Is this Banks guy from SI an idiot? How has ONE obviously overrated, unprepared puppet of an OC turning down a lucrative HC job in Baltimore an embarrassment? Who are the others he's implying that would make it "several swings and misses"?
Sounds like a Raven hater to me...entitled to your opinion Banks, but you are the embarrassment if you ask me.

I wouldn't describe the coaching search as "embarassing".
This isn't the first time a "frontrunner" has eschewed an organization to get what they actually hoped for initially.
Garrett now gets another stint with the Cowpokes and an assurance that he will be their HC in the future.
There are still quality people out there and the Ravens will just have to find the next HC from the remaining candidates.
Indy has already indicated that Caldwell will replace Dungy, should Tony step away on Monday.
Let's see how the process plays out. There are a lot of HCs in the NFL who never carried a glitzy team title, yet are now successful HCs.
Also, I sincerely doubt that Ray or any other Ravens player will be circling the calendar for the Ravens @ Cowpokes game .
Not unless Jimmy Johnson is the next Ravens HC.......lol

Wow, this Banks guy is a genius isnt he? Lets look at young guys that are ready to step up on this team. Dawan landry, Haloti Ngata(who got snubbed for the Pro Bowl) and a bunch of young guys on the O-line who look like a solid group. Plus the reciving core has Demetrius Williams, Mark Clayton, Yamon Figurs(who is one of the best KR in the league) and Devard Darling. Bart Scott, Ed Reed and Kelly Gregg have at least 5 good seasons in them, and Heap is a threat when hes healthy. And if im correct, before Willis McGahee got injured, he was 3rd in the NFL in yards and finished 6th despite the fact he missd 2 games. And in the Draft room, the Ravens have always done an excellent job drafting talent in all the rounds. So when a team has Pro Bowl talent already, has Pro Bowl talent rising in the ranks, has a top 5 back and a top 5 defense, how exactly does this team get worse before it gets better?

randy cross and sal palantonio have both said recently on the radio that the ravens are considered one of the best franchises in the league to work for, aging team or not. they won a super bowl within their first six years, how many teams can say that? it is amazing how one bad season makes people think this is a doomed job. whoever takes over the team just needs to focus on the positives, draft well and enact some discipline. we will be fine.

Worse than 5 wins even? That is some real hatorate purple people. A.J. made all the points that anyone with a clue about football would have to conceed. The last time they had a top 10 pick they nabbed Suggs, and will get an impact player or 2 from this year pick. They have 3 QBs better than Vinny Testaverde on the roster, and none too expensive to upgrade this off season.

This kind of gives further evidence of the nation wide anti Baltimore sentiment in the sports media. Baltimore Raven football players say less nonsense to the media than the Bungles do. They have radio shows, so they share opinoins, but they are not lazy inmates running an insane assylum, like an awful lot of intellegent pro writers like to claim. What is that? There is a difference between being outspoken and undiciplined. The whole notion rubs me the wrong way. The negative perception that Ray evokes when he tells a reporter he needs a big blocker in front of him to be most effective, (just like any running back), did not exist when Brady said I need some playmakers at WR. Favre acts like he owns the Packers. When is the last time you heard one of those chuckle head reporters mention Ray Lewis without saying "he is slowing down" or is a "shell of his former self", or some other really wrong dis. You really have not be watching him play and almost have to be blind and ignorant to the stadium announcers voice as he keeps saying Ray's name at the end of almost every 2.8 ypc run play.

Marty has not won in the playoss because he wears his players out before they start. He is a good coach, but he is much more stubborn than Billick, and wrong more often. The Ravens, and more improtantly the fans, players and bloggers, it seems, since that is where all the news is coming from, Should start talking more about Dennis Green than Marty. The Ravens have had trouble developing QBs, Denny has not. The Ravens have had trouble drafting Wrs, Denny has drafted (Moss, Fitzgerald, Boldin) or revived the carreer (Carter) of some of the best of all time.

Someone out there has got to feel me on the Denny Green thing. The press conferences alone would be worth it for a year or two. C'mon. How can you not love that guy?

Banks is trying hard to write an edgy article about a mundane situation. Simply put, a young coach had some doubts about becoming a head coach at this time. No other person turned down an offer from the team. No big deal. The Ravens have one of the best front office systems in the game and they will take the same philosophy the team takes when someone leaves or goes down - "Next man up." Go write about another team, Banks. The Ravens don't need your witless and baseless imaginings of a nonexistant problem.

The team will definately get worse before they get better. For one you have to look at the number of malcontents in the locker room -- Ray lewis, Bart Scott, Ed reed, CMAC, T. Suggs (hopefully he's gone soon), Mason, etc. Then you have to look at the fact that the young guys on the O-Line still haven't proved themselves to be consistent at all yet. Then look at the fact that we still don't know who our QB is/will be. Or how about the WR position? Terrible! None of those guys are legit playmakers (maybe Mark Clayton as a 3rd receiver). Heap can't stay healthy, Mason caught 100 balls but most were 3 yard comeback routes, Demetrius couldn't catch when he was healthy, Darling was a nobody until injuries and he still can't catch, same for Figurs. McGahee is a decent back, but I don't see him as the type of guy that will hold up getting 25+ touches a week (where was he in Buffalo after the TD? Getting IVs in the locker room). Plus look at the fact that we have ONE legit pass rushing threat in Trevor Pryce, he's 35 and injury prone. When he's not out there the pass rush vanishes. IMHO the best thing for this team would be a good old fashioned HOUSE CLEANING.

Anyone who thinks the Ravens are "an old team" isn't paying attention. There are 2-3 spots that need attention: 1) Cornerback - Rolle is on his way out and we still need a better nickel back than Ivy. 2) Quaterback - unless Troy Smith surprises the vast majority of America, we need a QB badly. 3) Possibly tight end, since I don't think Heap has much left in the tank.

At every other position we have talented guys who will most likely be in the league for at least another 5 years. We'll lose Ogden, Ray Ray, Mason, and Flynn, but we have capable young guys ready to step up for each of them. Ogden & Ray can't be replaced from a talent & leadership standpoint, but we definitely have NFL-quality guys who can play those positions.

It's obvious Banks writes for reaction and doesn't care if his words are accurate. "Several swings and misses" is just an out and out lie. Later he states that Ray Lewis is Bisciotti's new best friend. How does that relate to the article or make sense even it were true....which it isn't. SI is supposed to be a respected magazine. I have no clue how they could employ someone who just makes things up ti write an article. It's actually disgusting.

A couple points. First on Banks. I have always found him to be pretty spot on with regard to the Ravens. He does not have an agenda like the guys on ESPN (Len P) do. However, this column seemed completely out of line with that and I wonder if someone in the organization ticked him off or if he was buddies with Billick because this was a total shot on the organization.

Second, the same thing happened with Michigan when they did not replace Lloyd Carr right away. Everyone said the search was an embarassment and they could not find anyone that wanted the job. They ended up with what most people believe was an excellent hire.

In any search you are going to start by shooting for the stars. The Ravens probably knew Cowher and Ferentz were not going to take a job, but what is the harm of asking. The idea about trading picks for Marvin was an absurd idea that Preston floated in a column and unless I am mistaken, he did not attribute it to any source in the organization. He was suggesting it as his own idea.

The bottom line is everyone watches these coach searches so closely now that any movement or lack thereof is blown out of proportion. Maese writes a column today saying the Ravens were lying when they said Harbaugh was the backup plan because they did not have him in yesterday. Yet the truth of the matter is Ozzie was at the Sr. bowl and due back today.

Everyone needs to calm down and let the process work itself out. When a hire is made, then it is news. Until then, it's all speculation.

Lets face the truth, no QB's, WR's worth a dam, TE's always hurt , old linebackers and only half a decent starting secondary. We don't even want to think about the second string players. We need Marty for 2-3 years, he's the only one who could get away with kicking butt. A young coach wouldn't have a chance with the "OLD" players the Ravens have.

I think the Ravens jumped the gun on firing Billick this year. His offense was lame, but at least people can no longer blame him for the lack of top tier talent on offense. Ozzie waited 5 years too late to start upgrading the o-line and it is clear he has problems identifying offensive players. Meanwhile all of the $$ is wrapped up on defense and we barely have enough cap space to sign rookies. We need someone like Marty who can come in and shake things up before we start rebuilding.

I really wish people would stop the Marty bandwagon. He has worn out his welcome in every situation he has been a head coach. He hires all of his sons and is so rigid in every decision that he drives a wedge between himself and the fans and players. He has a winning record but he has also never coached a team that did not have great talent. The ravens would have a pretty good year under him and after next season we would tired of his pigheadedness and his typical playoff failure and we will be calling for a new coach.

Here is an idea, a fresh start with someone with energy and the burning desire at a first shot as a head coach. No retreads. No "old school" nostalgia (notice no 'old school' coaches are winning anymore) and no more falling for people that are the 'flavor of the day' because Skeletor Jerry Jones created a myth about them.

Hire John Harbaugh and surround him with great coaches and lets play the game.

Why are so many people calling for Marty Ball here?

Last year they had LT, Gates, Neal, more health and better players on defense. Cam Cameron, Phillips, and all the fly fans in the stands, and they still got beat in the first playoff game, again like they always do under Marty, because they were out of gas by then.

Norv Turner had a way worse record and rep than Billick, and is coaching the pants off Marty Ball with the same team, even though they are much more beat up. They are not ground down by OK drills and record setting TDs and rushing titles. Oh and if you think he is going to come in here and kick Ray's butt, LT did not even suit up for pre season games under him or Norv. He is not an idiot, he is not going to try to diss off his best players.

Don't get me wrong, I like him, and would settle for him for a year or two, but not over Rex Ryan. Or Dennis Green.
Dennis Green always had a good offense, his only problem was getting a great defense to go with it. Just like Dungy, he can take over a team and coach up the problem side of the ball.
I can't think of any of his teams that were not high scoring, even when they did not have a running game or good QB.
The guy never deserved to get fired in Minnesota, that was suspect at best. The AZ stint was the worst job in football when he took over. They had the worst offense in football, and were actually worse than the Bungles. He did not exactly turn them into champs, but he turned them into a dangerous team and a pre season contender.
The Ravens have good young talent on offense. If Denny can get the NFL record for points with Randall when no one wanted him, he can get to the playoffs and be a factor with a healthy McNair or one of the veteran back ups that will shake loose in free agency.
There are plenty of roster moves that can be made to turn a talented and injured loser, into a reloaded contender. There is arguably much more talent coming back on this squad than the one in 2000, that got a shot in the arm by drafting Jamal and signing Sharpe and Siragusa.
There really is no credible argument that makes any sense what so ever that there is a lack of talent here, or the front office is prone to making a bunch of mistakes. Look at the ratings of the players by objective sources like scouts inc. and Madden football even. Guys like Nagta and Grubbs are going to be dominating the game for a long time. The sleepers like Gaither and Brown are going to be better than average next year. I am not sure about Chester, but linemen typically take about 3 years to get NFL strong and he was light to begin with. Same thing with Terry, he has looked soft and suspect at times especially at RT, but pretty solid and confident at pass protection at least at LT.
There is no doubt they lack a dynamic WR that demands double coverage, but when they had Heap on the field teams could not roll coverage and we got a lot of favorable match ups. This stuff happened just one season ago people.
It can happen again. You all saw the Patriot game. You all noticed the 13-4 disparity in penalties and the last second miracle drive that saved the perfect season. The same group of players with just C-Mack and Rolle back in the mix, took the worlds great es team to the brink, and in my mind put an asterisk next to the 0.
Come on Sheil. Tell me I am wrong. Why no Denny Green talk? You edit my lingo so what is your take? Don't be mad just because I crushed down your picks all season long.

great post by J I AGREE 100%

Coaches who have now turned the ravens down...

Mcdaniels
browns offensive coordinator
caldwell
garrett
cowher

banks article is dead on.

Draft the best 2 available corners with the first 2 picks and use the next 2 on the best available ofensive lineman...the defensive team speed will exceed the 2000 team and with the rock solid run defense and the development of Barnes and Jones they will kick any teams a** especially the stealers and the 67.5 miilon $ dallas hollywood heart throbs lead by offensive coordinator howdy doody/alfred e neuman/mannequin..trust me ....dont blow a top pick on a QB superhype waste...[.see Brady. ] or [see Alex Smith] [Tim Couch ]Etc.......you gambled on the coach dont gamble on the pick's.

Terrible post by J. Dennis Green??? Are you kidding me? I like how you give him credit for being "preseason contenders." Hmmmm. If you're a preseason contender but then stink it up that year then the coach must be a failure. To be a "preseason contender" means you have the players assembled to have a good team, therefore not winning means the coach is a failure.

Well Denny is not getting the job, but I would love to see him on the staff or front office. Like I said about him and you can look it up, he had a great record in Minnesota. The whole AZ experience was not bad. They were the worst team in football, he brought in a whole lot of talent. They have at least 11 guys that would start on almost any team. They may have not met the inflated expectations, but they were in contention this year, and should be pretty good next year.

Man, I wish I read Don Banks' article before I took this "pathetic" job.

I agree with Banks totally. It looks as if somewhere along the way ravens fans have lost all sense of objectivity. Ravens fans can't seem to be able to separate reality from perception. I understand being a fan and cheering for your team, but I also respect a fan who is honest and objective about his/her team. Anyone who watches football and understands the game, can not deny that this team has been living on it's reputation for 7yrs. The ravens are nothing more than a band of bullies, who would love to take your lunch money, and intimidate you at every turn. Once teams decided that they were going to stand up to the ravens (playoff loss to Tenn. in 03) that aura of invincibility was taken away. The league has adapted to want the ravens do, and the ravens have never adapted to the league. This team has been going south since 2004. The perception has been that the ravens are one of the BETTER teams in the league, how unture. would you call a team that goes 9-7, 6-10 13-3 and 5-11 a GOOD OR ELITE TEAM? PLEASE.
My goodness this team went over a year without winning a game on the road, elite team? I think not. This team has aging players all over the team, an offensive line that is unproven, an offense that is offensive, no answer at QB, rec. that avg. under 10 yds. a catch, and I almost forgot, the players run the team. Take off the purple glasses, and smell the coffee. Blow this team up, and start over.

J / Jeremiah, liked them there posts...