Travis Thomas: Ravens Offense Is Offensive
At this time of year every fan of every team is feeling like they have a shot at winning the Super Bowl next season. Unfortunately there can only be one lucky fan base that gets the victory parade.
The Ravens were close last season, but I question if so far in this young offseason, they are taking the necessary steps to ensure getting over the hump. The majority of Ravens fans and members of the Baltimore Media will tell you that the best offseason acquisition of last season was Offensive Coordinator Gary Kubiack. Despite the Ray Rice fiasco, Kubiack was able to instill that zone blocking scheme and manufacture a running game with journeyman Justin Forsett. Joe Flacco also had better pass protection and the best regular season of his career despite limited passing weapons.
With Kubiack's departure to Denver, and the arrival of former Chicago Bears Head Coach Marc Trestman as the new Offensive Coordinator, I for one think it's a huge downgrade. I've heard every reason why this hire is a good one. Everything from Trestman is a Quarterback whisperer, to organizational strength and even Joe Flacco won't let him fail. I would argue against all of those things and then some.
For one, a lot of his success working with Quarterbacks came from many moons ago. Bernie Kosar, Steve Young, Vinny Testeverde, and Rich Gannon all from a different styled NFL than the one we see today. Trestman also gets a lot of credit for his work with reinventing Quarterback journeyman Josh McCown a few seasons ago in Chicago. However let's face it, that "reinventing" lasted just long enough to get McCown paid by Tampa Bay and then subsequently flame out.
Numbers never lie right? The Ravens ranked just outside of the top ten teams in the league offensively at twelfth overall, while the Bears sputtered at twenty-first overall. "No Named" Justin Forsett out ran "The Star" Matt Forte noticeably as well. Forsett was sixth overall amongst the leagues Running Backs, while Forte ranked fifteenth. Despite arguably the leagues most dynamic weapons on the outside, the Bears failed to have a top Wide Receiver or Tight End in the Top Ten in Receiving.
Then there is the whole Jay Cutler discussion. Statistically Joe Flacco was only slightly better than Cutler, however nobody can question that Flacco's impact was felt way more. Not to mention Joe Flacco can get it done when it counts the most, in crunch time. Trestman believes in the passing-based West Coast offense, which means less emphasis on the Ravens ground game, not to mention the pressure on Ozzie Newsome to draft some help on the outside.
This worries me because if you haven't noticed, the last two Super Bowl Champs were mediocre at best in terms of Wide Receiving. If you look at the best pass catchers in the game, Dez Bryant, Calvin Johnson, Larry Fitzgerald, and even recent history when you think of Terrell Owens, Chad Ocho-Cinco and the list goes on, ask yourself this question: How many rings do those guys have? Collectively the answer is a big, fat, ZERO.
The Ravens have other needs that if filled properly in this draft, I believe could get them over the hump right now and into the Super Bowl. Instead draft rumors continue to swirl about the Ravens wanting to give Marc Trestman a receiver to work with. Dorial Green-Beckham is the name you constantly hear. Oh great, a player who was kicked off the team at Missouri following a domestic violence accusation and hasn't played in a game since the 2013 season. Think about last off-season for the Ravens with all the arrest and factor in the Ray Rice saga, why in the world would you bring this kid in?
Under the tutelage of Trestman the Bears finished last season at 5-11 overall. Four out of those eleven games were lost in the waning moments, and trace back to Trestman's clock management and questionable play calling. Now I'm no math major but if you count those four losses as wins the Bears finish at 9-7 and right in the thick of the Playoff picture. If that happened, obviously it's safe to say that Trestman keeps his job and we aren't having this conversation. Trestman also lead the league in going for it on fourth downs. Did anybody catch the end of this past Super Bowl? You know the one where Pete Carroll "Gambled" and called a pass play instead of running the ball. Did we already forget crucifying him for losing the Super Bowl for the Seahawks? At least Pete Carroll already has a Super Bowl Ring and the cache to call such a play. I'd prefer my Coaches who "Gamble" on play calls to come with a certain gravitas for winning first.
I hope I'm wrong about Marc Trestman, but my job is to analyze what I see and give my opinion on it. Unfortunately the evidence for Marc Trestman up to this point, works against him in every way imaginable.
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