tk13
10-02-2004, 03:32 AM
http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/sports/9815044.htm?1c
Ravens always fly high
Baltimore finds consistent success in era of parity
By ADAM TEICHER The Kansas City Star
If the Chiefs are looking for a franchise to imitate — an 0-3 start after their first playoff berth in six years suggests they should — they can do little better than the team they will face Monday night.
The Baltimore Ravens, four years removed from a Super Bowl, again have the look of one of the NFL's elite teams. After back-to-back wins against AFC North rivals, the Ravens appear headed for a second straight division title.
How the Ravens were able to rebuild so quickly is remarkable, particularly in an era when a restrictive salary cap, free-agency and the draft can all work against successful teams.
But Baltimore had one bad season, in 2002. Even then they managed seven wins.
Now the Ravens are poised for another Super Bowl run.
“We've gone through our transition like everybody has,” coach Brian Billick said. “The key is having a certain level of continuity with some of your top players, a Ray Lewis, a Jonathan Ogden, a Peter Boulware. That makes a big difference. We had a pretty good nucleus of guys to build around.”
Billick's Kansas City counterpart, Dick Vermeil, knows the difficulties of rebuilding an NFL team. He's tried it with three franchises.
So Vermeil has some admiration for how the Ravens have gone about their business.
“If you don't have to lose your franchise players, your real quality ones…” Vermeil said.
He didn't finish the thought, but his point is clear. The Chiefs when Vermeil arrived chose to build one way, releasing key players like Elvis Grbac, James Hasty and Chester McGlockton.
The Ravens held on to championship pillars like linebacker Lewis, offensive tackle Ogden and running back Jamal Lewis, all premier players at their positions. That makes the job easier.
Baltimore was able to draft those players and others with premium first-round picks awarded through many seasons of losing immediately before and after the franchise moved from Cleveland in 1996.
Still, the Ravens drafted the right players and, more important, are hanging on to them. Since moving to Baltimore, the Ravens have made 11 first-round draft picks. Ten still play for Baltimore, and seven made the Pro Bowl at least once.
The Chiefs in the same span drafted seven first-rounders. Four still play in Kansas City, and two, Tony Gonzalez and Jerome Woods, played in the Pro Bowl
That can begin to explain why, in the last four years, the Ravens have been to the playoffs three times and won a Super Bowl while the Chiefs have one winning season and one playoff appearance.
“We do a great job of sizing up the talent out there and matching it up to what it is we think we want in an athlete,” Billick said. “We have had an incredible record in terms of particularly (the draft's) first day.”
For all of their stars, Ray Lewis is the one whose skills go far beyond the playing field. He's also a force there, to be sure. Lewis is one of the top linebackers of his era.
He's also without equal as a forceful and demanding personality.
“He's our leader,” defensive end Marques Douglas said. “He's a guy that demands everybody give his best. When we're out there with him, we have to be productive, also. He makes everybody better. He makes everybody study harder. He makes everybody play harder.”
Douglas gets no argument from Chiefs defensive tackle Lional Dalton, who won a Super Bowl ring with the Ravens as a backup.
“Ray Lewis, you can't help but follow his lead,” Dalton said. “They've got a lot of great leaders on that team. That makes them what they are. They've got a lot of guys still around from the Super Bowl team, and those guys all demand a certain level of play.”
Often overlooked in Baltimore's success are the coaching skills of the underrated Billick. His name seldom surfaces when the topic is the NFL's best contemporary coaches.
But Billick has one losing season and three playoff teams in five years. Last year, the Ravens opened with a rookie quarterback, Kyle Boller, something that usually is a main ingredient in a disastrous season.
When Boller was out because of an injury, Baltimore was forced to go with journeymen Chris Redman and Anthony Wright. It didn't matter. The Ravens still won 10 games and the division title and lost to Tennessee in the playoffs by a field goal.
Billick was hired in Baltimore from Minnesota, where he coordinated the Vikings' high-scoring offense. He refused to force his system and philosophies on the Ravens, who had the pieces in place for a solid defense.
The Ravens are the anti-Vikings. They are built around a championship-caliber defense and a physical running game while the passing game rates as one of the league's worst.
“What you have to do is recognize your talent,” Billick said. “In Minnesota, a majority of our resources were on the offensive side. When I came here, it was very evident that a majority of the assets were on the defensive side, and we've done nothing but enhance that when we drafted an Ed Reed and we drafted a Terrell Suggs. That is going to be the strength of the team.
“We didn't set out to build a big, physical running game. When Jamal Lewis came available in the draft and he was the best athlete, that's who we took. That set the (course) for who and what we're going to be. You'd better find out what the strengths of your athletes and play to those strengths.”
Ravens always fly high
Baltimore finds consistent success in era of parity
By ADAM TEICHER The Kansas City Star
If the Chiefs are looking for a franchise to imitate — an 0-3 start after their first playoff berth in six years suggests they should — they can do little better than the team they will face Monday night.
The Baltimore Ravens, four years removed from a Super Bowl, again have the look of one of the NFL's elite teams. After back-to-back wins against AFC North rivals, the Ravens appear headed for a second straight division title.
How the Ravens were able to rebuild so quickly is remarkable, particularly in an era when a restrictive salary cap, free-agency and the draft can all work against successful teams.
But Baltimore had one bad season, in 2002. Even then they managed seven wins.
Now the Ravens are poised for another Super Bowl run.
“We've gone through our transition like everybody has,” coach Brian Billick said. “The key is having a certain level of continuity with some of your top players, a Ray Lewis, a Jonathan Ogden, a Peter Boulware. That makes a big difference. We had a pretty good nucleus of guys to build around.”
Billick's Kansas City counterpart, Dick Vermeil, knows the difficulties of rebuilding an NFL team. He's tried it with three franchises.
So Vermeil has some admiration for how the Ravens have gone about their business.
“If you don't have to lose your franchise players, your real quality ones…” Vermeil said.
He didn't finish the thought, but his point is clear. The Chiefs when Vermeil arrived chose to build one way, releasing key players like Elvis Grbac, James Hasty and Chester McGlockton.
The Ravens held on to championship pillars like linebacker Lewis, offensive tackle Ogden and running back Jamal Lewis, all premier players at their positions. That makes the job easier.
Baltimore was able to draft those players and others with premium first-round picks awarded through many seasons of losing immediately before and after the franchise moved from Cleveland in 1996.
Still, the Ravens drafted the right players and, more important, are hanging on to them. Since moving to Baltimore, the Ravens have made 11 first-round draft picks. Ten still play for Baltimore, and seven made the Pro Bowl at least once.
The Chiefs in the same span drafted seven first-rounders. Four still play in Kansas City, and two, Tony Gonzalez and Jerome Woods, played in the Pro Bowl
That can begin to explain why, in the last four years, the Ravens have been to the playoffs three times and won a Super Bowl while the Chiefs have one winning season and one playoff appearance.
“We do a great job of sizing up the talent out there and matching it up to what it is we think we want in an athlete,” Billick said. “We have had an incredible record in terms of particularly (the draft's) first day.”
For all of their stars, Ray Lewis is the one whose skills go far beyond the playing field. He's also a force there, to be sure. Lewis is one of the top linebackers of his era.
He's also without equal as a forceful and demanding personality.
“He's our leader,” defensive end Marques Douglas said. “He's a guy that demands everybody give his best. When we're out there with him, we have to be productive, also. He makes everybody better. He makes everybody study harder. He makes everybody play harder.”
Douglas gets no argument from Chiefs defensive tackle Lional Dalton, who won a Super Bowl ring with the Ravens as a backup.
“Ray Lewis, you can't help but follow his lead,” Dalton said. “They've got a lot of great leaders on that team. That makes them what they are. They've got a lot of guys still around from the Super Bowl team, and those guys all demand a certain level of play.”
Often overlooked in Baltimore's success are the coaching skills of the underrated Billick. His name seldom surfaces when the topic is the NFL's best contemporary coaches.
But Billick has one losing season and three playoff teams in five years. Last year, the Ravens opened with a rookie quarterback, Kyle Boller, something that usually is a main ingredient in a disastrous season.
When Boller was out because of an injury, Baltimore was forced to go with journeymen Chris Redman and Anthony Wright. It didn't matter. The Ravens still won 10 games and the division title and lost to Tennessee in the playoffs by a field goal.
Billick was hired in Baltimore from Minnesota, where he coordinated the Vikings' high-scoring offense. He refused to force his system and philosophies on the Ravens, who had the pieces in place for a solid defense.
The Ravens are the anti-Vikings. They are built around a championship-caliber defense and a physical running game while the passing game rates as one of the league's worst.
“What you have to do is recognize your talent,” Billick said. “In Minnesota, a majority of our resources were on the offensive side. When I came here, it was very evident that a majority of the assets were on the defensive side, and we've done nothing but enhance that when we drafted an Ed Reed and we drafted a Terrell Suggs. That is going to be the strength of the team.
“We didn't set out to build a big, physical running game. When Jamal Lewis came available in the draft and he was the best athlete, that's who we took. That set the (course) for who and what we're going to be. You'd better find out what the strengths of your athletes and play to those strengths.”