There's definitely a case to be made here for the Ravens. This division was rock solid last year. Things do change in a hurry in the NFL though, so I can see Baltimore improving and challenging that division. Brian Billick's mouth sometimes gets in the way of people giving him his just due for being an excellent HC. The guy just talks so much you sometimes want to shoot him. My gut is he will figure out a way to right this ship because at this point his A*# is on the line. The Ravens played alot without their 2 best players....Ed Reed and Lewis. And they were still carrying Deion...who was really only a distraction. Im not positive, but I believe Reed and Lewis will be back on the field this year, and Sanders will be gone. That's three major positives. This D will be much improved this year without a doubt factoring those 3 players in, not to mention some strong additions that Ozzie Newsome is famous for making in the draft. One of the best, imo. Throw in the fact that the 2 best teams in the division last year will be facing challenges involving an injured Carson Palmer, an absent ARandle-El and a retired Jerome Bettis, and I like Baltimore's prospects that much more. Cleveland should be an improved team, but still not ready yet to challenge for this division, imo.
On O, this team is an enigma. Billick has tried for 3 years to develop Kyle Boller, but the kid either gets hurt early or just stinks for the most part. Im guessing he'll get one more year on a short leash to sink or swim. He showed some flashes late last season basically when their season was over and there was no real pressure, but he played well nonetheless. Throwing McNair into this equation would shake things up, but I would expect if that were to happen, he would come in as the #2 behind Boller, but instructed to be on immediate standby. he would improve this team even as a backup. We'll see what happens there. The skills positions are nice. Two power backs in Lewis and Anderson will run the ball well with some blocking, and I like the combo or Mason, Clayton and Heap. There is some real talent here. Will they get the consistent effort UP FRONT? ...the burning question. Id look for them to go Oline early AND late. That is the key to this team being solid, imo. But Im drinking the koolaid this year with the Ravens. The potential is definitely there.
