Quoth the Ravens: How 'bout some football?

[Malificent]

I decided to start afresh with a new team, and picked the Ravens for no particular reason. I'm going to play with basically the same rules that QS uses - free agents outside the 20 stage period will be signed for what they're asking for, no overly large ticket prices, and generally not shafting players by signing them to bonusfree contracts. Ok, let's set the stage...
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As I take over the ownership of the Ravens, I decide to first take stock as to our franchise value. The Ravens are valued at $348M, which puts us firmly in the middle of the pack. We have a decent stadium that will probably need to replaced within the next ten years, though.

Our scout: Leland Edge, age 51, signed to a 2 year contract at a reasonable 190K per year.

QB: Fair
RB: Excellent
Rec: Excellent
OL: Good
K: Good
DL: Very Good
LB: Very Good
Sec: Very Good
Young Talent: Excellent

All in all, a quality scout with expertise in the running area, which is excellent, since I drafted my team thinking about orienting the offense for the run.

My coach: Pete Dawkins, age 65, signed for 5 years at 1.43M a year.

QB: Very Good
RB: Very Good
Rec: Good
OL: Good
DL: Very Good
LB: Good
Sec: Good
K: Very Good
Young Talent: Fair
Motivation: Very Good
Discipline: Good
Offense: Good
Defense: Good
Avoid Injury: Very Good

All in all, not a bad guy, who at least has skills with the running backs. His speciality is not young talent, which will be something to keep in mind.

Finally, the roster looks like this:


Position/Player Current Est Future Est Exp Sgnd
C Dermontti Dawson 18 18 13 2002
G Mark Schlereth 18 18 12 2002
T Willie Roaf 17 17 8 2005
C Jeff Mitchell 15 15 4 2002
G Tre' Johnson 13 15 7 2004
RB Emmitt Smith 12 12 11 2002
T Flozell Adams 12 12 3 2002
DT Luther Elliss 12 12 6 2003
QB Billy Joe Tolliver 11 12 11 2003
WR Keith Poole 11 13 4 2001
RB Ricky Williams 11 13 2 2002
FB William Henderson 10 10 6 2001
DE Greg Jefferson 10 11 6 2003
S Orlando Thomas 10 11 6 2001
DT Ted Washington 10 11 10 2001
QB Jim Harbaugh 9 9 14 2002
P Toby Gowin 9 10 4 2001
RB Greg Hill 9 10 7 2002
K Brad Daluiso 9 9 10 2001
RB Antowain Smith 9 10 4 2002
DE Anthony Cook 9 9 6 2002
LB Jamie Sharper 9 9 4 2001
WR David Boston 9 12 2 2001
LB Sam Sword 9 9 2 2001
FB Jon Witman 8 8 5 2001
WR Kevin Dyson 8 8 3 2002
G Jeremy Newberry 8 10 3 2003
T Lonnie Palelei 8 8 7 2003
DE Howie Peter 8 11 3 2002
WR Tony Horne 8 8 3 2000
DT Robert Harris 7 7 9 2002
LB James Darling 7 7 4 2001
QB Dave Brown 7 7 9 2001
TE Jeff Robinson 7 7 8 2002
S Mel Cooley 7 15 1 2001
TE Eric Bjornson 7 9 6 2001
LB Hannibal Navies 7 7 2 2001
CB Mark McMillian 7 7 9 2002
S Darrius Johnson 7 7 5 2001
LB Orlando Ruff 6 8 2 2002
DT Joe Phillips 6 6 15 2000
LB Brad Jackson 6 7 3 2001
LB Reinard Wilson 6 10 4 2001
CB Chester St. John 6 6 1 2003
TE Deems May 6 6 9 2000
WR Craig Yeast 6 9 2 2000
G Andy McCollum 6 6 7 2001
CB Patrick Surtain 6 7 3 2002
CB Scott Turner 5 8 6 2002
DE Arnold Miller 4 8 2 2001
CB Tim Denton 4 5 4 2001
S Eric Smedley 3 4 5 2001
T Patrick Mannelly 3 3 3 2001


A good roster, a bit heavy on the RBs, but I can probably swing a trade for one or two of them to fill some of my holes, namely my secondary. My offensive line is excellent and are signed for several years. They ought to open some big holes for whoever starts for me at RB. QB is looking ugly, as Billy Joe Tolliver looks like my best option, which isn't saying much.

But I'm excited about our chances as we head into the exhibition season.

Mali

[Malificent]

Baltimore Ravens - 2000 - Exhibition Season

Before the games start, I need to make some roster moves, as I'm top heavy in a couple of positions. I renegotiate the contracts of several veterans who have extremely high loyalty to the team.

Since I have both Emmitt Smith and Ricky Williams (making it tough enough to decide on a starter) I decide to trade Antoiwn Smith. Atlanta needs a running back, and I trade Smith for CB Aaron Glenn, who will help fill the holes in my secondary.

My other major top-heavy position is C, as I have Dermiotti Dawson, a great all-around center who is in his 13th year, and Jeff Mitchell, a 4th year guy with great run blocking, good pass blocking, and excellent endurance. Neither will be happy riding the bench behind the other, so I trade Dawson and my second round pick to the New York Giants for a backup center and John Lynch, S, who will anchor my secondary for many years to come.

I open up the exhibition season by losing my first 2...