2017 Baltimore Ravens

RTTAS

Guru
Joined
Sep 16, 2015
Messages
310
A slight uptick of 6 to 8 starters for the Ravens this year, with two star caste-busters at running back and free safety. Danny Woodhead missed most of 2016 with a torn ACL (14 1/2 out of 16 games), but was averaging 6.1 yards per carry on 19 carries prior to that, plus 6 catches. Woodhead is listed as second-string behind the mediocre Terrance West, but I'd count him as starter due to most likely taking the bulk of passing downs, and the Ravens had the most pass attempts in the league last season. If Woodhead can stay healthy I'm sure he can be a really effective player in this Ravens offense.

Eric Weddle, meanwhile, continued his fantastic career as arguably the best safety in the league, with Pro Football Focus naming him the 10th best player in the NFL for 2016 - in fact, the Ravens had two top 10 players - the other being Marshal Yanda at 7th. The only other played Baltimore had in the top 100 was Justin Tucker, the league's best kicker, at 97th. You'd think that the ravens, and other teams, would see this obvious link between white players and success, but I guess not.

Other starters include the inexperienced TE Nick Boyle and DE Brent Urban, and three on the OL. Michael Campanaro is still serving his racial apprenticeship as a WR buried in the depth chart, but he will be featuring heavily as a returner. Interestingly, Campanaro didn't have a catch in 2016 - but he did have three rushes for 72 yards, all for first downs and two of 20+ yards.

QB: Joe Flacco, Ryan Mallett
RB: Danny Woodhead
WR: Michael Campanaro (also starting PR and second KR)
TE: Nick Boyle, Maxx Williams
OL: James Hurst, Ryan Jensen, Marshall Yanda, Tony Bergstrom, Luke Bowanko

DL: Brent Urban, Patrick Ricard
FS: Eric Weddle

Special Teams: K Justin Tucker, P Sam Koch, LS Morgan Cox
Practice Squad: TE Ryan Malleck, C Matt Skura

Starters: 8
On 53-man roster: 17

It's a shame that this team has five fantasic white players (Flacco, Woodhead, Yanda, Weddle, and Tucker), because, for the most part, the rest of this team blows - very few effective black starters. But on the basis of supporting those five star players, the ravens will usually be a team to support.
 
Last edited:

Riggins44

Master
Joined
Oct 6, 2007
Messages
3,019
Location
Virginia
A slight uptick of 6 to 8 starters for the Ravens this year, with two star caste-busters at running back and free safety. Danny Woodhead missed most of 2016 with a torn ACL (14 1/2 out of 16 games), but was averaging 6.1 yards per carry on 19 carries prior to that, plus 6 catches. Woodhead is listed as second-string behind the mediocre Terrance West, but I'd count him as starter due to most likely taking the bulk of passing downs, and the Ravens had the most pass attempts in the league last season. If Woodhead can stay healthy I'm sure he can be a really effective player in this Ravens offense.

Eric Weddle, meanwhile, continued his fantastic career as arguably the best safety in the league, with Pro Football Focus naming him the 10th best player in the NFL for 2016 - in fact, the Ravens had two top 10 players - the other being Marshal Yanda at 7th. The only other played Baltimore had in the top 100 was Justin Tucker, the league's best kicker, at 97th. You'd think that the ravens, and other teams, would see this obvious link between white players and success, but I guess not.

Other starters include the inexperienced TE Nick Boyle and DE Brent Urban, and three on the OL. Michael Campanaro is still serving his racial apprenticeship as a WR buried in the depth chart, but he will be featuring heavily as a returner. Interestingly, Campanaro didn't have a catch in 2016 - but he did have three rushes for 72 yards, all for first downs and two of 20+ yards.

QB: Joe Flacco, Ryan Mallett
RB: Danny Woodhead
WR: Michael Campanaro (also starting PR and second KR)
TE: Nick Boyle, Maxx Williams
OL: James Hurst, Ryan Jensen, Marshall Yanda, Tony Bergstrom, Luke Bowanko

DL: Brent Urban, Patrick Ricard
FS: Eric Weddle

Special Teams: K Justin Tucker, P Sam Koch, LS Morgan Cox
Practice Squad: TE Ryan Malleck, C Matt Skura

Starters: 8
On 53-man roster: 17

It's a shame that this team has five fantasic white players (Flacco, Woodhead, Yanda, Weddle, and Tucker), because, for the most part, the rest of this team blows - very few effective black starters. But on the basis of supporting those five star players, the ravens will usually be a team to support.

Great write-up. Very insightful.
 

Leonardfan

Hall of Famer
Joined
Jul 30, 2006
Messages
22,968
Kudos to Flacco for some out-of-the-box thinking with using Mike Campanaro to replace Woodhead while he is injured:

Joe Flacco mentioned Michael Campanaro as someone who could step up and fill the void created by Danny Woodhead.

"Campanaro is one of those quick little guys that can do stuff on the side," Flacco said. It's an out-of-the-box suggestion, but the quarterback would seem to have a good idea of the team's thought process. Campanaro is a 5'9/191 slot receiver who has struggled to get on the field since being a 2014 seventh-rounder. The Ravens clearly like him since they've kept Campanaro around this long as a punt returner and part-time receiver. He has a similar build to 5'8/201 Woodhead and played running back in high school. Buck Allen is the favorite, but he was a 2016 outsider. Campanaro could very easily get increased looks.
 

celticdb15

Hall of Famer
Joined
Jul 24, 2007
Messages
8,469
Campanaro has NFL potential, one of my favorite WRs for '14 class. Quick, good route runner, good hands, you know everything the league is supposed to covet. He's been his own worst own enemy as he can't shake the injury bug. If he can stay healthy he's yet another "undersized " pale face that will be giving affletic secondaries fits.
 

Leonardfan

Hall of Famer
Joined
Jul 30, 2006
Messages
22,968
Campanaro has NFL potential, one of my favorite WRs for '14 class. Quick, good route runner, good hands, you know everything the league is supposed to covet. He's been his own worst own enemy as he can't shake the injury bug. If he can stay healthy he's yet another "undersized " pale face that will be giving affletic secondaries fits.

I'd love to see him line up more in the backfield somewhat similar to what the Packers have done with Montgomery.
 

Don Wassall

Administrator
Staff member
Joined
Sep 30, 2004
Messages
30,319
Location
Pennsylvania
Unfortunately Brent Urban, Maxx Williams and Michael Campanaro are three of the most injury prone players in the league.

Ravens RE Brent Urban is out for the season with a Lisfranc injury. He'll need surgery, which suggests it's a Lisfranc fracture in Urban's foot. A 2014 fourth-round pick, Urban's early NFL career has been wracked by injuries.
 
Joined
Sep 12, 2016
Messages
1,740
Any recent updates on Woodhead? All I can find are two-week-old stories about how he should start practicing soon.
 
Joined
Jun 30, 2012
Messages
1,016
Ouch! Sliding Flacco popped by Alonzo, and knocked out of the game, at least temporarily. Cheap shot by Kiko. Our guys are not always innocent. Hope Flacco is okay.
 

Carolina Speed

Hall of Famer
Joined
Feb 13, 2011
Messages
5,307
Ouch! Sliding Flacco popped by Alonzo, and knocked out of the game, at least temporarily. Cheap shot by Kiko. Our guys are not always innocent. Hope Flacco is okay.
I respectfully disagree AA. Flacco is running full speed trying to get a first down as Alonzo is at full speed trying to stop him. How in a split second is a world class athletic LB like Alonzo supposed to react, by suddenly changing direction or pulling up somehow at the risk of injuring himself. I'm not saying in any way you should try to intentionally ever hurt another player, but this is football. It's aggressive and if a QB is going to try and run for a first down, it's the defenses purpose to stop him. Everyone who's ever put on the uniform knows the risks. Another reason to stop watching the NFL!
Go back and watch film from the 60's and 70's. There were LB's like Dick Butkus trying to tear your head away from your body when making tackles! DB Jack Tatum was one of the most feared tacklers of all time. Take a look at some of their film. None of those guys were complaining back then.
In fact, they complimented each others hits!
 
Last edited:

TwentyTwo

Master
Joined
Oct 31, 2009
Messages
3,411
Location
Louisiana
Don't forget DE Patrick Ricard!
Did you see him playing Fullback last night? Impressive athlete at 290lbs from of all places Maine! He's listed at 300(article 304lbs)...but think he trimmed down some...a old school Real Two-Way player wearing #42! Had some bone-crushing hits!

Dan Klecko 08' ...Mike Furrey WR/DB 09' & Julian Edelman in 11' mentioned in article back in August.

http://www.espn.com/blog/baltimore-...me-nfls-sixth-two-way-player-over-last-decade

Really good to see Woodhead working his way back on the field & healthy!


flipside, if Alonzo had hit a negro QB like that we would all be cheering.....
Not necessarily
 
Top