I think he is a pretty good owner. Although, as a season ticket holder I won't be able to afford to go to the games much longer. The prices are getting out of hand.

Steve Biscotti absolutely belongs in the discussion for NFL top owners. The same qualities that made him successful enough to purchase the Ravens are clearly evident as he executes his role as owner. He surrounds himself with quality people and lets them do their job. He trusts them and they trust him.

We hear the phrase, "best chance to win" quite a bit in sports and especially in the NFL. Brian Billick used it alot. However after the 2007 season, I have a feeling that phrase just might have crossed Biscotti's mind and he concluded that Billick did not give this team the best chance to win. So he made a difficult and expensive decision. He also built "The Castle," which I'm certain helps bring in free agents.

I don't think Peter Angelos' ravaging of the O's over the last decade-plus adds or subtracts to the perception of Biscotti doing a great job. It certainly provides a very close (geographically and sentimentally) example of contrast. But Biscotti has earned his distinction, so has Angelos.

A dozen losing season?
A owner who could care less, win or lose.
Can there be a lower evaluation for the more than deserving Peter AngeLOSE?

Bisciotti seems to be outstanding to me. And, I couldn't agree more with Angelos being the WORST owner in baseball. I can remember when the O's were a great team, fun to watch, and the stadium was packed EVERY game. He destroyed all that in a very short time. I couldn't name one player on that team now.

He's pretty good- very personable. Letting Jim Leonhard get away is going to come back and bite him on the butt though. The kid was all Raven.

He pulled the trigger when he needed to. and didn't interfere afterwards.
good owner.

PS... he kinda dropped the ball on Lorenzo Neal too. Neal is who allowed McClain to be so effective as a running back. Having McClain return to fullback duties will negatively impact the running game I believe.

They must have recently edited this, because I read this yesterday and it said "He showed guts in firing Super Bowl-winning coach Brian Billick and his entire staff [midway through] the disappointing ['06] season and replacing him with hard-nosed John Harbaugh."

Biscotti should have been number 3 behind NE and Pitt owners, but SI was right on the mark with Angelos. Hopefully P.A will read SI's article. The problem is, instead of looking in the mirror, he'll probably sue SI.

Hmmm. Dadiv, do you really think Bisciotti is responsible for letting Leonard and O'Neil move on to other teams? One of the qualities that makes him such a capable and respected owner is that he allows his "football people" to make "football decisions." He does not meddle like Angelos, who is reviled in Balt. and listed as the worst owner in baseball. Which type would you rather have?

David J - If there were no salary cap, I think Neal and Leonard would be there. Bottom line though is that one of the reasons they ranked Bisciotti high is that he lets his front office pick the players and let's the coaches coach. He is hands off with respect to those issues. If he thinks the ship is heading in the wrong direction, he will change it. But he does not meddle in the day to day affairs. He let's his people do their jobs. This is something that it appears Angelos has just learned recently with McPhail.

To David J,

"The Biscuit" doesn't handle personnel matters. That's "The Wizards" job. That is one of the primary differences between Bisciotti and Angelos; putting the best people in place to do their job and then staying out of their way.

PS I will have to respectfully disagree with your assesment of personnel and agree with Ozzie's moves this off season. If your train of thought was more like Bisciotti's, you would realize that Ozzie probably has just a little bit more insight about the team personnel than you.

In Ozzie & Steve We Trust!

On another note:

To Neil B,

I feel your pain being a fellow season ticket holder from Day 1. The every other year raise in prices hurts (along with raising beer prices every year). However, one bit of advice...

It's all about priorities! The kids can eat next week...

Yeah Bisciotti is a very good owner, top notch facilities and he leaves the business to Ozzie as it should be. That's what Angelos should've been doing all along!

PS... he kinda dropped the ball on Lorenzo Neal too. Neal is who allowed McClain to be so effective as a running back. Having McClain return to fullback duties will negatively impact the running game I believe.

Ozzie makes the personnel decisions, not the owner. SB just signs the paychecks.

Furthermore, Lo Neal was brought in to support a young O-line that was not expected to do as well as it did last season. Drafting Oher made not resigning Lo Neal justifiable. McClain benefited from McGahee not showing up in shape last season and injuries throughout the season. Moving McClain back to his natural position makes sense and it frees up a roster spot. However it is nice to know McClain is multi-faceted and can be used in a pinch if McGahee or Ray Rice is lost due to an injury. I think the running game will be fine next season- it's not a big of a concern as the WR situation.

Mr. Biscotti has taken over a management group put together by the previous owner and continued to be consistent . His strength is he listens to his management team and makes apprpriate decisions not involving personnel. While the Orioles and Mr. Angelos have suffered for years the hiring of Andy MacPhail and letting him run the baseball operation is brilliant. The team has young stars as noted last night on Baseball tonight Adam Jones and Nick Markakis [ who is signed long term ] are 2 of the best players in the game. The bloggers who complain about ticket prices should check out orioles.com . Dollar for dollar the Orioles are the best entertainment value in town. Tuesdays Upper Reserve are $8 plus adults get a t-shirt. You can not go to the movies with a popcorn for $8. I always remark that I get 4 baseball tickets for less than 1 Ravens ticket. When the" I will only watch a winning team crowd "shows up I will have had the pleasure of watching this team build into a winner. Ravens fans understand they want the Pittsburg fans in their park not ours. To turn over Camden Yards to the arrogant crowds from New York and Boston, as Charlie Eckman used to say " a right guy wouldn't do that"

Dominic, I read that yesterday too... that's one reason cnnsi.com will always play second fiddle to espn.com.

Leonhard had to go. The Jets offered him starter money and the staff here evaluated Landry as the superior player and you can't pay over two million to a guy to return punts and play backup strong safety unless you want to be like the Redskins

Having the Orioles next door certainly helps Bisciotti. The Ravens have yet to win a super bowl under his ownership and he ranks 5th. That may be lofty. If the Ravens were in New England next to the Red Sox, or even in St Louis with the Cardinals, then Bisciotti would not be ranked that high. Although I do think he is a good owner.

the rooneys the best??...the best STEROIDS at the cheapest price maybe.......they are pathetic.......

I think he's been good, he trusts his people and lets them do their job without interfering.

I'm not sure how much influence he had with letting Leonhard and Neal go. I think it was more cap limitations and the decision was more Ozzie's than Bisciotti's.

On an off topic: Anyone see the Tom Curran's blog on MSNBC regarding Holmgren wanting to return? He makes this bozo statement: "It's tough to forecast where the openings will emerge before the 2009 season begins but there could be openings in Buffalo, Jacksonville, Houston, Carolina, Minnesota, Chicago, Baltimore, Dallas and Cincinnati depending on how things go in those cities."

Baltimore????????

http://blogs.nbcsports.com/home/archives/2009/05/destinations-for-holmgren.html

Modell did a fine job as Ravens' owner, also. Bisciotti deserves to be ranked among the top.

As for Angelos, I wouldn't say he's the worst for one reason - he does want to win. Since 1996 and 1997, he's gone about things the wrong way (seems to have finally learned his lesson), but it wasn't because he didn't care. Does he belong in the bottom tier due to results? Absolutely.

Mr Bisciotti is the man! And to those criticizing him for "letting" Leonhard and Neal get away, I mean, you can't keep everybody? The depth at safety the Ravens have is uncanny and we are younger and more versatile at fullback.

Congrats Mr. Bisciotti, I can't wait for you to become a multiple Super Bowl winning owner.

Good Luck Ravens!

Steve Bisciotti's the best. His work in the community goes both unheralded and unknown, but he and his family do more than their share to make things better for people!!
Deserves every accolade he gets!!

I was traveling with the owner of another MLB franchise a couple of years ago and I asked him what he thought of PA. In so many words, he said that he is the most disliked owner in the league.

Biscotti is great and may one day go down as one of the all time best. He treats the players well and is willing to do what it takes to win. He is all "Bawlmer".

The mark of a good owner is he lets people do the job they were hired to do! He lets his football guys make the football decisions so he did not let anyone go.

Besides Im sorry Jim Leonard was good, but he is not better then Dwan Landry as a SS. I really dont think the Ravens will miss a beat without him.

Ravens let Leonhard go because they have a guy name Dawan Landry coming back who is a monster. Leonhard had a nice year for us but Landry is better. i guess everyone will jump on that bandwagon when the season starts. And Bisciotti is a greate owner, he spends money, he wants to win, he cares about winning what more can you ask for as a fan?

and im not even going to bash the o's.
but i agree that Angelos could be the wrost owner in baseball. he has been better to his cradit letting mcphail run the show. when there young players come up everyone will jump on that bandwagon too.

First of all, the Ravens made Jim Leonhard, not the other way around. Second, Loreinzo Neal is almost 40 years old. FORTY!

No doubt, Bisciotti is an outstanding owner. But to denigrate Peter Angelos as the worst owner in baseball is very unfair. Yeah, too many people are comparing the two local owners and that has cost Mr. Angelos big time. I can assure you that he is NOT the worst owner in MLB.

mr.bisciotti should try to emulate the
kind of owner caroll rosenbloom was
he was very proud of owning a team in
baltimore and treated the fans and the
players like gold. steve has an opportunity to be the kind of owner in
this era..go for it and good luck with
the Ravens

Under Bisciotti the Ravens have all the right people in all the right places and he lets them do their job. They are competitive every year, they know how to work the salary cap, have a first class practice facility, work the draft well and have great public relations. Bisciotti inherited a good franchise and made it great, he deserves it.

Under Angelos the Orioles have had the revolving door of management many who were not baseball people. They have not been competitive in a long time, still can not find an adequate spring training facility, have had a minor league system in a shambles and inconsistant public relations. Angelos inherited a good franchise and made it worse, as of now he deserves it. Angelos will come out of the cellar when the Orioles finally do.

Angelos the worst? I guess that would be true if you were an Oriole fan.

However, whatever happened to those great Pirate teams? They haven't been to the playoffs for 17 years. And they don't play in the AL East.

Anyone remember those great Royal teams? George Brett and his crew?
They haven't been to the playoffs since 1985 and they don't play in the AL East.

Don't tell me they weren't great teams with great fans. I couldn't even name their owners now.

So please don't tell me that the Orioles and their fans have been worse off than anyone else in MLB. That's just bogus.

Shut up about Jim Leonard, he was nothing with the bills and became something with the Ravens. He will be nothing with the jets or will end up injured because of his lack of size. Biscotti has it going on and is very easy to talk too. What NFL owner pumps his own gas on the way to the beach????

Mr. Bisciotti's ranking is well deserved. But he did get lucky when the Dallas guy turned down the job, and he than turned to Coach Harbaugh. Harbaugh and his coaching staff deserve the lions share of the credit for the Raven success. Bisciotti's firing of Billick was a dead on perfect owner decision. As a Baltimore sports fan since '54 I must say last years Raven season was as exciting and unexpected as almost any in my memory. "58-'59 Colts thru '71 and the Birds '66 thru '83 still most treasured but the Ravens are biting at their heals. Looking forward to what this up comming season brings. The Baltimore Ravens last year put Baltimore back on a positive (good hard nosed quality football akin to the ole Baltimore Colts) note for all the Nation to see. Quite a accomplishment in just one year, and that starts at the top. Thanks Mr. Bisciotti. Least we forget the Oz. Can't forget Ozzie. Another owner great decision. When Bisciotti fired Billick I was one of the idiots screaming for Ozzie's head. Good thing Mr. Bisciotti running the team rather than me.

Of course Angelos falls to that distinction, Hes a lawyer after all.

Angelos is a lawyer. He is best at winning arguments. Dragging them out longer earns money and wins the argument. Steve built a business and competed in the market place. He is a master of problem solving, performance evaluation, and decision making. A huge difference in perspective.