Baltimore Ravens: Regular Season Awards

Dec 7, 2014; Miami Gardens, FL, USA; Miami Dolphins running back Lamar Miller (26) is tackled by Baltimore Ravens strong safety Matt Elam (26) at Sun Life Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

Goat: Matt Elam

The Ravens brass has to be very disappointed in their 2013 first-round pick. Matt Elam was my Goat in my midseason awards article, and nothing has changed. It actually may have gotten worse. Elam consistently misses tackles, and there is nothing more frustrating as a fan than when you see players missing tackles.

Elam does have a strong suit in run defense, and he does do a pretty decent job in that aspect of the game. However, even in run pursuit he does miss tackles.

Elam, after having a decent rookie season when he was playing out of position, gained hype in the preseason of this year. There were reports in camp that he was becoming a vocal leader in the secondary, and he was improving and maturing.

Then the regular season rolled along, and he became one of the newest victims of a sophomore slump. He lost his job midseason to Will Hill, after which he only saw the field as a third corner because of injuries. If the Ravens’ corners were healthy, I don’t think Elam would play more than 10 snaps a game.

Obviously Elam is young and still has time to develop, but he was very disappointing this season in coverage and in tackling.