Still a few months away, but with the NFL Draft come and gone; it’s easy to start looking ahead to late-July and the start of training camp for the Baltimore Ravens. To help review where things stand for the Ravens, Baltimore Sports and Life (BSL) has reached out to Jason B. Hirschhorn – who covers the NFL for Sports on Earth, and SB Nation for his thoughts.

BSL thanks Mr. Hirschhorn for his time.

(You can discuss this on the BSL Board here.)

Baltimore Sports and Life: The Ravens are again going through the transition to another Offensive Coordinator. Do you see the change from Kubiak to Trestman as a step-back, a neutral move, or an upgrade for Baltimore?

Hirschhorn: It’s difficult to project anyone replacing Gary Kubiak as an upgrade given the veteran coach’s track record, but Marc Trestman has a lot to offer. Certainly, the Chicago Bears unraveled under his watch, but he regularly exploited their strengths on offense and cover up one of their greatest weaknesses – the offensive line. The upgrade from Jay Cutler to Joe Flacco should also pay dividends for Trestman’s play calling.

Baltimore Sports and Life: In his 6th NFL season, Justin Forsett had a breakout year for the Ravens – averaging 5.4 yards per carry on his 235 attempts, and also adding 44 receptions. Behind him are the returning Taliaferro, and rookie Buck Allen. What is your level of confidence in Forsett entering 2015? Do you expect him to again lead the Ravens in carries?

Hirschhorn: While I suppose Justin Forsett is fairly likely to lead the Baltimore Ravens in carries barring injury, I can’t say I place a tremendous amount of confidence in him. As I wrote in April, Forsett has the makings of the latest one-year wonder at running back. He’s among the oldest players to break the 1,000 yards rushing for the first time, generally a sign that the season was an anomaly. That’s not to say Forsett will disappear into oblivion this season, but we’ve probably already seen the best year of his career.

Baltimore Sports and Life: Baltimore’s offensive line showed marked improvement in 2014, with a full year of Monroe at LT, the return of Osemele at LG, and Wagner replacing Oher at RT. How do you rate the Ravens line as a whole?

Hirschhorn: The guard tandem of Marshall Yanda and Kelechi Osemele ranks among the very best in the league, and in just two seasons Ricky Wagner has established himself as a top shelf right tackle. That’s a tremendous foundation to build an offensive line upon.

At the same time, Jeremy Zuttah provides only replacement level center play and Eugene Monroe was quietly awful in 2014, giving up three sacks and 23 total pressures according to Pro Football Focus. The unit as a whole can overcome their shortcomings, but those are areas the Ravens should look to address in the coming years.

Baltimore Sports and Life: With Torrey Smith departing for San Francisco, the Ravens replaced his deep threat ability with Breshad Perriman. Opposite of Perriman will be Steve Smith. Behind them are Marlon Brown, Kamar Aiken, and Michael Campanaro. Did you like the Perriman selection, and which of the Brown / Aiken / Campanaro group interests you the most?

Hirschhorn: Breshad Perriman’s physical tools leave little doubt that he can develop into a starting receiver. He ranked among the fastest players in the draft and possesses great length and catch radius. Still, he’s much more of a work in progress than his college production suggests, and may need a full year before he starts contributing consistently.

Out of that secondary group, the most intriguing option is Marlon Brown. As a rookie, Brown stepped up into a de facto No. 3 role and responded with a team-high seven touchdown receptions. And when you consider his gifts, it’s not hard to figure out how that happened. At 6’5″, 214 pounds, Brown can operate on the perimeter or as a jumbo receiver in the slot, the place where he spent over 60 percent of his snaps in 2013. He’ll never become a game breaker, but he’s a solid reserve option.

Baltimore Sports and Life: Dennis Pitta was once on the verge of breaking out as TE, but has now suffered multiple hip dislocations, and it seems unlikely that he will return (or be able to stay on the field if he does). To combat this, the Ravens took two TE’s in the draft – including Maxx Williams in the 2nd round to add to last year’s selection of Crockett Gilmore. Between Williams, Gilmore, and the H-Back Kyle Juszczyk – do you like the outlet weapons for Flacco?

Hirschhorn: Maxx Williams only turned 21 last month and entered the league after only his redshirt sophomore season. Understandably, he’ll need plenty of time before he blossoms. However, if the coaching staff can get him there, he has the potential to become the best receiving tight end Baltimore has had since Todd Heap. The other members of the group are more specialty players, but as a whole they offer a lot to the offense.

Baltimore Sports and Life: Ngata had a special career in Baltimore, but Brandon Williams was elite last year, and Timmy Jernigan showed fresh legs and an ability to collapse the pocket during Ngata’s suspension. Also, in the Draft, the Ravens added the physically imposing Carl Davis. Will Baltimore get past the loss of Ngata?

Hirschhorn: They’re already past the departure, which is incredible given the caliber of player Haloti Ngata has been during his career. As I wrote earlier this month, Timmy Jernigan has already established himself as a starting-level defensive lineman, now he just needs a starter’s workload. Barring injury, he’ll play significantly more than his 330 defensive snaps from last season. With Brandon Williams eating up blockers in the middle, Jernigan should have a breakout season.

Baltimore Sports and Life: Suggs and Dumervil had a combined 29 sacks last year. Where do they rank for you among pass rushing duos league wide?

Hirschhorn: Age complicates this analysis. Obviously, their past production is stellar, but with Terrell Suggs and Elvis Dumervil now 32 and 31 respectively, a dropoff could be just around the corner.

In terms of tandems, the Suggs-Dumervil combo probably ranks behind those of the Denver Broncos (Von Miller, DeMarcus Ware), St. Louis Rams (Robert Quinn, Chris Long) and Kansas City Chiefs (Justin Houston, Tamba Hali). After that, the Ravens’ duo fits comfortably alongside the pass rushers of the Buffalo Bills, Green Bay Packers, Seattle Seahawks and Philadelphia Eagles.

Baltimore Sports and Life: C.J. Mosley had a monstrous rookie season in the middle of the Ravens defense. Is there something development wise you are looking for him in his 2nd year?

Hirschhorn: If there was one area where C.J. Mosley struggled, it was pass coverage. Quarterbacks throwing in Mosley’s direction combined for 84.3 percent completion, 767 yards, four touchdowns and two interceptions, good for a passer rating of 100.9. Obviously, the expectations for a linebacker in coverage aren’t the same as a corner, but Mosley needs to improve there in order to become a complete linebacker. He has the athleticism and smarts to do it, and it wouldn’t surprise me if he irons out those wrinkles by the end of the 2015 season.

Baltimore Sports and Life: Lardarius Webb played more like his former self in the 2nd half of last year. The recently extended Jimmy Smith was playing at a very high level prior to being placed on IR after Week 8. Behind them were questions. To help address those concerns, Baltimore has now added former New England slot CB Kyle Arrington. Thoughts on the Ravens CB’s?

Hirschhorn: The Ravens are playing a dangerous game with their cornerback depth. Though Webb did perform better near year’s end, he is still an undersized corner with two ACL tears in NFL career. Jimmy Smith has developed into a steady, reliable cover man, but he has missed four or more games in all but one season. Accordingly, Baltimore will probably have to call upon their reserves to handle meaningful roles for multiple games again this season.

Kyle Arrington is a passable slot corner, but there’s a reason the Patriots cut him loose earlier this offseason. If given a starter’s workload, opposing teams can and will exploit him. Asa Jackson is probably the next man up, and he’s barely roster-worthy. The Ravens have to hope that rookie Tray Walker or some other unproven player can step up if and when injuries hit the secondary.

Baltimore Sports and Life: Ed Reed recently made his retirement official. Pittsburgh’s Troy Polamalu has retired as well. Who had the better career?

Hirschhorn: The way you phrased the question leaves a lot open to interpretation. Player X could have a better career than Player Y even though the latter was generally held as the superior individual performer.

What further complicates this question is Ed Reed and Troy Polamalu didn’t really play the same position. Reed was an all-world centerfielder on one of the best defenses of the era while Polamalu was a linebacker-safety-monster hybrid that did things no other player could. Each has a Defensive Player of the Year award and multiple All-Pro and Pro Bowl honors to their resume.

If pressed for an answer, I think Reed had the slightly better career. However, I don’t think there’s a wrong choice here.

Baltimore Sports and Life: The Ravens have made the Playoffs in 6 of the last 7 years. Will they make it 7 of 8 in 2015? Where do you have the Ravens in the AFC hierarchy?

Hirschhorn: I think the Ravens qualify for the playoffs again in 2015. Though they didn’t win their division a year ago, the Ravens proved to be most talented of the four AFC North squads before injuries decimated their secondary. While I have concerns about the cornerback position after Webb and Smith, I think Baltimore has enough else going for them on defense that it shouldn’t significantly hinder their postseason aspirations. Furthermore, if they manage to keep most of their best players on the field, the Ravens have as good a shot as any for a top-two seed in the AFC.

Chris Stoner
Chris Stoner

Owner

Chris Stoner founded Baltimore Sports and Life in 2009. He has appeared as a radio guest with 1090 WBAL, 105.7 The Fan, CBS 1300, Q1370, WOYK 1350, WKAV 1400, and WNST 1570. He has also been interviewed by The Baltimore Sun, Baltimore Business Journal, and PressBox (TV). As Owner, his responsibilities include serving as the Managing Editor, Publicist, & Sales Director.

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