Knee. And they aren’t apologizing because I don’t think the organization is as outraged on the whole as those who are very vociferously speaking out on social media and leaving the seats empty in the stadium. And if you are outraged, they’re sorry you feel the way you do but you’ll have your opportunity to speak with your wallets, hearts and eyes in the coming years.
So, for now, I’m just going to assume that you folks and friends who have changed your basement motif from purple and World Championship swag to some other less familiar colors are gone forever.
And the Ravens are trying to win games as the clock strikes 2018 and get to the playoffs, which is the bottom line expectation from every fan owning a purple sweater.
So, now what happens when the stadium empties and the team needs to find new core “fanatics” to spend the money and make the commitment to supporting the football team?
Once the folks who have stayed away and have vowed to destroy the Ravens with their departure go for good, the city and the team are still in Baltimore and still need future support.
Hence, this is the Ghost of Baltimore Football Future.
Where do we go from here?
And as much as I’ve emphasized The Wembley Knee and Ray Rice as modern day “reasons to be pissed off at the Ravens,” the entangled issues of price, value, the great television and mobile experience, fantasy and general inconvenience and commitment of a stadium game day and its weather conditions and other family and “real life” obligations are the real long-term enemies of the NFL franchises, which are trying to fill their seats with paying customers eight times a year after ripping them off twice in August with those preseason shams.
The Ravens are currently having trouble luring people who love the team to the games at the stadium because of the quality and value of the game day experience. Somehow, it’s lost its value in the community. Somehow, it’s no longer the place to be.
These are murky waters, trying to predict any franchise’s success into the future. Certainly, winning a Super Bowl is the Holy Grail and the only standard. And that’s really all about finding a special quarterback, a smart coach and a great system. And then with picks and players and money and systems and strategy, you need to get very, very lucky. Winning in just one season is hard to do
