The Baltimore Ravens front office and coaching staff has continuity. However, it is worth questioning whether both parts of the franchise are on the same page.
This is just conjecture but what if Ozzie Newsome isn’t on the same page as John Harbaugh and his coaching staff? Recent moves suggest that the front office of the Ravens sees things a bit differently than Harbaugh’s staff does.
In 2016, the Ravens spent a second round pick on Kamalei Correa. Correa has struggled to find his footing with the Ravens. Correa was an edge player at Boise State who the Ravens moved inside. It’s worth noting that Correa has played poorly. However his failure to mesh to the defense could be explained by the coaching staff not using his talents right. Maybe Newsome imagined a different role for Correa. One way or another he isn’t a fit for Baltimore.
The Ravens signed Tony Jefferson and then forgot he is a dominant player when closer to the tackle box. This is something I mentioned in my last post. In fact it gave me the idea for this one. Jefferson had an up and down season mostly because Newsome and Dean Pees had a different vision for the defense.
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This is a point backed up by the Ravens’ cornerback situation. Jimmy Smith and Marlon Humphrey can straight up play, but we saw a lot of soft zones with a three-man rush. With Terrell Suggs, Matt Judon, Za’Darius Smith, Tim Willams and Tyus Bowser, Newsome probably expected more pass rush.
Speaking of all those outside linebackers, who didn’t have confidence in Matt Judon? If the Ravens knew how good Judon was going to play in his second season I doubt they would have selected two outside linebackers in the NFL Draft. Was John Harbaugh in on the decision to draft two outside linebackers and a defensive end?
Examples on offense:
Lets move to the offense now. Newsome clearly built a team for a ground and pound style. Under Marc Trestman and Marty Mornhinweg balance has been a problem. With a struggling Joe Flacco and a weak set of weapons around him, Mornhinweg has called a boatload of passes in almost every game. It may be a quarterback driven league but the Ravens are an Alex Collins powered team.
The Ravens also have an eclectic grouping of tight ends over the past few seasons. Do the Ravens even know what they want in a tight end? Ben Watson, Nick Boyle, Maxx Williams all had a different skill-set and the position group under performed as a whole.
There is no questioning that Newsome and Mornhinweg have a different way at looking at things. Newsome built an offensive line that was still somewhat functional after a bunch of injuries. At no point in the last few years has Newsome built up the passing game yet the Ravens are not a ground and pound team.
Next: Breaking down mock drafts for the Baltimore Ravens
I’m convinced that signing Danny Woodhead was Newsome throwing Mornhinweg a bone. Hey, if you’re going to dink and dunk it, Woodhead is your man. But there are countless examples of players that don’t seem to work out for the Ravens. Why were they brought here in the first place? Maybe, it’s because Newsome and Harbaugh think very differently about the roster.