Steve Davis: Ravens' Defense Can't Use Injuries As Excuse
I don't want to hear the injury excuse for the Ravens defense. That doesn't fly. They're without one starter, Terrell Suggs. Plenty of teams lose a starter. He's a good player but he's not the Suggs of 5 years ago, so he should be replaceable.
How does that excuse the rest of the defense? The secondary is completely intact, and just not very good. This is the secondary they picked: Smith, Webb, Lewis, Hill and Arrington as the nickel. All veterans with plenty of experience. And, they aren't playing well. The Ravens, if they want to improve next year, are likely going to have to shake-up the secondary. The problem is, they're all under contract, so they will have to take some cap hits. If they cut Webb, the cap hit is $6 million. If they move him to safety, he counts $9.5 million against the salary. Either way he is very costly for a guy who doesn't look like he can play at that level anymore. Even linebacker has some questions. Father Time may have caught up with Darryl Smith and CJ Mosely might be having a sophomore slump.
The Ravens can't rush the passer and they can't cover and it's a cop out to say injuries are the reason. Save that excuse for the offense.