In August, critics of Ravens general manager Ozzie Newsome were flooding radio talk shows wondering why he had not been fired when head coach Brian Billick was let go.
They were a team, so they should have been dismissed at the same time. That was their logic back then.
Now?
Oops, we haven't heard a peep from them since the Ravens lost three in a row earlier this season. They've gone underground.
Back then, Newsome declined to defend himself. He never said a word. Now, with his team within one game of playing in a second Super Bowl, Newsome still won't give an interview.
That's just his style. He is the quiet force of the Ravens, the architect of a team that almost everyone thought would barely win six games this season. Credit has gone to owner Steve Bisciotti, new head coach John Harbaugh, offensive coordinator Cam Cameron and even rookie quarterback Joe Flacco. Few mention Newsome.
But Harbaugh knows better. He just shakes his head in amazement when he talks about the things he has learned from Newsome during his rookie season as a head coach.
"There has been a list," Harbaugh said. "He is a guy that is so patient, so meticulous. When everyone else is anxious or nervous, Ozzie has the ability to sit back, give a strong analysis and see things through. He just doesn't jump into it."
Maybe his critics should have been as patient. They were ready to run him out of town with Billick. It was guilt by association because Billick's problems became Newsome's problems.
Newsome couldn't draft a quarterback. He couldn't draft a good wide receiver. Why weren't there any good, young offensive linemen on the roster? The reasons the offense struggled were that Newsome could evaluate only defensive talent and had invested most of the team's salary on that side of the ball.
It was ridiculous and extremely unfair.
There is a process when things go wrong. You start looking at assistant coaches first and coordinators next. Then it moves up to the head coach and then the general manager. The bull's-eye should have been put on Newsome's back, but he should have been given two more years to solve any problems.
But it doesn't matter now because a strong foundation has been laid for what appears to be a promising future. The Ravens have a good young coach in Harbaugh and perhaps the best coaching staff in the NFL, one Newsome helped assemble.
