Steve Davis: So What Is The Ravens Story?
Back in October, when the Ravens were 1-6, John Harbaugh wasn't ready to write off the season.
He announced to the media: "This is a tough story that we're writing right now. A lot of teams would fold their tent in this situation. Not the Ravens. It's not gonna happen. We'll be writing a story. And it's gonna be a real interesting story to read before it's all said and done."
So, now that the season is over, what is the story of the Ravens season?
Here is what I came up with on the show: "Salary cap issues land Ravens on ropes, injuries deliver knockout blow."
Now, obviously, there is plenty to fill in the blanks. My point is, even with all those players on injured reserve, the Ravens didn't have their second worst season ever because of injuries. They weren't very good because of a lack of enough top-notch talent. I think the Ravens were hampered by all of their dead money on the cap for Ngata, Rice and Jones which, with a few other smaller amounts, amounted to over $21 million. Throw in Pitta and it was about $28 million of cap space tied up to players that never played. That limited how much money they can spend on players, which left them with a sub-par secondary and low cost receivers and tight ends.
Injuries hurt, no doubt about it, but the Ravens just didn't have enough talent, particularly playmakers, on their roster.
