Ravens Ready To Face Rex

Normally preseason games do not drum up huge storylines, but this one sure does. The Ravens are taking on the New York Jets in their second preseason game tonight, which means for the first time, they will take on Rex Ryan on the opposite sideline.

Not only Ryan, but also two key players on last year's defense, Bart Scott and Jim Leonhard.

At least it is only preseason. Had this been the regular season, a whole slew of stories may have come out. But chances are nothing special will happen. Some New York writers have been trying to drum up that Ryan wants revenge on his old team for not taking him as head coach, but come on, Ryan has better things to do.

But at least for the first series, you have to think it is strange. Seeing Bart Scott going after Joe Flacco? And Jim Leonhard, a guy that got noticed in Rex Ryan's system, now going against the team that made him special? And Rex Ryan, the Ravens defensive coordinator for six years, leading the Jets. Scott has said he will have "no friends" when the game begins, but that is to be expected when players leave.

But we are happy for all of them, and for the Jets, this is a much more important game than the Ravens. For all the Ravens wide receiver issues, they do not have nearly as many questions as the Jets. New York does not know who their starting quarterback will be, and will be starting #5 overall pick Mark Sanchez in the game. Nothing like going against the Ravens defense for your first contest. The Ravens were in this spot last season, trying to find their starting quarterback among Flacco, Troy Smith, and Kyle Boller under a new head coach, and the Jets are going through the same.

For the Ravens, they are still trying to find their solid WR corps. Other than Mason and Clayton, no one's job is safe. Demetrius Williams, Justin Harper, Jayson Foster, and the rest of the corps will need to step up, especially with the injury to Marcus Smith, who is now on the injured reserve. Also, the Ravens will want to see Cleo Lemon to see if he can be a third string quarterback in the wake of the injury to John Beck, plus the possible rumors of trading Troy Smith.

But for the most part, it will just be weird seeing Rex Ryan on the opposing sideline tonight. Let's just be happy it is not the regular season.

Also news: Ravens rookie LB Tony Lein has been arrested for assault on a police officer, the AP reports. The officer claimed Fein was passing a weapon, which actually was a cell phone, and then Fein pushed the officer when confronted.

(Photo credit: The Star-Ledger)

Free Kicks- Extended Ravenswatch 2009

Well I am out of town again this week, hence the late entry. However, rather than having 3 topics I decided to go with an extended Ravens free agency category, with just one topic about non-Maryland sports. I had to throw in my two cents about Marbury. Anyways, let us commence Ravenswatch 2009 as we line up for the kick…

Stephon Marbury: The Next Manny Ramirez?
With the Stephon Marbury buyout and his impending trip to the Celtics, I foresee an interesting phenomenon taking place this offseason. Regardless of what happens over the rest of this season in Boston, Marbury will hit the market looking for a big payday even at the age of 32. Look, I am making no statement as to Marbury’s skills- he can be a dynamic playmaker even at his age, and he will be looking to be paid as a premier guard in this league. This is where he becomes Manny. He won’t get the money. No where near it. In fact, he could be waiting until October (basketball’s equivalent to baseball’s March) still waiting for that starting job and, more importantly, starting money. The man has an ego and an attitude unlike any other in the NBA, but unfortunately doesn’t even have the skills that Manny does. He is not a first or even second team All NBA player even at his best, unlike Mr. Ramirez. He will wait, and wait, and wait to get paid. He should be used to it at this point, he has sat for the last 3 months.

Now I know he will be signing with the Celts for the veteran minimum of $1.3 million, but don’t expect that to stand when the offseason hits. Boston is too smart to sign him past this year- and it looks like most of the league is even smarter to pass up on him altogether.

Ravenwatch 2009 Officially Begins
Well, here we are. Baltimore fans are poised for one of the most anxiety-ridden (or exciting, depending on how you look at it) free agent periods in recent memory, with the Ravens not hoping to drastically improve but just hold on to the players they had this past season. As predicted by yours truly, it looks as though Bart Scott is leaning towards signing with Rex Ryan and the Jets for $40 million, a move that makes sense for Scott and at least knocks one name off of the list of players the Ravens need to keep. I am not nearly as worried about the Ravens linebacker situation (Tavares Gooden, Prescott Burgess, and others are all ready to step in and take some of the load off) as I am about their cornerback or offensive line situations.

I really like the signing of Dominique Foxworth, and not just because he is an ex-Terp and Maryland native. The 25 year old cornerback has a great deal of upside and should fit in with a similar player like Fabian Washington, particularly if Foxworth is not forced into a starting role right away. Additionally, Foxworth had to play deep with John Lynch at safety, who has about as solid coverage skills as Roy Williams with the flu. With the safeties coming into the box to support one of the league’s worst run defenses, Dominique was left on an island far too often to appear as effective as he could be. Last season in Atlanta he was in his first year in the system, and his performance should take a major boost behind one of the best run defenses in the NFL. His $28 million deal over 4 years is more than I would have liked to pay for a player who was traded for a 7th round pick last season, but it should still allow the Ravens enough room to resign either Ray Lewis or Jason Brown (Brown highly unlikely as he is close to a deal with the woeful Rams), and even pick up a mid-level free agent.

A potential bargain free agent wide receiver could be Nate Washington, Pittsburgh’s 3rd wideout who I have raved about in my previews. Keep an eye out for Washington as a deep threat with excellent speed and leaping ability- consistent hands have been an issue, but he often gets in a groove at times and will take over a drive at a critical point in the game (too often against the Ravens this season).

Meanwhile, Baltimore’s cross-town rivals just got much stronger on defense with the addition of Albert Haynesworth at defensive tackle and resigning of DeAngelo Hall at corner. People say Hall has an attitude problem, but I thought he would have been a worthwhile investment for the Ravens. However, this is the classic pattern of behavior for ‘Skins owner Dan Snyder, who perennially makes a big splash in free agency only to watch his team get marginally better- but for a team that needed a powerful presence in the middle, Washington now has it in Haynesworth.

Ravens Free Agent Picture Begins to Take Shape

Of all the “Big Three” linebackers the Ravens have up for free agency this season, the one I most suspected would be allowed to hit the market- Bart Scott- could be resigned in a Baltimore uniform within the next several days, according to agent Harold Lewis. At the beginning of the offseason, I had several key contentions: the Ravens would be willing to pay competitively for Terrell Suggs or spend the franchise tag on him. Secondly, the Ravens would make a strong play for Ray Lewis, and all accounts are saying that management will probably outbid anyone else for the services of the 33-year-old face of the franchise. Finally, I was certain that deep down inside, Bart Scott wanted to be a starter more than he wanted to be in Baltimore- I could easily see him in a Jets uniform at outside linebacker, for instance. Should Scott resign, it would indicate to me that Baltimore is unsure if they will get back Ray Lewis or that Scott is willing to take a discount to stay a Raven. Either way, it would surprise me.

Harold Lewis also represents center Jason Brown, easily the best offensive lineman on the team this season after moving over from guard after the 2007 season. Lewis intimated that EITHER Brown or Scott could resign, but not both- I estimate that Brown is more likely to hit the market. The fact is that offensive and defensive linemen can command a great deal as a free agent, as they are less likely than skill position players or linebackers or defensive backs to have their performance take a significant dropoff from one season (or team) to another. Additionally, the Steve Hutchinson deal in 2006 worth $49 million set the stage for blockbuster contracts for offensive linemen. He will likely be looking for something on the lower end of Jordan Gross’ 6 year deal which paid out $30.5 million over the first three years. He won’t get that, but that will be his starting negotiating point. With the bloated price for linemen, I would not be shocked if Brown decided to resign with the Ravens after free agency begins, but he would be foolish from a financial standpoint not to see what is out there- even in this economy.

However, don’t expect the feel-good story of this season to be back in a Ravens uniform. At the scouting combine late last week, Ozzie Newsome sent a rather clear message that this team could be parting ways with backup-turned-starter Jim Leonhard. Management has told him he would have to compete for a starting job with returning free safety Dawan Landry, and Leonhard obviously would like to be a starter somewhere. Unlike the other Ravens free agents, Leonhard has no tradition of being part of this organization and no inherent loyalty to the coaching staff outside of former defensive coordinator Rex Ryan, whom he has described as having taught him more about the game than anyone in his NFL career. Besides, there are significant reasons for the Ravens to avoid resigning Leonhard. From a financial standpoint, Landry is still under his rookie contract and won’t be up for a new one for another few seasons- it wouldn’t make sense to pay what it would take to keep Leonhard with the team. From a football standpoint, this team also has promising young safeties in Haruki Nakamura and Tom Zbikowski who could possibly fill the void a la Jarrett Johnson when Adalius Thomas left. Look for Leonhard to bolt for the Jets and serve as a top notch starting safety for another 6 years, while Baltimore takes their chances with another playmaker in Landry.

Finally, Newsome also updated the media on the status of negotiations with the only kicker Baltimore fans have ever known, Matt Stover. He implied that both the Ravens and Stover were looking at other opportunities, but that has not been corroborated by the kicker, who will be conducting his own negotiations with the team. It is clear that the 41-year-old wants to sign a new deal to stay with the team, but has not been contacted by anyone from the front office. I have no problem with the Ravens wanting to move on; Stover has lost his range in recent years and is now questionable with anything beyond 40 yards- Steven Hauschka was brought in for 50+ yard kicks and kickoffs- and Stover only converted 81.4% of his field goal attempts, his worst percentage since 1994. I am sure he can still play, but this might be as good a time as any for the franchise to move on to kicker #2.

Ravens Offseason Juggling Act Begins

I just had to take this opportunity to outline some of the turnover going on with the Ravens in the postseason, so please excuse the Free Kicks-esque format, it was necessary for organizational purposes. It seems that with the free-fall of Maryland basketball (and the accompanying questions about how the game has passed Gary Williams by) and the annual attempt to piece together a starting rotation on the Orioles (with so many cheap free agents, why haven’t we brought them in?), it is easy to forget that the Ravens have a good deal going on themselves, in the front office, the coaching staff, and on the field.

The Front Office
I sure hope George Kokinis has the same impact on the Cleveland Browns that Phil Savage did. For that matter, I hope his departure from the Ravens has the same impact Savage’s did. That is, very little. The Ravens have a long history of reloading in the front office, like the USC of pro football front offices. There are a lot of great groups, but so long as the Pete Carroll/Ozzie Newsome is there, they will succeed. Since Kokinis is in the division, I won’t wish him the best of luck, but I hope he is happy there in his 4-6 win seasons. Kokinis, as many of you know, has served for the last 6 years and has just been hired as the new General Manager of the Mangini-led Cleveland Browns. I don’t know much about Kokinis except that I hate it when division rivals get our front office people because they have an in-depth knowledge of our personnel and Eric Mangini is a perfect coach to make full use of it. I for one love the Mangini hiring for Browns fans; but I hate it for the Ravens. With any luck I will be wrong, and Mangini/Kokinis will turn out as bad a match as the feared Crennel/Savage duo.

The Coaching Staff
Speaking of Mangini, his former post as Jets head coach has been filled by beloved Ravens defensive coordinator Rex Ryan. The man deserved that top spot eventually, and he will have his team fired up like no other. The good news for Ravens fans is that Ryan likely will not be calling the defenses, so the best defensive coordinator in the league won’t ever have the scheme or quality of defense he had here in Baltimore. His replacement, Greg Mattison, is a safe choice. You knew it had to be a Harbaugh hire, and would have to be someone in-house with the unique defense and personnel on that side of the ball. Moreover, in order to persuade Lewis/Suggs/Scott to return you had to have someone at the top they would like and respect, and they have that in Mattison. I doubt he will be a great defensive coordinator in the traditional sense, or he would have been offered an NFL coordinator job earlier. He has only been in the league for one season, either for lack of interest or lack of production, but I don’t anticipate that will be a huge problem- he will take input from the veterans and if the group stays intact there may be a slight dropoff in the defense, but it may not be noticeable if the offense is able to hold onto the ball longer.

There is word that he wants to blitz more, and while I am not sure that is possible, I wouldn’t buy much into it anyway. I have seen a lot of coordinators hired, and I have never once heard any of them say they want to blitz less. They all say they want to be more aggressive, attack the quarterback, etc. Once they are in the booth and are worried about those short crossing routes, we see how committed they really are to sending the house.


The Team
Nothing yet, but it is coming. The move not to franchise Lewis was a good move; he is just not worth that much on the free agent market to merit it. Remember how tough it was to move Jason Taylor? And he was a defensive end (perennial position of need on many clubs) and reigning defensive player of the year! Ray just would not get that kind of money. Hopefully he knows it. I can’t see a scenario where they let Lewis go, not after what he has meant to this franchise. There isn’t even an Aaron Rodgers situation here that would merit pushing out the face of the franchise. Terrell Suggs has suggested that he, Bart Scott, and Ray should take hometown discounts to stay together, and Scott made similar remarks earlier in the season, noting that when players leave this scheme they tend to have less success with other clubs. I certainly hope they are genuine sentiments, but they will not settle for pennies on the dollar, and I don’t blame them. The Ravens will be in a real crunch this season, with Jim Leonhard and others also looking at other clubs. I doubt Leonhard will want to stay if he has a shot at losing his job to a healthy Dawan Landry, so Baltimore may have to pony up a respectable contract offer or make him some promises in order to keep him. This will be a dicey free agent market for the Ravens, and they won’t even have to look past Owings Mills to keep it interesting.