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Lombardi's Way - LOMBARDI'S WAY: TRUST YOUR PLAYMAKERS COACH

Did Brian Billick get the jitters on national TV this season? (Photos by Sabina Moran)

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Posted On: 1/19/07

Written By:  

Tony Lombardi

During the ‘06 season the Ravens appeared on national TV four times. During those four games against the Broncos, Bengals, Bills and Colts the Ravens’ offense produced 1 offensive touchdown. One! And that touchdown came on a Steve McNair 36 yard pass to Derrick Mason with 1:09 to go in the fourth quarter in Cincinnati to make the score 13-7 Bengals.

 

Was it stage fright or just fear of failure -- a fear of taking a chance offensively?

 

On the season the Broncos finished 14th in overall defense, the Bengals 30th , the Bills 18th and the Colts 21st. Scoring one touchdown in four games against that level of competition is just flat out embarrassing. And it begs the question, “why?” Why did the Ravens perform so miserably on offense on the lighted stage?

 

It’s not like they don’t have offensive playmakers. Steve McNair, Todd Heap, Derrick Mason, Mark Clayton and Demetrius Williams can all make plays. They can be successful even in difficult circumstances because they have “it.” They have what it takes to beat their man one on one.

 

So why not challenge defenses? Why not opt for the extraordinary over the ordinary? How do the Ravens know they can’t be successful taking shots? They seldom try.  Your lighted stage approaches the unreal coach!

 

Don’t you think that if you strike fear into the minds of opposing defenders that it puts them on their heels? Look what the Ravens did to the Steelers twice -- the league’s ninth ranked defense. The Ravens kept the Steelers off balance and dominated them in the process despite 3 turnovers and far too many offensive penalties in the second game in Pittsburgh. They took chances and they gave the Steelers too much to think about and obviously too much to defend.

 

So why are they so bashful against inferior defenses? Why are they willing to go for the jugular against the No. 9 defense and not the No. 30? Why don’t they consistently trust their playmakers?

 

Nobody asked me but if I’m Brian Billick, I take my chances with Todd Heap in single coverage down the field. I would put trust in Heap’s ability to become a defender in the event that McNair isn’t accurate (something that he was better at than any other QB in Ravens history).

 

Be daring, be bold and strike fear. When they did they demolished the Steelers by a combined score of 58-7. Did Billick leave that screaming banshee in Tennessee?

 

Brian Billick has asked many times for others to take a leap of faith in him during his tenure as the Ravens head coach. It’s time that he consistently does the same with his playmakers. That’s what he’s paid to do and that’s what they are paid to do. So do it and lose the fear factor. Even if you make a mistake here and there you have the best insurance policy in the NFL -- the league’s No. 1 defense.

 

The NFL is all about exploiting an opponent’s weaknesses better than they exploit yours. Perhaps Rex Ryan’s attack mentality needs to rub off on Billick.

 

With all that said, we learned this week that Billick will retain play calling duties because he had so much fun. "That has provided me a way to connect and stay connected to the players is not something that I would readily give up," Billick admitted in his Monday presser. "At the end of the day, quite frankly, I enjoyed [calling plays]. It's been a long time since I enjoyed myself that much."

 

How about a night bowling with the family or a game of Scrabble in the Billick household. Surely you could find a way of using all seven letters while cashing in on a triple word score right? Dynamic -- D Y N A M I C…dynamic.

 

What won’t be dynamic is the way the Ravens prepare their offensive game plan. By his own admission newly appointed offensive coordinator Rick Neuheisel will be doing pretty much the same things next year that he did this year with the offensive preparation. Only next year he gets the title.

 

Whoopie!

 

Neuheisel does all the dirty work and Billick gets the fun. Neuheisel sounds like a NASCAR pit crew to me. Reminds me a bit of a being named Orioles GM.

 

A new offensive coordinator from the outside may have been a welcomed changed. But then who would come here if he couldn’t call the plays? We wouldn’t want Billick not to have fun now would we?

 

All that aside, Billick really did have an outstanding year (despite a miserable game last Saturday against the Colts) and I have voiced my opinion here on these pages and during our radio show GAMETIME that had I been given a vote, Billick would be my choice for coach of the year. Unfortunately that hypothetical vote would have been his only one. More importantly for Billick he received a much deserved contract extension enabling the Ravens to avoid the distractions that gripped the Steelers and Bill Cowher this season.

 

But I have to ask coach, can you place the same faith in your playmakers that Steve Bisciotti has extended to you?

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Enlarge Text Decrease Text Print this Article send this article to a friend Add This bookmark facebook twitter rss

Posted On: 1/19/07

Written By:  

Tony Lombardi