The Ravens tried to re-tool their roster this offseason, but the team also had plenty to do to repair fan relationships, as a number of factors have led to increasing no-shows in Baltimore.
And while there were a number of factors that fans expressed concern about (including ticket prices, wi-fi quality in the stadium, and protests during the national anthem), the Ravens are also aware there’s an easy way to make people happy again.
“We didn’t make the playoffs three years in a row. That affects everything you do,” team president Dick Cass said, via Jeff Zrebeic of The Athletic. “It affects the morale here in our building, it affects the way the fans look at us. I think the fans have always trusted that if we didn’t make the playoffs one year, they’ve trusted us to fix it and get back the next year. And we haven’t done that. Everything we do is made so much easier if we win. When you’re not in the playoffs, it’s harder to connect with your fans. People don’t care as much about you.”
The Ravens have flatlined in recent years, with a perfectly boring 40-40 record the last five seasons, and just one playoff appearance. Getting that part fixed will be a different accomplishment, but Cass said he and the team’s business staff made “thousands” of phone calls this season to try to fight off the ennui of a fanbase that was used to winning.
“The major complaint, more than anything else, is ‘you guys are not fun to watch,’” Cass said. “I don’t think it’s a style of play honestly. It’s whether you win-or-lose, because we weren’t a fun team to watch in 2000 [when they won the Super Bowl]. We didn’t score an [offensive] touchdown for five straight games, but fans were excited and still came to all the games and were really engaged.”
There’s also the matter of the team not having an identifiable star like a Ray Lewis, though rookie quarterback Lamar Jackson could end up turning into that kind of player if he ends up with the starting job. If he does and the victories follow, that will go further toward mending the relationship with fans than any cosmetic fixes they might make.
