The Draft Read Online Free

which included a new head coach, two new scouts, a handful of new trainers, and even a new videotape librarian, the team went 7–9. Not a miraculous record, but a step in the right direction. The more fair-minded writers took note of the fact that a number of the players Jon had either signed from free agency or acquired through the draft were making significant contributions. One, a guard that Jon plucked from the third round, not only made the starting team but was elected to the Pro Bowl. Another, a defensive back, made the second team that same year. Even the most skeptical observers had to admit the Ravens were getting better.
    During his first off season, Jon knew his central priority was improving the team’s offense, and in a slick free-agent maneuver that would eventually grow to historic proportions, he managed to lure hot young quarterback Michael Bell away from what seemed like a done deal with the Denver Broncos. It was on that day, the talking heads determined, that the Ravens became a force. Bell, who’d spent his first three seasons with the Jaguars, had developed into a dynamic and confident leader with devastating pass accuracy and a slippery quickness that would have made Fran Tarkenton proud.
    The next year the Ravens leaped to the top of their division with a 10–6 record and a wild card spot in the playoffs. Unfortunately their fledgling team was still too inexperienced to handle the pressures of playing on that level, and they were eliminated in the first round by the Jets. But they were on a roll, and the fans and media were rolling right along with them.
    In Jon’s third year, the Ravens made their statement. Completing their offense with a high-priced wide receiver and a pounding, powerhouse fullback, they stomped their way to a 9–0 record before losing their first game, by a field goal, to the Patriots. Two more losses to Miami and Tampa Bay completed an unbelievable 13–3 record and home advantage throughout the playoffs with a first round bye. Now Jon’s name was being freely intermingled with the word “genius.” His gift for creating powerful chemistries was no longer deniable. Sports Illustrated ran a nine-page article on him—“Savin’ the Ravens: Are They Losers Nevermore?”
    In spite of the fact that the team stalled on the road to the Super Bowl by losing 24–17 to the Broncos in the AFC Championship Game, one thing was clear—the Ravens were headed to the top. Less than a week after the season was over, experts across the nation were picking them as next year’s favorites.
    Their faith was well placed—in an unforgettable march to the championship, the Ravens’ defense allowed fewer points in a single season than any other team in league history while compiling their second 13–3 record. Then they hurdled three playoff games and authored a 34–14 Super Bowl victory over the Buccaneers. The next season they reached the top again, crushing the Panthers 42–7.
    Only six other teams had won back-to-back Super Bowls—the Steelers, the 49ers, the Cowboys, the Dolphins, the Packers, and the Broncos. And none had managed a third. Many said it couldn’t be done; it was impossible in the free-agency era. Free agency had, after all, been implemented to arrest the development of dynasties. But somehow, it appeared, the Ravens were building one anyway. Either enthusiastically or bitterly, the fans and the media were forced to admit Baltimore looked like the best team again. A third straight championship was within reach, and Jon wanted it more than anything he’d ever wanted in his life. It gave legitimacy to everything he’d ever done, justified all the hard work and years of toil he’d invested. It would lend solid, undeniable credibility to his “genius” tag and silence the few remaining doubters once and for all. His detractors were running out of things to say, his colleagues were