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Sizing up the Ravens secondary

By Mike Brown | July 4th, 2008

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We all remember when Chris McAlister and Samari Rolle were sidelined last season, and the havoc it created. The rookies that tried to fill in weren’t up to the test, and teams seemed to score at will. The Monday Night game against the Steelers comes to mind, and that was one I’d rather forget. That game showed that the Ravens depth in the secondary was lacking big time. So what has the team done to address the problem?

While the Ravens had hoped that players such as David Pittman, Ronnie Prude, and Derrick Martin would develop, they didn’t. At least not the way the team had hoped. All three of them looked totally lost much of the time, but I guess you can chalk that up to starting a rookie before he’s ready. Baptism under fire if you want to give it a name.

Of the three, none looks very promising. Martin was recently busted for Marijuana possession at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, though he is denying the charge. What he’s trying to do is prevent himself from entering the NFL’s drug program, which could spell the end of his career. David Pittman has had a problem taking the NFL seriously, witnessed by him never being game eligible for his rookie season. He tried harder last year but still didn’t seem to be very impressive.
Ronnie Prude has shown a few flashes of talent, but needs to take his game to the next level. This coming training camp may be his last chance to prove his worth.

The team saw the need for improvement in the secondary and went out to get players they think can make the unit better. So, now they have added Frank Walker , a free agent from the Packers, and Fabian Washington, a draft day acquire from the Oakland Raiders. Both of these players should add better depth to the unit , and provide insurance should Rolle and McAlister go down again this season. After quarterback, cornerback is most likely the hardest position to play, and when the Ravens decided that they needed more experience at that spot they went out and got it. In addition to those players the team has brought in veteran Lenny Walls from the St. Louis Cardinals, who at 6′4″ is the tallest cornerback in the league. He might not be starter quality but he would be hard pressed to play worse then the trio of rookies played last year.

The Ravens also made an effort to add to the safety position by drafting two promising players in Haruki Nakamura, and Tom Zbikowski. Both of these guys seem to have the Raven attitude when it comes to making a statement on the field. If I were Dawan Landry I might have a little fear of being able to hold onto my job. Landry isn’t known as a big hitter, but both of these rookies are, and that is something the team needs. A new starter at safety could happen come opening day.

I could envision seeing Samari Rolle become the nickel back, and Washington filling in on the weak side. It all depends on how well Washington learns the defense in camp, and if Rolle seems to have lingering problems from his Epilepsy. The fact that he can even play with the condition makes me stand in awe of him.

So things seem to be looking a little brighter at the moment in the Ravens backfield. Let’s just hope it’s enough to get the job done. None of us want to see a repeat of the mediocrity we witnessed last year. That was enough to last a lifetime.

This entry was posted on Friday, July 4th, 2008 at 8:18 pm and is filed under Raven player evaluation, Ravens Roost Writer Articles / Opinions, Mike Brown. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

7 Responses to “Sizing up the Ravens secondary”

Sizing up the Ravens secondary | GOT COLTS says:

July 5th, 2008 at 12:13 am

[…] We all remember when Chris McAlister and Samari Rolle were sidelined last season, and the havoc it created.http://mvn.com/nfl-ravens/2008/07/04/sizin… […]
Benji says:

July 5th, 2008 at 12:19 am

Samari Rolle moving to nickel would be a great move for the ravens. Let Fabian Washington come in and learn from one of the best coners in the league in C-Mac and line him up against teams who have a fast #2 reciever. Start Rolle against slower receving crops like the colts or jags.
I dont believe Dawan Landury has anything to worry about when it comes to the strong safety postion. Landury has proven that he is a very good starter in this league. Last year, our corners were hurt and Lanudry had to take a more coverage roll that he is not used to. Also Laundry can dish out big hits. Remeber that Radiers game when he knock off the WR Helmet coming across the middle? Haruki Nakamura and Tom Zbikowski will fit right into our D but i dont expect nethier to start the year off unless they have a great training camp and injury happens.
Ravens_Flock says:

July 5th, 2008 at 1:08 am

Yeah, I’m gonna have to call BS on Landry “not being a big hitter” as well. He most certainly is, and he also was one of the top 3 in tackles on the D last season. He had 5 INTs his rookie season, and I do believe he also had at least 2 sacks last season to boot. So no, Landry has nothing to worry about, concerning “his spot”. I don’t think Coach Harbaugh would go out of his way to openly and publicly praise Dawan without even being prompted to, if he didn’t feel that Landry wasn’t an excellent player, and an emerging leader on this team, which he is. I could almost guarantee you that when their careers are done, Dawan will have had the better career over his brother on the Redskins.

Having said that, I am excited about Nakamura and Zbikowsi, provided that they both make the 53 man team. At this very moment, from what I’ve seen of their college days, I would pick Haruki over Tom, if only one were to make it, but I have a feeling both will make it, and that both will be valuable additions, both on special teams and on defense. But I think people are being a bit harsh on our young CBs from last season. Yes, they didn’t fill in very admirably most of the time that they did play…but you also need to remember that for the most part, even when Rolle and McAlister were healthy, neither one of them played very well either, outside of perhaps the Rams and Patriots games.

Also, it didn’t help that Rex Ryan insisted, game after game, on starting Corey Ivy at corner, when he is NOT a good cover corner. He is a fantastic Nickelback, that we saw in 2006. But he can’t play cover corner for sh*t, honestly, and many times it was HIM getting burnt for long TDs, not just the young bloods. Now it is fair to level some criticism their way. But Ronnie Prude DID look good in limited play in 2006, and while it is true that Pittman didn’t play his entire rookie season, he also wasn’t played at the right position for most of 2007. They kept trying to play him at nickel or dime, and obviously he wasn’t much good in open space. But when you look at the ONE instance where he actually got a start at CORNER, in the last game against the Steelers, he looked pretty damned good, making some solid tackles, and reeling in 2 INTs in a single game, to boot.

I’m not saying the kid is the second coming of a young Chris McAlister (though I initially had the feeling he could someday), I will say that judging him by the single game where he was actually played at his natural position, he looked very good, and I would imagine he has a lot of room to improve and build from that performance. In fact, if I had to pick one of the three young CBs to make the team this season, out of Prude, Martin, and Pittman, I would go with David. He has the best speed, the best atheleticism, and obviously, he has the ability to cover pretty well. With growth and improvement (and more reps), I honestly think he could become a good starting CB for us someday, if he sticks around.

To end this, I like the additions of Walker and Washington. I Think you’re right about Fabian potentially taking the starting spot from Samari Rolle when the season starts. I’m not even too sure about Rolle playing at Nickel to tell you the truth. I don’t mean to be too hard on him, but he honestly didn’t show a whole hell of a lot in 2005 or 2006, and I’m willing to bet that Ivy could still play Nickel better than Rolle at this point. I don’t want to knock Rolle’s ability, but I think what talent he had is declining, and the epilepsy doesn’t help much. I too commmend him for playing with such a condition, but the honest truth is, it’s also a condition that could become a liability to the team at the wrong moment, for all we know. I’m not too sure Rolle will be a Raven beyond 2008, so it doesn’t matter much. Then again, he could keep his starting spot, and surprise the hell out of me, in which case, God Speed to him.

Peace.
geo says:

July 5th, 2008 at 1:45 am

I am little surprised here, what happend to Corey Ivy and Jim Leonhard?

And Lenny Walls is he really going to make it here, he is not very young, and have not really done anything so fare… I would take the best of Martin, Pittman or Prude over him.

Martin should be the safe pick, if it was not the weed thing, the kid is 23 and have already played more games than most people of his age. His ST experience should give him the edge, and I think he did better in the last games last season.

Prude well.. He did have a promising rookie season, but I wonder happend with him last season, I hardly noticing him and we have really upgraded the depth.

Pittman well he played one good game vs Batch, he migth have the speed, but he really need to show that he has the desire to play.

Safety: Reed, Landry, Tom Z, Nakamura/Leonhard.. could we have them all? For now I think we would see an interesting duel against Nakamura and Leonhard..

Tom Z has struggled but as a third rounder should he be safe, if not we will find an injury to him. Btw Is a trade a Possibility here… for a TE or an OLiner with experience?

CB: C-Mac, Rolle, Fab W, Walker should be safe.

And for the last two spots.. Ivy I give him the edge, his ST play, experience and first of all his commitment… he should be a sure Harbs man, and I just love the little giant. And then a dogfigth between Martin, Prude, Pittman and Walls for the probably last spot..

Anyhow a new scenario, competetion! And what will Chuck Pagano and Jerry Rosburgh bring.. and Harbs?
Mike Brown says:

July 5th, 2008 at 11:56 am

The reason I say Landry might lose his job at some point to one of the rookies is his lack of disrupting plays. Most times making tackles means the play was successful and you’re stopping the receiver after the completion. Sure, he’s made some hard tackles, but one of a safeties primary responsibilities is the see the play develop and get there in time to break it up, something Landry doesn’t do that often. Don’t get me wrong, I like Landry a lot, but if the coaches think one of the rookies shows better speed and instincts they’ll start working them into the rotation, and if they have success it could spell the demise of Landry’s starting role. Either way I think he’s probably safe for this season barring injury.

I’ll also agree to the point Ravens Flock made that last season Rex Ryan had to change players responsibilities due to the injuries to C-Mac and Rolle, and perhaps Landry was playing deeper then he normally would. But if you watch tape of Haruki Nakamura, and Tom Zbikowski you’ll see them flying to the ball and breaking up the play over and over again.

Tom Zbikowski highlights.
Haruki Nakamura highlights.
Benji says:

July 5th, 2008 at 9:58 pm

Thanks for the links Mike B. Loved them!
Ravens_Flock says:

July 8th, 2008 at 8:20 pm

In response to Geo, I do think Corey Ivy is going to stick around. As I said in my post, I think Ivy could probably make a better nickel at this point than Rolle. I am reserving a bit of judgment on Samari’s part, because you KNOW he’s going to make the roster (just based on pay), but unless he steps up and proves otherwise, the man has not proven much to me except that he’s not what he was advertised to be in the three seasons that he’s been a Raven. I don’t think he’s a BAD player, but he was never on CMac’s level to begin with, and it just seems like he is aging far worse than McAlister is as well.

Point being, I wouldn’t be surprised to see a lot of Ivy at nickel over the course of 2008. As for Lenny Walls, every team brings in free agents to camp that they don’t always sign. I think Frank Walker and Fabian Washington (most obviously) are a lock to make the roster, but Walls, in my estimation, is probably expendable. When push comes to shove, I’d rather see us hold onto one of the young guys instead of Walls. I would rather keep a young very young player who still has a lot of potential, than a 6 year veteran who only has 1 career INT. Martin, Pittman, and Prude have each only been around 2 years, and each have 2 INTs to their name. Now granted, maybe Walls just wasn’t in a defensive system like Baltimore’s, where they put players in positions to make big plays. But even if that’s the case, I would rather have the Ravens choose the best out of the 3 young Ravens, and keep them instead of Walls. If we wind up keeping 6 CBs, then I’d obviously take Pittman, personally. If they keep 7, then I would take both Pittman and Prude. I would be surprised if Martin isn’t cut soon, considering the fact that not only was he caught with marijuana, but he lied to the franchise about it. He’s pretty much done as a Raven, I think.

And to Mike, well I’ve seen the highlights of both young safeties before, and you’re right, they’re both tough players and playmakers. But so is Landry. In 2 seasons, he has 116 tackles, 4 sacks, and 5 INTs. That’s pretty damn good for a strong safety by anyone’s standards. I share you excitement over over Tom and Haruki, but I just don’t see them stealing any real spotlight in 2008. But it doesn’t really matter, because if they do both make the squad, I have a pretty good feeling that they’re still going to make strong contributions on special teams as well as D. We needed depth at safety, and now it just may very well be that (depending on how these two kids develop), the Ravens could potentially have the best squad of safeties in the entire league, led by arguably THE best free safety in Ed Reed.

And on a minor note, yes, Rex Ryan had to make adjustments because of CMac and Rolle going down, but I just think he made the WRONG adjustments. He played Ivy at corner all season. Ivy sucks at corner, period. He’s a great nickel, and a tough as sh*t player overall, but he is too short and too slow to play one on one like that. I just think that if perhaps he had played Pittman at corner all season, and not just in the last game, we would have seen a lot more from the guy, and it could have perhaps been David’s “growing up” season. I am still not convinced that he is a “bust”, by any standards, and I would like to think that he’s got the goods to make the 2008 team, and possibly make some better contributions.

We’ll see though.