When Ravens head coach John Harbaugh meets with Derrick Mason as soon as today to talk about the player's shocking retirement announcement, you can expect the Ravens to give Mason the hard sell to unretire, given how thin they are at receiver.
As of Wednesday, word out of the Castle was that Harbaugh and his best wide receiver still hadn't met face-to-face about Mason's shocking decision to retire.
"We want him back, and we think he can play more than one year," said a team source who asked to remain anonymous.
And Harbaugh told the Associated Press that when he spoke with Mason by telephone Tuesday, the conversation covered "family, his contract, the team, his feeling about competing and playing, what it's like to have a long career."
"He's ready physically," Harbaugh told the AP. "He's in good shape, and he's healthy. He just wants to decide if he's mentally ready. It's really open right now. I'm optimistic and hopeful that he'll be there, but if he's not there, we'll ... support and respect his decision either way."
But it's clear the team will be watching carefully for any signs either way.
Maybe it'll be like at the Vatican when they announce a new pope.
White smoke pouring out of the Castle chimney means Mason's staying and collecting the $3 million for the final year on his contract.
Black smoke means he's hanging it up, walking away from all that cash and moving on with his life, which will not be one of poverty, either.
The Ravens better hope for white smoke, is all I can say. Because look at the situation Mason has left them in if he doesn't come back.
Training camp opens Monday, which doesn't exactly give them a lot of time to prepare for losing a guy who led the team with 80 catches for 1,037 yards and five touchdowns.
Sure, they're working out four wide receivers Friday. But there are no superstars in this bunch.
One is Drew Bennett, 30, cut by the St. Louis Rams after one catch last season because of a foot injury. Another is D.J. Hackett, 28, released by the Carolina Panthers last year after catching 13 passes for 181 yards.
We don't know who the other two are. Although it's a safe bet they're not of the talent level of disgruntled players such as Anquan Boldin and Brandon Marshall.
Anyway, according to the Ravens, Bennett and Hackett were scheduled to work out for the team even before Mason announced his retirement.
Why? It doesn't take a genius to figure it out.
