25-year old Joe Flacco is a QB on the rise in the NFL and the Ravens have given him some new weapons to utilize this season.  Flacco played in all 16 games for the Ravens last season and he completed 315 of 499 passes (63.1%) for 3,613 yards with 21 TD passes and 12 INTs (88.9 QB Rating).  Flacco also carried the ball 35 times for 56 yards (1.6 ypc) last season.  Flacco has now played in 32 games in his NFL career and he has completed 572 of 927 passes (61.7%) for 6,584 yards with 35 TD passes and 24 INTs (84.9 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 87 times for 236 yards (2.7 ypc) with 2 TD runs in his career to date.  Flacco has the whole package as he has the arm to throw any pass needed to succeed in the NFL.  This could be the year he gets to the Pro Bowl.  Flacco has a 20-12 (62.5%) as a starting QB in the NFL and he might improve that % this season.

25-year old Troy Smith was whining about wanting to get traded during the off-season but he’s back on board with the Ravens and he is behaving.  Smith played in 4 games for the Ravens last season in which he completed 5 of 9 passes (55.6%) for 24 yards with 0 TDs and 1 INT (21.3 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 8 times for 31 yards (3.9 ypc) with 1 TD run last year for the Ravens.  Smith has now played in 14 games for the Ravens in his career in which he has completed 48 of 89 passes (53.9%) for 558 yards with 3 TD passes and 1 INT (79.7 QB Rating).  Smith also has carried the ball 29 times for 109 yards (3.8 ypc) with 2 TD runs in his career.  I feel bad for Smith because he got sick in training camp two years ago and Joe Flacco won the starting job without looking back.  I would think that the Ravens would run a very run based offense if Smith were forced into the starting lineup.  Smith is 1-1 as a starting QB in the NFL.

#3 on the depth chart will again be 28-year old John Beck.  Beck has not played in a NFL game since the 2007 season with the Dolphins.  Beck played in 5 games that year in which he completed 60 of 107 passes (56.1%) for 559 yards with 1 TD pass and 3 INTs (62.0 QB Rating).  Beck has also carried the ball 9 times for 12 yards (1.3 ypc) with 1 TD run in his NFL career.  Beck is 0-4 as a starting QB in the NFL.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE RAVENS QBs in 2010:  A-

The Ravens have signed 30-year old cornerback Travis Fisher.  Fisher played in 4 games for the Seahawks last season making 5 tackles.  He has now played in 90 games in his NFL career in which he has 341 tackles, defensed 49 passes, he forced 2 fumbles and he has 9 interceptions (260 return yards with 2 TD returns).  I like this signing for the Ravens as Fisher will provide quality veteran depth for the secondary as long as he stays healthy.

The Ravens have selected OT Ramon Harewood out of Morehouse College (Georgia) with the 194th pick (6th round) of the NFL Draft.  Harewood is a giant man at 6′6″, 358 pounds.  He is a good run blocker but he runs out of gas quite a bit.  He will be a developmental project for the Ravens but he has a huge upside.  He played in 10 games (all starts) for Morehouse last season and he played in 33 games (all starts) in his four years there.  You probably won’t see Harewood in a game too soon but he does have a nice upside.

The Ravens have selected DT Arthur Jones with the 157th overall pick (5th round) of the NFL Draft.  Jones was projected to go in the 2nd or 3rd round by most draft “experts”.  He slid because of his questionable work ethic and dedication to the game of football.  He does have outstanding size as he is 6′3″, 302 pounds.  The Ravens’ coaching staff will have to be all over Jones to keep him focused and motivated.  If the coaching works the Ravens probably have a steal in Jones.  Jones played in 9 games (all starts) for Syracuse last season and he finished up with 19 tackles, 7 tackles for a loss, 1.5 sacks and he recovered 2 fumbles.  In his four years in college, Jones played in 44 games (32 starts) in which he had 120 tackles, 38.5 tackles for a loss, 6.5 sacks, he batted down one ball and he recovered 2 fumbles.  This was a boom or bust pick for the Ravens.

The Ravens have picked WR David Reed with the 156th overall pick (5th round) of the NFL Draft.  Reed is a slender guy at 6′0″, 186 pounds and he’s not the fastest WR around as he runs a 4.54 40.  But, he has a outstanding set of hands and he is tough for a little guy.  He also can help the Ravens on special teams as a possible kickoff returner.  He will need to work on his run blocking as the Ravens will have to coach him up in that area of his game.  Reed played in 13 games (all starts) for Utah last season and he caught 81 passes for 1,188 yards (14.7 avg) with 5 TD grabs.  He played in 26 games (13 starts) in his two years at Utah and he caught 106 passes for 1,616 yards (15.2 avg) with 11 TD grabs.  Reed will have to make the Ravens on special teams at least initially as they are suddenly pretty deep at WR.