No. Apart from being injured more often, I don't have the sense Penningtion has done that much better than Boller over the years. As for Flacco, I think we should treat him like most people around here advocate treating Hayden Penn, Olson, Liz, Billy Rowell or any other promising prospect who doesn't immediately produce--cut him now and spare ourselves the misery. Obviously I am joking, but anyone who concludes anything from the couple of shots Flacco got last night, other than that he's got a lot to learn, is nuts. Did anyone hear the announcer's comment about Boller being rated among the bottom of quarterbacks last year, albeit ahead of one particularly notable one--Eli Manning. Some people advocated running him out of NY. Good thing they didn't.

Not to change the subject, but you said you would weigh in on the Don't Be a Jerk discussion later and to remind you if you didn't. I'd be curious to hear your thoughts on the so-called NFL hypocrisy and the need, if there is one, to further restrict alcohol sales. Thanks. Enjoying the blog.

oh man. not the ravens.

cya!

unreadable.

I haven't seen Pennington play recently, but he was a better quarterback than anyone we have at this point. He is certainly better than Boller has shown to be so far. Smith, & Flacco are still prospects. in the words of Elrod Hendricks "Prospects are Suspects until proven otherwise"
I think Pennington is a winner!

Peter, with the offensive line problems that the ravens have they could bring in Joe Montana in his prime and it wouldn't make a difference. With that said boller was head and shoulders better then what was shown by the rest of our Qb's last night.He came out with 5 straight good passes and moved us right down the field,I still didn't like the fumble and the interceptions but with cam and a healthy heap he will be the best that we have. It will take flacco a very long time to get adjusted in this league.

schmuck had better to impress himself with his limited knowledge. better yet see wbal they might be looking for you. pih

Pennington can't throw a good ball over 20 yards. Pass on the rag arm

The team has resolved itself to a rebuilding year...as a result, we get one of the three QBs already in uniform...ugh.

No. We could have used him last year when his powerful arm would have been perfect for the Brian Billick special 5 yard out patterns that so dominated our offensive game plan. I think we may try to go downfield more often this year and I don't know if Chad can throw it over 25 yards.

Perfect.Pennington is exactly what the Ravens need, a 32 year old, oft-injured, immobile quarterback, who couldn't beat out Kellen Clemens for the starting job in New York.Let's face it, whoever starts the season at QB for the Ravens (presuming it's Boller or Smith) is just keeping the seat warm until Flacco is ready later in the season, so why go out and get someone from outside the organization just to start the season.Stick with Boller or Smith until Flacco is ready.

I do not think anything looked particularly good last night except for the score. I think Flacco had some first game jitters. He did not go in until the fourth quarter which makes it difficult to get up to game speed sometimes. And of course the offensive line was collapsing around him as soon as he got the football.

Peter Schmuck is right on when he mentions the offensive line--no q even johnny U could be expected to play well behind that line --and who is the deep threat that will make the def. lines play less than an 8 men fronts against us. Farve in a radio interview in Fl laughed at the idea of coming to Balto. "no line to protect me and wno am i throwing deep to." i'm afraid whoever is q will have a hard time.

"Which brings us to a question that me, Steve Davis and Michael McCrary discussed last night on the WBAL postgame show:"

What happened to your sense of grammar here, Peter?

No leave our young QB's alone we tried the Veteran approach with
Mcnair with no success. They will get better with this new Offense. Once this offensive line gels watch out.

Definitely. You know what you have in Boller (not much), Smith would be your best option, and Flacco is not ready yet.

No. No. No. Chad Pennington is not the answer. I'm not a Boller fan, but we need to start either Boller or Smith and take our lumps this year. By the end of the year Flacco will be ready. Pennington would be a distraction from our true goal and that is to find out if T. Smith is any good and to develop Flacco

Pete, your new profile photo is better than the old full-length one that made you look like Rodney Daingerfield. Judging from last night's performance, the Ravens are in for a long year at QB. But it's still too early to judge. At present, we've got three mediocre QB's, so why pick up Pennington? Then we'd have four.

After watching last night. We are in a HEAP of trouble with the QB position. I still cant figure out why Boller is still in a RAVEN uniform. Smith not any better.

No.

I don't think the Ravens should even think of dealing for Pennington. He is not a huge improvement to what the Ravens have now.

Pennington is clearly not the answer. He has a history of injuries and would have an offensive line that is adjusting to life without Jonathan Ogden. It would be an accident waiting to happen (Sorry for the cliche'. I know sportswriters never use them.)

It is too late to look a QB from outside sources now. Let's see if Cam Cameron can work miracles with the QBs we have.

Why go after Pennington when you could have went after Favre? We have 3 unproven QBs for the year and we let one of the all time best QBs slip away. It would have been a great year in Bmore if we got Favre and know we want to pick up another should of, could of been great QB.

NO! NO! NO!

Chad Pennington would just be an unwanted distraction. But Flacco had the pocket awareness of a cigar-store statue! He actually made Boller look good!

Peter,

I think last night proved to us that we are STILL in need of a true 1st string QB. Ozzie better qet on the horn and make are real effort at bringing in Chad Pennington. Granted, Chad is not the answer for the team's long term future but he'll do much better that any of these clowns (Boller/Troy) until Flacco comes around.

Also I say the Ravens should consider trading "I want Dwight Freeney money" Suggs, for a stud OT. I think we can make that kind of sacrifice on the Defense, in order to help out that awful ofensive line. If not, we'll be down to our 3rd string QB by the 3rd game.

The Ravens should not go for Pennington under any circumstances. He has no arm strength whatsoever and Cameron likes to stretch the field. What would be the point in bringing him in anyway? We already have one washed up former first rounder.

NO I don't think Chad is a Raven type guy. I would like to have seen how well the guy we let go would have done, (Roache) I think his name was?
Bottom line I think the team is in the right direction as is.

Peter--
We aiready have a Chad Pennington or 2.

why? we already have 1 Kyle Boller why get 2? Chad Pennington shouldn't even be considered. we need a veteran, honestly McNair kind of screwed us by retiring, the plan was for him to be here long enough to groom Smith, well now we have boller to groom smith and flacco. If the ravens were smart they would have made a bid for Farve to come in, play and show flacco and smith the ropes.

Without a doubt, the RAVENS should be trying to get Pennington. Besides the 49ers and Dolphins, the Ravens QB situation is presently a joke and not very experienced.

In addition to a third string offensive line, he also had third (if not fourth) string receviers to work with as well. I wouldn't start worrying about Flacco until he struggles with players around him that are actually going to make the team.

Pennington is a stop-gap option. He hasn't shown any sort of durability and lacks the arm strength necessary to make the big throws.

On the other hand though, this offense is not built around the long throw, and he has been known to be a true leader in the huddle.

The grass is always greener....

No!! We already have three (count them) 3 fair quarterbacks we don't need a fourth!!!!

Pennington isn't someone I would pursue. He has more poise than Boller, and he's been thru a lot in his career. But my friend's two-year-old son has a stronger arm. There's a lot more that goes into being an NFL QB than a strong arm, but an arm as weak as Pennington's is a liability. I'd rather we take our chances with the guys on our roster.

After that showing by all 3 QBs last night, I'd be looking really hard for a veteran.

I watched second half of the game. I thought that Troy kept a lot of plays alive that neither of the other QB's would've. It will be interesting to see how he does with the 1's. He did look bad on those swing passes.

Flacco looked over matched. First game so I take no real stock in it. I hope to see marked improvement in the next game that he plays.

It will be more interesting to see who starts game number 3 since that is the game 1 dress rehearsal.

My opinion is "no". Why bring in yet another QB who'd be a decent backup but a disappointing starter. I mean how many of these kind of QB's are there in the league now. We have 3 of that "type" right now (although Flacco and Smith still have time to progress...Boller is a lost cause), and that's plenty. I mean who would Pennington replace that would be that much of an upgrade, taking into account he'd also have to learn a brand new offense in an abbreviated amount of time. To me, that's a move that even if the cost would be minimal, it'd be too much. Where's the upside? Where's the improvement? Maybe I'm wrong, but if I'm Newsome, I'm not even thinking about Pennington. If they want to spend some money or give up picks for players, use it on someone who will fill some of the other holes on the team that need depth or an upgrade. Just my 2 cents.

No. We are so jaded with our QB situation we think just about anybody would be better than what we have. The fact is, Pennington disappointed the Jets (who haven't exactly been a great team), was embroiled in a QB controversy with Kellen Clemens (yes, THAT Kellen Clemens), and is coming off shoulder surgery. Adding Pennington would only confuse the situation.

Do not get Pennington, he is not the long term answer.

Let's be honest, our third string tackles are starting. Lord only knows from what depths of the practice squad those tackles protecting Flacco came. That is just another reason why he won't be starting in the forseeable future: he'd get detroyed out there, as would Chad Pennington.

Flacco, I thought, was flaccid.

Please, no Chad Pennington. We need to take our lumps with the guys we have and build for the long term. Another washed up QB will only stifle the development of Smith and Flacco.

The time to sign a stopgap veteran QB was in 2003, but the Offensive Genius decided to throw Boller in there as a rookie. That decision has really cost this franchise the past 5 years.

Pennington? Are you kidding me, that kid is all heart but NO arm. I say we take our chances with Troy at least he can run his way out of trouble if things breakdown.

Heck yeah the Ravens should be in the mix for Pennington! Boller proved that he still can't protect the ball, Smith proved he's nothing more then a backup and Flacco proved that he's a wide eyed rookie that will need more time to mature. Bring in Pennington, who may not have the strongest arm, but can manage the game effectively and give the Ravens a chance to finish with a respectable record.

Pennington? He has no arm. Good decisions, no arm. Wasn't that Harbaugh's brother when he was here, good leader, no arm?

Sounds like you have the Anita Marks Syndrome.... It's a freaking practice game...... Let's talk baseball !

Don't be a "SHMUCK", Schmuck!

Peter-Peter-Peter... :-|
I hope this is just an inquiry to find out how many idiotic Raven fans there are?
Are you seriously asking if the Ravens should consider Chad Pennington?...even after all of the same controversy regarding Favre?

The only answer is NO!!!!!

Boller had two drops. If they had been caught, he would have been 13 for 15. It seems we didn't watch the same game.

I think that Chad may help the team, but we are rebuilding. We should still try to keep some consistency with the team. I actually agree that we could easily get away with trading Suggs. I personally feel as though he can definitely put a lot of pressure on QBs at times, and he is a beast, but we have alternatives. Our O line needs an anchor. But, we should just try to get draft picks for Suggs. Send him to a contender, and unfortunately, we may compete in games, but at the end of the season, we will be out of contention.

Side note, I think we are starting to realize Phil Savage was a more intricate decision maker in building a Super Bowl team than some think. Why do we keep drafting QBs???? Flacco will probably develope at the same pace as the last succesful QB from Delaware. (Gannon). That didnt take long :)

Completly agree on Flacco, he'll need this year to shift into NFL gear, he'll develop but there is no point in forcing him too early, he's not that close and Smith can be a very good leader, has very good feet, which he'll need with the left tackle situation. This Oline is a year away, until they are better Flacco gets killed! Ultimately he has the arm and the head but not yet. Pennington is not much of an upgrade, he'd just serve to confuse the situation and he's not very mobile either. Start Smith and groom Flacco, we can win now with that combination and a great Defense.

For those of you praising Favre as someone who could groom an up and coming QB please remenber he refused to do that in Green Bay with Rodgers. Favre is not the answer. I like the idea of trading Suggs for an OT. Maybe we can package him along with a high draft pick we will get after going 5 -11.

NO WAY. It was one preseason game and our QBs were behind a 3rd string line and players who will not make the roster. Anyone who is logical knows that Boller is our starter with Smith a capable backup and possibly he can run some trick plays. Flacco will have to sit and learn.

Hey Pete, when are you going to style your hair like Stan White?

People in Baltimore can't see the forest for the trees. All 3 QBs have a new Head Coach, QB coach and Offensive Cood. Let's see how the preseason plays out before slamming any of the QB's. Kyle has only had Billick, Cavanaugh and Neuheisel. The first two have been proven to have possibly the worst O system in the history of the NFL. There are only maybe 10 teams in the NFL that can say they have their franchise QB. This team has the D and STs to be in every game. Let's hope Cam's system will help either Kyle or Troy succeed. Why should anyone care which one it is unless your their parents. We do not have the cap room for any QBs and there are none sustantially better then either one of them out there. I love Chad P when he was at Marshal but he is a shell of what he was. Flacco should not see the field this year. It's preseason and in a few weeks our record will be the same as everyone elses 0-0. Let's give the new system and team a chance. I like what I saw last night in regards to O system. It was night and day from last years offense.Our D is going to KO some teams.

Let's compare Flacco's first pass (Incomplete) to Unitas's first pass (Completion for Touchdown)....no comparison! Oops.......it was to the Bears secondary for an interception AND a touchdown. Good thing we didn't cut him the next day.......

Im running the risk of sounding completely insane to most of my fellow ravens fans but, I LIKE Kyle Boller, yes he screws up at times, he also looks damn good at times, hes a damn tough guy for taking a pounding time after time and being critizised by baltimore fans. I hope honestly he wins the job and is this years derek anderson, then he leaves signs a big deal with a club and sticks it to every person in baltimore thats ever doubted him, honestly hes our best option right now, Flacco should be treated like Palmer and Culpepper were and have him sit out the year, Troy Smith is a pretty athletic guy and can scramble, but hes seen action three times! and the game he looked "great" in or so everyone thinks it was a against a Banged up steelers defense and team led by CHARLIE BATCH and NAJEH DAVENPORT! I think given the same time frame he would make just as many mistakes as boller. kyle has more expierence so go with him,were not a superbowl favorite this year, so just realize it might be like the orioles this year and were told were supposed to be bad, and Just MAYBE we will suprise some people. Maybe kyle will suprise all you haters, if not hes gone this year and you cut your ties....Testaverde#12,Zeier#15, Harbaugh#4, Richardson#14, Banks#12, Case#10, Mitchell#19, Dilfer#8, Redman#7, Grbac#18, Cunningham#1, Blake#11, Wright#2, Boller#7, Stewart#10, Mcnair#9, Smith#10, Thats Every Qb The Ravens Have Ever Started Or has Played a Signifigant role in one, Besides Testaverde, no ones made the probowl. Culpepper and Palmer Sat Out there first years and it took them 1 and 2 years respectively to make the pro bowl.....im just sayin take the lumps if there are some with Boller and wait for Flacco.....Heck maybe we will have a Anderson Vs. Quinn Controversy next year ! lol...
Bleeding Purple, Black and Gold Forever!..#1 ravens fan!

Bringing in a quarterback from the outside would not be worth the draft picks to get him nor the time and effort it would take the coaches to teach the new guy the system.

In last night's game, I saw the Defense back to its dominating self. I also saw a huge improvement in the Special Teams units. And, I saw a professional, albeit still weak, Offensive unit.

I don't think Boller will improve that much more. I DO think Smith will improve with more in-game reps. Flacco just found out how much work is still ahead of him.

But, with our defense and the improved special teams, I think we will have a pretty good season as is usual for that combination.

Yea jon i think the fans of this town have different channels on there tv's sometimes. They do the very same thing watching the orioles. I was a boller fan up until last year when i finally said to myself enough is enough. But as you correctly stated he should have been 13 for 15 and like him or not he is head and shoulders better then what we have. You know i really believe we are victims of our enviorment, not only in real life but in sports as well. Boller just happened to be drafted by the wrong team at the wrong time.Putting him in that first year and playing for billick set this kid back tons, probably to the point of no return, but hopefully playing under cam with a entirely different approach will give him one last shot to revive his career.You already under cam saw a diiferent approach , with more screens plays run in one half then the ravens ran all year, you saw him passing on first down instead of passing when the other team knows he is going to throw. I am not going to use this forum to salavge or pick up for this kid but if the truth be told he got a very bad shake playing under billick and bad offensive coordiator's.

last night we saw what New England looks like without a franchise QB - not very good. We also saw that the Ravens are still missing this same piece. Don't blame the offensive line for Boller throwing into quadruple coverage and fumbling or for Troy Smith throwing ground balls into the flat when he wasn't pressured or Flaco at 6-5 failing to lob a ball with enough arc to get over a defensive end on a designed screen. These guys do not have "It". We all know it when we see it.

Not just no...but HELL NO!!!

OK ...no Pennigton period..and please what is all this about Kordell Stewart..OHHH I mean Troy Smith..let us remeber he slipped way down draft day and again does he really impress anyone....I have not seen much from him..ie Kordell the 2nd..OK as a season ticket holder I close my eyes and still feel our best chance at winning is with Gulp Boeller...

People, do we always have to be so negative? Despite the turnovers I thought Boller played decently. Over 100 yards, decent completion%...Smith was allusive in the pocket and made some nice throws on the run. Figurs had a good return. Brendan Oyenbadejo played well in the second half and preserved the win for us and the special teams unit might have been the best unit on the field for us...lots of things to be at least half-way excited about. All told, however, I still say Pennington would be a huge mistake. Period

Hold up one second, you mean to tell me that from one preseason game Mr Scmuck is suggesting that the Ravens look to bring in another quarterback that reportedly cannot through downfield. Explain to me why Troy Smith and to some degree Kyle Boiler are expected to look like Joe Montana with a new offensive system and a suspect offensive line. Teams get better through practice and continuity. The media and fans need to give all three of these quarterbacks time to develop in the new offensive system. You have to be kidding me. Schmuck is right about one thing, Flacco looks slow and indecisive, which means alot of sacks in his future.

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Pete's reply: I didn't suggest anything of the kind. I just threw out the question. On the postgame show, I argued against it.

pennington has no arm

We should definitely get pennington under one condition - that we can transplant his brain into boller's body.

Pennington would be night and day better than Boller. Boller has arm strength but is incapable of using it as he literally cannot hit the broad side of a barn on throws over twenty yards in the air. So what does it matter? At least Pennington isn't a turnover magnet.

One reader said that Pennington is a proven winner? How many winning seasons did he have in his 8 years with the Jets? How many playoff games did he paricipate in? No to Chad!

One reader said that Pennington is a proven winner? How many winning seasons did he have in his 8 years with the Jets? How many playoff games did he paricipate in? No to Chad!

Uh, no to Pennington. Why would we want the Jets toss-a-way? They had a worse record than we did last year, and, he's been injured almost every season for the last several years.
Smith played well with the second string. Let's see how he fares against the revamped Vikes with the starting O next week.

No to the Pennington question, and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that Harbaugh is happy with his QB selection. I don't think Pennington brings anything to the table that isn't already available to the team when the QB is well-coached and well-protected.

The Ravens have enough of their own QB issues to resolve, with none of their options a clear starter. I had some hope for Boller in the first few plays last night but he started getting panicky again. As a UD grad I'm trying to see Flacco with an unbiased eye but I didn't expect much of his NFL start behind a third-string line. I think Smith played the best of the three of them. I'd like to see Smith get the starting nod for the season, with Boller as his backup, and Flacco getting playing time and being groomed whenever the Ravens hold a comfortable fourth quarter lead. Yes, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we have some of those this year!

I have been advocating for Kurt Warner to play that short-term, veteran role for two years now. That being said, Chad Pennington has 3 or 4 good years left. On a bad day, he represents a significant upgrade at the signal-caller position - with GREAT leadership qualities.

I have been advocating for Kurt Warner to play that short-term, veteran role for two years now. That being said, Chad Pennington has 3 or 4 good years left. On a bad day, he represents a significant upgrade at the signal-caller position - with GREAT leadership qualities.

No way on Pennington. Here's a good stat... btw. Last year Boller was ranked 25th among QB's in the NFL. Guess who was 26th? Eli Manning. True story. I'm not sure where Pennington ranked, but he's not the answer in Baltimore. Give Tom Brady the line we have and I bet he would not the QB he is in New England. Put Kyle Boller in New England, and he would do a much better job with all the time in the world. One game that stands out last year where Brady was terrible, was against the Ravens. Boller had a much better game because for some reason, our two lines seemed to put on the wrong uniforms that night. A QB is only as good as the line protecting him.

Chad sucks. Don't get him

1.) Boller will always be a bowler and thats never gonna change. he sucks for life
2.)Troy is good sometimes, but most of the time, he's in accurate, and rushes passes, plus he's only a foot tall.
3.I cant believe im actaully saying this but i think Flacco is actually worse than boller. he look so slow, has no pocket presence, and his passes are so predicatable. plus he got his ball batted down, when he is 6'6. he's just terrible.
4.) WHERE IS AIR MCNAIR??? i always been a McNair fan since he came to the Ravens. im sure he wouldnt have played this bad, especially in PRESEASON. atleast last years preseason, he threw a touchdown on his first drive...also he is a veteran, former MVP, so he can be a mentor and teach Flacco some stuff...i mean seriously, who is Flacco gonna learn from? not Troy Smith who only played one year in the NFL, and DEFINITELY not Boller.

No. We have two good prospects in Smith and Flacco. Boller is better in a support role. His teammates seem to like him and he is the most experienced of the three. After all he has been through he has got to be mentally and physically tough. Let him help bring the two younger players into their own. Smith deserves a chance to get some chemistry going and it will take time if it happens at all. Also, Flacco can't be judged by his first rookie pre-season game. I like Harbaugh's approach. He's letting them all have a little taste and the best guy will be the starter. If Boller is the starter, then hopefully Smith will develop quickly enough to take over by the 3rd or 4th game. Use them as a tandem if you have to. Flacco can watch and learn until his time arrives. Regardless, Pennington does not offer enough to consider for this squad. I agree with earlier posters, the O-Line requires the attention right now.

I apologize... I did not take the time to read the previous responses; however, why would the Ravens consider Pennington when they clearly passed on the chance to get Favre? Bringing #4 to Baltimore would have made a ton of sense (remember the first year with McNair? And Favre plays 10 years younger now then McNair did then) and I am dumbfounded as to why the Ravens slept on that opportunity. Nonetheless, give me Kyle over Chad any day!

C'mon Pete, Admit that you are jealous of Stan White's new hair style!!

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Pete's reply: Goes without saying.

Pennington was nothing but a tremendous waste of money who proved all the hype and the praise was completly unwarranted ..... His worthlessness was surpased only by Boller and Grossman....Mangeniuos will be the next new york fraud to be exposed.

After the 1st pre-season game Brett Favre doesn't seem like such a bad idea now, DOES IT??.....idiots!!

Can't believe we passed on Favre. Cuz Lord knows we need our 2nd round picks for another Chris Chester bust...Stupid Idiots, passing on Favre. STUPID! STUPID!! STUPID!!! STUPID!!!! JACKA$$ES

...Hope you're all happy.

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Pete's reply: The fact that he didn't want to play here is, what, irrelevant.

.............................................................................................
Pete's reply: I guess it doesn't matter that he said publicly that he would not play for the Ravens.

Absolutely they should consider going after Pennington! He's better than Boller, who keeps reminding me of the Clint Eastwood movie, "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly" and his experience could prove invaluable in helping to prepare Flacco to take over the reins in the future. What can Flacco possibly learn from either Boller or Smith?

Boller is the only NFL quality QB on this team. Flacco is a flunko and Smith is a midget who thinks he is Joe Montana. Both will be out of the league in three years. Boller will be a champion QB in the NFL. Probably after the Ravens let him go like they did with Derek Anderson.

The Ravens should always be looking for a competitive veteran QB to help their young QB's. Because if they don't find a veteran QB, Joe Flacco is likely to end up like Boller in a few years. I can't believe this organizaton is making the same mistake twice.