I was mid-way through developing a post for this week about how well John Harbaugh has handled this team so far - how well he has done transforming it from a collection of stars into a real unit - when a couple of stories broke in the last 24 hours that simply have to make you wonder.

First, as everyone knows, there is the Chris McAlister situation. McAlister was apparently benched (actually, not even apparently, he was) in Sunday’s win over Miami by John Harbaugh. Reports about why exactly this happened and what led to it have been sketchy at best; some point to McAlister’s poor play against the Colts while others point to a larger issue of subordination. Either way, it’s not good.

Honestly, the McAlister situaton was going to lead my article on Harbaugh’s incredible turn around with this team. That is, before today.  Had the issue remained quiet, it would have been the perfect example of the kind of change that Harbaugh has brought to this team. Brian Billick rarely called out his players publicly, but the players never hesitated to call out Billick, it seemed. That was a major issue late in the Billick administration.* Rather than handle their business in-house, too many players thought they had the right to question Billick, his decision-making, and his authority in front of the media. Read the rest of this entry »

The Baltimore Sun today published two articles, oddly similar to one another, about scrutiny of John Harbaugh’s conservative decision-making in the Ravens 23-20 loss to the Steelers on Monday. The first piece, from Jamison Hensley, seems a bit more like reporting the mood around town following the loss. The second piece, from Mike Preston, is simply picking for the sake of picking.

My question: why is Harbaugh taking any heat for the loss on Monday?

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This will be short and sweet…

If you ever needed reminding about how great an organization the Ravens have behind them, look no further than comparing the way coaching changes were handled in Baltimore and in Oakland.

The Raiders finally fired Lane Kiffin on Tuesday. This comes just 20 games into his tenure with the Raiders and following an epic battle between coach and owner. Reports in January said that Davis had given Kiffin a letter of resignation to sign. Kiffin refused and that’s how this whole thing started.

Today, we were treated to a super-sized press conference featuring Davis and rant upon rant about his relationship (or lack thereof) with Kiffin this season. He even took the time to read us his letter to Kiffin following the Week 1 loss to the Broncos. Check out the videos here.

Compare that (Al Davis, by his lonesome, ranting and raving about his former coach) to what we saw here in January. Our owner, fresh-faced as he may be to the business, along side Ozzie Newsome and others in his professional team. Announcing, as a unit, the decision they had made. And Bisciotti, nearly in tears at times, describing the difficulty he had in making such a decision.

Then to top it all off, Davis repeatedly asserted that his firing of Kiffin was “for cause” and that his intention was to not honor the remainder of the team’s contract with Kiffin. Compare that to Bisciotti, who said from the very first minute that every contract, of every coach, trainer and assistant, would be honored.

And in case you needed anything more… this is what I simply cannot wrap my head around: Al Davis and his interactions with Kiffin over the last year. Kiffin claims there was little to no interaction, particularly face-to-face interaction, in the past few weeks. Good ol’ Al, in all his glory, attempts to refute that claim by mentioning all of twice in which the two men had spoke. Davis, known around the league for being on the field more often than Jerry Jones, wrote a letter to his coach instead of talking to him.

Think about that.

Now think about Steve Bisciotti doing that. It simply wouldn’t happen and no one in this town would stand for it.

The Ravens have officially announced their training camp schedule for the summer. While things kick off for the players on July 22, the public won’t have access until July 25 when the team starts its two-a-day sessions. Ravens rookies, quarterbacks and injured veteran players will report to training camp July 21 and will participate in four practices before all the veterans arrive July 23.

Training camp is the time of year that let’s us all know that football is right around the corner. McDaniel College is sure to be packed this year, as fans flock to Westminster to get their first live glance of Joe Flacco, Ray Rice and John Harbaugh.

Will you be attending any sessions of training camp this year? What are some of your most memorable training camp stories?

It’s been nearly a month since this team finished the most disappointing seasons in club history. In that time, we’ve seen plenty of change and plenty of talk about more change to come. So in these days of silence and uncertainty, I present to you the three most pressing issues facing the Ravens as they move into the off-season and truly move towards a more successful 2008…

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Poke around the internet a bit reading info on the Ravens and you’ll find some interesting stuff these days. A few other blogs and news sources pointed me in the direction of Kevin Byrnes’ blog. Byrnes is the Senior VP of Public and Community Relations for the Ravens. His latest blog entry, posted this week, gives a wonderfully in-depth look at the process that led to John Harbaugh’s hire, but it has some wondering about the final decision…

Byrne details the entirety of the last four weeks in Ravens’ headquarters - from Billick’s firing through the hiring committee’s actions and thoughts. Harbaugh and Garrett nailed their first interviews and became the team’s first choices. When Harbaugh returned for his second interview, he made a small handful of very powerful answers and won the committee over.

Or did he?

Read the rest of this entry »

The Baltimore Sun’s Jamison Hensley reports that Rex Ryan has hopes of staying on with the Ravens as the team’s defensive coordinator. Hensley also reports that Ryan denied rumors that he has spoken to other teams about vacant defensive coordinator positions. If Ryan really does want to stay, where does this leave newly hired head coach John Harbaugh? Between a rock and a hard place, quite frankly.

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Did you know that Cam Cameron’s real first name is Malcolm?

Did you know that I have an unhealthy love for really horrible plays-on-words?

Sources close to the Ravens are reporting that Cam Cameron, former Head Coach of the Miami Dolphins and offensive coordinator for the San Diego Chargers, will be joining John Harbaugh’s staff as the team’s offensive coordinator. The move is promising, especially for fans looking for that “total overhaul” of the Ravens’ broken system.

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With John Harbaugh now in place as the Ravens’ new head coach, attention has quickly shifted to the issues Harbaugh will face in taking over the team. The biggest decision the new coach and his front office have to make is who will be at his side as offensive and defensive coordinators.

The Ravens’ defensive coordinator for the last three seasons, Rex Ryan, is a fan favorite and it’s fair to say that most fans would love to have Ryan back in charge of the team’s strongest unit. The Ravens have also expressed interest in retaining Ryan, who is also a front-runner for the open head coaching position in Atlanta.

But from a broader perspective, one has to wonder if Ryan is really the best option as this team’s defensive coordinator in the year(s) to come. Read the rest of this entry »

According the their website, the Baltimore Ravens have hired John Harbaugh as their new head coach.

It will be interesting to get to hear Harbaugh speak. He was a relative unknown, at least to Baltimore fans, when the job search began. He served for nearly a decade with the Eagles as both a Special Teams Coordinator and a defensive backs coach. The Ravens’ webpage say he will bring a “youthful exuberance” to the club. Harbaugh is 45.

As a fan, two questions quickly come to mind: first, what becomes of Rex Ryan? Hopefully he lands a head coaching position elsewhere in the league, but if not, I’d hope to see Harbaugh offer him a spot with the Ravens. Second, how is a defensive and special teams coach going to reshape this offense and balance a roster of vets and young players? It’s fair to say he must have been mighty impressive in that interview room.

Prediction: we’re going to see a much larger roster overhaul than originally expected.