Everything about the extension of wide receiver Zay Flowers makes sense to Luke Jones as he rolls out the rationale and reasoning behind inking Lamar Jackson’s new favorite target long term for big money. He joins Nestor to discuss the numbers and Ravens’ investment, and the state of the NFL salary cap and realities of signing No. 8 and what it will take to make him happy in Baltimore.
Nestor Aparicio and Luke Jones discussed the Ravens’ recent contract extension with wide receiver Zay Flowers, a four-year, $140 million deal. Flowers, who had 86 catches and 1,200 receiving yards last season, is now locked in until 2028. Jones highlighted Flowers’ Pro Bowl performances and his importance to the offense, despite concerns about his size and ball security. They also touched on the potential impact of new offensive coordinator Declan Doyle and the need for improved offensive line play. Additionally, they mentioned the potential of rookie wide receiver Jacoby Lane, who has shown promise in training camp.
- [ ] @Nestor Aparicio – Compile the Maryland Crab Cake Tour dates and post the updated schedule online, with more information to be shared next week.
Ravens Segment Introduction and Upcoming Events
- Nestor Aparicio introduces the segment, mentioning upcoming events including the Maryland Crab Cake Tour and Raven scratch-offs.
- Nestor highlights the importance of the Ravens segment, especially with the recent Zay Flowers contract extension.
- Luke Jones is mentioned as being in Owings Mills, focusing on the Zay Flowers deal.
- Nestor and Luke discuss the timing of the Zay Flowers contract extension and its impact on the Ravens’ future.
Zay Flowers Contract Extension and Historical Context
- Luke Jones discusses the significance of locking down Zay Flowers for the long term, especially considering Lamar Jackson’s future.
- Nestor and Luke reflect on the unique nature of Zay Flowers compared to past Ravens players like Ray Lewis.
- Luke highlights the historical context of the Ravens’ investments in wide receivers, noting the recent changes in their approach.
- The conversation touches on the Pro Bowl achievements of Zay Flowers and his impact during a challenging season for the Ravens.
Zay Flowers’ Performance and Market Comparisons
- Luke Jones emphasizes Zay Flowers’ impressive statistics from the previous season, including his ranking in receiving yards and catches.
- The discussion includes comparisons with other wide receivers in the league, such as Justin Jefferson and Tyreek Hill.
- Luke explains the financial aspects of Zay Flowers’ contract, noting the overall compensation and the timing of the deal.
- The conversation explores the evolving wide receiver market and the potential future increases in player salaries.
Concerns and Criticisms of Zay Flowers’ Contract
- Nestor Aparicio expresses concerns about Zay Flowers’ durability and ball security, comparing him to other players like Steve Smith.
- The discussion includes Nestor’s skepticism about the long-term productivity of smaller, more agile wide receivers.
- Luke Jones defends Zay Flowers’ toughness and productivity, noting his reputation as a gym rat and his ability to handle contact.
- The conversation touches on the potential impact of Zay Flowers’ contract on the Ravens’ future financial planning.
Impact of Zay Flowers on the Ravens’ Offense
- Nestor and Luke discuss the importance of Zay Flowers to the Ravens’ offense, especially with Lamar Jackson’s future uncertain.
- The conversation includes speculation about the potential impact of other players like Derrick Henry and Mark Andrews on the offense.
- Luke highlights the need for a reliable wide receiver to support Lamar Jackson, given the challenges of the modern NFL.
- The discussion includes the potential for Zay Flowers to become a more vertical threat in the offense.
Potential for Other Wide Receivers in the Ravens’ Offense
- Luke Jones introduces Jacoby Lane, a rookie wide receiver who has shown promise in training camp.
- The conversation includes comparisons between Jacoby Lane and other wide receivers in the league, noting his size and potential.
- Luke emphasizes the importance of having a variety of wide receivers to support Lamar Jackson and the offense.
- The discussion touches on the potential for Jacoby Lane to become a significant contributor in the coming seasons.
Final Thoughts and Future Outlook
- Nestor and Luke reflect on the overall health and future of the Ravens’ offense, considering the changes in the offensive line and the new coordinator.
- The conversation includes speculation about the potential impact of these changes on the team’s performance in the upcoming season.
- Luke highlights the importance of Lamar Jackson’s health and the performance of the interior offensive line for the offense’s success.
- The discussion concludes with a focus on the potential for Zay Flowers and other wide receivers to drive the offense forward.
Nestor Aparicio 0:01
Welcome home. We are WNST. AM 1570 Towson, Baltimore. We are Baltimore positive, positively taking the Merrill and crab cake tour back out on the road. We have Raven scratch offs, and this is a Ravens segment that makes it even more fun. We’re going to be on the 19th at Fishmonger’s Daughter in Catonsville, then the 26th at Koco’s. I’ll have some more information on that next week, I am at Mako on Thursday in Ocean City, Maryland. So I’m gonna cross the bridge, and somewhere I have the lottery tickets with the bridge and Blackwater and all that stuff going on. I get some ugly pie over at Salisbury as well. All brought to you by friends at GBMC. My doctor’s not gonna like. I didn’t mean that about the pie. Low fat pie, veggie pie, something like that. Also, our friends at Farnham and Dermer, as the weather changes and the heat comes back, make sure you have your HVAC checked. You call them at 410-367-7777. Luke Jones is wearing the Farnan and Dermer gear. He is headed out to Owings Mills one more time, and Zay Flowers. This was sort of next on your agenda. It’s amazing your agenda and Eric DeCosta’s agenda often agenda eyes. But this was sort of another chip to fall if they’re if it’s not going to be Lamar, right?
Luke Jones 1:13
Yeah. Well, and I think it’s one of those that in the back of everyone’s mind, it’s okay, Lamar. We’ve got your number one receiver locked down indefinitely, so that certainly helps. They’ve never had
Nestor Aparicio 1:23
a player that they’ve had to coddle like this guy. Not even Ray Lewis or any of that. Just in a general sense, he’s such a different kind of cat, and and no one knows him, and he’s afraid. And you wonder they’ve signed Zay Flowers now. Who’s going to be throwing him the ball two years from now?
Luke Jones 1:37
I I still think it’s gonna be Lamar, but until it’s no longer an issue. It’s an issue, right? But the the big news, obviously, on Tuesday, the day after the trade deadline. So if you’re the Ravens, kind of a nice timing of that. That fans feeling down in the dumps about the Orioles and the Ruchman trade. Well, Zay Flowers going to be here for really the next five years after this, right? Keep in mind, this is his fourth season. He’s all he was already locked in for the fifth year option next year, and now this is a four-year, $140 million contract on top of that. So, look, I can remember a time, a long time ago now. At this point in time, but a time no less that I would plead with the Ravens to make more meaningful investments at the wide receiver position in terms of whether you’re talking about signing free agents or whether you’re talking about drafting. Right, I can remember a time period, and Joe Flacco can certainly remember a time period when the Ravens rarely even took any meaningful swings at drafting a wide receiver. Well, that’s changed, and that’s changed here recently. And obviously, they drafted Hollywood Brown, and he was okay, but certainly wasn’t someone that you wanted to extend long term. The Bateman thing at times has looked okay, and other times has looked not so good, right? And they’ve even extended him. But in terms of Zay Flowers, he’s the first wide receiver they’ve ever drafted that made the Pro Bowl as a wide receiver. Not talking about someone that was a return specialist like Jermaine Lewis, for example, but a wide receiver to make the Pro Bowl. He’s done it two years in a row, and you know, in the midst of a really frustrating season last year, on a lot of levels, and obviously that ended with John Harbaugh being dismissed after 18 seasons. Zay Flowers had a heck of a year last year. I think people overlooked the fact that he was seventh in the NFL in receiving yards. I think people overlooked the fact that he had 86 catches. I think people kind of overlooked that, you know, considering where Mark Andrews is at this point in his career and how much of a non-factor Bateman was last year and how likely had a disappointing season. I mean, Zay Flowers was their passing game in terms of Lamar throwing the ball to him last year, so you got to keep that in place. And I think, obviously, for anyone that’s a detractor looking at Zay Flowers, you say, “All right, well, he doesn’t have the the traditional build of a number one wide receiver, but this is a heck of a football player. He really is. I will. I’ll point out because I’ve been the guy that’s pointed that out at times. The ball security thing is something he needs to get better at. He still fumbles a little bit too much for my liking, especially for a number one wide receiver. But part of that is he’s susceptible that he runs in the middle of the field, and and he’s he’s smaller, right? I mean, he is small. Like you know, he’s not Hollywood Brown’s small, but he’s smaller, right? There’s no doubt about that. But this is a really good wide receiver, and I think a couple things at work here because I know there’s a initial sticker shock to when you see the price, and obviously you look at where he stands right now in terms of new money and. Looking at a deal in terms of like a new deal, yeah. I mean, Justin Jefferson, he he’s right there with Justin Jefferson, who by the way is vastly underpaid at this point in time, and that’s going to be remedied. But I think what you have to keep in mind here, it’s real easy to say, okay, well, Zay Flowers is what fifth, you know, fifth highest paid NFL wide receiver, but you you have to break it down more than that. First of all, look at in terms of what I just said. He was already under contract for this year and next year. Think this year, what is it? It’s like $2.7 million, and then the the fifth year option, which is next season, that’s just over $27 million.
Luke Jones 5:41
So when you take into account those years, and the understanding is this is not ripping up those years; it’s added on to those. Really, when you look at Zay’s overall compensation, he’s at six years, right around 170 million. So you know it’s right in the neighborhood of 28 million dollars per year. Obviously, the the four years are what what gets reported because that’s the new money, and that looks like a massive number. You say $35 million a year, it is. But you look at the ever-changing and evolving wide receiver market. You’ve really seen numbers start to go nuts. And keep in mind, I just mentioned Jefferson, who’s going to be up for a new deal. Fuka Nakua has still not been paid. You look at what Jackson Smith and Jigba is making, what Jamar Chase is making. I mean, those guys are north of $40 million. You keep in mind that what the is it 2029 that the NFL can redo its TV contracts. I think the wide receiver market’s going to continue to explode. So what you just did by extending Zay at this number, and look, if someone wants to say it’s a little bit higher than what they would have preferred, I’ll hear that. But if you kind of look at it in terms of not wanting to be in another position, like a Linderbaum scenario, for example, you lock in Zayd Flowers now, and you lock in the price now, as opposed to waiting to next summer or two off seasons from now. When assuming he stays healthy, that number is only going up. So I think, in a way, it was a way to lock lock in a little more to say, okay, maybe on paper it’s a touch high right now, but for playing this out to the end of where his current contract had been, it’s probably going to end up being less than you would pay if you waited two years. So, in that way, I’m completely fine with it. I think this guy’s a really, really good football player. And look, I’m not going to be a hypocrite as someone that banged the table for years and years and years for the Ravens to invest more at the wide receiver position and draft more wide receivers and draft wide receivers earlier than they did for a long time when they were hoping that the likes of Jordan Lassley and Tommy Streeter and Aaron Millett and all these day three guys that ended up doing nothing for them, the the idea that they’d make a meaningful investment, they did, and they hit on Zay Flowers and they hit on him at a high level. Is he the best in the league? No. Would I put him in the top five if all things being equal? No. But I think he’s way more of there’s a way stronger case for him to be a top 10 receiver than a lot of people want to at least admit, and I think so much
Nestor Aparicio 8:30
of that goes back to the current state of this wide receiver and tight end group and how important he is and how much Lamar Jackson trusts him. That I think you had to do this, and like I said, I think that price now, as hefty as it might look, I think two years from now you’re going to see that look more reasonable than it does right now. When I think you’re going to see some of these contracts for receivers continue to explode. Do you love the player? I don’t know that I love the person because I know about the sexual assault allegations, and I’m not going to look the other way and say, “Oh, it was just an ally. It was just an like I’m not going to do that. So I’m going to bring that up because you can Google it, and I know more about that than I should. So therefore, I I have a stilted opinion of the man and the person after the Justin Tucker thing, and I certainly have a stilted opinion of what the organization would look at a sexual assault allegation and have it go away in some way, which it did in this case. So I look at that, and I look at the person, and I look at the player, and I look at the stature of the player, and this is my comparable for this, and you know I have a twisted thing with Steve Smith in general, and you know the just in general, but Steve Smith was that size, wider squatter, more like a fire hydrant, but I saw him play in his prime. I wish I. Felt more of Steve Smith about Zay Flowers giving him the money. You know what I mean. That’s all. I don’t want to call him softer. He’s a different player. I mean, Steve Smith would punch anybody in the mouth, including me. So like that’s just a different. You sat with you know Steve Smith. There was a different demeanor about him. Um, but I’d like to see him be that player, not necessarily the toughness and beating up teammates and punching people in the mouth and like all of that, but the general sense of the way he played the game. And that’s not Zay Flowers’ game. It’s more cut. It’s more shift. But to your point, when the ball’s getting stripped, it is a factor of Steve Smith would punch in the mouth. Zay Flowers doesn’t feel that like the strong guy, the guy that’s going to break tackles and all of that. From when Kyle Hamilton gets a hold of Jose Flowers, he’s going to get him to the ground. Steve Smith may, you know, there was a different kind of player, and that’s when you’re small like that. Jermaine Lewis, pick any. He’s a better, obviously a better wide receiver than that. But I’m thinking smaller stature players at that position in a general sense. There’s a reason I’m a little queasy. There’s a reason I’m scratching my head. There’s a reason I’m saying he’s your number one one because you’re paying him to be that. This is where like getting tight end help and having Derrick Henry and having a quarterback that’s all world makes him more valuable in what he does, but I don’t know. And and the money did make me go, you know, like hold on. And the whole part where like, well, we haven’t had any wide receivers around here. Don’t let this one get away. You got him, and he works with the quarterback, and you believe the quarterback’s going to be here. And we talk so much about Ruchman and Holliday and Henderson being the aircraft carriers. You just made Zay Flowers an aircraft carrier, and I don’t know that I believe that. I’ll believe that when it is shown out over the next three or four years that a guy of his stature, with his toughness or lack thereof, or if you think he’s tougher than Steve Smith, have at it. I would assure you, I’ve met them both. That I I don’t know that the injury part that the the taking one hit I don’t worry about that as much because Ed Reed’s not allowed to blow him up and knock his head off.
Nestor Aparicio 12:09
Ray Lewis is not allowed to meet him out across the middle of the field the way he used to and and separate him from the ball and his head. So the game’s played differently to protect all of these, which is great. I mean, I’m I’m not I I don’t long for the old days of more concussions because I’ve met all those guys. But I do wonder in the modern era more of pinball football and more of get into space and move around. And he’s going to touch the ball 90 to 120 times a year, or they’re going to try to get him the ball probably 150 times a year. There’ll be incompletions, right? There’ll be plays called for him 10 times a game, I guess at this point, and you know I I just I I don’t see him that way yet, but they do, and that’s okay. I mean we have to have a wide receiver; they have to pay somebody. I’m all for it. I hope it works out for them. That’s all. I hope it works out for them.
Luke Jones 12:59
Yeah. Well, and like I said, second in the AFC in receiving yards last year. It was 1,200 yard receiver. I mean, I the the production is trending up, and the wide receiver market has exploded, and I think is going to continue to explode. When you talk about someone like Apuka Nakua, George Pickens. I mean, like these are some big names that are going to be. I I think this deal is going to, assuming Zay does not suffer a major injury, and I I think you know he has a reputation for being a gym rat. He works really really hard. I don’t think there’s any question about that whatsoever. Yeah, he’s smaller, but he’s not Hollywood Brown’s slight. Where it felt like every time Hollywood Brown went to the ground, you were like bracing that he was going to be hurt. I think, I think Zay is more solid than that, right? I think Zay has more muscle on him, whereas Hollywood Brown just felt very skinny. But he’s just-he’s very productive. And again, you finally hit on a wide receiver 30 years into the, just under 30 years into the history. And even if you have to
Nestor Aparicio 14:12
pay him 40 million, and he’s three inches shorter than you want him to be, and 10 pounds lighter than you-you know, like right?
Luke Jones 14:18
No, it’s not 40 million a year. It’s you know, it’s 35 million a year in terms of the four years tacked on. But like I said, keep in mind it’s almost like saying, “Hey, I need a new car. Can I lock in the price now? But I’m, you know, I need it for two years from now. I mean, that’s what this kind of is in terms of the price. I’m what I’m telling you is, I don’t think he’s going to be fifth in terms of average annual value come two years from now. I think he’s going to be probably down closer to 1011, 12, somewhere in that neighborhood, and I think that’s probably going to be an appropriate price point for him. That because I think Zay is not a top five receiver, but I think you can make an argument. That he can get into that next tier, like, and be in that space where he’s top
Nestor Aparicio 15:04
four on the franchise the next five years, right? Nobody. I mean, Hamilton’s going to get four. You’re like, Hamilton. The people are getting in line in and around him. Lamar. I mean, I guess. I mean, and the cap keeps raising. I. I’m not complaining about the money or not. I’m. I’m just saying what what kind of player is he going to be, and if is if if he can be what he was last year, good deal for them. I’m questioning that. That that’s what I’m questioning. Fair enough. Fair enough. I mean, I I don’t think there’s any reason to think he can’t continue to put up numbers. I don’t think you can run your offense around him. That’s my point. My point is you’re the tight end better be better than what the tight ends have been here the last two years, and the other wide receiver, and the running game, and of course the quarterback. But that’s solved, right? Like in a general sense, they see Lamar as the guy throwing the ball to him in 2829, 3031, and we’ll figure out the 80, 90 million we’re going to have to pay him to do it whenever the point comes. I’ll hear all of that, but they signed up for him, and I’m not shocked by that. But I am concerned about it as a decision. That’s
Luke Jones 16:12
all. I mean, I just so you just don’t think he’s that good, or
Nestor Aparicio 16:19
I’m I’m worried about guys his size over the next five years being all the time productive to be on the field all the time to get 112 and the fumbling part and the part where you tell him to get down but he can’t get down because his whole game is I can be I can beat this guy I can beat this guy on my feet and and make him miss that’s his game and if the game is, I can make a miss peanut punch. Ball comes out in Pittsburgh. That that’s been a problem, and that’s part of the psychology of the problem. Yeah, yeah.
Luke Jones 16:50
I want to. He he’s got to protect the ball better. I mean, there’s no doubt about that, and I think that’s something you can do. I’m not saying that will disappear entirely from his game because he is slighter in stature, but but I I also think he’s really tough for especially for someone his size. I think he’s tough. I again, I when I say this, I I’m not trying to disparage Hollywood Brown, right? But Hollywood was smaller, and he every time it felt like he went to the ground and was hit even a little bit. It’s almost like you expected him to be hurt, whereas I don’t feel that degree of trepidation with Zay Flowers.
Nestor Aparicio 17:30
I guess is what I’m saying. Well, he’s somewhere between that and Steve Smith. He’s trying to stick his hand. And I’ll say this:
Luke Jones 17:36
I mean, as much as it’s tough to focus on who he was as a football player because of how much of a a whack job he’s become. Antonio Brown was not a big guy and was a legitimate in the conversation best receiver in football for a few. And I don’t think
Nestor Aparicio 17:53
Flowers is that guy or has that game. Not saying he’s that
Luke Jones 17:55
guy yet, or that
Nestor Aparicio 17:57
Lamar’s going to throw the ball everybody’s over everybody’s head enough with him. With him, I’m talking about the 72-yard touchdown pass. I’m talking more of like run the field, you know, hit him in stride the way Torrey Smith was in the beginning. He’s not that he’s scatty across the middle of the field on a possession level for the most part. Now he did get behind Pittsburgh in the game, you know, up there the the the Ryan Loop game, yeah, yeah. I mean, and and that was when I see him get paid on Tuesday. All I think about is, oh, he was the miracle that extended their season last year. He was the guy who caught the ball in Pittsburgh in in the last game. You know, he was the one who made the play that should have taken them to the playoffs, right? Literally, right. So there is part of that where I’m like, okay, I’ll buy the winner part of it. I mean, I’ll buy all that, and I’ll buy his toughness because I read the sexual assault allegations. I know he’s tough. Trust me, I saw. So I’m not questioning that part of it. I’m just questioning the general. Is he going to impact this offense the way Steve Smith did? Because he’s being paid to be that guy, and I-that’s a comparable for me. It’s not fair or unfair. I just remember Steve Smith’s productivity in Carolina for all of those years. That’s what they’ve just paid him to do, and I’m questioning whether he’s going to have that kind of productivity over the next four or five years, and that that’s all. And especially if Lamar gets out of out of pocket, you know what I mean. If Lamar clearly, if Lamar gets injured, he ain’t getting the ball like that with another quarterback here now. But I’m talking about if Lamar goes and plays for the Rams next year or something. Yeah, something. If something else happens, then what kind of a receiver is A Flowers in a different kind of offense, probably not a 45, $40,000,000.35, sorry, million dollar wide receiver for me across the game, and I don’t know that this is always my little litmus test, and I never even played this game with you. I was such a jerk on the radio for all these years taking calls. I’d say, could you trade him tomorrow with this contract? What would you get for him? Get a number one. I mean, like, would other teams really want him at that price? And I guess they would, because everybody needs a wide receiver, and he’s a 1200. Like, I hear all that. But would you rather have? And that this is the Pickens or one of the other. You know, would you rather have a different guy that’s more traditional in stature? Sure, but they said that about Steve Smith, and he, he’s not going to the Hall of Fame, but he should. Well, I
Luke Jones 20:24
mean, Steve Smith, and like I said, Antonio Brown, and Antonio Brown was listed at 510 185. Zay Flowers is 591 83. I mean, it’s almost exactly the same in terms of build, right? We’ll find out. And again, they didn’t make Zay Flowers the highest. Normally, when you’re talking about this space, like we talk about quarterbacks, right? Whether Lamar’s up or Joe Burrow’s up or Josh Allen’s up or Dak Prescott’s up, right? It’s not even so much where do they rank. It’s when is their when is it their turn, right? Joe Flacco, his when was the best win in the history of wins in terms of timing for contracts, right? He won a Super Bowl at the exact perfect time to become the highest paid quarterback in NFL history at that moment, because his regular season accolades never suggested Joe had anywhere close to an argument to be the highest paid quarterback in the league. But when he won a Super Bowl and when he played the best football of his career, he immediately went in the free agency, and or was going to, and that’s why the Ravens had no choice but to just do it there. So the when is a big part here, and I think for Zay Flowers, I didn’t mention this yet, but I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention it. Go look at the Drake London contract. Go look at Drake London’s numbers. Now Drake London is the more traditional big receiver. Guess how many 1000 yard seasons Drake London has in his career? One, and he’s making, you know, his contract what was 141, I think, rather than 140. You know, and you know we can we can kind of quibble over the, you know, what was the full guarantee? What’s the sign? Well, he’s earning the
Nestor Aparicio 22:03
money. I mean, there’s no question about that. No, but
Luke Jones 22:06
but I’m just saying, in terms like the when the timing is so massive when you’re talking about these deals, and I think you know what I think helps A Flowers a little bit get this deal now rather than I don’t know a year from now, year and a half from now, probably what just happened to the Ravens with Linderbaum, you know. And look, it’s apples to oranges in terms of position, but just from a philosophical standpoint, Linderbaum was a guy that I think they wanted to keep all things being equal, and
Nestor Aparicio 22:34
and 20 million a year would have gotten him done two two years ago, yeah, yeah, or two
Luke Jones 22:38
years ago certainly, yeah. And but they didn’t do that, and then you end up losing the player because the value then spirals out of control to the point where you know this isn’t me saying they should have that they should have outbid the Raiders. Of course not. Like the Raiders, that was insanity. But you allow it. If Zay Flowers
Nestor Aparicio 22:55
goes down and gets 1600 yards this year and they win the Super Bowl, Zay Flowers would have been a guy that would have gotten another 20 million in the deal.
Luke Jones 23:01
No one’s going to be complaining about the. At that point, they’re going to say, “Man, I’m glad we’ve got him locked up for five. Well, obviously, Eric believes he’s on that
Nestor Aparicio 23:08
path to pay him in that way, and to say we’re going to keep him around. And obviously, the the new offensive coordinator, Declan Doyle, is looking at him as the weapon. He is the weapon. It’s not Derrick Henry anymore, and it’s not Lamar’s legs anymore. It better not be. Better not be Lamar’s legs as the weapon. Like that’s not a good weapon if they’re. It
Luke Jones 23:28
can’t be. It can’t be what drives your entire offense. I agree with that, but I don’t want it to go away.
Nestor Aparicio 23:34
I don’t want to say that. I just can’t want to see it. I just want to see how how they’re going to drive this car at this point. I can’t believe
Luke Jones 23:40
we’re still having this conversation eight years later. But it
Nestor Aparicio 23:43
does it it does because because of the fact that he’s got to slow down running and then and he’s going to have to throw the ball more in a general sense. And this is the guy that they that they believe is going to be a binky for him.
Luke Jones 23:55
He has slowed down running. I mean, that’s been for a few. He hasn’t had a 1200 yard rushing season in a really really long time. Let’s keep
Nestor Aparicio 24:00
it that way.
Luke Jones 24:01
I when I say that keeps him on the field week 12. I’m not. Did I say I want him to be a 1200 yard rusher? I did not. You’re you’re putting words in my mouth. Why why are we at these two extreme ends? Like I’m saying he needs to be a bigger part of the run game than he was last year because our offense wasn’t very good last year. But that doesn’t mean I’m saying he needs to run for 1,200 yards. There’s there are a lot of there are a lot of little you know checkpoints in the midst of those. That’s the offense not
Nestor Aparicio 24:28
being very good last year. It’s just like, all right. So what’s going to make it better this year, right? I mean that’s really what this conversation is going to be about until September 13th, because it’s sort of kind of most of the same dudes, right? Like sort of, kinda, minus likely, minus. I’d say it’s
Luke Jones 24:44
actually quite. It’s very different. Well,
Nestor Aparicio 24:46
the offensive line. I’ll. Well, I mean,
Luke Jones 24:49
but it begins with. Well, yeah, the offensive line. They’re going to have three new starters philosophically.
Nestor Aparicio 24:53
You’re saying it,
Luke Jones 24:54
and philosophically, it’s going to be. I mean, they’ve got a brand new offensive coordinator. I mean, this. Yeah, this offense. So what?
Nestor Aparicio 25:00
Are they trying to do? I guess is, and that’s what’s going to be the guessing point between here and september 13. Is saying, all right, they weren’t happy with it last year. They have most of the same players back, except the offensive line, which was a mess. But we don’t really know that this offensive line’s better because it’s really not proven. And Stanley’s a year older, and and and they brought back a guard that was mediocre two years ago and gave money, and the quarterback’s a year older, the running backs a year older. They don’t really have a backup running back in the way that you and I would see it with Keaton Mitchell or like that other spell guy. Although they’re trying it out, so there, there are plenty of questions about an offense that wasn’t good enough last year, and that’s where we’re at. And and the improvement better come from, say, Flowers and Lamar Jackson as much as Fangioni. You know what I mean? Like it, it better be the guys who are out there because most of those guys are the guys they’re counting on again. They’re counting on Flowers, Andrews, Henry, Lamar, and Bateman. Right? I mean, that’s who they’re counting. The same guys are counting the last year. Well, but no likely
Luke Jones 26:00
anymore. No Pat Ricard, which changes how things look running game wise. But you know, to go back to what you said, I mean, what needs to happen for their offense to get back to functioning at an extremely high level? It begins with the health of number eight. I mean, that’s obvious. But the second one, which is tied to the health of number eight, is you need your interior offensive line to be better than it was last year, and while they look better at guard center is the big question, right? Danny Pinter or Ethan Posick or you know probably Posick, but you know the sense I get is I you know asking some people around there, I think they like Danny Pinter a little more than everyone else likes. So that that’s not me saying he’s going to win the job. That’s me saying this might be a little more of a competition than we assumed when they signed Posick a week before camp started. So we’ll see. Keep in mind, Posick’s coming off of an Achilles also, and he’s you know he’s not a young man. He’s played in the league a long time, which they like because they want experience there, but he still have to be able to play. So, but to go back to it, and to go back to Zay specifically, I mean, go look at the target share for where they were last year. And to your point, Mark Andrews is another year older. They’re hoping. I think there’s optimism that Bateman’s going to bounce back and be a better player than he was last year. I mean, he needs to be. He was a nothing in this offense last year. Go look at his number for someone who played as many games as he did, and how little production he had for how many snaps he was on the field. I mean, like that was if it weren’t for the fact that they had just redone his contract again, you know, you could have made an argument that they just move on from Bateman this past off season. I mean, that’s how bad he was last year. But there’s a hope that you know, fresh, fresh perspective. You know, you know, him getting a new start with a new coordinator, right? I mean, he’s a talented player. But all of this still comes back to when it’s crunch time. Who is Lamar Jackson trusting the most? For years, it was Mark Andrews, and yes, Mark Andrews is still there, but I think we’ve seen a very evident shift that he really, really trusts Zay Flowers in some of these big spots. And no, it doesn’t look exactly like it did with Mark Andrews, obviously, because they’re very different players in that way. But this is a guy who, despite his stature, and yes, you’re not going to be throwing a fade ball to him in the red zone in the way that you would to Drake London if you’re Atlanta, but he’s still someone who can do a lot of different things. And I think one thing they have talked about is you know what you alluded to a few minutes ago, taking some more deep shots with him down the field because he’s got the speed to do it, right? They they can do that, and if they can get time from their offensive line, Lamar Jackson does not lack arm strength. You know, anyone who says that, I’m just saying, like you don’t pay attention. He’s got a strong arm. I mean, he does. Is it Joe Flacco in his prime? No, but it’s his arm is plenty strong enough. It’s not. Can he get it out there? No, he can. But do you have a system? Do you have a pass protection? Do you have everything in place that allows that to happen? And you need to have the guy that he trusts throwing it to. And that’s where I think that for me, that’s kind of the next thing for Zay Flowers is can you unlock a few more verticals with him? You know he’s been very much a underneath intermediate kind of guy, and I think he’s shown the ability to to run all kinds of different routes. But can you unlock that vertical element that, frankly, they need in general a little bit more? Right?
Luke Jones 29:38
Bateman did a really good job with that a couple years ago, becoming more of a vertical threat, and then that that completely disappeared. That element with him disappeared last year. So between the two of them, and you know, I’ll throw that other name out here. You know, I don’t do this a whole lot. You know, I’m a curmudgeon now when it comes to training camp. That oh, I don’t you know how someone looks in training camp. I I must say, considering it’s training camp, considering he’s a rookie, considering he still has to a long long long way to go, Jacoby Lane’s done some nice things. He he’s had a couple plays already where I’m like, that that’s interesting. That’ll play. I mean, he had a. How do we send you out there to get these observations? I mean, I’m just you know again, and let me be clear. That’s that’s not me saying he’s going to be a AFC rookie, you know, offensive rookie of the year. Like let let’s you know forget about all that. But but you think he’s a player? I think he is showing the sign as many signs as you can in early August. Understanding, man, he’s got to play preseason games and he’s got to go through the joint practices against Minnesota and Washington, and go up against real competition. And he’s got to go through some spells where he drops some balls, and he doesn’t lose his confidence, and all those different things-the maturation of a young player. But he had a rep in 11 on 11 the other day, Nate Wiggins. You know, their top outside corner at this point in time, right on him in coverage. Lamar throws a ball. I don’t know if it was meant to be a back shoulder kind of sideline route, but that’s how it came across. It wasn’t the best throw in the world. Lane is falling down out of bounds, and he just sticks up his mitt and just snatches it out of the air with one hand. I mean, it was every every bit the Odell Beckham one-handed type catches that you saw Beckham make a decade ago with the Giants. So, look, it’s one rep. He’s got a long, long way to go, right? I’m not going to sit here and say he’s he’s even going to be their number two wide receiver. I mean, Bateman is that until someone beats him out? But he’s made a couple plays here and there where you just you say, man, that that kind of looked a little bit different. And oh yeah, he’s six foot four and 205 pounds. He’s more of the that that I don’t want to say number one wide receiver build, but that bigger wide receiver build that they have absolutely lacked in this offense for most of their existence. It’s funny you think back to the very beginning. They had Michael Jackson those first couple years, and Vinny could throw those balls on the outside to to Michael Jackson, and he’d come down with it. How few guys have they had that could do that for them over the course of their 30 year history? I’m at least Jacoby Lane. He got a lot of hype back in the spring. That frankly, I was like, man, this is kind of like crazy. How much social media attention that I I didn’t think was warranted. Quite frankly, as a third round pick, like no disrespect, but he’s a third round pick. But I will say he’s made a few plays here and there where I look at it and say, man, that’s that’s not something they’ve had in this offense. So I’m looking forward to seeing him. And he’s big, right? I mean, he’s big. Yeah. Yeah. And by the way, Steve Smith has watched him go. You can find this on YouTube. Steve Smith loves this guy. Dez Bryant loves this guy. I think that’s interesting. Not that those guys are seasoned, established scouts that are general man become general managers or anything like that, but they’re two really accomplished NFL wide receivers.
Luke Jones 33:09
And in the case of Steve Smith, maybe a Hall of Famer one day. Still, we’ll see. But they really like this guy. And like I said, understanding. I mean, my goodness, it’s the first week of August, and if he ends up being nothing this year, you have my permission to play back this this clip, and you can make fun of me. And I’m just trying to figure how to spell his name, J A J Apostle apostrophe
Nestor Aparicio 33:30
capital K
Luke Jones 33:32
O B I O
Nestor Aparicio 33:33
B I Jacoby. So, but he’s
Luke Jones 33:35
like I said, he’s done some fun things. So I’m looking forward to just seeing this offense in general, there’s a lot of unknown. But he’s wearing number
Nestor Aparicio 33:44
six, by the way. Number six, he better be good. He better be Paul Blair
Luke Jones 33:47
good. Kind of strange, right? You you don’t think of that as a wide receiver number, but all these guys wear the the low number. Who was wearing
Nestor Aparicio 33:53
number six for the Ravens? Like I’m thinking that through. Who the hell? What? I don’t know. We we have a quarterback, kickers, punters-I don’t know. Kyle Richardson was five. You know, Kyle Boehler was eight. I’m just going through names and numbers. I’m like, who are six? Hold on,
Luke Jones 34:08
hold on. Give me a second just to confirm. I’ll give you, man. This is a deep cut for everyone. Go ahead. Go ahead. Jr. Jenkins,
Nestor Aparicio 34:16
kickoff specialists.
Luke Jones 34:18
I was because I’m just thinking there there have not been many. Man, you want me
Nestor Aparicio 34:22
to be a real prick? I’ll send you a picture of me and him at the barn. Now I’m telling you right now, you know, because I I had me some J.R. Jenkins on the what year was that? Nice
Luke Jones 34:29
kid, like 2002, 2003, 2004 somewhere. Well, it was
Nestor Aparicio 34:33
right around when Billick didn’t believe in in in sobering so much. Pick him off. Yeah, it was later than that because my wife, I was married. I want to say it was four or five, but I don’t know. Point is, the
Luke Jones 34:43
point is, Jacoby Lane has a chance to really establish himself as the number six. By the way, Jr. Jenkins is
Nestor Aparicio 34:51
now 47 years old. He’s older than you. Where else? You are so right. He was actually on the team. Oh 102, So it was before I actually got married. Which I I could have sworn that I saw him in in a hotel in in Arizona. Like I had a memory of him at that point, but I guess it was earlier than I thought. It’s all running together. Okay,
Luke Jones 35:10
there’s one other, actually two other guys we missed here, and one is actually pretty bad, and I’ll I’ll take the blame for that. But Steve Hauschka wore number six. Okay, and here’s the one that we really missed because he actually wore this number for at least no, he wore it for a few years. Patrick Queen switched to number six. Remember, and it’s like yeah, but that’s you know that’s this modern era where
Nestor Aparicio 35:35
he’s a Steeler. We forget about him. Other than
Luke Jones 35:38
other than the O and O and Dean, other than the offensive linemen, basically anyone can wear any number they want. Basically, so it’s definitely changed in that way. I mean, you know, Roquan Smith wears number zero. You know, like Derek
Nestor Aparicio 35:50
Queen’s my favorite queen.
Luke Jones 35:52
So
Nestor Aparicio 35:52
actually, Freddie Mercury’s my favorite queen. Oh, right there. He is Luke Jones. He’ll be out in Ravenlandia. I’ll be at the Orioles game on Thursday this week. We’re going to be doing the Maryland Crab Cake Tour presented by the Maryland Lottery. Our friends have given us these. You know, I’m so partial to the Kiss Bird, Luke. You know that. So giving away Raven scratch-alls with the Kiss Bird, it it warms my it warms my soul. So come out and grab one. We’re going to be doing the show at Fishmonger’s Daughter. I’m gonna get all the dates together here. I’ll have it all out online. I’ve been putting it together. So hard to do this in the summertime. I’m gonna be at Mako next Thursday. We’re at Fishmonger’s Daughter in the afternoon of the 19th. We’re at Koco’s Pub in Laraville on the 26th, and we’re gonna be at State Fair before the month is over. And I swear I’m gonna get that organized as well. We’re gonna be in Owings Mills. We’re gonna be back downtown. We’re gonna be back in Pizza Johns and Essex in September. So lots of Maryland crab cake tour stops. All of it brought to you by GBMC and our partners at Farnan and Dermer. And I’m wearing my plan of fitness gear here, so giving a little bit of love out to our PF folks. And my wife’s in the gym over Timonium every morning as well. So I am Nestor. We are WNST AM 1570 Towson, Baltimore. Hang on, it’s almost football season. The Orioles are trying to keep it interesting. It’s Baltimore positive. Stay with us.
