Monday Morning Links

The NFL named its All-Decade team, which featured four current or former Ravens of the 53 players selected to the team by the Pro Football Hall of Fame Selection Committee.  Retired left tackle Jonathan Ogden was one of four offensive tackles and former Raven running back Jamal Lewis was one of four running backs.  On the defensive side of the ball, both linebacker Ray Lewis and safety Ed Reed were named to the squad.

In last night’s Pro Bowl held in Miami, running back Ray Rice rushed for 42 yards, which made him the game’s leading rusher.

And Le’Ron McClain’s three-yard run on 4th-and-1 helped clinch the win for the AFC.

One Raven not at the Pro Bowl was OLB Jarret Johnson and coach John Harbaugh says, “… I would think pretty soon he’s going to be in the Pro Bowl. I think he had a Pro Bowl year this year, and I also think he had a Pro Bowl year last year.”  He definitely had a Pro Bowl-worthy season (70 tackles, six sacks and two interceptions), but it’s often the case that it takes a little bit of time for the rest of the league to appreciate players like Johnson, especially when there are other stars like Lewis and Reed around him.

Safety Haruki Nakamura didn’t watch either of the Championship games, but he predicts a win by Indianapolis in the Super Bowl.

Over the weekend, the Ravens signed Jim Zorn as quarterbacks coach to replace Hue Jackson.

Although Zorn was unsuccessful as a head coach for the Redskins, he was partially set up for failure as he was over his head after making such a jump up the coaching hierarchy.  He went from Seattle’s quarterbacks coach to Washington’s head coach (with a brief stint — no games — as offensive coordinator).  As a QB coach though, Zorn was successful and I think this is a great move to replace Jackson.

Here’s what Zorn said about Joe Flacco’s development: “Joe Flacco is a really good, young quarterback, so I’m definitely excited about working with him. Whether it’s a perfect fit, well, that’ll be a good question to answer as I go along here. I hope it is. I believe it’s going to be a great situation.”

Backup quarterback Troy Smith said on ESPN radio this weekend, “There is no doubt about it. [Playing for the Browns] has always been a childhood dream of mine.”  Smith, who wants an opportunity to start somewhere, would make a good fit in Oakland with Hue Jackson becoming the offensive coordinator there.  We’ve seen that JaMarcus Russell, the former top overall pick, is not the answer and Smith would be an upgrade over Bruce Gradkowski and/or Charlie Frye.

Former linebackers’ coach Vic Fangio will coach with Jim Harbaugh at Stanford.

Tags: Ed Reed, Hue Jackson, Jamal Lewis, Jarret Johnson, Jim Zorn, Joe Flacco, Jonathan Ogden, Le'Ron McClain, NFL All-Decade Team, Ray Lewis, Troy Smith, Vic Fangio