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Ravens vs Bills: Old Birds vs New

by Jermaine Lockett September 8, 2016

written by Jermaine Lockett

Ravens vs Bills – Wikimedia

Ravens vs Bills: Old Birds vs New

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This Ravens vs Bills matchup is something so confusing. You’re seeing Ravens on both sides of the field, old and new. Who do you cheer on? It’s an easy answer for Ravens Nation right? Right? I feel your pain. Tune-in to the podcast to hear me yap about the Baltimore Ravens of old vs the Ravens of new (Buffalo Bills).

Listen! If you want to do more than just place in your league, subscribe to our email list (meaning the overlay you just opted out of. Just refresh the page and it will come back.). There I’ll be giving out exclusive tips to only those who sign up. No sign-up, no championship, no ice cream. “Remember Ice Cream is only for winners…”

Jermaine Lockett is a Writer and CEO for Couch Rider Report. Follow us on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter.

September 8, 2016 0 comment

Dallas Cowboys NFC East NFL

Is McClain messing up again?

by Christopher DuVall June 11, 2016

written by Christopher DuVall

McClain-Youtube

Is McClain messing up again?

Rolando McClain is one of the most gifted linebackers in the NFL, yet he can’t seem to stay out of trouble or show for work up on time. McClain has spent the last two seasons with the Dallas Cowboys and the team has relied heavily on his abilities to replace the injured Sean Lee. The 26-year-old McClain has been MIA at the Cowboys scheduled off-season training activities at Valley Ranch, due to what coach Jason Garrett described as a family situation.

Special Treatment

McClain is receiving special treatment by “America’s Team”. Owner Jerry Jones told the media McClain has earned the “slack” because of his on-field performance. Throughout his career McClain has escaped hard work because of his raw physical abilities. In college McClain played in the SEC where he won the 2009 Butkus Award, at the University of Alabama. One can’t help but think that Rolando has gotten too much “slack” for being a gifted athlete, and it has adversely affected his work ethic. The older McClain gets the more difficult it will become for him to just show up and play.

Riding on accolades

The 6-4, 259lb Rolando McClain was selected with the 8th pick overall in 2010 NFL Draft by the Oakland Raiders. After a career high 99 tackles and 5 sacks in 2011 McClain’s career stalled. Rolando showed flashes of greatness in Oakland, but never lived up to expectations and was released by the Raiders in April of 2013.

His middle name is…

McClain is no stranger to trouble. The middle linebacker was arrested three times between Dec. 2011 and April 2013. (Al.com March 2016) Since then McClains behavior has been a mixture of poor decisions and erratic behavior. When Ray Lewis retired after Super Bowl 47, the Baltimore Ravens were in search of inside linebacker and fellow University of Alabama Alumni, Ozzie Newsome reached out to McClain with the opportunity of a lifetime. If the former Raider would sign a one-year deal and live up to his potential, McClain could make Baltimore a long-term home and enjoy the security of a multi year deal worth millions.

Coulda, woulda, shoulda…

Instead, Rolando showed up in Owings Mills late and promptly failed his physical. McClain retired twice while under contract with the Ravens, and after multiple chances, Newsome traded the troubled McClain to the Cowboys for a seventh-round pick. During his first year with the Dallas, he told the media:

“I was on a bad path. I didn’t deserve to play football so they say. I wasn’t all the way there in the game. I aint going to be the best if I aint focused on the game. I needed to take time to do what was important and get myself right.” (Al.com)

Even though McClain missed four games last season for violating the NFL substance-abuse policy, he finished third on the team with 80-tackles, two-sacks and a pick-six. Dallas signed Rolando to a one-year five-million-dollar contract in March. They need McClain to bolster the middle of a banged up defense. Rolando will show up if, and when he wants to. That has been the case his entire pro career.

If you would like to read or hear more from Chris or fellow Couch Riders, please Subscribe to our RSS feed and like us on Facebook.

Christopher DuVall is a writer for the Couch Rider Report. Follow him on Facebook.

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June 11, 2016 0 comment

Arthur Brown, Albert McClellan, Zachary Orr ILB Competition.

AFC North Baltimore Ravens NFL

The Ravens’ starting ILB is…

by Jermaine Lockett May 21, 2016

written by Jermaine Lockett

Arthur Brown, Albert McClellan, Zachary Orr ILB Competition.

Ravens’ Nation, we have been completely spoiled when it comes to the MLB position. For 17 years we had a lynchpin in the middle of the defense, exercising leadership, initiative, and overall Hall Of Fame talent. When the Baltimore Ravens lost Ray Lewis to retirement, the GM Genius Ozzie Newsome stepped up and placed an experienced veteran in Daryl Smith in the fold to help fill the huge void left by Lewis. He has now gone on to greener pastures, which creates a vacancy at the ILB spot.

Competition for the spot?

C.J. Mosley clearly asserted himself in one of the ILB spots. But who does the other position belong to? Who will be the guy to dominate in the 2016 offseason to claim the position? Below are the candidates:

45 Beyer, Brennen

50 McClellan, Albert

59 Brown, Arthur

54 Orr, Zach

46 Luckett, Cavellis

Brown Underrated?

I have my favorite and even had this to say about the competition in a previous article about the draft:

“The Ravens have been threatening to get rid of Brown since a year after they drafted him. He continues to fight to keep out of hot water. Albert seems to do just enough to inspire but not enough to provoke. The jury is still out on Orr.”

You can find that article here.

Arthur is an athletic freak that has been buried on the depth chart since 2013. Being a huge fan, I am glad John Harbaugh is actually allowing him to compete this year.

Buried on depth chart

Let’s be honest, in the past, with the politics of football, there is no way a team places a first round pick (C.J. Mosley) on the bench for Brown. They especially won’t when Ozzie Newsome is in your ear yelling “Roll Tide” in favor of his new Alabama product. Some have even went as far as saying he needs to be better against the run.

In the ever-changing game that is the NFL, the Ravens need a guy who is better against the pass. I believe that pass defense is Brown’s strength. When the team starts facing these teams with slot receivers like Julian Edelman or RBs coming out of the backfield, Brown will be the best suited to take them on.

Hi Haters!

Of course the haters will continue to hate though.

Rotoworld.com is especially good at blasting the grinder saying:

“Brown has provided nothing to the team since being taken with the 56th overall pick in the 2013 draft, but the Ravens are having a hard time giving up on the former second-round pick. Odds are he’ll be inactive more often than not.”

There is a reason this guy has managed to make the 53 since 2013. My expectation is that Brown shocks the world and claims the depth chart spot next to Mosely with authority. Anyway, on to the next legitimate competitor for the position. Zachary Orr

Favorite on social media

Many pegged Orr to replace Daryl Smith. Why is that? Did he really shine the last two seasons? No. Not exactly. He had 22 total tackles in 2015 and even had some pretty good Pro Football Focus grades, but there is no substantial tape on the young North Texas product to make that determination. He wasn’t exactly the thriller of preseason either.

In fact it was Brown who set that stage with his 5^th ranked 23 tackles in the 2015 preseason. Orr had 19, which still put him in the top-20 of preseason tacklers that year. Orr has special teams value, which is what may have given him the edge over Brown in the past, but is it enough to solidify him as the guy this year?

Wildcard or just depth?

I am not sure the special teams card will be in play here because the Ravens went out of their way to pick up a ST standout in Cavellis Luckett as an undrafted free-agent. The former Middle Tennessee player is a speedster who really excels at breaking down and wrapping up defending against kickoff returners. He will be fighting for roster spot not a starting job.

Most game time experience…

The most intriguing prospect in my opinion is Albert McClellan. This is a guy just signed a three-year extension to remain with the team. He has made the move inside to ILB and has the experience to lead. He played 161 snaps last season and had 17-tackles, 1-sack, 1 pass def, and 1-fumble recovery. He has been with the Ravens since 2010 and has been listed 4^th on the depth chart at OLB. Can his transition to the inside mean Harbs and Dean Pees are looking at him being the favorite? It would be cool to see such a talented guy finally getting his shot at starting. With arms like tree trunks, you have to put him on the field somewhere.

I am excited to see who rises to the top in this competition now that it actually is a competition. Either way C.J. will have a great sidekick come game come of 2016.

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Jermaine Lockett is a Writer and CEO for Couch Rider Report. Follow us BY CLICKING for Facebook or twitter.

May 21, 2016 0 comment

AFC North Baltimore Ravens NFC West NFL San Francisco 49ers

Anquan Boldin: key to Ravens’ 2013 demise

by Jermaine Lockett March 30, 2016

written by Jermaine Lockett

The_Brit-Flickr

So today was one of those days where I was “throwing noodles at the wall”, seeing what would stick. What stuck was a story of a certain Baltimore Ravens’ QB sticking it to his team after winning the Super Bowl and the fallout it caused. One casualty in the fallout was Anquan Boldin.

All about the benjamins…

Sure, when view the contract for that year (2013), Joe Flacco’s deal worked out just fine for both sides. Joe got his 120.6 million dollars and Ozzie Newsome kept Flacco’s cap number for that year under 10 million. However, the team was dismantled. The key aggressive cog was gone; Boldin could have been the muscle behind a third Lombardi for the team. Ozzie however, was all about saving cap space, not realizing the worth of the aggressive play-style of “Q”, even in his old age.

It’s not all on you Ozzie

Ozzie is not the only one at fault here. John Harbaugh had an agenda that year. Anyone with a leadership mentality had to go after that Super Bowl win. Do I have proof? No, but take a look at the mass exodus out of Baltimore after.

Ray Lewis – Retired

Ed Reed – Houston Texans

Bernard Pollard – Tennessee Titans

Anquan Boldin – San Francisco 49ers

Cary Williams – Philadelphia Eagles

Dannell Ellerbe – Miami Dolphins

Paul Kruger – Cleveland Browns

I mentioned these names in particular because this was every player that led in some way or another on the field and in the locker-room. They had star power and had a large influence of the team that could even rival Harbaugh’s authority. Of course he had to send them all packing, especially the guy who has had a history of fighting with coaches.

With nasty talent comes nasty attitudes

In 2008 before the SB, Boldin had a run-in with then Arizona Cardinals’ Offensive Coordinator Todd Haley. Later, according to an article from the associated press his words were:

“The attention has grown,” Boldin said. “Do you have to be

careful? I guess so, but at the same time you can’t alter who you

are. You can only be you and let the rest take care of itself.”

This was over 7 years ago now, and Boldin still has that same nasty personality. He is still fighting with players and coaches on the sidelines and I am of the opinion that John wanted to assert himself as the face of the Ravens, by getting anyone with combative personality or a backbone out of the organization at that time.

Numbers don’t lie

Let’s take a look back how this hurt them. We’ll look at the WR numbers for the 2013 season where the team was an absolute disaster. The WR corps was headed up by Torrey Smith, Jacoby Jones and Marlon Brown? There was not one aggressive word in the last sentence.

19 total receiving TDs are all the team could muster that year (25^th ranked). The black and purple gave up 23 interceptions on the season. Baltimore even ranked 28^th in football in first down percentages. These numbers are sparking my PTSD, making me want to throw something at a TV, and it’s not even football season!

Wishful thinking

The aforementioned categories were all areas “Q” excelled in. He fights for position, lowering interception possibilities. He managed eight TDs in 2012 alone for the team (team – 32 receiving TDs).

With Quan there, it was just all around easier to spread the ball for Flacco. Sure, I’m harping on the past but imagine what would have happened had he been there in 2013. Harbaugh already had it in his mind that this was going to be a more aerial offensive minded team. I mean why else have Flacco throwing above 50 attempts a game? With Boldin there, drives would have been extended, games could have been won and yes with a bit of luck and maybe another bozo play from Pete Carroll, we could have been back-to-back SB champs. Yes it is wishful thinking but I truly believe if Anquan Boldin doesn’t get sent to San Fran, the Ravens would have at least made the playoffs that year.

Now he’s back on the market and only getting calls from the Washington Redskins? You have to wonder if there is a chance he could finish back in Baltimore? Ravensnation sound off! What are your thoughts?

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Jermaine Lockett is a Writer and CEO for Couch Rider Report. Follow us on Facebook or twitter.

March 30, 2016 0 comment