, jimmy doesn't get targeted, because NFL qbs want no parts of that.
Tavon young is on the verge of becoming a household name. The shiftiest and most explosive slot corner we have seen in a while, his small stature is a non-issue most of the time, he doesn't get outjumped, he doesn't get outbodied, he mirrors his man, tracks the ball, and explodes to make the play. This kid is special and will be eliminating hot reads to the slot receiver for years to come.
Brandon Carr is nothing special, but he's a reliable, sturdy, healthy veteran. He isn't our typical 5'9" #2 corner who gets torched up
And down the field while the rest of the secondary looks at him like "wtf m8?". In our scheme, in which we put tons of responsibility on jimmy and then make every dbs job as easy as possible, brandon Carr should flourish. He will get help from an elite safety tandem and slot corner, he will face lesser competition than in years past as he draws the easier jobs. He is a big physical guy who can bump and run and is very technically sound. Age has caught up in recent years as he has gotten exposed over the top a few times, albeit against the best of the best like dez and odb, but for what we need from him, he will be the day one starter and serve us well. We needed a serviceable #2 for years and we finally have one.
Marlon Humphrey is a system fit, and that is why I'm excited and confident. I mentioned the scheme earlier in which we isolate jimmy and assign cover 2 and cover 3 roles elsewhere, the emphasis tends to be on the side opposite of jimmy, humphrey will have the ability to attack upfield. No more getting shredded by the dink and dunk, Humphrey will crush west coast offenses by simply playing sound up front, keep the play in front of you and come downhill and limit any gains, he does this as well as a jalen Ramsey, he needs to fix the footwork, my god is that concerning, but I'm confident he can. With safety help and the confidence that his inside is covered, hopefully he's able to play free and loose and make receivers wanna take a seat.
Lardarius Webb is about as good a depth piece as you can find. How lucky are we to have a guy that can play: FS, SS, slot, and #2 boundary corner at a starting level, who is more familiar with our secondary scheme than anyone in the league, and has been a locker room favorite for a very long time... the playoffs are often a war of attrition, as we saw in 2014, and having Webb gives us a massive upper hand, I cannot overstate just how big it is to have a depth guy like Webb, bringing him back for cheap may have been the single smartest move of the offseason.
Now for the big picture. These guys fit the situation and complement each other. This is a group that should have no chemistry issues. We never needed much from a number 2, just don't be a steaming pile of shit(heh pun). Our cover 2 and cover 3 based defense suits these guys, jimmy and Weddle are both studs in this scheme, give them a diverse range to cover and they will make the judgement call and cover wisely, those guys really set the tone with their presence in this defense. Jimmy makes you unable to throw to the X receiver, forcing you to look away from what is typically the easiest target to hit. Weddle is a looming threat everywhere he is, qbs have to have an eye on him at all times, and unlike a shutdown corner, Weddle brings this threat all over the field, the qb must constantly avoid these 2 at all costs, which forces throws in undesirable areas, areas where you have multiple defenders in their zones cluttering their side of the field, tight windows, long armed DLs to force some air under the ball, and rushed throws hopefully from a good pass rush. An elite Tampa 2 linebacker in Mosley ties this thing together with excellent instincts in zone coverage, X factors like a shutdown slot guy to blank the quick release target, a safety capable of man covering TEs, and an elite screen buster on the strong side of the field, and things begin to look absolutely overwhelming for any pass offense.
Where do you go against this secondary? How do you attack such a fitting group of guys? I'll tell ya how... hope jimmy gets injured and that brandon Carr ages faster. Otherwise you aren't passing here. The Baltimore no fly zone! The murder of crows, fly among them and get rekt!
