After a practice at the Ravens' facility in Owings Mills, Md.,
coach Ted Marchibroda sat down on a sun-soaked wooden bench near the
locker room door to address such grim topics as his team's 4-12
record in 1996 and his defense, which ranked last in the NFL.
As several of his new players passed by on their way inside,
however, a smile crept across Marchibroda's face. First a pair
of free-agent acquisitions, defensive end Michael McCrary and
nosetackle Tony Siragusa, plodded by. Then came rookie
linebackers Peter Boulware, Jamie Sharper and Tyrus McCloud.
Before too long, this parade of power had changed the coach's
mood completely.
"You win in the NFL by being a solid team," said Marchibroda.
"You win by not being weak in any of the three facets of the
game. Last year we were weak on defense, and during the
off-season we did everything we could to shore up our defense.
That's why I feel so much better about our football team this
year."
Another reason for optimism is that the Ravens have been
busy establishing roots in Baltimore and putting their
controversial past behind them. Even the roster
has begun to reflect that: Many of the most popular former
Cleveland Browns are gone, including center Steve Everitt,
tackle Tony Jones and safety Eric Turner. "We're finally just
the Ravens and not the former Cleveland Browns," says tackle
Orlando Brown, a team captain. But the Ravens are stuck for one
more season with nearly $7 million in cap money from six former
Cleveland players no longer on the roster. Nevertheless, player
personnel director Ozzie Newsome (himself a longtime Brown)
significantly upgraded the team's injury-riddled defense, which
blew second-half leads in eight of last season's final 11 games.
The 6'4", 265-pound McCrary led the AFC with 13 1/2 sacks for
Seattle last year, and the wide-body Siragusa, who missed six
games after having his right knee scoped, has regained the form
that helped anchor Indianapolis's drive to the 1995 AFC title
game. The Ravens' rotund one has also lightened things up a bit.
He kicked field goals in minicamp, made rabbit ears behind owner
Art Modell's head during a speech at a local elementary school
and tried to get a Marchibroda look-alike used in a Ravens TV
commercial to come out and yell at the rookies.
The real Marchibroda will rely heavily on his first-year players,
most of whom will immediately step into starter roles. McCloud,
a semifinalist for the Butkus Award (for the nation's top college
linebacker), was the strongest inside backer in the draft.
Boulware led the nation with 19 sacks at Florida State and runs
a 4.74 in the 40. Sharper clocks in at 4.64. Without that kind
of speed last year, defensive coordinator Marvin Lewis found it
nearly impossible to run his attacking 3-4 defense or any of the
zone blitzes he helped popularize as linebackers coach in
Pittsburgh from 1992 to '95.
More than speed, the Ravens need the knees of Siragusa and
defensive end Rob Burnett to stay healthy. This pair must help
put pressure on quarterbacks and take the game out of the hands
of Baltimore's secondary, which on the weak side is less
talented than a few CFL teams. If they fail, all the talented
rookies in the world won't save the Ravens.
Another draftee who impressed Marchibroda this summer was former
Tennessee running back and third-round pick Jay Graham. "His
speed and ability to catch the ball give us an added dimension,"
says the coach. "There are no limitations to the way we can use
this guy either in the regular offense or as a returner on
special teams."
Graham's outside speed complements the smash-mouth running style
of Bam Morris. And Vinny Testaverde is coming off a career year;
he clicked with wideouts Michael Jackson (who tied for the NFL
lead with 14 touchdown receptions) and Derrick Alexander, and
threw for personal bests in yards (4,177) and TDs (33). But
here's the skinny on Vinny: His "career year" included twice as
many late-game collapses as victories.
One bright spot on offense is the young, physical line, which
features Jonathan Ogden, the fourth pick in last year's draft,
and Brown. When Marchibroda told Brown he was going to be a
captain, the fourth-year tackle laughed. "I told him I get into
way too many fights in practice and the games," says Brown. "He
said that was what he was looking for—a guy who could be an
enforcer on the field. Because things are gonna be different
this year."
No they're not. But please don't tell Orlando we said so.
—by David Fleming
| 
