Archives for March 9, 2007

‘McGahee also was criticized by the Buffalo coaching staff, who claimed he didn’t know the playbook. McGahee said he will work out in Baltimore instead of in Miami, another point of contention with the Bills.’

‘"You always have something to prove when you go to a new team just to show your organization that you belong here," said McGahee, who was flanked by coach Brian Billick and general manager Ozzie Newsome at his introductory news conference today.’

‘"In terms of moving up or moving down it certainly gives us a great deal of flexibility," said Bills GM Marv Levy. "Having four first day picks is valuable because they usually result in very fine prospects. We realized that last year in the draft when we had some players we were very pleased with in those rounds."’

‘The question is: How much does he have left in his tank after pounding the ball for 10 seasons?’

‘McGahee’s offseason nonchalance, his defiant individualism, ran counter to the front office mission of assembling a team of high character. It’s nice that principle still counts for something, even if it won’t produce a spike in season-ticket sales.’

‘That opens up the possibility of drafting California’s Marshawn Lynch in the first round, even though defensive tackle is a bigger need.’

‘In reality, like him or not, McGahee, 25, is the best of that bunch, and beyond those three, the rest of the running back free-agent market is kiddie-pool shallow.’

‘You’ll want him instead of Lewis as the former Bills tailback brings more explosiveness to the Ravens Offense. He is not a huge upgrade over Lewis as he had just 990 yards last season and has averaged only 3.9 yards a carry in his career. But the Ravens at least have an established offensive line and a decent passing game with quarterback Steve McNair, tight end Todd Heap and receiver Mark Clayton.’

‘”I wouldn’t be surprised if Kelly retired,” Nall said. “Hopefully, I will be bumped up to No. 2.”‘

‘The Bills will find their new No. 1 running back either through free agency or the draft, but there’s no guarantee that player will be more productive than McGahee. At the very least, though, the team got rid of a poor attitude in a tinted visor and a No. 21 jersey.’

‘The fact the Bills traded Willis McGahee to the Baltimore Ravens isn’t surprising. What is for the moment, is that they’re making the deal without first signing a free agent replacement.’

‘It’s addition by subtraction.’

Shift in backfield (Baltimore Sun)

Table all but bare, team throws dice (Baltimore Sun)

In end, back leaves a memorable legacy (Baltimore Sun)

Sentiment, NFL don’t mix, but J. Lewis deserved better (Baltimore Sun)

McGahee Baltimore bound (Carroll County Times)

J. Lewis takes parting shots (Carroll County Times)

Ravens Acquire McGahee (Washington Post)

A look at the career statistics of new Ravens running back Willis McGahee (Washington Post)

Welcome, Willis (BaltimoreRavens.com)

McGahee for Lewis not a bad tradeoff for Ravens (RealFootball365.com)

‘McGahee isn’t complaining about the trade. He has a new seven year contract worth up to 40 million dollars. Seven and a half million of it in a signing bonus.’

‘He still has reasonable speed and can run inside as well as outside. He can pass-block and is a threat out of the backfield as a receiver, but he doesn’t have the ability to hit the home run anymore. And after several complaints about his role, he basically shut it down at the end of last season.’