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Nestor Aparicio

Will benching be a wake up call for CMac?

Nestor Aparicio

The Ravens report back to practice again today in preparation for the Oakland Raiders this Sunday. The team is 3-3, far ahead of where many thought they’d be before the season began and are even about to go through the “soft spot” on their schedule with Oakland, Cleveland and Houston in the headlights. With a little luck, they could be 6-3 or 5-4 going up to the Meadowlands on Nov. 16th to play the defending World Champs. (BTW: Yes, seats are still available on our Miller Lite bus trip that day!) So, what the Ravens and head coach John Harbaugh need least in the world right now is a player controversy. But, it appears, as long as Chris McAlister is on the team that won’t happen. The team has now stated its “official” position on McAlister: he’s not one of the three best cornerbacks on the roster. He’s been demoted based on his “on field” play alone. Personally, I find that hard to accept. But as one member of the organization said yesterday, “Did you see the Colts game? Did you see Marvin Harrison torch him?” There are more rumors and opinions on McAlister’s personality, habits, activities and his decisions

A $20 ticket to Game 7 of the ALCS in Tampa on a victory Sunday night…

Nestor Aparicio

Needless to say it’s been a whirlwind first week of my 40’s. Some folks told me it’d get hectic on the other side of the hill but as Jimmy Buffett once sang, “I can’t run at this pace very long…” If you haven’t seen the videos on wnsTV, I hope you watch and enjoy them. What I’m basically trying to do is to put you “there” as Brent Musberger would say back in my childhood on CBS. We were there Sunday night for Game 7 and it was extraordinary fun, even for my wife who drove 240 miles at breakneck speed through the Everglades – faster than a hurricane – to see her team lose a dramatic decisive game. (Honestly, and trust me she hears this all the time, I’m done with Boston winning anything! Two baseball titles, bloody socks, Tom Brady comebacks, three Super Bowls and now a Celtics title – enough, already! I don’t openly root against the Red Sox because it does make my wife happy and at least they’re not the Yankees, but my heart ain’t breaking either.) But even as enthusiastic as the Tampa fans were – and those freaking cowbells are beyond obnoxious after

Welcome to the new world of WNST.net!!!

Nestor Aparicio

As you can see, we’ve finally launched our new website. It’s taken thousands of hours of hard work, dedication and determination by a whole litany of people at every level inside WNST, but it’s here and ready to get better every day. As many of you have seen over the past 18 months, our company has changed dramatically for the better and we’re quickly becoming “the place” many of you turn for reliable local sports news, information and most importantly an independent voice where you can read, speak, hear and write with true freedom of expression and opinion. Ya know, all of that “freedom of speech” stuff we hear in America these days. As we will say many times over the next few months: “We’re not just a little radio station anymore.” With the help and support of Brian Billick and our new ownership group, we hope to grow into YOUR website or virtual town hall, a place you can come and exchange ideas, information and commerce with other people who love Baltimore sports as much as you do. (Or in this case, as much as we do.) This site will continue to grow and improve every single day. We’re

Schmuckfest & the Fighting Phillies in the World Series

Nestor Aparicio

So I’m home tonight after the Peter Schmuck roast (I worked “blue”…I was surprised by how many people don’t know what that term means but the FCC never allowed it and the Comedy Club did…it was a goof and Schmuck is a great guy), and I’m watching Pat Gillick, who was run out of Baltimore in disgrace right around the last time the Orioles didn’t suck. Or least not suck as bad as my attempts at humor tonight. LOL. So, while the Schmuckfest was a wonderful affair to benefit a nice cause, Cool Kids, it’s strange that roasting a guy who I know through baseball led me to stay up late to watch the Philadelphia Phillies go back to the World Series for the first time since 1993. The Philadelphia Phillies are in the World Series. Wow… It’s been a strange week for me. We’re at the finish line to launching the new website and the images of everyone from John Steadman to Mike Fiorelli to a major tragedy we endured in our inner circle of friends last week, it’s been a wild week to turn 40. Because everything significant in my life is marked by baseball, it’s just strange.

Are you or a friend headed south to Miami?

Nestor Aparicio

Every week someone sends me texts, emails or inquiries regarding roadtrip tailgates or events. Perhaps in the future, WNST.net will sponsor events for every roadtrip to bring Ravens fans together on the road but for now Baltimore’s ultimate roadtrip warrior, local DJ Bobby Nyk, has put together a charity event for this weekend’s trip to South Florida. Bobby is tireless in his efforts to do these parties on the road and we’re trying to help him get the word out. Below is his pres release. I will be at Toucan’s on Saturday and hope to say hello to everyone who is taking the purple south into the sunshine this weekend. • COLUMBIA, MD, OCTOBER 11, 2008: Bobby Nyk, Columbia based DJ and Raven enthusiast, in association with the Ed Block Courage Awards Foundation to help Abused Children, are proud to announce their collaboration for a fund raiser that is planned for Hollywood Beach, Florida on Saturday, October 18, 2008. This event coincides with the Baltimore Ravens/Miami Dolphins NFL game the week end of October 19. • “Bobby’s Beach Bash with Captain Dee” will be hosted by Toucan’s Oceanside Bar and Grill, 502 Broadwalk from 12 PM to 5 PM. An

Another lost afternoon in Indy

Nestor Aparicio

If there was any doubt about where the Ravens stand amongst the elite teams in the NFL, this afternoon’s resounding thud in Indianapolis made it clear as most in the locker room said in the postgame: “There’s a lot of work to be done.” It was all beer, girls and giggles for a little while, John Harbaugh’s arrival as the new head coach of the Ravens and the likeable rookie from tiny Delaware leading the charge to a 2-0 record and near-wins in Pittsburgh and at home last weekend against the upstart Tennessee Titans. Today’s three hours in Indy (and it felt like the game lasted three days) made it clear that the stakes are a little higher as teams starts figuring out tendencies, weaknesses and vulnerabilities. Oh, and that Peyton Manning guy is still pretty good, especially when he has time and healthy receivers. To a man, there were 53 very embarrassed and abused football players in the purple locker room at Lukas Oil Stadium. It was a licking of the century, by far the worst and most disappointing loss in team history, reminiscent of the waning days of the Ted Marchibroda era in 1998. The only game I

Puck You…

Nestor Aparicio

Now that we have your attention, it’s NHL season again. And the Washington Capitals have reached out to WNST during the offseason and we’re trying to have some fun during trying political and unstable times. For anyone who has followed my career, you know I have one pretty strong lifelong passion that I was truly self-indulgent about: hockey. The breakthrough in my sports media career came when I was 16 years old and covering Baltimore Skipjacks and Washington Capitals games at The News American. I also covered both of those teams in various forms (as well as the Bandits) for The Evening Sun. I was the beat writer and in 1991 I met Kenny Albert. We did a talk show together and — voila — WNST is born. Well, sorta… It would be impossible to tell you how much fun and how much joy hockey has added to my life. The many, many Stanley Cup playoff excursion I’ve been on… To Vancouver, Anaheim, Dallas, Chicago, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Long Island, Manhattan, Raleigh, Miami, Nashville – I’ve seen playoff games in all of these cities. I’m great pals with Predators coach Barry Trotz and would fulfill a lifetime dream of mine, drinking

The “other” Rick Vaughn from Tampa Bay…

Nestor Aparicio

An hour ago my wife pulled me away from my Apple Mac Book Pro and lured me toward the television to watch the last inning of the “Sox” game. No, not the Red Sox. Instead, the Chicago White Sox were about to get bounced out of the ALDS and MLB Playoffs by the Tampa Bay Rays on a chilly night in Chicago. (Ever since they took the “Devil” out of their name their fortunes have changed. Coincidence? Hmmm…) So I watched the last three painful outs not just for the White Sox but for all Chicagoland baseball fans. I lived, on and off, in Chicago for three years when I was syndicated at Sporting News radio. My cousin is a White Sox Hall of Famer, even though I’ve never been a fan of the Southsiders. But I know this: Chicago loves baseball. And with the final whiff of Ken Griffey’s bat (and perhaps career), Chicago was extinguished yet again from the hope of a World Championship. Well, they got theirs three years ago when the Sox won, but it’s all over for another winter in the Windy City. And then I watched a beautiful thing? An old Baltimore P.R. friend

Ravens theme from locker room: “FINISH GAMES!”

Nestor Aparicio

After today’s late afternoon debacle, I had the honor of walking from one end of the Ravens’ locker room to the other and I heard at least six guys say the exact same thing over and over again: “We need to learn to finish games,” was echoed from Jarret Johnson to Joe Flacco, from Bart Scott to Willis McGahee. For the second time in six days, the Ravens let “the better team” come back from a hole and beat them with late errors and breakdowns. NFL coaches always accept physical breakdowns. If a guy beats you on a straight play, you tip your cap and get back in the huddle. But mental mistakes and stupid late penalities? Well, until the Ravens stop taking their licks 15 yards at a time at key junctures against teams with a lot of talent, they’ll never consistently win in this league. The Titans clearly woke up on the wrong side of the Inner Harbor this morning, picking several chippy, dirty fights in the first half. But in the end it was the Ravens and late hits to the head that cost the team a 3-1 start to the 2008 season. John Harbaugh now finally

Today we continue out education about the 2008 Ravens

Nestor Aparicio

The undefeated Tennessee Titans roll into town believing (as they should) that they are a Super Bowl contender. Sure, the Ravens are 2-1 and are one play, one red flag, one fumble, one whistle away from being 3-0. But today the Ravens will have the chance to show us whether they’ll be a very good team this year, or simply one of the many who will be playing “win one, lose one” style in the NFL. They’ll either sport a pedestrian 2-2 by the end of the day or they’ll be 3-1 at the quarter pole. And either one of them is perfectly acceptable to me. A month ago many us of believed they’d stink. A win today here against the Titans would make them 3-1 and they would be getting the kind of attention playoff teams will get from the national media. But let’s be honest: beating the Clevelands and Cincinnatis at home doesn’t earn you honors in the AFC in 2008. We’re pretty sure they both stink. But beat a 4-0 team and you’ve showed the entire NFL something. Concerns for the Ravens today: How will the offensive line and a max protect serve quarterback Joe Flacco against

It was fun for a little while, wasn’t it?

Nestor Aparicio

I suppose it was too much to ask for this season, this 3-0 thing. We went to Pittsburgh 57 strong on the Miller Lite Purple Roadie. We sat in the upper deck. We raised hell as the videos will attest. We really had a lot of fun and cheered a lot and had a lot of high fives. And when the Ravens were winning 13-3 at the half, it was one big freaking party as we looked out over the bright lights of Pittsburgh. Drew and Glenn were talking smack. The Steelers fans were strongly considering not returning to their seats in the second half and Joe Flacco was running around like Fran Tarkenton on the Heinz Field sod. I don’t know that I’ve ever been happier. (Well, at least not since 13-3 two years ago!) But the NFL is an unforgiving roller coaster as those few seconds of torture in the third quarter showed us. A bad punt, a bad penalty, a busted coverage, a missed tackle, a slip and sack and fumble combo for the quarterback – and voila – it’s suddenly a long ride home from Western Pennsylvania. Another loss in Pittsburgh. Another knife from Ben Roethlisberger

Pittsburgh is a box of chocolates…

Nestor Aparicio

You never know what you’re going to get. Since 1996, I’ve been on all but two of these excursions. I’ve seen us lose close games and I have the memories of dread: • The night Vinny Testaverde threw an interception to Rod Woodson from his knees and Eric Zeier came in and we lost 37-0 on Sunday Night Football. • The playoff meltdown of Elvis Grbac. Enough said… • The close loss on Monday Night Football a few years ago… • And, of course, last year’s debacle. Thankfully, I watched that one from my hotel room in Tokyo via satellite. I think I was the only person in the Eastern Hemisphere watching the game. So, in a few hours, we’ll depart with a completely full bus for The ‘Burgh as they like to call it. We’ll be with a bunch of drunken ‘yins from donton in the upper deck playing for civic honor. And, hopefully, it’ll turn out better than Kyle Boller’s first disaster up there on that hot opener five years ago. I also remember the joy of a five-hour bus ride home after kicking their asses in the old ashtray while our fans draped a “Pittsburgh is Ravens

What it must feel like in Milwaukee tonight?

Nestor Aparicio

I’m a little conflicted to be honest with you. I spent today downtown watching the dozens of Orioles fans who blew off the NFL Ticket to spend one last day “at The Yard” before they close up shop for another winter. And I do mean “close up.” My guess is that we won’t hear a peep outta The Warehouse for weeks. That could be MANY weeks. Like November at the earliest… I think they want us all to forget that they played this season and that it didn’t end back around Memorial Day. From now until then – and I’m guessing the next formal gathering will be the one when they don’t sign Mark Teixiera — the few of us who actually remember real Orioles baseball and are ashamed of what this sham has become over the past 11 years will watch something that is a faded memory: the MLB postseason. Remember rushing around and setting your schedule to watch baseball in October? Crisp fall afternoon doubleheaders, with one game at 3 in the shadows and the other waiting after dinner. From Yankee Stadium to Chavez Ravine, from Royals Stadium to Riverfront Stadium. And sometimes, once in a while, we

‘See The Birds’ journey of 2008 ends with another lost season of failure tonight at Camden Yards

Nestor Aparicio

Come one, come all! As a matter of fact, I hope more than one of you actually COME to Oriole Park at Camden Yards tonight where a few hopeless losers like me will set forth a few last phantom, hollow cheers for another season that never was. That’s 11 in a row on my watch. The Orioles haven’t played a meaningful game since October 1997. And the crowds have withered to virtual nothingness. I know you probably haven’t noticed through the servings of the Purple Kool Aid on MASN, but they’ve now quietly lost eight in a row. And they’ve won six times since August 17th. “Wake Me Up When September Ends” indeed… How bad is it? Well, the team has $1 tickets available tonight and most of the city doesn’t even think it’s worth that. There might be 5,000 in the park tonight. It’s kinda like a minor league baseball game or something out of “Major League,” which 20 years ago was just a funny movie about the Indians and Cleveland. At this point, it’s the current state of Baltimore baseball. Empty seats that the Orioles can’t beg people to come and sit in for ONE DOLLAR! So, why

Let The Fun Begin! Who wants to go to Pittsburgh?

Nestor Aparicio

For those of you wondering, these are the good days. The ones where you wake up and all of the years of your sports fandom are rewarded with a magical start to a Ravens season where hopelessness was the offseason prediction. Three weeks ago, Las Vegas had the over/under on wins at six. And business wasn’t booming on betting the over, not even here at WNST where we all live to see the purple team win. We love ‘em, but who knew that they’d actually be any good, right? This is when the real fun happens when we get a real season when we never expected it. Look, they’re not the gonna win the Super Bowl every year and with the decade-plus-and-ongoing annual vomit the baseball team has served up for this community, we have to pick our spots. THIS, most certainly, is one of those spots. Get excited, yell loud, throw a WACKO 4 FLACCO sign in your car window or cubicle! Talk football at the watercooler and here at WNST. YOU ARE ALLOWED TO BE EXCITED!!! (If not now, then when? They could still finish 2-14. Who knows how this is gonna turn out? But I’m having fun!)

Update on Landry, other injuries…

Nestor Aparicio

The Ravens were quite concerned about Dawan Landry as was half of the city with that ugly hit just before halftime. By the postgame press conference, they had confirmed that he was in shock trauma and ability to move some extremities. Now, two hours after the game they have confirmed that Landry suffered a spinal cord concussion but has neurologically recovered. He will remain in shock trauma overnight for testing and observation. Other injury news: Willis McGahee has a laceration over one eyelid and got poked in the other eye. Samari Rolle has tingling in his right arm and will have tests done tomorrow. I will post an extensive Ravens blog in the morning with my excited thoughts about a 2-0 first-place start. Meanwhile, Joe Flacco’s postgame thoughts are on wnsTV. Purple Kool Aid, anyone?

Even Angelos isn’t this bad…

Nestor Aparicio

Obviously, you’re reading this blog expecting me to do another defecating drive by on the Orioles but I’ve found solace this morning in the evidence that Peter Angelos isn’t the worst owner in sports at least THIS week. No, that title would belong to Al Davis, who has once again proven that he is the granddaddy of “obscenely wealthy weird sports owners.” Two weeks into the season, Davis has once again taken the term “dysfunctional” to a new level. We’ve only had this Angelos guy since 1993. The Raiders fans have had “Weird Al” since birth. Whenever I see how empty their stadium is during their losing seasons, I think of the Raider Nation “abstaining” like their owner always does. I wish I could abstain from Orioles baseball, but I can’t. So this Raiders’ situation is so bizarre that I had to compare it to the nutty stuff Angelos has done. By now you know that head coach Lane Kiffin has been twisting for several days (if not months and years) waiting to be fired. The two clearly aren’t simpatico, but then again who is compatible with Davis? Mike Shanahan got screwed out of money 15 years ago and has

A Free The Birds event in 2008?

Nestor Aparicio

With the Orioles recent run of losses and the front office’s continuation of Marxist policies regarding the fans and media, my email lights up at least a few times a day asking me whether FREE THE BIRDS is a living breathing movement. A guy named Ray dropped me a note this morning and I answered him with the response below. I’ll have more to write on the second anniversary of FTB next week, but this is my official position: There SHOULD be one… But I honestly don’t have time or energy to organize one at this point… No one seems to care about the Orioles, which is the real problem… But the Angelos family continues to lie to us about “better days ahead” and the city and the “establishment” that feeds at the trough continues to take the payouts in the way of advertising and “partnership” and shut up… Call Channel 13 or CBS Radio or The Sun or The Examiner or PressBox and see if they want to organize a walkout? They’re the only ones making money off of the team via orange advertisments…. The Orioles write them big checks and their “journalists” wave the pom poms and ignore

Live BLOG from D.C.: It’s Billick and Baldinger together in my living room…

Nestor Aparicio

Obviously, my personal dateminder says I was supposed to be in Houston right now eating tacos, drinking margaritas and waiting for kickoff of Joe Flacco’s second NFL game. Instead, I’m in Baltimore on my couch watching two of my best media pals — Brian Billick and Brian Baldinger — call an NFL game from 37 miles away. It’s Saints at Skins. I’ll be on the couch today with a live blog while I watch the games. I figure, “How often do I actually get to DO this…sit on the couch and watch football, drink beer, eat chili and grill up sausages with peppers and onions?” I’m a blogger today…this blog will run here backtimed. 4:08 p.m. — Brees threw a pick. Campbell is taking a knee. The Redskins are 1-1. It’s Jim Zorn’s first win as a head coach. I’m onto peppers and onions and sausages. Plenty here to read (if you can get through it). But this is what I did today. It was a fun game to watch despite the ugly outcome. 3:56 – This game has been crazy. The Redskins have just driven twice (well the second one was a bomb from Campbell to Moss) to take

Ravens game officially moved to Nov. 9th in Houston

Nestor Aparicio

Finding a fair answer to Ravens-Texans scheduling wasn’t easy. As the afternoon dragged on and the NFL powers-that-be stressed out and searched for a sensible solution, it became more clear that the “fallback” plan of moving bye weeks and keeping the schedule “in tact” might be the ONLY solution. For the Ravens and Texans, it means tomorrow BECOMES the bye week. Obviously, it’s more punitive to these two teams than anyone else, having basically forfeited the chance to go rest for a few days in the middle of a grueling season. Perhaps John Harbaugh will allow the Ravens a quick escape from tonight through Wednesday morning, but it’s not the same as a bye week on Nov. 9th, that’s for sure. The Cincinnati Bengals will be the only other affected party and it will essentially move their bye week back by three weeks, moving their game from Nov. 9th back to Oct. 26 with the Texans in Houston (assuming the stadium isn’t still trashed). Marvin Lewis would probably welcome a bye in November vs. October, but he clearly has bigger fish to fry at 0-1 with the way they played last week here. And it’s not like Roger Goodell is

How will Houston Texans leave town for game at this point?

Nestor Aparicio

Like the rest of you, I’m watching in horror at what’s happening in Houston right now. On the football side, it appears that New Orleans could be the first option but even that must be a sticky proposition right now and I’ll go into that later in this blog. But before I do, I’d prefer to address the “real world” issue by saying that i was up late and into the early morning tracking this storm because I have some other vested interests. I have family in Houston. I have friends in Houston. I have some really great memories of Houston. But seeing this storm roll through has been painful. We’re all praying for them but it looks quite messy and devastating. Glass everywhere downtown, buildings just devastated. Back to Ravens football and the game: Yesterday I took a straw poll of all of the folks around WNST and none of us really believed they were going to be playing this football game on Monday night at Reliant Stadium. All you had to do was look at the storm and see its tracking and know this was a bad situation. Now word comes out of Houston that Reliant Stadium has

Another September with the disappearing orange baseball…

Nestor Aparicio

I looked through all of the WNST blogs over the past couple days and there has been a one glaring omission: the Orioles are nowhere to be found. Playing out the string for the 11th consecutive September – the franchise hasn’t hosted a meaningful game since October 1997 – the worst-run and meanest and most paranoid franchise in professional sports has now put together another pathetic crawl to the finish line with a 3-17 record since the middle of August. It’s been the quietest “slump” in the history of Baltimore baseball. No one is saying anything. No one is calling. And, apparently, no one is even watching. Every night this week, I’ve seen downtown almost completely empty while I’ve watched Fenway Park on NESN packed with fans watching the Tampa Bay Rays come to Beantown as upstart first-place winners. I’m watching baseball this week. I’m just not watching the pathetic Orioles. Maybe one day it’ll be our turn to win at baseball again in Baltimore. Maybe one day we’ll all feel like the Orioles are “our” team. But we’re getting up on the two-year anniversary of FREE THE BIRDS and the Orioles are 16 games under .500, 23 games behind

Could this week’s Ravens-Houston Texans game get moved to Baltimore?

Nestor Aparicio

Well, the Baltimore conspiracy theorists are at it again around the Charm City. We got a mystery call at WNST today with a caller saying “the Ravens game is going to get moved to Baltimore this weekend if Hurricane Ike hits Texas.” So, I went into action making some calls to my league sources and investigating the possibilities. This is just a “top of mind” set of notes saying why it might — or might — not happen. First, the storm is tracking more west than northwest right this minute. Obviously, that could change. (And we’ll hope for the best for all the folks in Texas, Lousiana and Mexico. Hurricanes clearly suck. As a guy who left New Orleans literally the morning that panic broke out before Hurricane Katrina after a Ravens game three years ago, I have maximum respect for the devastation they bring and the way people’s lives are affected. I have pals who live in West Palm Beach, Fla. who literally don’t feel safe making any plans for September because they’ve seen the gas lines, property damage and general “freak out” that happens to citizens when evacuations happen.) Second, the Ravens would be the team LEAST affected

I had to laugh…

Nestor Aparicio

On my usual early morning tour of the world via my mouse, I clicked on ESPN.com this morning to see this headline: “Ravens rookie Flacco earns another start” And I thought to myself, wow, no one in the league or at ESPN must’ve seen the game on Sunday? Or, perhaps, they haven’t seen the Ravens or their quarterbacks play the past 10 years? I was thinking to myself: “Does America think Harbaugh is going to name Casey Bramlet the starter at this point?” I know, I know…it’s just a headline. But Flacco has turned this town sideways with his play on Sunday and now the expectations go through the roof. But we all wanna grab onto something with the Ravens being the “only game in town that matters.” It’s been 20 months since we’ve all had anything to be excited about with sports in Baltimore. And it ended with that thud in the Colts game and we’ve been dormant like cicadas ever since. (By the way, is it just me or have the Orioles disappeared and will be appearing next week on a milk carton?) But Flacco, that defensive play on Sunday and “Hard-Ball” have made us want to come

Joe Cool

Nestor Aparicio

I’d like to think as I approach my 40th birthday in a few weeks, I’m not as excitable as I was in my younger days. As a fan, I’ve been through all of the wins and loses, Super Bowls and World Series, thrills and disappointments. But today as the 13th season of Ravens football commences, it all came back to me, just why we all still watch the games and care so much. Today is what being a fan is all about. This is the “juice” and the beautiful reward of being a sports fan: that feeling you get when your team wins. The team has a fresh start with a fresh coach and fresh rookie quarterback, who is extremely likeable and calm amidst the storm. And I left the house this morning thinking the Ravens would have to do some special things to win, and specifically to stifle Carson Palmer, who I think is among the best in the business. The injuries have been dreadful. The play on the field has been less than inspiring. The age factor will haunt them each week of the season. And the lack of depth has felt hopeless. But instead of a loss

Hopes and fears for the 2008 Ravens

Nestor Aparicio

On every barstool and at every dinner table in Baltimore, the question comes: “How do you think the Ravens are going to do this year?” People ask me dozens of times a day everywhere I go around town. I’m not Kreskin, but the Las Vegas “over/under” line on wins is six. As in 6-10. Honestly, if you give me a dollar and make me bet on the Ravens at this point I’d take the under because I think they will need a myriad of positive developments to see 7-9. So, in the spirit of debate and with the ability to have your feedback in the comments, I will make this column a simple “point/counterpoint” in hopes and fears format. Hope: Ray Lewis can play at the same level he did last year for one more year in purple. Fear: This team might be bad enough early enough that Lewis will go back to being a complainer and a divider instead of one who unites the team. We’ll see how the “walk” year goes. Hope: Joe Flacco shows that he belongs in the NFL as a quality starting quarterback and shows the early signs you want to see from a rookie

Some WNST.net internal news updates from Nestor…

Nestor Aparicio

We announced on Wednesday night with Brian Billick that big changes are coming here at WNST.net, and the first addition is the inaugural blog of now-starting Ravens QB Joe Flacco here at WNST. Flacco will call in each Tuesday morning for a report with Drew and will blog on Fridays. So, at least from 6 a.m. til 2 p.m. it’ll be Joe Fridays every Friday on WNST. After 2 p.m., of course, it’s simply “Chicken Box Friday.” Rob Long has tenure. Joe has proven himself to be just a phenomenal guy beyond the No. 5 jersey and the soft-spoken short, blunt answers. He reminds me so much of Mike Mussina, it’s almost spooky. I just hope that he plays well and we beat some Bengals butt. ******** “Billick Live” residue and the inevitable “how did Billick become your partner” questions are coming via email. It’s been a whirlwind time in my life. I’ll write more about Brian Billick and our relationship and what we’re trying to accomplish for the city, for Living Classrooms and for the community once we start doing some stuff. Just allow me a little time to get the website right and I’ll do a Q&A and

Reports from Cincy say Bengal legend OL Willie Anderson will trade orange Zubaz for purple

Baltimore Positive

We sent out the text a little while ago (another great reason to join the text service, by the way) with this dirt: The Cincinnati Enquirer is reporting (and quoting on the record) that offensive lineman and Bengals legend Willie Anderson will sign a $3-year, $11 million contract. More here…

Brian Billick joins the WNST family as an owner and partner

Nestor Aparicio

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE BRIAN BILLICK PARTNERS WITH WNST SPORTS MEDIA TO LAUNCH WNST.net, AN ONLINE SPORTS COMMUNITY TO BENEFIT THE LIVING CLASSROOMS FOUNDATION Baltimore’s WNST Sports Media announces the formation of a new media sports endeavor turning WNST-AM 1570 radio into WNST.net, a place where fans of all Baltimore sports teams will turn online for sports information, news, feedback, expert analysis, participation and social networking. Former World Champion head coach Brian Billick is a key member and contributor to the new partnership, led by company CEO Nestor Aparicio. Next week’s launch of the all-new WNST.net will transcend all other local media outlets in the marketplace as a one-stop place on the web to talk, chat, hear and see all that Baltimore sports has to offer. WNST.net will essentially be an around-the-clock sports newspaper, and a complete radio and television “on demand” home for the most robust collection of authentic and user-generated local sports content. Specializing in news and analysis of the Ravens, Orioles, Terps and other participatory local sports from recreation councils to high schools and local colleges, WNST.net seeks to be the preeminent home on the web for anything and everything pertaining to sports in Baltimore and Maryland. It

WNST and Brian Billick will make a major announcement Wednesday night

Nestor Aparicio

The press release was sent out today: WNST AND COACH BRIAN BILLICK TO MAKE MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENT REGARDING SPORTS MEDIA FUTURE IN BALTIMORE WNST and former Ravens’ head coach Brian Billick will hold a joint press conference to make a major announcement on Wednesday night at 7 p.m. at DellaRose’s Tavern at Canton Crossing (1501 S. Clinton Street) in the 1St Mariner Bank tower. Coach Billick, who led the Ravens to their first world championship in Super Bowl XXXV, will discuss his future plans in Baltimore at Wednesday’s press conference preceding the inaugural edition of his monthly WNST show, “Billick Live.” “Billick Live” will take place on the first Wednesday of each month throughout the NFL season at different locations around Baltimore, starting with DellaRose’s. It will be broadcast on WNST-AM 1570 and replayed on-demand at WNST.net. Coach Billick, who left the Ravens after the 2007 season, will be doing color commentary for FOX-TV’s slate of NFL games this fall, beginning with this Sunday’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers-New Orleans Saints game in the Louisiana Superdome. WNST-AM 1570, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary in 2008, is a local sports radio community and online brand, led by 17-year Baltimore radio veteran and Dundalk

Bouman in and Harrington leaves for BWI???

Nestor Aparicio

As the quarterback turns… Despite Chris Mortenson of ESPN reporting that Joey Harrington signed with the Ravens yesterday, our sources tell us that Harrington left Owings Mills today without officially becoming a Raven. Or did he? Is he flying away to go elsewhere or to get his bags and come back to Baltimore? We’re now hearing that Todd Bouman has become the frontrunner to be the No. 3 QB here… We dunno…but we’ll find out soon! They have to practice tomorrow, right?

Joe Flacco joins WNST as a blogger and weekly Tuesday guest

Nestor Aparicio

Even though we didn’t know he’d be the starting quarterback this Sunday, we’ve known for quite some time that Ravens rookie quarterback Joe Flacco would be in our starting lineup at WNST. Beginning this morning at 8:30 a.m., Flacco will appear each Tuesday morning on the Comcast Morning Show with Drew Forrester. His segment will appear live on WNST-AM 1570 and be heard again in our audio vault on demand. He will also write a blog each Friday, one we’re dubbing “Joe Fridays.” We might even be texting out his three keys to the game on Fridays as well. The best part about this arrangement? We won’t have to guess what he’s thinking about all of this rookie stuff, being the starting quarterback (or even the backup) or how he’s handling Baltimore’s expectations. Now, we can just ask him and give it to you in his words. I’ve had the good fortune to get to know Joe and his family over the past few months and I really hope he has the kind of success that we want him to have in Baltimore. He’s a nice, polite, quiet kid who seems like being an athlete and an NFL quarterback comes

Flacco named starter for Sunday; Harrington rumored to be signed

Nestor Aparicio

The quarterback carousel and Labor Day news continues as John Harbaugh has named Joe Flacco the starting quarterback for Sunday’s game against Cinncinnati. Earlier in the day, the “who’s the backup?” story unfolded. The Ravens brought three QBs into Owings Mills today — Chris Simms, Todd Bouman and Joey Harrington and in the end have selected Harrington. Chris Mortenson of ESPN reported first (meaning the agent leaked it to him)… It’s been a wild and wacky weekend in Owings Mills as the Ravens try to rearrange the proverbial chairs on the deck and hope the ship doesn’t sink. Any NFL team that begins practice with a rookie as a No. 1 QB and two other guys who have never attended a practice and are ready to suit up for a game in six days is probably in trouble. Gonna be an interesting week…

UPDATE: Simms in Baltimore, Pittman waived

Nestor Aparicio

Updated at 2:27 p.m. Orioles broadcaster and Mr. Angelos employee, Jim Hunter, apparently boarded an airplane with former Bucs quarterback Chris Simms in Tampa this morning bound for BWI. MASN is reporting that Simms is heading to Owings Mills for a job interview. Meanwhile, the Ravens PR has released this: The Baltimore Ravens have waived the following player (injured): David Pittman (CB, 5-11, 185, 3rd-year, Northwestern State) Baltimore has also signed the following players to its practice squad: Nate Lawrie (TE, 6-6, 255, 4th-year, Yale) Marcus Mason (RB, 5-9, 215, 1st-year, Youngstown State) Bryan Mattison (DE, 6-3, 272, Rookie, Iowa) Matt Willis (WR, 5-11, 190, 2nd-year, UCLA) Not a surprise to see Simms in town given the Ravens’ frustrating quarterback depth situation. At best they only have two live arms for practice on Wednesday as they prep for the Bengals: Joe Flacco (who they don’t want to start but it appears that’s the way it’s going to be) and Casey Bramlet, who looked better coming off a plane 15 hours before gametime than most QBs have looked here over the last decade. Troy Smith’s illness remains a mystery (and the Ravens and NFL don’t ever discuss personal illnesses with media

Ravens continue to tweak roster today…

Nestor Aparicio

It’s never a shocker to see even more moves in the ensuing hours after the initial cutdowns, so today the Ravens continued to make moves. Not a shocker that Casey Bramlet is back on the practice squad. Here’s the whole list of today’s transactions: The Baltimore Ravens made a number of moves on their roster today. The Ravens claimed and added the following players: Lamar Divens (DT, 6-3, 333, Rookie, Tennessee State) – Claimed from the San Diego Chargers. Steven Hauschka (K, 6-2, 185, Rookie, North Carolina State) – Claimed from the Minnesota Vikings. The Ravens also signed the following players to their practice squad: Casey Bramlet (QB, 6-4, 220, 2nd-year, Wyoming) Justin Harper (WR, 6-3, 215, Rookie, Virginia Tech) Joe Reitz (T, 6-7, 270, Rookie, Western Michigan) Ernie Wheelwright (WR, 6-5, 220, Rookie, Minnesota) The Ravens have also waived: J’Vonne Parker (DT, 6-4, 325, 2nd-year, Rutgers)

Ravens make hard cuts, including Gary Stills

Nestor Aparicio

Although most of these guys looked to be automatic, it’s always a little shocking seeing veterans and former contributors getting cut on the last day. Here is the list from Owings Mills: Adam Bergen (TE, 6-4, 267, 3rd-year, Lehigh) Casey Bramlet (QB, 6-4, 220, 2nd-year, Wyoming) Darrell Campbell (DL, 6-4, 295, 1st-year, Notre Dame) Patrick Carter (WR, 6-3, 195, Rookie, Louisville) Adrien Clarke (G, 6-5, 330, 4th-year, Ohio State) Amon Gordon (DT, 6-2, 305, 4th-year, Stanford) Justin Harper (WR, 6-3, 215, Rookie, Virginia Tech) Alex Haynes (RB, 5-10, 225, 2nd-year, Central Florida) Keith Heinrich (TE, 6-6, 255, 5th-year, Sam Houston State) Adam Kraus (G, 6-6, 295, Rookie, Michigan) Robert McCune (LB, 6-0, 245, 2nd-year, Louisville) Allen Patrick (RB, 6-1, 200, Rookie, Oklahoma) Ronnie Prude (CB, 5-11, 180, 3rd-year, LSU) Joe Reitz (T, 6-7, 270, Rookie, Western Michigan) Chad Slaughter (6-8, 340, 5th-year Alcorn State) Gary Stills (LB, 6-2, 250, 10th-year, West Virginia) Ernie Wheelwright (WR, 6-5, 220, Rookie, Minnesota) Lorenzo Williams (DL, 6-0, 310, Rookie, Missouri) Matt Willis (WR, 5-11, 190, 2nd-year, UCLA) The Ravens have also placed the following players on Injured Reserve: David Pittman (CB, 5-11, 185, 3rd-year, Northwestern State) Cory Ross (RB, 5-6, 205, 3rd-year,

Brent Harris and Brad Jackson come to WNST on Mondays!

Nestor Aparicio

After 12 seasons of hosting the Bud Light Monday Night Live Show, I am passing the torch to my friends Brent Harris and Brad Jackson, who will bring the third year of the Purple & Black Attack to WNST on Monday nights. The show will be held at High Topps Restaraunt and Bar on York Road in Timonium every Monday night from 6 to 8 p.m. and will be sponsored by Bud Light. Brent, a Loch Raven guy and Comcast Sports Net staple, and Brad, who will be sporting his Super Bowl 35 ring, get the best Ravens guests in the business and we’re delighted to partner with them for the season. We’ll also feature reruns of their shows a few times later in the week and have featurettes in wnsTV as well. They might even blog and call in once in a while. So many changes coming at WNST and many more to be announced next week. By all means, keep your Monday nights free (as many of you have since the early years at The Barn) and come on out and support the Ravens, WNST and Brent and Brad.

Thoughts before Ravens-Falcons tonight

Nestor Aparicio

Walking around the Ravens building on Tuesday you couldn’t help but feel sorry for John Harbaugh and the crew over there. I love the Ravens. I want them to win 19 games this year. Search the land and I doubt you’ll find a bigger purple supporter than me. Honestly, our business and my life runs much more smoothly when the Ravens win. But facts are facts, and this looks to be a painful campaign if the early going is any indication. The situation is pretty dire on the quarterback front unless Joe Flacco is a miracle worker and becomes an instant star in the NFL. And with the current tackle situation, Todd Heap’s iffy status and the WR crew in flux, it doesn’t appear to be likely even if Flacco does show all of the signs of a potential franchise quarterback. Maybe Troy Smith can run around enough and work some magic in the early going. It now appears that Kyle Boller will not be a factor anytime soon. And it’s just a roster-wide, franchise-wide issue on the eve of the season opening next Sunday against the Bengals. The injuries and the age and the abilities and the depth aren’t

Ravens appear to be caught by the throat

Nestor Aparicio

Every minute that it gets closer to Thursday night’s game time, we get closer to the reality of quarterback Troy Smith being unable to play once again due to his lingering illness. Oh, the Baltimore rumor mill is hard at work. They’ve been flying in. It’s pretty clear that Smith is really sick. We’ve heard that it’s his tonsils. We’ve heard (but have not reported) hospital rumors, visits and tonsilectomies. You name it, and our phone is ringing with a story about Smith. We know that it’s at the very least a pretty severe case of strep throat and it’s kept Smith away from the team since Saturday’s preseason game in St. Louis, which became even more interesting once the team announced that Kyle Boller had a mysterious shoulder issue as well. But here’s the truth: the Ravens needed Smith – or Boller — to play last week and they’d prefer that one of them would be playing on Thursday night against the Falcons. They have a season that’s gonna start in 12 days with or without an experienced or healthy quarterback. Welcome to the NFL hot seat, John Harbaugh! These are the situations that don’t come with a textbook

Good news for Week 1 vs. Bengals…

Nestor Aparicio

As we all sit around the Charm City feeling sorry for ourselves and wondering if the Ravens can actually win the six games Vegas has assigned them for the 2008 season, I stumbled across the game story for the Bengals latest preseason action and was heartened that they might actually stink worse than we do. Carson Palmer got his nose bloodied. The Bengals didn’t score. And, of course, the Northern Kentucky and Southern Ohio faithful gave the “Who Deys” the Bronx cheers over the weekend in the Queen City. Here’s a link from ESPN… I’m not asking for miracles this season, but starting the season 1-0 is the best place to start!