Brian Billick’s dismissal from the Ravens was expected and probably overdue.  I mean, heck outside of 2000 and 2006, this guy was a below-.500 coach and not the offensive guru that people made him out to be.  We all know head coaches, especially in the NFL, are hired to be fired, and they are never right unless they are right (thanks Jeremy Conn!).  But I can’t help but wonder why Billick was the only one who was held accountable for a bad football team that is aging and lacking depth.  Doesn’t the front office and the “infallable” Ozzie Newsome bear SOME responsibility here??

Looking at things objectively, Ozzie and company, including Billick, has failed to produce a serviceable quarterback since the team moved here in 1996.  They have failed to draft a wide receiver that has produced a 1,000-yard season.  And they have let go of talent like Derek Anderson, Tony Pashos, Ovie Mughelli, and Chester Taylor.  Does Brian Billick bear any responsibility for that?  Maybe, but certainly not all of it.  I have no argument that Billick is a bad play caller, and even worse clock manager, and possibly the biggest ego-maniac that any of us have seen.  But those are on-the-field football things that coaches do week in and week out.  Those decisions about personnel go to the front office and they need to hold themselves accountable for the team they put on the field.

Of course Steve Bisciotti won’t make any comments on the front office, as he shouldn’t.  If he feels that they haven’t done a good job in scouting, drafting and putting talent on the field, then he will let them know.  There is no need to make a state of disarray, a total collapse of reason.  But for now, the Ravens go forward looking for a new start with a fresh face.  Unfortunately, the face may not matter when the body of work underneath is flawed too.

Posted on Wednesday, January 2nd, 2008 at 5:47 pm.
Categories: Ravens.
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