Itโs been quite the week at The Castle in Owings Mills. The Ravens got embarrassed by the lowly Browns and Jameis Winston, highly-paid safety Marcus Williams was benched and no oneโs talking. Oh, and Lamar Jackson hasnโt practiced, Michael Pierce went to injured reserve and the Denver Broncos and Cincinnati Bengals are waiting over the next five days. Luke Jones and Nestor break down some midseason drama for #RavensFlock.
SUMMARY KEYWORDS
Maryland crab cake tour, trade deadline, Deontay Johnson, defense needs, Marcus Williams, pass rush, cap space, defensive line, offensive depth, trade possibilities, Super Bowl caliber, player acquisition, injury concerns, defensive improvement, trade value
SPEAKERS
Nestor Aparicio, Luke Jones
Nestor Aparicio 00:01
Welcome home. We are W, N, S T, tassel, Baltimore, Baltimore, positive. We are positively taking the Maryland crab cake tour back out on the road. Weโre gonna be on the road throughout November into December. Iโm wearing my cocoa shirt. Weโre gonna be Cocos. I got the date here December the fourth, so thatโs the day that Mike prosigliano will come out and theyโll spike my eggnog, get my eggnog off to the right start in early December. Our friends also at Jiffy Lube MultiCare taking us out with the Maryland lottery on the Maryland crab cake tour and the oyster tour is in progress. All of that brought to you by friends at Liberty pure solutions. One 800 clean water. They keep my water clean if you have well water, if you have any plumbing needs. Our friends at Liberty pure solutions, they solve those problems. And of course, curio wellness and far and daughter, when my backโs been a little creaky for being up watching the Yankees lose the World Series, I have some move products from my back to make me makes me feel nice. Stop by far and daughter, see what they can do for you. There in their their big golf bag and arsenal of wellness products. Lou Jones, you and I spent the early part of the week talking trade deadline, trade deadline. I donโt think we said trade dead. And Eric Acosta was out dealing for a position on the team that he is referred to as strength. And you know, the signing abatement in the off season, all of that. How are you? Howโs your week? Here come the Broncos, and donโt look now, but the Bengals are right around the corner, right? Yeah,
Luke Jones 01:23
lots going on on the field. Off the field. Still not much clarity on the Marcus Williams thing. But lo and behold, as weโre now under a week from the trade deadline, the Ravens go out there and make a move, make a move for a name player, give up very little in the process. But as I noted on social media, very much know that times are a changing when the Ravens go out and get a star wide receiver, and yet, I think much of the reaction you saw for it, and weโll get into it. And I think this is a good move. How can you dislike it? They gave up nothing, basically, to get Deontay Johnson. But many fans, many reporters, many observers, asking, What about the defense? And theyโre not wrong in asking about that. So just kind of speaks that this is definitely a different ravens team. This is not your fatherโs ravens or your older brotherโs Ravens. Maybe thatโd be the best way to put it, but you bring in Deontay Johnson for a swap of a fifth round pick and a sixth round pick. I mean, thatโs nothing. I
Nestor Aparicio 02:27
mean, itโs shocking, value wise, right? Like, and apparently there were two other teams in on the deal. What the hell were they offering? I,
Luke Jones 02:33
first of all, that part of it, I Iโm really skeptical, because, I mean, what were they asking for, Deontay Johnson and a pick and giving nothing in return. I mean, you canโt get much, much lower than what this offer was. I mean, this is the Ravens taking a fifth round pick in next yearโs draft and saying, Okay, weโll move back roughly 20 spots. I mean, thatโs probably what this is going to equate to. And you get a rental of a former pro bowl wide receiver. Now, Deontay Johnsonโs not the best in football or top five, but heโs a quality player. And you can sit here and say, this wasnโt their biggest need, and it wasnโt, but what happens if something happens to zay flowers, right? What happens if something happens to Rashad Bateman? This is very clearly an upgrade over Nelson Aguilar. So, you know, Iโm not sitting here and saying that this pushes them over the, you know, this gets them over the hump to get to the Super Bowl. But depending on the range of scenarios here, I think itโs, itโs tough to look at this with very much downside at all. Right, I donโt really see much there. Iโm not convinced that Deontay Johnson is going to be a massive part of what they do, because weโve talked about the difficulty and the number of bounds they already had to feed with the football. But certainly when youโre talking in terms of depth, when youโre talking in terms of someone who can run routes, he might be able to lend a hand at in the return game, thatโs something that heโs been an All Pro selection before, much earlier in his career, but you add him to the picture, it just gives you another option. It gives you perhaps a little more diversification. If you want to run three wide sets, they havenโt done a whole lot of 11 personnel. And as I said, at the very least, this is, you know, pretty distinct upgrade from Nelson Aguilar.
Nestor Aparicio 04:18
So they got four tight ends already. They want to get on the field right? Oh, sure, exactly one of them under center in a key spot
Luke Jones 04:25
right three days ago. And this is where, again, I would, I would exercise a little bit of caution and expectations understanding because of that, because they already have so many mouths to feed offensively, and thereโs only one football to go around. We were talking about this. I mean, Mark Andrews was a ghost in this offense in September, right? And thatโs someone whoโs a multi Time Pro Bowl tight end. Theyโre just gonna score 50 every week, Luke, thatโs all thatโs this gonna score, right? And maybe thatโs what. And if youโre Eric da Costa, and you look at this and say, Look, weโre gonna continue to look for pass rushers. Weโre gonna continue to look at the scene. Safety position. But we also canโt guarantee that a deal is going to manifest itself, right, or that the guys available are going to be guys that dramatically move the needle compared to what we have so well, he and I both felt Derek Henry was a good idea last year, and he couldnโt get it done, right? So to think that youโre going to get as a Darius Smith, or youโre going to get a clown, youโre going to get a pass rusher this week? No,
Nestor Aparicio 05:21
you donโt, donโt
05:22
know, right? I
Nestor Aparicio 05:23
mean, you shouldnโt be able to do it. I mean, given a fourth, you can give a third, you know, play that game. Oh,
Luke Jones 05:28
and thatโs what you have to look at. Thatโs where you have to look at this and say, How much do we value that player at the asking price, or to up the asking price, because three other teams are vying for that guy. You know,
Nestor Aparicio 05:41
how clearing is the need? How clearing is the need to say, if we get that player, hereโs the 30 to 40 snaps theyโre going to play, and these are the snaps and the position. We want Simpson off the field. We want somebody off we want something to happen here that we can affect change. Because thatโs, thatโs the way they look at it out there. Theyโre pretty sophisticated in how they go at this, right? And if theyโre going to go at this and say, What can that player do for me in week 10, what can he be doing in week 1718, 1920, right? I Thatโs where this would be for them. I donโt think that they just, they have Yannick and gawk ways, as you pointed out, right? Like if theyโre looking to get a guy off the street, theyโve already done that. Yeah.
Luke Jones 06:23
And, and there, therein lies the question, whoever might be available, how much better is that individual than unique and gauque? And when you go down the list of, I mean, David ajabo was a healthy scratch, thereโs been so much going on this week that that that, that question, hasnโt he? Well, there is, yeah,
Nestor Aparicio 06:42
I mean, maybe that bleeds into this a little bit about how they feel about their own personnel, because itโs really clear this Marcus Williams thing is one of the biggest mistakes in the history of the organization. If theyโre going to bench him and and har ball is going to do no speaky and horrible is going to play the power game like he did with me and thinking, Iโm just going to keep my mouth shut and never bring anything up of disrespect one way or another. And the player always has the power in this position, because the playerโs making more money than the coach in this case. There are many of those, but this, in this case, and heโs a guy, Marcus Williams, that, other than you and I, uttering his salary a little bit. And this and that, like most fans, most fans donโt know he was ever here. He was ever part like literally, because he hasnโt been an impact player at all. Um,
Luke Jones 07:30
he was really good to start out his first year, but he got hurt, and last year he played through some injuries. He was much better the first two years of this deal. Like I, I wouldnโt put this up with the absolute worst deals in French free agent deals in franchise history over the first two years. Now what itโs become in year three, and you know, I, my gut tells me weโre going to see him back on the field Sunday, because Eddie Jacksonโs no better, right? I mean, you can kind of look at this thing and say, Okay, itโs not as though you drafted a guy in the first round that is a mark, a market upgrade over him. So I think youโre going to see them still trying to figure this out. Maybe they mix and match, maybe they sub guys in and out. And I still wonder if thatโs part of the the origin of what happened. Maybe they told him he was going to be a no longer a 100% snap kind of guy, and maybe he reacted to that in a not so favorable way to be benched entirely. I donโt know. Again,
Nestor Aparicio 08:26
we have is the babies, right? All we know he didnโt play, and nobodyโs talking about it. And thatโs, and thatโs unusual in the purple Castle, you know, where everythingโs just Chad Steele keeps everything nice and tidy and neat and every, every, everybodyโs got an answer for everything this is, it feels a little ugly in a week when they lost to the browns, and they have two football games this week, and itโs a position of glaring need. To your point, itโs a position thatโs cost them. Yeah,
Luke Jones 08:53
itโs cost them a lot. But, I mean, I approached Marcus Williams in the locker room on Wednesday, he declined to talk. So you know, you hear John Harbaughโs side of it, truths, half truths, darn, lies, whatever, however you want to classify it, or just not being very clear about it, as youโre continuing to praise the player, but youโre not playing them in a game. You go to the player to see what he has to say, and he didnโt want to talk. So weโre going off of a very incomplete picture, but the trouble still lies with the fact that their past defense needs to get better. Absolutely needs. It
Nestor Aparicio 09:25
wasnโt Marcus Williams fault on Sunday that they lost. He didnโt play. He didnโt play. So for you to go to him, I mean, right? I mean,
09:32
I
Nestor Aparicio 09:32
Iโm not taking his side, hardball side, whatever Iโve seen the tape, um, but whatever it is, itโs not Kumbaya. And sure, this is why John makes the big bucks, is to smooth these things out and make sure that you Who was the guy on the Super Bowl team that got in the fight with Flacco. I always forget his name. He always pops off on social media, the guy that would hit everybody late, that everybody that Bernard Pollard, yeah, yeah, yeah. This turns into a Bernard the fight with he didnโt get in the fight with Flacco. Well, they got into war words. That was, it was by me. No, no, no. Like, like, well, prolo fought with hardball the whole time, and dad died, right, right? Yeah, I
Luke Jones 10:08
didnโt know. I didnโt know what youโre talking about. No, no, no. Iโm
Nestor Aparicio 10:11
just saying, like, this. This might be one of those things when itโs two years from now, weโll, weโll figure out what happened in week eight. But this is a key player, right? I mean, itโs not like weโre talking about the edge of the roster, or even like where they were with the wide receiver last year who was just a spare piece, right? I mean, this, this is, this was a contract guy that was brought in to be a part of this, and now thereโs a rift of some kind that. I mean, Iโm not saying that as a reporter, Iโm saying that as a fan, just watching and saying, thereโs something to miss out there. Thereโs something awry. Har ball is going to have to exhibit some leadership here. And to your point, defense needs to get better
Luke Jones 10:51
well and and itโs not. And to the point that you just made, itโs clearly not just Marcus Williams, because he was benched on Sunday and they let Jameis Winston throw three touchdowns in the second half. So look, and I noted this at Baltimore positive.com This isnโt just on one player. This isnโt just on one coach. I think this is a collective problem, and I itโs not just Marcus Williams. I mean, roquan Smithโs not playing like $100 million off ball linebacker this year. Heโs not. Heโs been a problem in coverage. Now we could talk about whether thatโs him. We can talk about whether schemes putting him in the best positions to maximize his talents. We can talk about maybe him missing Patrick queen, and, you know, not to bash Trenton Simpson. Heโs a first year starter, and I still think heโs going to be a good player, and heโs actually looked a little bit better in coverage, so maybe, maybe thatโs part of the solution, at least in the interim. But, but the point is, Marcus Williams value concern. Bro Quan Smith, this year, at the very least, through the first eight games, has not played like the highest paid inside linebacker in the NFL should play. And even look at someone like namdi Mata BK up front, hasnโt been bad, but has he has been as as great as he was last year. No, and you paid a game record last year. You paid him to be a game record, right? And he, and heโs had, I mean, heโs had future too many penalties. I mean, the sack total that thatโs something that can be, especially over seven or eight games that canโt that doesnโt necessarily always give you the best picture of how a player is playing, but when youโre when youโre registering 15 yard penalties almost weekly, it feels like that, and youโre not racking up the sacks in the process, then you know that thatโs a problem. So and again, itโs not just on those guys, either. And we can point to Zach or we can point to the assistant coaches they lost, right? I mean, we talked about this throughout the off season. This isnโt just, you know, the same exact defense as last year. And you roll it out, you had quite a bit of attrition, player wise and coaching wise. But Nestor, through eight games, the Ravens have allowed one fewer touchdown than they did all last year. I mean, think about that touchdown passes Iโm talking so, I mean, thatโs, thatโs, thatโs alarming, right? I mean, I mean, that is absolutely last year they basically averaged one touchdown pass allowed per game. This year theyโre basically averaging two. Thatโs notable. I mean, seven points right there, without even talking about anything else. I mean, thatโs very notable. So itโs jarring. And I think part of the frustration here is they, I still donโt think they can completely pinpoint it, and thatโs why I said itโs not all on Marcus Williams, itโs not all on Zach or itโs not all on the other high paid defensive players. I talked about, we talked about this after Sundayโs game, and weโve talked about this on other occasions, if this team, if this secondary, could just catch the football a little bit better, their past defense would, perception wise, at least look a lot better. I mean, Kyle Hamilton catches that pass on Sunday, they win, right? And I donโt want to be dismissive of all their other issues, but again, you kind of go across the board, and you can look at 456, different variables that are impacting that defense right now. So thatโs why you know, as much as I give a thumbs up to the Deontay Johnson trade, and you know should, shouldnโt be something that hinders their ability to add a defensive piece between now and the trade deadline, especially with Carolina paying down a lot of Deontay Johnsonโs remaining contract. So itโs not a major financial commitment either, let alone talking about the the draft pick compensation, you know, compensation I almost use in air quotes because of how little it actually is. But theyโve got to figure this out. I mean this, I still will say, even if Marcus Williams hasnโt played up to his contract, and obviously he hasnโt, especially this year, first two years, it was the health concerns and availability concerns. But I would still say this defense on the on the back end, still is way too talented to be as bad as it has been against the past. Yes, and I say that fully acknowledging that, yeah, the pass rush needs, yeah, in my opinion, needs another dude. I mean, I think you have to try everything you possibly can to go get another dude. And that doesnโt mean Max Crosby is even going to be available, let alone you come up with the offer thatโs going to satisfy Las Vegas to to part with a talent like that. But talk cap a little bit, because thatโs but I just want to interject into that and say some of the players theyโre talking about bringing in or out moneyโs a part of that. Bucha Baker, I
Nestor Aparicio 15:30
mean, thereโs a bunch of guys that are better on bad teams, or thought to be on bad teams, that could be moving around in one way, on the defense. Where are they in relation to that, because Williams is a big number. I Iโve spent the whole week this week talking about the cap number, Russell Wilson in Denver, and last week the potential cap hit for the itโs thereโs nothing like that going on in this organization as we see it. I mean, especially with the restructure Ronnie Stanley and some other things that happen. But also, Kyle Hamilton is going to be coming online. Linda Bobโs going to get a big contract when his time comes. So they have some players that are going to get paid, as we would say, right, and other players that have been paid along the way. What? What would you say? Is there anything they canโt or or can or cannot do? Clearly, they can deal a second round pick and get a player right? But then thereโs, thereโs the money part of taking people on, yeah,
Luke Jones 16:21
I mean, right now, and Iโm just, Iโm pulled up over the cap.com which is a pretty reliable source in terms of, you know, where they are cap wise, you know, it has them at $3.7 million look, they can create more cap space. I mean, they have the deals. When you have a quarterback on a, you know, 50 plus million dollars per year, you can do things with that, right? And youโre not going to cut Lamar Jackson next year or the year after that. So you know that thatโs something you can do. I mean, they have a few other deals they could do that with now, Marcus Williams, under normal circumstances, if he were paying playing at the level that heโs being compensated, he would be a guy where you probably would restructure his deal. You donโt want to touch that deal, right in the same way they didnโt want to touch Ronnie Stanleyโs deal, say, last year or the year before, because of where he was, health wise and performance wise. So so there are things they can do to create space. There are always, I donโt want to say always. There are usually always ways that you can increase cap space if you want to. But as we know, thatโs thereโs always a an opportunity cost there. Thereโs always needing to pay the piper down the road in that regard. And also
Nestor Aparicio 17:26
dead money that they the Ravens arenโt living with a lot of dead money, right? I mean, I mean, thereโs any dead mom, youโll come up with a name or two, but thereโs something, right? Thereโs a guy or two that I donโt know who they would be, who if they cut that was a failure that they had to eat money on Iโm I donโt. Iโm trying to think the cyclers and the Moses and the guys that were sort of at that point in their careers are all gone.
Luke Jones 17:48
Yeah. I mean, thereโs always some dead money, right? But thereโs not a smoking gun of, oh my gosh, they had to eat $20 million in cap space with Russell Wilson. It
Nestor Aparicio 17:58
was 50 and 30. Yeah, yeah. So
Luke Jones 18:01
thereโs nothing, but So, so the point is, and look, you mentioned zaderia Smith as an option, and whether Cleveland would be willing to trade him in the division or not, it feels like the Browns would be one of the teams that would be foolish to do that, even if the Ravens presented the best offer, because some teams still have that line of thinking. But go, look at his salary for this year. Heโs not making any money in terms of base salary, so that wouldnโt be a problem for someone like him, but for other players where there thereโs a lot of money, still,
Nestor Aparicio 18:28
if the brands are getting a fifth round pick for him or a fourth, you couldnโt give him a fourth or a third. I mean, it would seem to me, if
Luke Jones 18:35
Iโd give him a fourth, I wouldnโt even think twice about it. My question would be somebody else
Nestor Aparicio 18:39
going to give him a third, then you know what I mean, browns. What do they care? We play, play us one more time. And Darius Smith, yeah, I
Luke Jones 18:47
hear you, but you also really silly well, and Iโm obviously, Iโm putting some words in their mouth because they havenโt come out and said that, but itโs the browns, right? And, but weโve talked about this, weโve seen this in other sports too, where teams wonโt trade within the division, just because, not because itโs, itโs not the best deal, but, but, oh well, we canโt trade with them. Why? Why? If theyโre offering you the best pick, or theyโre offering you the best package of prospects in baseball, for example, why wouldnโt you trade with someone and go
Nestor Aparicio 19:15
play for the Steelers, Gino stuff, go play for the Bengals. Thatโs what they do.
Luke Jones 19:19
I mean, the player, yeah, the players do that, but, but if, if youโre the team, look, if youโre the ravens, hypothetically, in some year, and youโre out of it, and the Steelers come calling, or the Bengals come calling, and they give you the best offer for someone thatโs not in your plans, why wouldnโt you trade them? I mean that that that just sounds like kind of a old school, dumb way of thinking, right? So, but again, bringing it back to to your question, there are things they can do to create some cap space. Iโm not saying thatโs the ideal way you want to do it. Iโm not saying that thatโs their their first choice, the first preference, but there are almost always means to create some more cap space. But you pointing it out is a very cogent. Point in talking about the fact that youโre going to want to get a Kyle Hamilton deal done as soon as you possibly can, right after year three, is when draft picks, you know, former draft picks, become eligible for contract extensions. Heโs going to be there Tyler Linder bomb, same way. Heโs going to be one of the highest paid centers in football, if not the highest. Just the wild thing
Nestor Aparicio 20:19
you and I talk about this on the back end of the World Series in baseball, itโs a completely different paradigm in regard to signing players. Whereas giving Kyle Hamilton money, youโve got cap space, youโre a rich franchise. Everybodyโs a rich franchise. The whole Leagueโs flush. Then itโs just about the fight with him, like the fight with Lamar, about am I a $48 million quarterback or 52 and how much is guaranteed. I mean, theyโll get Hamilton done. Thatโs the difference. You have the confidence. I have the confidence Hamilton Kyle, Hamilton is not going anywhere. Theyโll pay him, baseball fan, different you know, thatโs where we get our minds into this. And also dead money, Cap money, and what they can and canโt do. I just want to get on our airwaves here on Halloween, before the Denver thing, before the trade deadline, the Ravens can do whatever they want if they if they want to offer a two and a player for Max Crosby right, and pick up his 25 30 million, I donโt know whatโs he going to be right? Heโs that kind of player right, like theyโre going to have to getting that kind of players different than the area Smith from a cap standpoint, and thatโs what Iโm trying to get my arms around, Max Crosby and star players. And if they had brought Derek Henry in last year, Iโm Iโm assuming the reason that Derek everything didnโt happen was compensation, not salary. Although you were always of the mindset of thatโs too much money, or teams donโt pay not you. I donโt want to get personal with you, but the running backs arenโt you donโt want that cap number on your running back. The Ravens havenโt any problem with it this year. Everybodyโs happy with it, even at five and three. But I the money part of these deals the NBA. Itโs the biggest part, right? Youโre an NBA fan. I mean, when you start dealing NBA players, cap space and player space and all thatโs a big part of it that wonโt play into that this week, correct? I
Luke Jones 22:06
mean, I, I wouldnโt think so. And look, you mentioned the baseball example. Keep in mind the the absolute best players in football, who the quarterbacks, right? Youโve got the franchise tag too. I mean, it really is a different dynamic. I mean, thereโs no mechanism in baseball to keep the absolute best of the best on your roster in the same way, other than a qualifying offer, which gets you a pick. So I appreciate
Nestor Aparicio 22:28
you saying that, because thereโs nothing Mr. Rubenstein can do if gunner Hendersonโs dreams to play for the Braves. Like literally, yeah. I mean, like literally,
Luke Jones 22:38
Yes, true. I would also say all of these teams, even the even the small market teams, have more means to sign players than they give off they wish to. They could Right, correct. Not everyone can have a $300 million payroll. Letโs be clear on everybody can have a $40 million player. Everyone could right, no question about it. So you know, I donโt want it, especially for you know Pittsburgh,
Nestor Aparicio 23:01
33 years donโt think that Iโm playing, oh yeah, exactly, with these creeks billionaires about whether they can afford, especially Mr. Big pants, Rubenstein and Eric Getty, they can buy whatever they want, in any way they want. They bought the team. So like Iโm but in baseball, that expectation is different than where we are this week where nuts are in a crunch, five and three quarterbacks hurt, by the way, we havenโt. Weโre 30 minutes in. We havenโt talked about the quarterback being hurt. Weโll do that. And he did run into some linebackers last week, but he leaping, bounding like Superman and all that. But to the trade thing, I donโt want to get all like, lathered up thinking Max Crosbyโs coming here and you saying, dude, theyโre already paying $20 million players everywhere. They have one of those. His nameโs Marcus Williams. They got to get him on the field. Well.
Luke Jones 23:48
And thereโs also, thereโs also the question of, youโre talking about a franchise, kind of player, there are the Raiders going to just trade them, right? Or, or is the cost, is the asking price? So over the moon that itโs not practical in terms of the compensation and what you have
Nestor Aparicio 24:04
to pay. Well, a number one for the Ravens sounds like in the 20s, right? Sure. So if youโre giving me one up, youโre thinking, weโre giving the 23rd 25th pick. Would we want Max Crosby for that?
Luke Jones 24:15
And I would say, if Iโm the Raiders, that doesnโt sound all that appealing to me, correct? I mean, seriously, like, so again, weโre just using him as an example. I donโt think heโs going to get traded. I donโt think the Raiders want to trade him. So thatโs why. Where you do look at someone like a Zaria Smith, and you see that his base salary is really low because they, I havenโt looked at his contract, you know, intimately or closely, but I would assume that thereโs been money moved around, because the Browns have had to do that because they have a guaranteed contract for their franchise quarterback whoโs hurt and stinks anyway. So you know, those are the kind of players, generally speaking, that are movable, easily movable at the trade deadline, and a player that could still help them. So. Weโll see how it plays out. But a big part of this, and you know, I alluded to this a little bit with Deontay Johnson, but I also think you and we talked about this a lot with the trade deadline in baseball, I think you also have to be realistic about what a player is going to bring you when heโs traded in the middle of a season, swimming upstream and certain positions thatโs much easier to deal with than others, right? A running back, for example. And keep in mind, Tennessee sounds like ownership nicks that as much as anything at the time. But you know, for Tennessee, they just werenโt going to trade a Hall of Fame play. They want to trade Derek Henry, and they just let them walk. Then, you know, I mean, whatever, but, but I think, you know, you look at some of these, and thatโs where I like the Deontay Johnson deal, but Iโm not sitting here saying that thatโs going to move the needle dramatically, unless, heaven forbid, something happens as a flowers, or something happens to Rashad Bateman, or something happens to one of your tight ends. And youโre not leaning on your tight ends in the passing game quite as much, you know so but because you are talking about having to learn a new offense and building rapport with your new teammates, certain positions, I think you can plug in and thatโs fine, and thatโs not an issue other positions, I think it could be a little more of a of a challenge. Thatโs where I look at this thing throwing throwing aside the Devonte Adams and the Jets, because they stink. You know, Davante Adams doesnโt stink, but the Jets stink, but the Jets stink, and theyโre not going anywhere. But thatโs where I look at this and say, Okay, how quickly does Amari Cooper get acclimated with the bills? You know? I mean, is he going to be peak Amari Cooper by the end of the year, or is that going to be a little more of a middling move, same with DeAndre Hopkins going to the chief. So thatโs where I look at Deontay Johnson in the same light. And also keep in mind, heโs in a contract year, and Iโm guessing, from a business standpoint, moving to the ravens, with their diverse, very productive, very deep offense in terms of all the different things they do, itโs probably not going to get the the normal target share that heโs used to getting. So how is he going to deal with that? He might be totally fine, and he might say, hey, I want to win. Thatโs fine, no problem. Or we also know that he was a guy that kind of wore out his welcome in Pittsburgh at the end, and thatโs why he was playing for the Carolina Panthers. I like the deal. Letโs be clear. How could you not they didnโt give up anything of any consequence whatsoever, but these in season deals, as much as you love to think of them in terms of all thatโs going to get us over the hump. A lot of times it doesnโt work out that way. And weโve talked about that with baseball too, with trade deadline moves and and how many times you think a deal is going to be the the
Nestor Aparicio 27:34
final clarity has a ring, and Mike Messina does not, letโs point this out, correct? And Aaron Josh does not, although
Luke Jones 27:41
Jack Flaherty had nothing to do with them winning in game six or game five. So but again, you just donโt know. And thatโs where, if youโre Eric Acosta or any of the top general managers around the league, you know General Managers for contenders, youโre looking at this and saying, How do I juggle what we can give up now for a player, what can his impact be, and what impact might that have on our salary cap, not just this year, but next year, year after that, our draft picks. I mean, the Ravens have quite an assortment of picks. Theyโre going to be owed coming next year because of all the free agents they lost. Theyโre going to, you know, theyโre slated to have the four comp picks, which is the max. So thatโs where you look at this and say, Yeah, of course, youโll do a pick swapper. Of course, sheโll you would trade a fourth round pick for Zaria Smith, right? I mean, I, I wouldnโt even think twice about that, you know? I, Iโd take a long look at it, giving up a third for him. I donโt know if Iโd go, you know? I donโt I wouldnโt give up a second round pick for him, because I donโt think Zaria Smith is that kind of player, necessarily. It
Nestor Aparicio 28:42
wasnโt that when they drafted him. Yeah,
Luke Jones 28:44
yeah. I mean, and again, you canโt lose your mind. You still want to be disciplined in how you value players. But you also understand that if youโre a team that, like the Ravens right now, clearly has a Super Bowl caliber offense they already did even before adding Deontay Johnson to the mix, so that side of the ball you feel great about I mean, you just need to keep everyone healthy. Itโs that simple. Even even the O line, right? You feel that itโs played well enough that thatโs not going to be the thing that hinders you from potentially getting to a Super Bowl. But the past defense, thatโs a different story right now, especially knowing that youโre going to face good offenses in the playoffs. So is there a safety move to be made? Is there a pass rush move to be made? And we also need this. Iโd be remiss if I didnโt mention this, the interior defensive line picture is different now. Michael Pierce is on IR heโs not expected to be out for the year, but heโs out at least the next month. Travis Jones still dealing with that ankle, Brent urban concussion. So might they even look at a defensive tackle? I donโt know. So I think itโs tough to project multiple trades still down the pike, but I think theyโre going to make at least another move. I
Nestor Aparicio 29:53
think they need to, especially the Arsenal draft picks they have coming in the land, right? And thatโs the thing again. I
Luke Jones 29:59
mean, you can. And even, like I just said, I mean, Carolina paid down a large chunk of what Deontay Johnsonโs owed the rest of the year, and that was even with what little, what little of an upgrade theyโre making in that pick swap. So teams are always there are always things you can do either way, whether youโre the team thatโs selling or the team thatโs buying to make it work. So for me, itโs really a matter of trying to identify who you thinkโs going to move the needle right? And even, even when you look at players, sometimes you can look at the sack numbers and say, Oh, wow, that guy has X number of sacks but, but then you look at the pressure rate and you say, Oh, heโs that. Heโs not really getting to the quarterback consistently. Itโs maybe he was set up well, or maybe the stars just aligned on a couple plays here or there. I mean, we also know that so and the Ravens are an analytically minded team that are going to look at that. Theyโre going to look at pressure rate, not just the guys, you know, his sack total. So weโre going to see. But Iโll say this, and I think you would wholeheartedly agree most of the improvement there is going to have to come from within, right? I mean, youโre not going to bring in five new players and try to figure
Nestor Aparicio 31:10
out where one is going to come from. Yeah, exactly. Thatโs all.
Luke Jones 31:13
I think youโre looking for one piece. Yeah, I think youโre hopeful that you know whether itโs a safety, whether itโs an edge rusher, maybe itโs a defensive tackle that can give you pass rush juice, you know. I mean, there are different ways to do this, but what theyโve been doing, pass rush wise, married to coverage on the back end, has not been nearly a good good enough. I mean, thatโs the captain obvious statement at this point. But thereโs only so much you can do in terms of even whoโs going to be available out there, thatโs really going to move the needle for you. So a lot of itโs going to come down to, you know, itโs gut check time. And for the coaches, itโs got to figure this out. You know, if all this pre snap disguise and deception is causing guys to not get lined up correctly, and guys are confused and theyโre not understanding, then you need to look at somewhere in that process, you know, whether itโs whatโs going on during the week in the classrooms and on the practice field, or whatโs happening on Sunday in terms of your communication. Because, I mean, we saw it, you know the that first Cedric Tillman touchdown, where you go back and watch the replay. I mean, adafe always running parallel to the line of scrimmage, trying to get lined up properly. And Iโm not picking on him. It was like, three or four guys like that, where itโs just, like, whatโs going on here? Like, thatโs that shouldnโt be happening in week eight. I mean, thatโs Kyle Hamilton. You know, he was asked about it on Wednesday. He said that shouldnโt happen in week one. I mean, weโre just, thereโs too much of that, and weโre just, again, a lot of variables changed, right? It wasnโt just
Nestor Aparicio 32:39
good quarterbacks will make you pay for all of that. No question on Thursday night, and they have a kid here this week. Better Luke, letโs take a break. Weโre going to talk some Lamar. Weโre going to talk about the game. Weโre going to talk about Denver. That a lot of Denver words and work here this week. Brandon Stokely joined me. He does Sports Radio out in Denver. He had a lot to say. My old pal, Mike Cleese joined us from Denver. He just wrote a book on John Elway, so we had some John Elway conversations as well, and also Sean droar, who did a lot on Dion. He Heโs the press box announcer for the Colorado Buffaloes, but long time Mile High sports guy and a veteran here, all of them with really interesting observations about the Broncos and about that franchise and where it is as they come in, five and three and tickled, and the Ravens are five and three and scuffling right now. Baltimore, Lucas. Way to find Lukey is Luke at W nst.net you can find me out on the Maryland crab cake Tour presented by the Maryland lottery. Iโll have the Raven scratch offs to give away thought this was a lucky batch. Nobody came up to me at mamas last week. Told me they won. I know somebody won. I gave out too many tickets for somebody not to win. Mom is on the half shell last week, Howard chair was there. We did some hockey and a tribute to Jeff amder. And also, I heard from Ray Bachman this week for Halloween, and heโs doing okay. Heโs hanging in so everybody loves Ray. Thereโs an oyster tour portion at day six out on the front of Baltimore positive where you could do something nice for Ray Bachman, if you wish. Heโs battling cancer down in past. Adina, and Iโll continue to check in with him. Our oyster Tour is brought to you by our friends at curio wellness and far and daughter, as well as Liberty pure solutions, one 800 clean water the way to get the best plumbers around, and certainly that clean water that I enjoy in the filtration system, because well water, bad. No good. Itโs like the Yankees defense on on Wednesday night. No good, by the way. Yankees lost the World Series. Yankees lost the World Series. I just want to say that whole lot go Dodgers. Go Dodgers. On behalf of Fernando, I am Nestor. Heโs Luke. We got plenty of football ahead. Weโre W, N, S T, am 1570 Towson, Baltimore, and we never stop talking Baltimore positive you.