Oher, Smith In Grammys 'Halftime Show'
Was that Michael Oher DJing the Grammys halftime show last night?
Yuuup. Well, the fake Grammys halftime show at least.
Pepsi put together a 2 ½-minute commercial that highlighted NFL stars paying back musicians for the years of entertainment they've brought to game.
Both Oher and receiver Torrey Smith made brief cameos in the bizarre, but entertaining spot.
It began with former Raven Deion Sanders – who in real life was in Hawaii coaching his Pro Bowl team – grabbing the mic and singing with the help of auto-tune. Terry Bradshaw went country with a frilly cowboy jacket, belt buckle and black hat.
Then things got … interesting.
Shannon Sharpe did his best Kanye West with long-haired Nick Mangold playing Kim Kardashian on a motorcycle with him. Oher and his fellow DJ Matthew Stafford took over with electronic dance music. And finally, Mike Ditka crashed the stage with his "wrecking football," parodying Miley Cyrus.
That's when Torrey made his short appearance, appearing relieved in the crowd when Ditka survived getting crushed by the ball.
"Glad I could be a part of the Grammys for just those few seconds!" Oher tweeted after the commercial aired last night.
It's a must-see. (Mobile users tap "View in Browser" at the top of the page.)
What's Taking So Long With Coordinator Hire?
Just when we thought a decision was about to be made with offensive coordinator vacancy, another candidate gets thrown into the mix.
Early Saturday morning, reports indicated that Kirby Wilson, the Steelers running backs coach, had been eliminated as a candidate. The Ravens were expected to make a decision Monday between Ravens Wide Receivers Coach Jim Hostler and former Houston Texans and Washington Redskins Offensive Coordinator Kyle Shanahan.
And then news broke late last night that Head Coach John Harbaugh was considering another candidate, according to The Baltimore Sun.
The identity of the new candidate is unknown, but The Sun's Jeff Zrebiec and Mike Preston reported Harbaugh has spoken to former Texans Offensive Coordinator Rick Dennison over the last few days. There was no word of a formal interview.
"Dennison is highly regarded by Harbaugh and around the NFL," Zrebiec and Preston wrote.
Dennison led the Texans offense from 2010 until he was fired earlier this month along with Head Coach Gary Kubiak as the team finished 2-14. The offense set a franchise record with 26 points per game in 2012 and ranked seventh in the NFL in yards per game.
Since Wilson and former Detroit Lions Offensive Coordinator Scott Linehan learned they were no longer in the running for the Ravens' post, they have since moved on.
Wilson reportedly reached a verbal agreement to become the Minnesota Vikings' running backs coach, and Linehan is reportedly a top candidate to join the Dallas Cowboys' staff.
It's been nearly two weeks since Jim Caldwell left for Detroit, and fans are starting to ask why it is taking so long to fill his position.
"Ravens coach John Harbaugh wants to get it right," ESPN's Jamison Hensley explained.
"This is the biggest decision involving his staff since he became the Ravens' head coach. Harbaugh has had to replace coordinators before, but it's been promoting from within. This time, he cast a wider net because he needs the coach who is going to able to get this offense on track. If the Ravens were competing against five other teams looking for offensive coordinators, then you could argue that Harbaugh needs to make a quick decision. In this instance, he's identified his candidates and they're waiting on him to make a decision. There's no need to rush."
Kiper's 2013 Draft Re-Grade
ESPN draft guru Mel Kiper re-graded the 2013 draft, and he gave a slightly lower grade to the Ravens from the one he immediately gave following the draft.
Ravens brass went from an A-minus to a B-minus.
"It could've been worse for the Baltimore Ravens," Hensley said of Kiper's new grade.
Outside of first-round pick safety Matt Elam and undrafted receiver Marlon Brown, the rookies didn't get on the field much to have an impact. Elam was the only rookie to play more than 20 percent of the snaps, per Hensley.
Kiper's reasoning for downgrading the Ravens?
"General Manager Ozzie Newsome and Assistant GM Eric DeCosta always seem to do a good job, but the early returns here were just OK, and the grade dips a little," he wrote. "Elam played better late in the season, but is probably a better fit at strong safety and likely will move there. Brown just didn't deliver the impact I thought he was capable of as a rookie.
"So would you rather have Elam and [second-round pick Arthur] Brown, or Swearinger and Te'o if you were looking for help at safety and inside linebacker in the first two rounds? Elam and Brown could be just fine, but grading early returns, you might prefer the other pair, which was an option. Marlon Brown was an undrafted steal and caught 49 passes, and Juszczyk is going to be a good H-back. Elsewhere, Wagner has the upside of a starter. Development should come."
Quick Hits
- @MaryKayCabot [Cleveland Plain Dealer]: #Browns considering LSU OC Cam Cameron for OC, … also former Titans OC Dowell Loggains. [Twitter]
- @LSUBonnette: Just spoke to @LSUCoachCam (Cam Cameron). He told me that he's not going anywhere & that he plans on being with @lsufball for a long time. [Twitter]
- @CliftonBrownCSN: Trent] Dilfer believes [Hostler would succeed as Ravens OC [Twitter]
- @CSteele32 Ravens PR]: Congrats to @LWebb21 4 earning [USA Today all joe honors for great players who didn't make Pro Bowl this year @Ravens [Twitter]
- @NFL345: @Ravens coach John Harbaugh & @Vikings DE Jared Allen are @nfl & @USAA Salute to Service Award finalists #NFLSalute [Twitter]
- @Artj97: Excited to get out this cold weather! Headed to Jamaica tomorrow w/ @JonnyBones &* *@Chan95Jones! [Twitter]
@Ravens: Happy 25th Birthday @TorreySmithWR! #RavensNation- Retweet to send birthday love to the #Ravens WR! [Twitter] - @TorreySmithWR: Thankful for another year of life! It has been amazing for me and I've been blessed beyond measure. Thanks for all of the birthday wishes [Twitter]
- @CliftonBrownCSN: Daniel Jeremiah of NFL Network at #Senior Bowl said Zack Martin of Notre Dame could be "Marshal Yanda type" guard in #NFL. #RavensTalk [Twitter]
- @gdowning14: Peyton Manning's "Omaha" call is now a Super Bowl prop bet. The over/under is 27.5. [Twitter]
- @untouchablejay4: BOUT TO DO SOMETHING VERY DUMB [Twitter]
- @TeamSizzleFilms: "MORE NFL" — A Bad Lip Reading of The NFL [Twitter]
