June 18, 2008 Don Banks of SI.com is on the Troy Smith bandwagon. He says Smith has made huge strides this offseason and is ahead of Kyle Boller on the depth chart. "When Cam (Cameron) was head coach at Indiana, he coached Antwaan Randle-El (at quarterback) and made him maybe the most dangerous player in college football," a Ravens source explains. "We're doing some very exciting things with Troy Smith, and he's much better than people are expecting." Banks adds that Smith's only competition for the Week 1 job is rookie Joe Flacco.
Our View:We'd be surprised if the Ravens pushed Flacco that quickly. Both Cameron and head coach John Harbaugh have been around situations with prized rookie passers (Donovan McNabb, Philip Rivers), and they're likely to show patience. Frankly, we're excited to see what Smith brings. We don't expect much fantasy value, but the former Heisman winner is a gamer with guts. A lack of size didn't stop Cameron from turning Drew Brees into a star. Why should it hurt Smith?
June 5, 2008 Troy Smith has to overcome the presence of Kyle Boller and Joe Flacco, but that doesn't mean that he hasn't impressed the Ravens to the point that whispers are starting to grow that he might have a legitimate shot to be behind center in Week 1, according to NFL.com.
Our View:Smith is a strong presence in the huddle and in the locker room who never takes a snap off. He continues to work hard despite some physical limitations, but it still appears that he may have actually played himself into a legitimate shot at starting this year.
May 28, 2008 Troy Smith has outplayed all other quarterbacks on the Ravens roster during minicamps, according to the Baltimore Sun. "I really love his confidence, because he believes there is nothing that he can't do playing the quarterback position," quarterbacks coach Hue Jackson said.
Our View:Coach John Harbaugh has said no one is going to win a position battle during minicamps, but Smith has at least showed so far that he deserves the starting job over Kyle Boller and Joe Flacco.
May 7, 2008 Despite the addition of QB Joe Flacco, and the presence of presumptive starter Kyle Boller, there is a chance that Troy Smith could end up the Ravens starter at quarterback, according to the Baltimore Sun.
Our View:According to the report the team has been very impressed with the growth that Smith has shown, which when added to his athleticism and confidence, marks him as a player to watch. If we were handicapping this race we would go with Boller, but there is a whole lot of time until Week 1.
December 24, 2007 Troy Smith will likely start in Week 17 against Pittsburgh, as Kyle Boller is recovering slowly from his concussion problems. Smith was medocre in his start at Seattle last week, completing just 16-of-33 passes for 199 yards, with two lost fumbles. He did almost nothing until a 79-yard touchdown connection to Derrick Mason late in the game.
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