2013年8月18日星期日

In Baltimore's first preseason game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers

In Baltimore's first preseason game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the lineup was mostly unchanged except for Reid filling in at right guard for Yanda and Gino Gradkowski stepping in as the team's new center. According to Pro Football Focus (subscription required), this group of starters gave up one sack in the game, attributed to McKinnie. Once Yanda is fully ready to participate in all drills at training camp, he'll likely take over the right guard job, considering he was Pro Football Focus' second-ranked offensive guard in 2012. Reid will move back into a depth role, joining Jack Cornell and Ramon Harewood as those who should remain on the roster to fill in if any of the starters become injured. Free-agent signing David Mims is intriguing—the second-year player is a monster at 6'8", 335 pounds and comes to Baltimore after spending 2012 with the Kansas City Chiefs, a team that ran the ball heavily last year. Considering the issues at offensive tackle depth, Mims could make the 53-man roster this year. Again, however, Mims is an unproven talent like Wagner, and the learning curve will be steep if he's asked to step up for any reason. Depth at guard is generally solid for the Ravens at present; tackle, however, is more concerning. Reid, Osemele, Cornell and Harewood are all capable of playing both guard and tackle, but in terms of true depth, only Ricky Wagner is a pure tackle. Wagner, however is a rookie, so his ability to take on a starting workload is questionable for 2013. And all have varying levels of talent at the position. The Ravens are clearly banking on their starting-capable depth at tackle being adequate enough to get them through the season and that Oher and McKinnie can handle their assignments without struggling this year. And, simply put, they may just have no choice but to roll with this assumption, especially if anything happens to the two starting guards, causing some of the guard-tackle types on the roster to be moved around. Tackle is such a concern because the two starters, while capable, have been erratic in the past. Oher is much better off as a right tackle, but the possibility still exists he moves back to left if McKinnie falters. McKinnie, remember, was just a mere contributor before the playoffs last season and thought to be a greater liability than Oher on the left, even though Oher's 10 regular-season sacks allowed was the highest total among Baltimore's offensive linemen. At center, the Ravens are fine. There is Gradkowski, the presumed heir-apparent to Birk, along with A.Q. Shipley, for whom the Ravens traded with the Indianapolis Colts this offseason. Shipley will be the starter in Thursday's preseason game against the Atlanta Falcons, signaling that the battle for the job hasn't yet been won by either player. More: Shop For Cheap Jerseys Cheap packers super bowl jerseys carolina panthers jerseys for Sale

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