Baltimore Sports and Life Interviewed by The Baltimore Sun

Matt Vensel of The Baltimore Sun interviewed me about the Ravens. You can find the Q&A at: http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/baltimore-sports-blog/bal-sportsblitz-blogger-on-blogger0825,0,3295252.story

The piece above was largely edited. Here is the interview in it’s entirety:

Matt Vensel / Baltimore Sun: “Now that we’re a few weeks removed from the release of four popular veterans and Ozzie Newsome has had some time to make some moves, are the Ravens better off from a personnel standpoint than they were in 2010?”

Baltimore Sports and Life: “I’m excited by the prospects of the Ravens being a more athletic team in 2011 vs. 2010; and I do think the Ravens can be better overall. I thought Gregg had little push last year, and I’m looking forward to Cody replacing him on the line. Heap had the highest yards per reception average of his career last year, but I’m comfortable with Dickson, and Pitta replacing him as an offensive weapon. Dickson is going to run away from LB’s, and prove too strong for safeties. The bigger issue is replacing Heap’s blocking on the line. At one point he was not regarded as a very capable blocker, but I think he greatly improved in that area over the last couple of seasons. A lot of Ravens fans are seemingly down on Mason for the comments he as made as a member of the New York Jets, but I have nothing against him. Like Heap, and Gregg – Mason had a great career in a Baltimore uniform. Mason was obviously Flacco’s safety blanket on the outside, and he put up numbers across the board nearly identical to Boldin last year (with Boldin having a better Yards after the Catch average). That said, I’d prefer to have Lee Evans for this year vs. Mason. We interviewed Bob DiCesare of the Buffalo News last October, and DiCesare still believed Evans had the ability to stretch a defense. I think this was illustrated in Evans’ yards per reception (15.6), and his yards after the catch (3.6) averages. You really can not overstate how important the acquisition of Evans was for this roster. At one point this Summer, Flacco’s 2nd, 3rd, 4th WR’s and 1st, and 2nd TE’s had a combined 12 NFL catches. Evans has caught 377 balls as an NFL receiver. I’m pleased with the addition of All-Pro FB Vonta Leach, but it should be noted he is replacing two-time All-Pro Le’Ron McClain. Overall, I think that is close to a wash. Leach might be the better pure blocker, but McClain is probably the better runner, and might be the superior pass receiver out of the backfield. McGahee to Williams is another wash. I think Pollard over Landry is another upgrade for the Ravens.”

Matt Vensel / Baltimore Sun: “Which one addition will have the biggest impact this season?”

Baltimore Sports and Life: “If you ask this question to ten Ravens’ fans, I suspect the majority will state Jimmy Smith. That is certainly an opinion I could respect. Adding a CB with his size, speed, and ability to play on an Island in coverage is an important addition to the Ravens, and gets back to the improved athleticism of the roster I mentioned previously. Based on my comments above, one could expect me to pick Evans, but my choice for the one addition that will make the biggest impact is Sergio Kindle. I’m not expecting the Ravens to use Kindle much on 1st or 2nd down, but I do expect Kindle will be sent on regular seek and destroy QB missions opposite of Suggs on 3rd down. If the Ravens get some pass rush going opposite of Suggs, that will only increase the odds of Suggs’ being able to maintain the level of play he had after the bye last year.”

Matt Vensel / Baltimore Sun: “The Ravens overhauled their offense (again) to try the most out of Joe Flacco. The fourth-year quarterback took a lot of flack in the offseason from players and media. What’s your take on him, and what must he do for this to be considered a successful season for him?”

Baltimore Sports and Life: “The three primary issues of criticism for Flacco’s play are his limitations over the middle of the field, his propensity for checking down, and that he does not get rid of the ball quick enough. All of those critiques might be fair, and I myself have regularly spoken about the need for Flacco to improve against the Cover 2 zones over the middle. That said, I think there is often not enough focus on all of the positives Flacco brings to the table. For the 2nd consecutive year, he threw for 3,600+ yards. He had a QB Rating of 93.6%, and had 25 TD’s against just 10 picks. He has also now won 4 playoff games (all on the road). I don’t think he is in the ultra elite group of P. Manning, Brady, Brees, Rivers, Rodgers and Roethlisberger; but I think he compares with anyone at the top of that next tier. I’m glad that in his 4th year in the system he is going to have the ability to audible at the line, and call his own plays. If he maintains the level of play he has already shown, that would be a successful season. Of course you want to see further maturation in his game, and I do think he has yet to reach his ceiling.”

Matt Vensel / Baltimore Sun: “Through two preseason games, have you liked what you have seen from the defense, particularly young pass rushers such as Paul Kruger, Sergio Kindle and Pernell McPhee?”

Baltimore Sports and Life: “The National Media is still running with the story that the Baltimore defense is ‘aging’ and slow. When that Media gets ahold of some game tape, they are going to be surprised by what they see. The Ravens spent an awful lot of time playing a ‘Bend but not Break,’ defensive philosophy under Coach Mattison last year. That by itself has players playing back on their heels and reacting vs. attacking. Simply going to a more aggressive scheme under Coach Pagano will make the Ravens appear quicker. We’ve talked about Cody, Smith, and Kindle adding fresh legs to the defense. The defensive line appears deep. That means you can rotate bodies in and out and keep the lineman fresh. Kruger obviously looks more comfortable in his role. I think Jones looks improved as well. McPhee has been the revelation of camp to me. When he was drafted we saw he was a 2x All-SEC player, which interests you right away. The Scouting Reports we saw talked about him essentially being a run-stopping DE. When we interviewed the Ravens Director of College Scouting Joe Hortiz, Hortiz told us that McPhee was capable of getting to QB’s, and played well in the Senior Bowl. You have to be pleased with the ability he shown off the edge during these two Exhibitions.“

Matt Vensel / Baltimore Sun: “Two of the most interesting preseason battles are in the secondary. Five players, including first-round pick Jimmy Smith, are competing for two spots in the starting lineup. There’s a three-way battle for the strong safety spot next to Ed Reed. Who will be the starting secondary, and who should be the starting secondary?”

Baltimore Sports and Life: “To me the question of who is going to start for the Ravens in the Secondary is not particularly interesting. They are all going to play significant time. While two CB’s are listed as ‘Starters’, you really have to count at-least one more when you factor in all the 3 WR sets teams run. I thought Cary Williams showed a lot in camp last year, and if he had not been suspended, I wonder if he would have had a larger opportunity last year. When he returned, he never seemed to really get back in-sync with the defense. Like Smith, Williams is another long athlete with the ability to run. As a Rookie, I thought Webb was extremely impressive, and a guy with Pro Bowl abilities. His play was down a notch last year, but I think you have to attribute that to how quickly he went through rehab to get back. I think he will better this year, but ultimately will not be surprised if he is moved to Safety down the road. I don’t care how deep the Secondary is, I think it is a mistake to use Webb as a Punter Returner. This has nothing to do with his fumble in the KC Exhibition either. I just think he has too much value as a CB, to put him in a position as a PR that increases his risk of injury. I tend to think Smith will start early, and I’m sure he will go through his share of growing pains. One week, and one possession he will look great, and other times he will be a Rookie. You just want to see him improve week-to-week, month-to-month. Carr will be a solid veteran, and the Front Office deserves credit for securing his return. A lot of Ravens fans are nervous about Foxworth. That is somewhat understandable after Foxworth missed last year, the preseason opener, and the CB was quoted in earlier this Month as saying he, “Does not feel great… nor as quick or fast as I was.” Foxworth’s game has always been built on speed, and his intelligence. Ravens 24×7 tweeted in July that if Foxworth was released, the cap savings to the Ravens would be roughly $4.4M. With Baltimore’s inability to get Ngata signed to an extension (which would also free up money), you would think the the Ravens would have already cut Foxworth if that was their intention. The retort from some, is that Baltimore is sensitive about being perceived as ‘punishing’ Foxworth, for his work with the Player’s Union during the CBA negotiation. I find that to be a stretch. Everyone understands that if Foxworth has trouble running or cutting, that would be a problem. The Ravens Medical Staff, and their Coaches stated at the time of Foxworth’s quote (August 1st) that they did not want Foxworth to push things as hard as he can. I’m fine with Foxworth not being 100% for Week 1, if the Ravens feel he is well positioned to have his role increase, and contribute more as the year progresses. Foxworth is never going to do a lot to help in run support, but when healthy he has plus speed and good cover skills. Intangibles can be overrated, but Foxworth’s intelligence and leadership abilities (recall the efforts he made with the Secondary two years ago) do carry some weight with me.

Regarding the Safeties, I don’t see much of a battle at all. I think Pollard is the starting Strong Safety. Besides being an upgrade over Landry, Pollard was needed because Zbikowski spent the last 8 weeks of last year on IR with his foot and back injuries. I’d be surprised to see Nakamura starting, but I’m happy to have all three.”

Matt Vensel / Baltimore Sun: “What are your expectations for Ray Lewis in his 16th season, and what challenges does his age present?”

Baltimore Sports and Life: “Ray Lewis will be what he always is, one of the best LB’s in football. Everyone loves to talk about the emotional, and inspirational impact of Lewis for the Ravens. There is not enough focus on his dedication to being a student of the game. The time he spends watching film, and preparing for the opponent of the week, and his superior positioning. With Cody helping Ngata up-front, expect another superior year from Lewis as a run-stopper. He has shown some slowing down in pass coverage though. Ideally, you would like to be in position to have a bye in the Playoffs and gain him some additional rest. If you get to Week 16 against Cleveland, or Week 17 against Cincinnati and you have the luxury of resting him and some of the other vets, that could help as well.”

Matt Vensel / Baltimore Sun: “After failing to host a home playoff game in three straight trips to the postseason, the belief is that the Ravens will have to win the AFC North to earn at least one home playoff game and go on a deeper run. That means they will have to overtake the Steelers. They get their first crack at them in Week 1. What’s your early prediction?”

Baltimore Sports and Life: “If the Ravens were facing anyone else in the Opener, what you would logically say is that the outcome of that game only means so much when you have 15 additional regular season games to go. Win or lose the Opener, that point of view will remain accurate. Pittsburgh showed just last year that one of these teams could overcome an early loss on their own field to the other. If Baltimore loses the Opener, I won’t launch into hyperbole mode and announce the season as over. I will state the obvious truth. You will be a game behind in the division, and have put yourself into a position where winning in Pittsburgh November 6th becomes a requirement.

That said, I don’t think there is much sense in down playing how important this game is for Baltimore. You nailed it, the Ravens have to have home games in the Playoffs this year. If the Ravens did not lose that December game at-home to the Steelers, the rubber match in the Playoffs could have been at M&T Bank Stadium. Instead, as we know, the Ravens had to travel back to Pittsburgh, and for the second time in three years had their season end at Heinz Field. I expect the message boards, and talk shows will be filled with conjecture that it is on Flacco’s shoulders to match Roethlisberger play for play in the 4th Quarter of a likely close game. I won’t disagree with that analysis, but I will say it is also important that Coach Harbaugh and his Coordinators are not out-coached by Coach Tomlin, and the Steelers’ staff. At home, I expect a Ravens win.”