HOT TAKES: Lamar The Greatest All-Time Raven?
The league’s trade deadline is less than 2 weeks away and things seem to be heating up across the league. Rumors are flying out of Los Angeles where it appears that Sean McVay and the Rams are waving the white flag on the 2024 season despite being just 1 game in the loss column out of the top spot in the NFC West.
The Rams apparently are looking to purge salary and carve out cap space for the future and they’re reportedly willing to trade star players like Matt Stafford and Cooper Kupp. You may recall that Kupp was once coveted by the Ravens during the 2017 NFL Draft. The Ravens opted to hold steady with their picks at 74 and 78 instead of moving up to get the Eastern Washington WR. The Rams moved in to get their guy with the 69th overall pick leaving the Ravens to their own devices. Ozzie Newsome turned in cards for Chris Wormley (74) and Tim Williams (78). Kupp now is connected to the Titans who just unloaded DeAndre Hopkins. Later today he’ll be a member of the Kansas City Chiefs.
BREAKING: Titans are finalizing a deal to send WR DeAndre Hopkins to the Chiefs in exchange for a 5th-round pick that can become a 4th round-pick. (via @RapSheet) pic.twitter.com/sLhv9F6JnY
— NFL (@NFL) October 23, 2024
The Rams and the the Chiefs discussed Cooper Kupp, but the Super Bowl champs needed to trade with a team that was willing to take on a large chunk of the salary and didn’t want to give up high picks. Tennessee is the team willing to play ball.
— Dianna Russini (@DMRussini) October 23, 2024
So Who Might The Ravens Trade For?
The Kansas City Chiefs represent the Goliath that the Ravens aim to take down to get to where they want to go. Patrick Mahomes has struggled this season, per Mahomes/Chiefs standards. They average 24.3 points per game which ranks 13th in the NFL. Mahomes’ passer rating is a very pedestrian 82.5 with 6 TDs and 8 INTs. But the KC defense is getting it done. Despite the offensive struggles the team is (6-0). And now they’ve added to their offense with Hopkins.
Expect the Ravens to do something and the hope is that they bolster the defense. Likely trade partners are those teams that have either determined 2024 to be a lost cause and/or they need some cleanup in the salary cap aisle and are looking to unload some future financial obligations. Some names to keep an eye on include Marshon Lattimore; Jadeveon Clowney; Za’Darius Smith; Budda Baker; and Tyrann Mathieu.
Word is that the Ravens have thrown their hat in the ring for Smith. I’m not buying it. Smith screwed the Ravens a few years ago when he reneged on a deal that GM Eric DeCosta and Smith’s agent agreed to, and then took off for Minnesota. Plus, for the Browns to save face (as if they have one left after this abysmal season), they’ll have to fleece the Ravens. EDC doesn’t play that way. My guess is that the Ravens linkage to Smith is contrived by EDC and Smith’s agent to drive up the price for some other team.
Take it to The Maxx
Maxx Crosby’s name has been bantered about by wishful thinking Ravens fans as a trade candidate. Would he look awesome as a Raven? Absolutely! Crosby is the kind of player that Baltimore attaches too – a relentless player with an unstoppable motor who plays with passion and shows up every Sunday. But the price is expected to be exorbitant.
First off, the Raiders don’t really want to trade Crosby. His energy and stature in the league are important in attracting other players and to at least give the impression that Las Vegas is sincere in their desire to build a winner. I was listening to NFL Radio on Sirius XM the other day and former Jets GM and co-host of Moving the Chains, Pat Kirwan, thought it would take at least two No. 1’s and a No. 3 to get the Raiders to move Crosby.
Right player, wrong price!
Joe Cool
I mentioned in my Good, Bad & Ugly piece yesterday that something Joe Flacco said during the Manning Cast bugged me.
“I don’t know how you felt when you guys played, but I literally wish all other 31 teams could lose somehow. So, whatever team I’m on, you know, I’m all for. I don’t root for a single other quarterback. I don’t root for a single other team.” – Joe Flacco #ManningCast #MNF #NFL pic.twitter.com/V5OLfmSavV
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) October 22, 2024
You might think that given the question above presented in that situation, after all the money the Ravens paid Flacco, all the memories and 11 years with a class organization, that Joe might say that he is pulling for his old team and head coach. Flacco could have easily shaped the words to acknowledge the Ravens while remaining true to his current team, the Colts. But Joe has never been the most cerebral or instinctive player. Let’s not forget that if Ray Rice and Anquan Boldin hadn’t bailed him out during his mind-numbing check down on 4th-and-29 in San Diego back in 2012, his story, his legend in Baltimore, would have been forever altered.
The Greatest Raven
Few would argue that Ray Lewis was and still is the greatest of all Ravens players during the team’s 28-year history. Recently, there’s been some chatter on social media on this topic and apparently Lamar Jackson, in the eyes of some, has usurped the title from Ray. One day, Lamar could very well be considered the greatest Raven. But he’ll have to place a ring or two in his trophy case to have “greatest Raven” next to his name.
Ray has two rings, two defensive MVP awards, is a 7-time All-Pro selection and a 13-time Pro Bowler. Plus, he was the team’s defacto leader on and off the field.
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That said, Lamar has already posted some daunting stats in his 6+ seasons in Baltimore. Of course there are the 2 MVPs, two-time All-Pro selections and he’s a 3-time Pro Bowler. Frank Schilling, the Director of Marketing for Royal Farms, a highly valued RSR customer, shared this thought with me and it puts Lamar’s greatness and uniqueness in perspective.
Two of the all-time greats at their respective positions were Hall of Famers John Unitas and Jim Brown. During his 18 seasons, Unitas threw for 40,239 yards. Brown during his 9 seasons, rushed for 12,312 yards. If Lamar Jackson continues at his current pace and has a 15-year career, he projects to throw for 41,804 yards and rush for 13,495 more.
Now it’s fair to say that as he ages, Lamar will be a less effective runner but he may develop into a more accomplished passer as we’ve seen over the past couple of seasons.
Frank’s point is simply to illustrate with stats, the uniqueness, the greatness, the one-of-one traits of this NFL unicorn we know as Lamar Demeatrice Jackson Jr.
Thank you, Frank Schilling.
Can we expect a guest post from you in the not-too-distant future?
The post HOT TAKES: Lamar The Greatest All-Time Raven? appeared first on Russell Street Report.
Source: https://russellstreetreport.com/2024/10/23/tltakes/trade-deadline-2024/
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