So guys what are your thoughts about the Raven's games?

I didn't watch the game, but listened to it on radio

Here is a couple from me

1. The Online isn't in sync yet - it needs continuity and to be set. Beatty may not be ready yet, Whimper is a better backup but can be solid. Seubert is the best LG at the moment, although Shawn Andrews has shown ability whilst he learns the playbook. A healthy O'Hara is a huge deal.

2. Eli was rusty, he needs a little more work with his receivers to get the timing back on track and as sharp as we are used to.

3. The running game showed flashes, but must improve.

4. We must try and get the RBs and TEs more involved in the passing game.

5. We were out muscled up front. Canty is a key factor to our Dline. Rocky Bernard still has gas in the tank, he may have saved his roster spot this week.

6. We have seen that we can get very good pressure on the QB, this is very promising heading into the season. We haven't had to blitz a ton to get it. We have also had interceptions in every game. This bodes very well for Fewell's schemes and is a huge change from last year. There is certainly room to improve and the defense isn't firing on all cylinders yet, but the potential looks very promising.

7. The biggest area of concern is at CB, we have three quality starters but after that there is a big drop off in talent. Considering we use a lot of 3 CB sets this may be a problem. Hopefully Ross is back sooner rather than later. Jerry Reese will be watching the waiver wire to see what CBs shake loose.

8. Matt Dodge has a huge kick. Once he gets some consistency he will be a genuine weapon. Our kick coverage units do need to step up.

9. We still don't have our KR, it looks like Ross is our best option at PR. It increasingly looks like we may bring in someone for this from other teams cuts.

We aren't game planning yet, so are pretty much using our basic packages, I hope there are a few effective wrinkles we can throw in.

Having said that, we have a few guys on the sidelines, but most of the injuries are not serious and they should be back.

That's a pretty fair assesment Pete.
I'm going to watch the game again before I say too much though.

Matt Dodge did look better. He can boot the ball far but didn't get a lot of hang time. Still, he improved tremendously this game. I can live with this type of punting in the real season.

Tynes is now kicking off into the endzone which is unusual for him.

Shawn Andrews looked much better than the other guards at first glance. He seemed to have a quick first punch and willing to hit someone.

We suck after Bradshaw and Jacobs. Any other runningback behind them is just average so far. I'd still stick with Gartrell Johnson's style over Ware or Brown, if only he could get a chance with the one's to prove it.

The offensive line was disgusting. I'll be happy going into the season with the same original five from last year. Let's hope they're healthy!

Cruz still looks good at his wr skills. He needs to prove his worth at specials though.

Tuck was a stud.
Not sure if Osi even played.
Kiwi got in on a couple.

Bomar did fine but needs real protection other than a half-assed line blocking for him. Same with Eli for that matter.

Webster was a blanket. Had a real nice game.
Rolle had two really bad plays against him but looked decent otherwise.
Grant still looked decent as did Phillips.

Bruce Johnson, Courtney Brown, and some other dude with bad dreads should still be playing pop warner. Ok, maybe not that bad but almost.

Tim Brown may be quick, but not that good at kick returns.
Andre Brown is even worse.
We seriously need to find somebody here.

And lastly. Linebackers. uh oh
Last week I thought we stood a chance, this week they were lost.
Goff can't keep up with the passing game.
Sintim, not sure whether to call him a linebacker now or a defensive end. Nor do the coaches.
Bulluck would probably be happy just to know what position he is suppose to play.
Boley has been sniffing around the football at least.

Wilkinson continues to show his athleticism. Maybe our best cover linebacker.

Adrian Tracy unfortunately got hurt. He impressed up until then.

interesting comments on the LBs

Wilkinson is probably our best cover LB along with Boley.

Interesting about Goff, but part of that may be due to pressure up front. He is the best of the bunch inside.

I have been thinking of Sintim as a rush DE for a while now. I had been hopeful, but it looks like he still has a ways to go. I would even rather Osi at SLB than Sintim (playing a similar style to how the Cowboys use Ware and Spencer).

It is a pity Tracy got hurt, looks like he will start on PUP or IR.

I wonder if we look at a LB if someone like Derrick Johnson shakes loose with the roster cuts?

I think Andrews will be our starter at LG, just a matter of how long he takes to learn the playbook.

Not sure if I would experiment with Osi playing strongside, but I might be inclined to see Kiwi give it another shot.
Imo, Kiwi has more athleticism to play that position than Osi does.

TD wrote:Not sure if I would experiment with Osi playing strongside, but I might be inclined to see Kiwi give it another shot.
Imo, Kiwi has more athleticism to play that position than Osi does.

I think Osi has more athleticism and speed. I also think Kiwanuka is stronger holding up inside. With that said Kiwanuka can also play SLB, but I do think Osi is potentially better.

Besides with our strong side playing on the Right side, it would be both Kiwi and Osi on the same side.

I just happen to think that Osi playing outside Kiwi is better than vice versa, although both are much more threatening than using Sintim.

Big_Pete wrote:

TD wrote:Not sure if I would experiment with Osi playing strongside, but I might be inclined to see Kiwi give it another shot.
Imo, Kiwi has more athleticism to play that position than Osi does.

I think Osi has more athleticism and speed. I also think Kiwanuka is stronger holding up inside. With that said Kiwanuka can also play SLB, but I do think Osi is potentially better.

Besides with our strong side playing on the Right side, it would be both Kiwi and Osi on the same side.

I just happen to think that Osi playing outside Kiwi is better than vice versa, although both are much more threatening than using Sintim.

Guess we'll just have to agree to disagree on this one.
Imo Osi has more straight line speed than the start, stop, & cutting type of stuff that I'd like to see out of a linebacker. maybe I'm off on this one though.

Either way, we shouldn't have to rely on converting defensive ends just to fill a void with our backers.

TD wrote:
Either way, we shouldn't have to rely on converting defensive ends just to fill a void with our backers.

I totally agree with you here, hopefully Bulluck can get the job done. I really thought Sintim would have shown more by now. (although I have to admit I wasn't thrilled when we drafted him, much like Moss)

Our scouting departing has had trouble finding LBs for a while now and we have continued to ignore it in the first round. This converting DE thing has to stop. LB is by far our weakest position on our team... we are talking about the New York Giants here. We have a history of good LBs. It's almost embarrassing.

Bulluck in the middle and Sintim on the SS seems to be our best fit at this point. They need to let these guys get used to the position and playing with each other. All this moving around is just slowing the development as a group. Keep the DE's on the Dline if they want to see them drop back do zone blitzes. We could be one of the better zone blitzing teams in the league with the athleticism we have at De.

We are to worried about mixing it up and confusing the other team, we are just confusing ourselves and not letting these guys build continuity.

Pizan wrote:Our scouting departing has had trouble finding LBs for a while now and we have continued to ignore it in the first round. This converting DE thing has to stop. LB is by far our weakest position on our team... we are talking about the New York Giants here. We have a history of good LBs. It's almost embarrassing.

Bulluck in the middle and Sintim on the SS seems to be our best fit at this point. They need to let these guys get used to the position and playing with each other. All this moving around is just slowing the development as a group. Keep the DE's on the Dline if they want to see them drop back do zone blitzes. We could be one of the better zone blitzing teams in the league with the athleticism we have at De.

We are to worried about mixing it up and confusing the other team, we are just confusing ourselves and not letting these guys build continuity.

Great points, we do need to find LBs with good coverage skills.

One guy I think would be a great fit is OLB Akeem Ayers, UCLA (6-4, 250, 4.68). He is big, fast and excels in coverage.

Pizan wrote:
We are to worried about mixing it up and confusing the other team, we are just confusing ourselves and not letting these guys build continuity.

Completely agree.