Our society is one that demands instant gratification.  Patience was once a virtue.  Today it would lead the endangered species list if it had a pulse.  We want it all and we want it now!

Just ask the newspaper business about instant gratification. Their product shows up on your doorstep at the crack of dawn with what appears to be yesterday’s news given the easy and immediate access to the latest information and breaking news.

NFL fans on whole are no different than society. In fact with the popularity of fantasy football, you could say that NFL fans are worse than the average American citizen when it comes to instant gratification. A receiver retires – no worries just trade some draft picks and fork over $9 million per year and POOF, no more problem.

It’s that easy, don’t you think?

Any intelligent fan could do Ozzie Newsome’s job – you just need a shot, right?

Wrong and wrong!

Look Ozzie Newsome has clearly made mistakes – the biggest of which was allowing Brian Billick to sway him into choosing Kyle Boller after one good collegiate season at Cal in a defensively bankrupt Pac-10 Conference.

But the knee jerk reaction amongst fans to Derrick Mason’s retirement and the recent retirement of Drew Bennett encouraging Ozzie to go balls to the wall and do whatever it takes to bring in Plaxico Burress, Brandon Marshall or Anquan Boldin is just flat out short-sighted.

If you are among that contingent, thankfully you haven’t been given that shot at Ozzie’s job.

Let’s start with Burress…

When Burress was arrested, the NYC District Attorney vowed to prosecute to the full extent of the law because the lawmakers who struggled to incorporate the no tolerance policy into the legal system would look foolish if they made exceptions for celebrities. They are aiming at prison time for the former Giant and Steeler.

And even if Burress’ legal team somehow waves a John Cochran magic wand and he doesn’t do the time, why would the Ravens want him anyway. Are they that desperate? The Giants won a Super Bowl WITH Burress and even THEY don’t want him back even at a bargain basement price.

So let’s turn our attention now to Brandon Marshall. They guy has had 13 brushes with law enforcement officials and they weren’t parking tickets. And these were the times when he was caught!

Now from a purely physical perspective, Marshall is EXACTLY the kind of receiver the Ravens need. What they don’t want are the headaches that come with the Marshall package. From the top of the Ravens food chain down to the water boy, the Ravens want men of character and they are willing to accept less talented players who exhibit toughness, dedication and love the game. Those are the kind that with added reps, attentiveness to film study and a willingness to embrace coaching can be as productive as a skilled player who can show up on highlight reels but leave you waiting during team meetings.

And that leaves us with Anquan Boldin…

Boldin doesn’t bring the baggage of Burress or Marshall. He exhibits toughness and clearly possesses a love for the game. But is he the right fit given the asking price?

Some will argue that the Ravens must eventually use a No. 1 pick for a receiver anyway so why not give up next year’s to land Boldin NOW and throw in the reportedly required No. 3 pick to employee Boldin’s talents in ’09!

It’s tough to argue with that thinking on the surface yet it is flawed in two major areas.

First Boldin will not come cheaply and the burden of his heavy contract may make it difficult to re-sign Haloti Ngata. Oh and let’s not forget that if Joe Flacco turns out to be the franchise quarterback everyone thinks he will be, he’ll be looking for market value after the 2012 season or possibly sooner.

Secondly, Boldin isn’t the right fit physically that Marshall is for the Ravens. He isn’t fast – he’s not a deep threat and his numbers aren’t all that much better than Derrick Mason’s. Despite a shoulder injury that limited Mason in ‘08 he still managed to haul in 80 catches for 1,037 yards and 5 TD’s. Boldin had 89 receptions for 1,038 yards and 11 scores.

Some will argue that Boldin is a beast after the catch yet Mason had more yards per catch last year. And let’s not forget that Boldin plays in a division that is very pass friendly, that his quarterback has a quick trigger and is masterful in an offense designed for the underneath routes and that he plays opposite the league’s best receiver, Larry Fitzgerald.

Remove the division, remove the quarterback and make him the No. 1 receiver where he’ll see double teams and bracketing, can you then be sure that Boldin will put up numbers like his did in ’08?

Maybe it’s time to take a deep breath, employ a little patience and we see what the coaching staff does with the receivers they have.

It seemed to work out ok last year with the offensive line and that guy standing behind center.