BarleyNY

60%. Joe B is for real and they have the best WR trio in the league, but that OL is a real issue for the Bengals. Nice defense too, except for the CBs.

Fun fact: It’s not Schwartz’s first stint in Cleveland. He coached there under Belichick before the team moved to Baltimore.

There’s some real truth to this. A lot of the negatives we see with Allen are a function of the things he does that give us so many positives. To a large degree, ya just have to live with it. There are a few things he can do better, yes, of course. No one is perfect. He’s been a bit better tucking the ball when getting sacked or running with it, but obviously there’s still room for improvement there. In the Phins game, the deep interception was bad. I’m not sure what happened there, but it was bad. Overall, however, his positives very much outweighed his negatives. PFF noted that he had 3 turnover worthy plays, which is a bit on the high side but not egregious. They also gave him credit for 7 big time throws. That’s absurdly high for a single game and outweighs the bad. The only criticism of Allen in the Phins game that holds weight for me is his lack of adjustment to the changing coverages. The Phins came hard with cover 0 early and often, then backed off and mixed it up. The backing off was because Allen made them (primarily Howard IIRC) pay, but Allen seemed stuck in kill shot mode for the whole game and didn’t take the easier stuff when it was there later. That seems very correctable with study of the game so I’m not too worried about it at this point. It’s worth watching to see if the Bengals try the same thing this weekend.

An uncharacteristically quality move

He’s had the best career of any QB ever. I might not like him, but I certainly respect him now. That won’t change.

For as often as the play clock is near or at 0 in games there has to be something else happening. Possibly the substitution rule’s impact on the game. It often takes a little time for the offense to substitute, then the defensive subs take time and by then the clock is way down. I’d hate to see the NFL pause the play and game clocks for the defensive subs if the offense hasn’t made their subs in reasonable time, but I can’t think of another good solution except maybe not calling 12 men on the field for players near the sideline who are clearly leaving and not impacting the play.

This team can’t waste that kind of money on TE2. He’s a good pass catching TE and someone will pay him.

Whether the QBs were tagged or not is irrelevant. What teams gave up in trade - draft capital and players - and what contracts they gave the QBs are what matters. The Ravens are far too smart to mess this up. They’ll use the exclusive rights franchise tag on him if they can’t come to an agreement first. I think this is headed for a tag and trade scenario. Some QB needy team will pony up big. Also where are you getting your tag values? They aren’t what I’ve seen on Spotrac and OTC. ERFT is top five cap hits at position or 120% of previous year’s salary. Non-ERFT is top 5 salaries at position or 120%.

Watson got his huge, fully guaranteed contract and netted Houston 3 first round picks plus a bunch of other picks. Lamar will get them more than 2 firsts. They will get a say in exactly what the compensation is plus a say in where he will go. Sending him to the NFC is certainly preferable to an AFC team. There is no downside to them using the exclusive tag. I can’t even remember the last time a team used the non-exclusive one.

No, I think the use of the non-exclusive franchise tag is much less likely. The non-exclusive tag would allow him to negotiate with other teams and sign a contract with one. The Ravens would have the opportunity to match it and retain him - or they’d get two first round draft picks as compensation. That would take negotiating power for trade compensation out of the Raven’s hands. I don’t think they’ll do that. The exclusive rights franchise tag means that he can’t negotiate with other teams without the Ravens permission. They will want that control.

Collinsworth is capable of being a great color guy. Back when he started he wasn’t very good, but it seemed like he worked on his craft and got to be very insightful and enjoyable. And then he fell off a cliff into what we typically see. It has happened with Romo and others too. I think the dumbing down is intentional by the networks/league. Basically an effort to not talk over the heads of casual fans. I’d love to have an alternate broadcast that was much more technical.

The refs had swallowed their whistles by then. A few plays prior Huntley ran the ball for a big gain and first down. He was only able to do so because a Baltimore OG tackled a Cincy DT rushing up the middle. He would’ve likely tackled Huntley for a loss had that not happened.

Cincy had a tough time with a second string QB today too. The injuries on their OL are a real problem for them. That said, the Bills can’t have another performance like this one and expect to move on. Take the W and dial it in for the rest of the playoffs.

Correct. Assuming the Ravens use the exclusive rights franchise tag they could give Lamar permission to investigate contract offers with other teams. Obviously they don’t have to do that, but at this point they probably would. The Ravens would negotiate trade compensation with those other teams. Once all that got worked out, the Ravens would sign and immediately trade him to that team. The other path is the Ravens using the tag and making Lamar play for them. Lamar would eventually have to sign it, but could wait until just prior to the first game or even into the season before doing so. Threatening to do this is how he can try to force a trade.

Edmunds had some nice plays today. That said, Frazier (and McDermott) have to stop blitzing him. He’s useless rushing the passer. That part of his game today was frustrating.

Greg Roman’s offenses have always done well for RBs and poorly for QBs. Check this out. His offenses are consistently top 10 rushing and bottom 10 passing. And that’s everywhere he has ever been.

I’m not making a case for where he will or won’t end up. Just saying that I don’t want to see him or another FQB wind up in either place right now. As for fit, Miami’s offensive scheme and current roster are excellent. It would be difficult, but not impossible for Miami to acquire and pay him. Miami is spending large, but it’s not like they weren’t planning on having to pay a QB soon. And while losing this year’s first makes trading for him more difficult, how about this scenario?Ravens franchise tag him and he refuses to sign it. The draft is in April and he has until mid-July to sign a multi-year deal. That’s plenty of time for him to be traded for picks in 2024 and beyond.

The good WRs that have come through there have left for the same reason Lamar wants out - Roman’s offense.

I wonder if his (alleged) demand for a fully guaranteed contract isn’t because of how the Ravens use him. He takes more of a beating there than he would in a more conventional offense with good receivers who can get open. You can put me down as someone who does not want to see another quality QB in the AFCE, especially on the Phins or Jest. Both are a QB away from being very competitive.

I agree. He’s been phoning it in all season. The crappy Thursday night games probably sapped whatever enthusiasm he had left. Also he’s 78. Just call it a career already.

Talent and Shanny. He seems to be able to elevate every QB he works with. I think Purdy’s future is as a solid backup in SF, but that’s his ceiling. Still, he could Nick Foles the 9ers to a SB this year.

IIRC that skit did not mock him being a Christian, it mocked him for how vigorously he promoted that aspect of himself and how bad of a QB he was.

The longer this drags on, the more power Lamar has in the situation - unless he plays under the FT and has a catastrophic injury. If he’s truly slow playing coming back from injury now, he’d certainly play games with the tag. He could wait on signing it until just prior to the regular season (or we’ll into the season) or simply refuse to sign it and demand to be traded.

Tebow wasn’t mocked, his fanboys were for insisting that he was a good/great QB.

That group needs some starters too. Plus putting an eventual replacement for Morse in the pipeline would be a good idea as well.