Willis McGahee: McGahee never got on track in 2008. He skipped the OTAs to work out on his own in Miami, then showed up at training camp unprepared for his new coach's up-tempo, physical two-a-days. Assorted injuries led him to miss the entire preseason, and when he dressed for but didn't play in the season opener, the conventional wisdom was that the coaches were sending him a message, namely that if he wanted to play for the Ravens he'd better get on board with the new regime. He recovered from his injuries enough to rush for 100+ yards in two midseason games against the Dolphins and the Texans, though by then it was clear the team preferred rotating him from game to game with fellow backs Le'Ron McClain and Ray Rice. Nagging injuries and declining productivity seemed to rob him of much of confidence during the second half of the season, as the cry to bench him for good (and then cut him in the offseason) grew louder on the local airwaves. For all that, he played a crucial role in the epic late-season win against Dallas, and in the AFC Championship loss to the Steelers, he was the best offensive player wearing purple.
Status for 2009: In the days following the Pittsburgh loss, McGahee has spoken about his desire to return to the Ravens, and indicated a greater willingness to buy into John Harbaugh's program. That probably won't win him back many fans in Baltimore, but I suspect we're all going to have to suck it up and accept the fact that Willis ain't going anywhere. He's under contract for 5 more years, and releasing him would cost the Ravens $11 million against the 2009 cap. But that's all the leverage McGahee has --- Rice and McClain are younger, and have more than proven themselves capable of carrying the rushing load. I expect McGahee to show up next summer healthy, rested, and determined to win back his starting job. Considering he's only one year removed from a 1,400 yard season, a healthy, focused McGahee can only be an asset to a team whose offense is still developing.
Ray Rice: Although he missed the final 3 games of the regular season due to injury, and only touched the ball 4 times in 3 playoff games, Rice was an invaluable member of the Ravens' "3-headed monster" attack that finished 4th in the league in rushing yards. He led all Ravens backs with 4.2 yards/carry, and he was our most productive receiver out of the backfield, catching 33 balls for 273 yards (8.3 yards/catch). As he ran with increasing confidence, we began to see the speed and elusiveness that made him so effective at Rutgers --- even the Steelers had trouble tackling him in the open field (he averaged 14.3 yards on 3 catches in the championship game). More encouraging, McGahee does not seem to feel threatened by Rice --- from all that I have read, they genuinely like and respect each other, and McGahee seems willing to work with Rice to help him reach his potential. They should form a terrific 1-2 punch for the Ravens in '09.
Status for 2009: Even as a rookie, Rice excelled in the role of 3rd-down back, and he should give Joe Flacco a safety valve out of the backfield for years to come. Time will tell whether he's too small to be an every-down back, but in the meantime, and with a year of experience under his belt, he has the talent to become a major weapon in Cam Cameron's offense. Now it's time he scored a TD! (He didn't score a single time in 2008 --- here's betting he notches the first score in the 2009 opener.)
Le'Ron McClain: After Flacco, McClain was probably the biggest surprise for the Ravens in '08, transitioning from fullback to starting tailback and racking up 902 yards in the process. By season's end he had worn down a bit --- he hurt his ankle and averaged a mere 2.8 yards/carry in 3 playoff games (granted, against some excellent defenses). Still, with a 4th-quarter lead he could be lethal pounding the ball. Indeed, the first real indication of what this team was capable of came in the 4th quarter of the season opener against Cincinnati. The Bengals had just run a Ray Rice fumble back for a TD, cutting the Ravens lead to 7 and giving us the ball back with just over 7 minutes remaining. Cincinnati never got it back. Rice and McClain combined for 10 rushes and 56 yards in 11 plays to drain the clock. At one point, McClain ran it 6 times in a row, converting the final two first downs to end the game and send a warning shot to the rest of the league that the Baltimore Ravens had come to play ball.
Status for 2009: McClain had a tremendous 2008, but by the end of the year the limitations of a fullback-centered offense had become painfully clear (if they weren't already). McClain has terrible hands and gives the Ravens very little versatility in terms of bouncing runs to the outside; he's also a bit of a fumbler, putting 5 balls on the ground last year. Look for McGahee and Rice to carry the load for the first 3 quarters, with McClain coming in to convert short-yardage situations and, in the event of a 4th-quarter lead, to pound the opponent into submission. If he's our leading rusher for the second year in a row, something will have gone terribly wrong for Cam Cameron's offense. Fortunately, i don't see that happening.
Lorenzo Neal: One of Ozzie Newsome's shrewdest acquisitions of 2008, Neal signed a one-year deal with the Ravens shortly after being cut by San Diego (where, deprived of his bruising lead blocker, LaDainian Tomlinson had the worst season of his career). He gave a young offense haunted by years of incompetence an instant shot of veteran toughness and credibility, and cleared the way for three very different backs to have success.
Status for 2009: Neal is a free-agent, but it's hard to envision the Ravens letting him go. By all accounts he wants to come back, and I can't imagine his teammates---not to mention Cam Cameron---don't feel the same. If the Ravens can't outbid the rest of the league for the services of a 38-year-old fullback (and I absolutely do not mean this to be disrespectful to Neal, who could very well find himself in the Hall of Fame one day), I'll be very surprised.
Jalen Parmele: Signed as an insurance back in Week 15 after Ray Rice went down against the Redskins, Parmele's only touches of the year came at the tail end of the season-ending blowout against Jacksonville. On one of those touches, he burst through the line and sliced through the dispirited Jaguars D for 31 yards. On his other touch, he was stopped in the backfield for a loss of 4. Other than that, I have absolutely no idea what he's capable of.
Status for 2009: He's only a rookie---he began the season with the Dolphins, as an undrafted free agent, I believe---so it's not like the Ravens have anything invested in him. Maybe they invite him to training camp, maybe he gets a more promising offer from another team, maybe our upcoming draft produces another young back or two and renders him completely expendable. (Remember too that P.J. Daniels, whom we drafted in the 4th round in 2006, will be coming off IR. And Cory Ross always manages to find his way into our training camp.) So it seems unlikely that we'll see Parmele again.
Keywords: Baltimore Ravens end of 2008 season player grades running backs
