In yesterday's Baltimore Sun, Jamison Hensley asks a question most fans have been contemplating since the Ravens traded back into the first round of the NFL draft to take quarterback Joe Flacco: can the former Delaware star win the starting gig in Baltimore? Heading into the team's first official training camp practice, Kyle Boller was the odds-on favorite to get the first-team snaps, but that had more to do with seniority than what the depth chart might look like come September. And while Boller seems like the safe choice to win the job, Troy Smith, last year's fifth-round pick, has been impressive during off-season workouts.
Whatever happens, first-year head coach John Harbaugh ain't talking:
"We've said this from Day One: Our plan is to go with the best quarterback at that time," Harbaugh said. "Our goal is for those guys to make that decision based on the way they play."Hardly earth-shattering stuff, there, but you can't really argue with the philosophy given that Boller hasn't established himself as anything other than an NFL backup, and Smith and Flacco are unproven but have loads of potential. Ultimately, the job's Flacco's, but unlike Boller, the Ravens should bring him along slowly. Having Brian Billick working for Fox Sports should go a long way in making sure that doesn't happen.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
7-26-2008 @ 12:48AM
jesse said...
THE RAVENS HAVE HAD A DIFFICULT TIME SCORING TOUCHDOWNS FOR ABOUT 10 years. (2006 probably being the only exception). THE OFFENSIVE LINE IS YOUNG, AND ALL HAVE BEEN MOVED AROUND! THIS IS THEIR FIRST YEAR---IN THEIR POSITIONS!!! TWO YOUNG QB'S WITH 2 GAMES OF EXPERIENCE BETWEEN THE 2 OF THEM...AND BOLLER---
WHO THROWS MORE INTERCEPTIONS THAN TD'S.
GET RID OF BOLLER QUICK.
TROY SMITH LOOKS LIKE HE COULD BE PART OF THE ANSWER TO THE RAVENS OFFENSIVE PROBLEMS. I WOULD LIKE TO SEE HIM AS THE STARTER, AND ESPECIALLY LIKE TO SEE HIM WHEN THE RAVENS ARE WITHIN 10 YEARDS OF THE OPPONENT'S END ZONE. HIS SCRAMBLING ABILITY SHOULD HELP OPEN UP SOME RECEIVERS AND PRODUCE MORE TOUCHDOWNS.
HOWEVER, FLACCO IS THE MAN WITH THE CANNON ARM, WHO CAN ZIP IT BETWEEN DEFENDERS. FINE...GOOD...LET HIM DO EXACTLY THAT. SINCE THE RAVENS HAVE SUCH A HARD TIME SCORING IN THE RED ZONE, BRING FLACCO IN, WHEN THEY ARE ABOUT 30 YARDS OUT & LET THE CANNON ARM GO TO WORK---THROW IT IN THE END ZONE---SCORE SOME TOUCHDOWNS.
NEITHER BOLLER NOR SMITH ARE KNOW FOR THEIR ACCURACY, SO MY IDEA IS NOT WITHOUT SOME COMMON SENSE.... AND YOU NEED TO GET FLACCO A LITTLE EXPERIENCE SOMETIME THIS YEAR.
IT IS A NICE IDEA, BUT SO UNORTHODOX, PROBABLY ONLY A HIGH SCHOOL TEAM WOULD DO IT. NICE DREAM...THE FANS ALWAYS KNOW BEST RIGHT?
EXBIRDMAN
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