Ravens ink Rice to five-year, $40 mil deal

I'll go with the cliched "40 million reasons to smile" for this one (Photo courtesy of Baltimoreravens.com)

A couple of months after the Orioles locked up their young, face-of-the-franchise player in Adam Jones, the Baltimore Ravens follow suit in typical, down to the wire fashion.

Ravens, Rice without deal hours before deadline; Reed acting childish

Super Bowl-winning teams are always a perfect storm of elements: the roster is loaded with talent and depth, key players stay healthy, play peaks late in the season, and off-field distractions are minimal, if present at all.

With the deadline to sign franchise-tagged players rapidly approaching--it's todayat 4:00 p.m.--and a first-ballot hall of fame safety becoming increasingly disillusioned and selfish, the Ravens are stumbling into training camp unsure about their ability to satisfy half of the aforementioned tenets.

Graphic courtesy of ESPN Internet Ventures and Getty Images

In an last Saturday today with baltimoreravens.com's Ryan Mink, Jason LaCanfora of CBS Sports says, "I don't have high expectations of seeing this deal get done. He sees himself as a top-5 running back in the league; I think nine [million dollars] a year is probably the magic number here and I'm not sure that Ray's going to get that right now. And I don't know that he's going to back down."

Flacco most overrated QB in AFC according to ESPN's Joyner

When I think of an overrated player, I think of someone who consistently garners media attention and accolades regardless of their mediocre on-field performance. Apparently, KC Joyner of ESPN has a different definition of the term 'overrated.'

No, 90's haircut guy, you're wrong.

Joyner explains that, "Flacco put himself on this list by saying in an April radio interview that he thinks he is the best quarterback in the NFL." If I understand the English language correctly--and I think I do--Flacco's assertion would make him 'overconfident,' not 'overrated.'

ESPN's Future NFL Power Rankings

ESPN released their NFL power rankings earlier this month—for 2015. Analysts weighed quarterback situations, drafting, young talent, the front office, and coaching staffs to make their projections, and the Baltimore Ravens came in at number 10. The nine teams who ranked above the Ravens (from number nine to number one) are:

#9. Houston Texans; #8. New Orleans Saints; #7. Philadelphia Eagles; #6. Detroit Lions; #5. Pittsburgh Steelers; #4. San Francisco 49er’s; #3. New York Giants; #2. New England Patriots; and #1. Green Bay Packers. All of the teams ranked above the Ravens are solid teams; I can’t dispute that. Based on the criteria, however, the Ravens appear to qualify as a top-five team.

Here is what the experts said about the Ravens’ long-term projection: 

Top Ten Terps Since 1996

Since we did the list of top 10 Ravens yesterday, we're going to show some love to our Maryland Terrapins and run down the top ten Terps basketball players since 1996.

Unfortunately, since this list will only consider players over the last 16 years, we're leaving out a bunch of Maryland all-time greats like Len Elmore, Walt Williams, Tom McMillen, John Lucas, Len Bias and Albert King.

Let's start with #10...

Orioles ready to show Jones the money?

Fool me once, shame on me. Fool me two through eight times, shame on Angelos. Reports have surfaced today that the Orioles are in serious talks with the agent for Orioles center fielder Adam Jones.

Is the much-maligned owner finally ready to open his checkbook for a promising young player instead of an aging star? Our list of big-money players over the last decade-plus reads like a who's who of has beens, including Albert Belle, Vladimir Guerrero and Rafael Palmeiro (the second coming). Perhaps more troubling is the money we didn't spend on Mike Mussina in the late 1990's, or on funding the scouting and development departments over the last 15 years.

I don't think I will be alone in boycotting Angelos's life if Adam Jones ends up in pinstripes; so, what's our move?

Top 10 players in Baltimore Ravens history

We do not own the rights to this photo. Image courtesy of David Letterman, The Late Show, CBS, and Photoshop. No copyright infringement intended.

Top 10 lists are like crack to avid sports fans. Whether written by credible analysts and former players or scribbled on a dirty napkin that's stuck to the floor of a bar, these subjective rankings are often followed by fanatics as Scripture--and brandished in the face of rivals.

I'm guilty of this insanity, myself, unable to resist the allure of ESPN Power Rankings and all-decade/ century/ millennial teams. It's eerily satisfying, magnetic, even, listening to a third party break down the various elements that make a group of athletic strangers in my city so superior to another, farther away.

As unsubstantial as these rankings are, it's more ridiculous that Jordan and I have only recently realized that, as authors of our own wildly popular and somehow nonsyndicated blog, we can make our own irrelevant lists!

First up, we'll take a look at the top 10 players in Ravens history. Granted, the team has only been around for 16 years, but with Ozzie Newsome running the draft and player acquisitions, we've seen plenty of talent come through town. Let's start with number 10.

Same Orioles, different attitude

The Orioles just closed out a sweep of the Kansas City Royals over a two game road trip. The Orioles are now 11 games above .500; have the highest road winning percentage in the majors at close to .700; and they've haven't won this many consecutive road games since 1999. After last night's 15th inning victory, the team is 5-0 in extra inning games.

Adam Jones hits a two-run homer, his 13th

Back in 2005, the Orioles got off to an extremely hot start then wore down over the second half of the season, winding up with a losing record. But something feels different this year...

Hometown heroes--iron man version 2.0

Ray Lewis turned 37 yesterday. Arguably the greatest middle linebacker to play the game, Ray has played 16 years in the most violent professional sport in the country. As a first-ballot hall of famer and NFL icon, Ray Lewis will be cemented in league annals next to fellow legends Mike Singletary, Jack Lambert and Dick Butkus.

Singletary had the longest career of the three--12 years. Jack Lambert hung up the cleats after 11 years and Dick Butkus stepped aside after 9.

Orioles drop three of four to Rangers, break another record

The Texas Rangers sauntered into Baltimore looking to continue their tear through the American League. They accomplished exactly that, embarrassing the Orioles in the first two contests and winning the second game of a day-night doubleheader to take three out of four. As many in the baseball world expected, the Orioles are starting to look like themselves: struggling on offense, unable to hit with runners in scoring position and showing signs of defeat after the starting pitching digs the team into a deep hole.

But God bless these 2012 Orioles. Even in the midst of a forgettable home series, they ink their names into the annals of Major League Baseball. In the afternoon game of Thursday's doubleheader, each of the first three Orioles up to the plate hit a home run. It wasn't the first in the majors--the last time being 2005--but it was the first in the history of the American League. The other three games in which a team's first three batters hit home runs took place in the National League.

Contender or not, these Orioles keep giving us reasons to watch.