Now that the Baltimore Ravens’ elimination from playoff contention has had time to marinate, one glaring error on the part of the team seems to resonate during this playoff portion of the season. The Ravens should have gone ahead and ponied up the $6 million to keep Anquan Boldin a Raven, at least thru the 2013 season. The decision to trade Boldin to the San Francisco 49ers for a 6th round draft pick seems to have bitten the Ravens in their collective behinds. Boldin led the 49ers with 85 receptions, and was voted as the team’s most valuable player. Do you think those statistics could have made a difference of one or two games in the win column for the Ravens this past season? With Boldin on the Ravens from 2010 thru the 2012 season, the Ravens made the playoffs each of the 3 seasons he performed for the team. He was a great safety net for Ravens quarterback, Joe Flacco. He could consistently be counted on to out-duel a defensive back or a linebacker for the possession of a Joe Flacco pass. With the preseason injury to tight end, Dennis Pitta, and Boldin’s departure via the ill-advised trade, there was no one that Joe Flacco could count on to fill the tough pass-catching void. Ravens general manager, Ozzie Newsome stated during the Ravens post-season State-of-the -Team address that the team could use a big, strong pass-catching receiver…Really?
