Mr P, you miss Robs point. The oline changes contributed to an improvment that happened around the time Caldwell was promoted.Originally Posted by Mister Pittsburgh
The team did not improve because of receivers who were there from day one.
Frankly you make my case. Why was this offense so average with all these weapons until Caldwell was promoted?
In view of the fact that Mike Tomlin has matched Cowhers record I give him the designation:
TCFCLTC-
The Coach Formerly Considered Less Than Cowher
What do you really know about Cameron? People who know him, worked with him think the dude is pretty smart.
Check this out:
[url]http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/21/sports/football/ravens-caldwell-lets-his-offense-make-loudest-statement.html?pagewanted=1[/url]
When Brock Huard joined the Colts as a backup in 2002, he felt confident walking into his first quarterbacks meeting with Manning and Caldwell. After spending the previous three seasons with the Seattle Seahawks, Huard had become proficient in the nuances of the West Coast offense — no easy feat. How difficult could it be to learn some new terminology? “I was thinking, I’ve got this whole thing licked,” Huard said.
He was mistaken, and he came to that realization within seconds of entering the room. Caldwell had covered every inch of several large whiteboards with opponents’ tendencies, plays for various downs and distances, routes, cuts, schemes, checks and reads. Caldwell’s penmanship was meticulous, Huard said, each formula and diagram etched with the steady hand of a surgeon. Huard found roughly 95 percent of it to be incomprehensible. After studying algebra, he had landed in a graduate-school seminar on thermodynamics.
“I remember calling my wife at minicamp and saying, ‘I can’t do this, this is crazy,’ ” Huard said. “There were actually times during the season when I was like, ‘Oh man, I hope Peyton doesn’t get hurt.’ Because what he and Jim were doing was so off-the-charts.”
Asked when he finally felt he had gotten up to speed, Huard said: “Never. That’s why I only lasted two years there.”
Heading into Sunday, Caldwell had made changes that bolstered the Ravens’ offense. One was directing Flacco to roll out of the pocket with greater frequency, which helped stymie pass rushers. Linebackers and defensive ends are always trying to anticipate a quarterback’s “launch point,” Caldwell said. By keeping them guessing — would Flacco roll out? and if he did, would he move to his left or right? — Flacco bought additional time. The mere threat of being mobile made him more difficult to defend.
Even more important, Caldwell had called for Flacco to throw the ball deep far more often than he had under Cameron. Brock Huard, a former N.F.L. quarterback who spent two seasons with Caldwell in Indianapolis, said the move made a lot of sense. Known as a coach who typically plays to his quarterbacks’ strengths, Caldwell wanted Flacco to showcase his spring-loaded arm. “He’s a big-time talent down the field,” Brock Huard said last week in a telephone interview. “Let him unload.”
In view of the fact that Mike Tomlin has matched Cowhers record I give him the designation:
TCFCLTC-
The Coach Formerly Considered Less Than Cowher
So Ravens get an OC who listens to his QB and flourish where as Steelers hire an OC who wants to run the ball most of the time (Art II demand) even though they don't have a RB to do so??
Intersting. One team is in SB and other team playing golf.
Steelers Draft 2015
Rd 1: Devante Parker - WR/ Kevin Johnson - CB
Rd 2: Danielle Hunter -OLB
Rd 3: Steven Nelson - CB
Rd 4: Derron Smith - S
Rd 5: Henry Anderson - DE
Rd 6: Wes Saxton - TE
Rd 7: Deon Simon - DT
This is from an article written when Cameron was first fired, replaced by Caldwell:
"The Baltimore Ravens' firing of offensive coordinator Cam Cameron with three games remaining comes across as a panic move. Teams headed to the playoffs rarely make such major changes like this.
But make no mistake: This is the right move. Joe Flacco has been too inconsistent. Ray Riceisn't being used enough. The Ravens' offense has been sleepwalking, and an aggressive move like this one can provide a spark."
The writer makes this prophetic statement:
"The biggest criticism I had about Cameron was the lack of touches for Rice and the lack of adjustments after halftime."
[url]http://espn.go.com/blog/afcnorth/post/_/id/60985/firing-cameron-is-right-call-for-ravens[/url]
Bear in mind the above was written BEFORE Caldwell took over.
Same writer made the following comment in an article he just wrote:
The reason why the Ravens were able to beat the New England Patriots Sunday was loosening the reigns on quarterback Joe Flacco after halftime. New offensive coordinator Jim Caldwell spread out the defense with more three-receiver looks and went away from a plodding run game, putting the ball in Flacco's hands.
On the three touchdown drives, which all ended with Flacco passes in the red zone, the Ravens went no huddle and shotgun on 15 of the 24 plays. Flacco threw the ball 70 percent of the time on those series as the Ravens went from trailing 13-7 to going ahead 28-13.
I don't see Cameron signing off on that adjustment in the second half. He increasingly gave Flacco more freedom every year, but he didn't hand over the offense to Flacco like Caldwell did in New England.
[url]http://espn.go.com/blog/nflnation/po...brilliant-move[/url]
This guy, who covers the AFC North puts credit squarely on the OC for the Ravens being in the SB and makes a strong case for it.
Last edited by Captain Lemming; 01-25-2013 at 12:51 AM.
In view of the fact that Mike Tomlin has matched Cowhers record I give him the designation:
TCFCLTC-
The Coach Formerly Considered Less Than Cowher
Well, actually the Ravens are running more than we ever do and throw far less.
We threw the ball 574 times. That must be close to a franchise record.
Under Arians we never threw that much as we did this year.
Last edited by Captain Lemming; 01-25-2013 at 01:18 AM.
In view of the fact that Mike Tomlin has matched Cowhers record I give him the designation:
TCFCLTC-
The Coach Formerly Considered Less Than Cowher
The reason the Ravens were able to beat the Patriots was Bernard Pollard knocking Stevan Ridley the F out, forcing a fumble that the Ravens recovered...
Something to be said for defense in the playoffs...
I agree... but the Ravens O didnt settle for FG's once they got the ball. I watched a Raven team break the Pats spirit with physical football the WRs were looking over their shoulders all day and short arming passes.
No doubt Slapstick the defense was awesome and deserves credit too. But the authors point is that Caldwell made a halftime adjustment that the offense needed to take the game over. The Ravens did not do that in the past very well.
Caldwell was more willing to let his QB take the game over when needed. That is not just offensive line improvement, that is a strategic and philosophical change. Caldwell deserves credit for this strategical change.
In view of the fact that Mike Tomlin has matched Cowhers record I give him the designation:
TCFCLTC-
The Coach Formerly Considered Less Than Cowher
So I guess the question here is does Ben still have the ability to take a game over? He isn't as mobile to be rolling out buying time. He had a partially torn rotator cuff or whatever the shoulder issue was he entered the season with. Then, he had his shoulder/rib issue. Is the right/ smart move exactly the direction it appears the Rooney's and Haley are taking the team by focusing on the OL and the running game to make Ben less important in the offense?
[url]http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2013/01/25/addition-of-mckinnie-has-stabilized-ravens-offensive-line/[/url]Few teams are willing to fiddle with their lineup entering the playoffs.
That makes the Ravens’ willingness to blow up their offensive line amazing, and the results have justified the decision.
They took former Pro Bowler [URL="http://www.rotoworld.com/player/nfl/1210/bryant-mckinnie"]Bryant McKinnie[/URL] out of exile on the bench and started him at left tackle, which moved [URL="http://www.rotoworld.com/player/nfl/5182/michael-oher"]Michael Oher[/URL] from left to right tackle, and [URL="http://www.rotoworld.com/player/nfl/7504/kelechi-osemele"]Kelechi Osemele[/URL] from right tackle to left guard.
But it took McKinnie convicing his coaches after an up-and-down offseason which included weight problems and a late arrival at training camp after he supposedly slipped and injured his back at his home.
The Ravens had allowed 15 sacks in their previous five games, when McKinnie went to coach John Harbaugh prior to the regular season finale.
“[URL="http://www.carrollcountytimes.com/sports/ravens/mckinnie-helps-solidify-ravens-offensive-line/article_ea7d54ac-e705-5175-9760-66557a4083a4.html"]I just told him how badly I wanted to play[/URL],” McKinnie said, via Matt Zenitz of the Carroll County Times. “I just felt like I could help and make a difference, and he was like, ‘Just show me at practice.’”
He apparently did, as their offensive line has stabilized in recent weeks, allowing four sacks in three playoff games, and paving the way for their running backs to be an actual factor in the result (which wasn’t always the case in the regular season).
“It’s just clicked,” Osemele said of the new-look line. “I don’t know what it is, but, . . . it’s just a good fit.
“We really didn’t even have to take many reps before we realized how dominant we could be.”
McKinnie’s been the key, as he kept pass-rushers [URL="http://www.rotoworld.com/player/nfl/1517/dwight-freeney"]Dwight Freeney[/URL] and [URL="http://www.rotoworld.com/player/nfl/3941/elvis-dumervil"]Elvis Dumervil[/URL] at bay, something quarterback [URL="http://www.rotoworld.com/player/nfl/4677/joe-flacco"]Joe Flacco[/URL]’s thankful for.
“ I think it’s a pretty solid group we have up there right now,” Flacco said. “Bryant’s fresh, playing quick and moving well. And obviously, with his stature out there, he’s a big, strong guy.
“It gives us five really good talents up there and they’re playing well together.”
That it happened when perhaps their most talented player had to beg his way out of the doghouse makes it that much more impressive.
The QB gets more time to throw and the running backs have room to run? Amazing how that leads to wins. Less to do with who's calling the plays and more to do with execution. A lot of the same plays being called, just being executed better. Everyone is happy Cam's gone. Doesn't make Caldwell a great OC.
Caldwell went 1-2 as an OC in the regular season. Then they make the o-line changes, and everyone plays better. Hmmm, I wonder what was the key to their recent success.
Are we also discounting the impact Ray Lewis has had on this team in the playoffs as and the resulting motivation?
Here comes the BOOM!
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