Why is everybody hating on Willis?

Some thoughts before I post my analysis of last night's loss to the Steelers (which might come tomorrow). The local airwaves today were jammed with angry Ravens fans. Fair enough, considering the role that bad officiating played in another heartbreaking 4th quarter collapse. But these angry fans seemed to be venting a disproportionate amount of their spleen on Willis McGahee --- some even went so far as to suggest he was the main reason the Ravens lost.

That, of course, is ludicrous. McGahee wasn't on the field when the proud Ravens defense let Ben Roethlisberger and his wide-outs march 92 yards for the game-winning TD. He didn't complete 11 of 28 passes for 115 yards and 2 picks, like a certain rookie QB who turned in his second straight clunker. He didn't slip and fall on a crucial 3rd and 10 like a certain All-World safety, thus allowing Nate Washington to run for the first down. He didn't tweak his hamstring like Fabian Washington, thus rendering himself useless on that same crucial drive and forcing Rex Ryan to all but abandon the blitz, lest the back-up DB get exposed (one Frank Walker, who managed to avoid an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty against the PAT holder when Jeff Reed was caught retaliating).

What exactly was McGahee's crime that has made him such a convenient target for all this anger? He carried 6 times for 18 yards against the No. 1 rushing defense. Yeah, well, Le'Ron McClain picked up 87 yards on 23 carries, so the Ravens weren't exactly left hurting in that department. He dropped a couple of passes. Yeah, well, so did Derrick Mason, including a catchable ball in the end zone. He missed the block that knocked the Ravens out of field goal range on their next-to-last possession. That field goal would have been useful, but 1) a gimpy Matt Stover from 44 yards (the ball was snapped from the 27 yard line) can no longer be considered automatic; and 2) one can certainly ask why Cam Cameron's protection scheme didn't give his banged-up running back some help against one of Pittsburgh's best rushers.

Look, I don't want to wash McGahee of his share of the blame. He played poorly, no question. But he played even worse last week against the Redskins, and I didn't hear half of Baltimore calling for his head then. Of course, the fact that we pounded the Skins 24-10 may have had something to do with that. The mood is different in the wake of another frustrating loss to a playoff-bound team.

McGahee's numbers this year are disappointing --- certainly Ravens fans had a right to expect more than 539 yards on only 158 carries (a 3.4 average) through 14 games. Nor did he help his cause by refusing to work out in Baltimore during the off-season, then waltzing into training camp out of shape. But John Harbaugh benched him for the first game of the season, and the lesson seemed to sink in --- he rebounded the following game for 64 yards on 15 carries until a Cleveland linebacker tore up his eyelid and he was forced from the game. Through nine games (two of which he missed) he was good for 125 carries (17.8 per game) and 463 yards (a 3.7 average), plus 5 TDs, all the while splitting carries with McClain and Ray Rice, and --- here's the key --- never complaining.

You see, for all the talk about his lousy, "me first" attitude, McGahee has accepted his declining role in the offense without a single negative remark (certainly not to the media). Even during his struggles the past month (since Week 10 he has only rushed 33 times for 76 yards, and developed an unfortunate case of butterfingers), he has stood up and taken responsibility for his poor play. The team is winning without him, and he hasn't once tried to rock the boat. Compare that to Clinton Portis, who ripped his coach as the Redskins' season went down the tubes, then backed up his tough talk with 77 yards on 25 carries in an embarrassing loss to the Bengals. Compare it to Lendale White, who complained about his lack of carries following the Titans' first loss of the year ... in Week 12!  Compare it to Terrell Owens or Plaxico Burress or any of countless knuckleheads who try their best to destroy team chemistry even when that team is winning.

Well, the Ravens are winning and McGahee hasn't created a single controversy since the season began. For that matter, he didn't say anything controversial last season, when he put up 1207 yards and was the only offensive bright spot in an otherwise horrible 5-11 campaign.

So fine, he isn't playing well now. But if he isn't back in 2009, it won't be because he pulled a Chad Johnson and tried to talk his way out of town. Ravens fans can be disappointed in his lack of production, but the season has played out too beautifully in nearly every other respect to waste the good feelings getting angry at a man whose only crime is a month of poor play. All those talking heads on 105.7 "The Fan" or AM 1370 or 1090 (how many sports stations do we have now?) who call McGahee a quitter have not a shred of credibility --- try playing the game yourself first before you call out another man for lack of heart.

Oh, and on that missed block last night, the one that has everyone so upset, McGahee did NOT quit. He stuck with the play and recovered Flacco's fumble, which allowed Sam Koch to pin Pittsburgh deep ... which set in motion the heartbreaking defensive collapse and horrible call that has us all angry in the first place.