Ozzie Newsome Quotes (37 Quotes)

The draft is going to have to provide us with a lot of young talent that's going to have to come in and contribute right away -- hopefully in a mighty way, ... When you've got as many holes as we have, I think any player that we select in any of the round

It's like I've got an option play. That's the way I view it. We can break outside or stay inside. We have any number of scenarios.

It's long been said if somebody every challenged the draft eligibility rule, they probably would win it. But I knew the league would fight it tooth and nail. The company line that I hear is that the league feels it has a good chance on appeal.

I'm biased. I've had No. 52 here for 10 years of great football. He's a great player and a great leader. You can talk about individual greatness, but you aren't a great football player until you can carry 10 other guys with you.

We felt like we were cheating time a little bit right there. We knew we were putting ourselves in this position in 2002, but we had to take our shot at winning back-to-back. We could have done half of this cap-cutting last year, and it wouldn't have been this painful, but I don't think we would have had a real shot to get to the Super Bowl this season.

Darrell Jackson is one hell of a receiver, and he was a third. You can't make blanket observations in the draft. You're not doing your work the right way when you do. Does Florida's track record force you to focus in even harder to make sure you're making the right decision Yes. But that's what we're getting paid for.

His ability to play all of the positions on the defensive line makes it tough for offenses to defend him. To get your protection set, you've got to know where he's at. It reminds me of Reggie White .

We're in the middle of proposals at this point. We want to have something done by the time I get on the plane Thursday for Indianapolis and the NFL Scouting Combine. But we don't know anything yet.

I look more -- and this is part of my philosophy -- at what a guy will be doing in years three, four and five.

I have to constantly tell my personnel staff, 'Hey guys, we're still a good staff even though we're allowing good players to go play for other people,'

We are happy to have one of our own back. Daniel has been a very productive player for us the last two years. He has given us a presence both on offense and special teams.

Back then, we realized we needed an influx of young talent, ... We are approaching the 2002 draft in that manner.

Yes, we could be enticed to move that pick before we get to the 13th. Our trade-down scenario is always if there are three or four guys we really like, and we have an opportunity to move back and still get one of those guys, plus add an additional pick again, from an organizational standpoint, that is the right thing to do.

The Ravens have decided not to franchise or transition Jamal Lewis. At the same time, we will still consider the possibility of talking with Jamal about a long-term contract with us. I've spoken with Jamal and his agent (Mitch Frankel) today to let them know.

I won't ever get used to having to tell guys like Shannon Sharpe, Rob Burnett and Rod Woodson that, even though I know you can still play, still contribute, we have to release you because of the salary-cap issues,

Right or wrong on this call, the system in place has worked and he trusts it, ... You can't stretch too much and still stick with your system.

If you would have told me that there was going to be only one job available by the time Marvin could interview, then I would have said there's a chance Marvin would be back here and be happy about it, ... To Marvin's credit, his family played a big part in his decision. They really didn't want to go.

If you hit on four of those five, there is a big chance that that player is going to perform well in the National Football League.

It's too early to really give you much of an assessment. I think he carries his pads well and has got real good balance. But that's just TV scouting. Those things are things you can see by just watching him play. But he's not even the best sophomore in our opinion.

Are there different opinions and views from me to Brian, from Brian to director of player personnel Phil Savage , from me to Phil Savage Yes. But there's always going to be a consensus. And somebody has got to have the authority. Two people can't have the authority or nothing gets done.

No one is the same player at 31 that they were at 26. But you never lose that leadership. It gets better as you mature because you have seen so many things.

I was scrawny. Now as a GM, I understand. He wanted to see if I could add weight.

It's up to the coaching staff but the starter will be determined in training camp.

The chemistry of your football team doesn't come together till, really, in the second half of the season because every year you've got new parts that you're bringing in. From a personnel standpoint, we say they're better players in November than they are in September.

(Davis) is an explosive athlete but I won't ever put all-time on anybody. They put all-time on Kellen Winslow and he has yet to play a down. There's too many things that can happen.

If he doesn't get any serious injury, he could threaten my numbers and Shannon's numbers.

He could play the same role Chester Taylor played for us. His experience, his toughness, his military background, all of it gives him an integrity that will be great in our locker room.

We will still consider the possibility of talking to Jamal about a long-term contract with us.

Expectations are there for this team to do well. They are there from the owner, myself, the head coach and his staff, and the players. Now, can we live up to the expectations

More and more teams are using almost exclusively the draft to build their teams. And that means you have younger players to develop in those key depth positions. Younger players are more susceptible to streaks than veterans. They go up, they go down.

Not only must a team be willing to part with draft picks to facilitate a trade, it must meet the long-term contract demands of James or Alexander. That might mean a signing bonus in the 15 million range. Everybody understands the value of the running back, ... But also everybody understands the life of the running back in the National Football League. You don't want to get caught in a position where you pay a huge amount, then an injury happens.

We've talked about it ever since that New England-Oakland game, ... That year, it was probably the biggest topic of the committee and the biggest topic in our presentation to the owners. But it's one thing to think you need to change it, and another thing entirely to change it in a way that it actually can be officiated.

We did a legitimate cap-friendly deal with a low cap number in the first year 1.5 million,

As we've said for the last year, our intent is to make sure Chris McAlister stays a Raven. The goal is to reach a long-term contract with him and his agent.

If you are asking me if we can be a player in free agency and retain some of our own players, then yes. We are working under the assumption that there will be no agreement and we will have the conservative salary cap number.

I guess you've got to look at it like it's college. After four years or so, the players have to move on in this system. But we think we can do it again. We think we can build it back up. Look at San Francisco. It can come back around very quickly in this league. That's what we're focused on.

We are so excited to have Jamal back. If you look at his history, he always rebounds in a big way from adversity. He had a tough 2005 that started with surgery, his incarceration, and then dealing with all of the turmoil during the season with the contract hanging over his head. We expect big things from him.