Report: Caldwell To Be Ravens QB Coach

Last Friday, Head Coach John Harbaugh left the door open to adding a new quarterbacks coach.

Former Indianapolis Colts Head Coach Jim Caldwell could walk through that door.



Caldwell plans to join the Ravens’ offensive coaching staff, according to ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter.

The Ravens have not confirmed the report.

Caldwell reportedly visited Pittsburgh last weekend as the franchise is looking to replace its former offensive coordinator, Bruce Arians.

The Colts fired Caldwell after a seven-year stint as quarterbacks coach/assistant head coach and three-year stint as head coach, which included a Super Bowl berth his first year, but a 2-14 campaign last season. Future Hall of Fame quarterback Peyton Manning missed the entire year after undergoing neck surgery.

If Caldwell does land in Baltimore, he could be instrumental in helping improve the passing game and fine tuning quarterback Joe Flacco’s game.

Since Caldwell’s first year in Indianapolis as quarterbacks coach in 2002, the Colts have had the second-most prolific passing game in the NFL (259.4 yards per game). The Ravens rank 28th during the same time frame, according to ESPN Stats and Information.

Leach Still A Texan? Yes, According To Pro Bowl Vendor

A T-shirt vendor appears to be a little confused.

Take a look at this picture that fullback Vonta Leach tweeted of a Pro Bowl T-shirt being sold in Hawaii.

Not only is Philip Rivers’ name spelled with two L’s, but apparently Leach still plays for the Houston Texans.

“Look how they messed up shirts they selling to people,” Leach tweeted.

Classic.

Pagano Plucking Pittsburgh’s Staff

Last week, we discussed the idea of Ravens assistants following Chuck Pagano to Indy.

So far, however, it’s been Steelers coaches who have followed him.

It looks like last year’s Ravens defensive coordinator will join forces with last year’s Steelers offensive coordinator.

After “retiring” as the Steelers’ offensive coordinator (more on that below), Arians will now be the one calling the offensive plays in Indy. Additionally, Pagano reportedly plans on hiring Keith Butler, Pittsburgh’s linebackers coach, as his defensive coordinator, according to Schefter.

Arians and Butler are planning to fly to Indianapolis on Monday and Tuesday, respectively, to review and sign their contracts.

Roethlisberger ‘Annoyed,’ Seeking Answers

After Arians announced his retirement in Pittsburgh, which lasted eight days, he later said the organization didn’t renew his contract.

“It’s a move that apparently annoyed the Steelers’ QB,” wrote USA Today’s Stephanie Kuzydym.

Speaking from the Pro Bowl, Roethlisberger said he wants to sit down with Steelers President Art Rooney II to find out where the direction of the offense is headed.

“When I get back, I’m going to go up to Mr. Rooney’s office and ask him what he wants from me, what he wants from this offense, because I think that’s a viable question for him,” Roethlisberger told the Tribune-Review on Thursday. “He’s our owner and our boss, so I really would like to know kind of what he wants and where he sees our offense going because I’d like to tell him where I see us going.”

I’m sure Ravens fans would have no problem if Roethlisberger and the Steelers don’t get everything worked out. They could be struggling with their offensive identity.

“Roethlisberger has to be worried about the direction of the offense,” wrote ESPN’s Jamison Hensley. “Team sources told ESPN’s Chris Mortensen that Rooney wants the offense to go back to its blue-collar identity of the past. The trouble is, the Steelers are built to throw the ball with one of the best young and fast receiving groups in the league. You can criticize Arians’ play calling. But it’s hard to argue that the Steelers should go back to a run-first offense.”

Brooks, Hostler Could Leave Baltimore?

After losing Pagano to Indy, Harbaugh said Friday he’d like to see the rest of his coaching staff to return next season.

The Baltimore Sun’s Jeff Zrebiec wrote, however, that you may have to keep an eye on Defensive Line Coach Clarence Brooks and Wide Receivers Coach Jim Hostler.

“There has been some speculation that [Brooks], who has now been passed over in consecutive seasons for the defensive coordinator post, could head to Indianapolis to work under Pagano,” wrote Zrebiec. “Wide receiver coach Jim Hostler has also garnered interest from several teams.”

Zrebiec did not name the teams reportedly interested in Hostler.

Ravens Coaching Announcements A Sign Of Organizational Strength

If you were thinking the Ravens were going to announce blockbuster changes to their coaching staff Friday, The Baltimore Sun’s Peter Schmuck suggests you may not have been paying attention to the team during the Steve Bisciotti era.

Harbaugh said Friday that he never looked outside the building for a new defensive coordinator. Then, Harbaugh said it was a “foregone conclusion” to bring back Offensive Coordinator Cam Cameron.

“The Ravens don’t make sweeping changes,” wrote Schumuck. “They don’t generally go looking for someone to throw to the wolves after a disappointing finish. That’s the kind of thing the Oakland Raiders do, not this team. This is a sign of strength and organizational stability, not indecisiveness.

“Bisciotti, whose expertise in the field of human resources made him a billionaire who could afford an NFL franchise, insists on hiring the right people the first time and doesn’t make personnel moves in the heat of the moment. That’s not going to satisfy all the people whose eyes are still stinging from Sunday’s loss, but that’s the reason the Ravens have gotten close to the mountaintop in each of the last four seasons and probably will again in 2012.”

J.J., Webb Make All-Joe Team

Outside Linebacker Jarret Johnson and cornerback Lardarius Webb made USA Today’s All-Joe team.

The list recognizes players who made a key impact for their team, but didn’t make the Pro Bowl.

“The numbers will never wow you (56 tackles, 2.5 sacks), but he’s an intrinsic element of a perennial stout defense who never gets his due as a blue-collar guy amid so many stars,” wrote Nate Davis of Johnson.

Could this be Webb’s first and last year on the All-Joe team?

CSNBaltimore.com’s Ray Frager thinks so.

“This may be the last time Webb can make the All-Joe list, because people are starting to take notice of what an outstanding corner he has become,” he wrote. “Nabbing three interceptions in the playoffs will do that for a defensive back.”

Ray Lewis No. 1 On NFL Any Era List

Was there any question about putting linebacker Ray Lewis at the top of the NFL Any Era list?

After all, he is the only current player to actually play in more than one era.

Lewis was the overwhelming top pick for the ESPN team, which was voted on in a poll of 20 Pro Football Hall of Famers.

“Ray Lewis is more than the best defensive player of his generation,” wrote Hensley. “The Baltimore Ravens middle linebacker is the toughest and the meanest. He is both the most feared and the most respected.

“Lewis’ passion for pain – to inflict it as well as absorb it – has defined his unrelenting will. He’s exuded this with every tackle, sack and forced fumble on game days that have spanned three decades. And in the eyes of the game’s previous greats, Lewis would dominate running backs and harass quarterbacks in any period of football.”

Lewis said he would have loved to play in a former era because that is where old-school football is played.

“I grew up watching a certain era – that era was, ‘By any means necessary, you get your job done,’” Lewis said. “It didn’t matter how you got your job done. That’s why I think I became such a fan of the game.”

In the ESPN Photoshop image below, you can see Lewis on a collision course with Hall of Famer Jim Brown.

Who would have gotten the better of the encounter?

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