Welcome into the Ravens Press Pass Podcast. The Ravens are fresh off their bye week and now it's time for the stretch run. They've got four games left in the regular season and they are in the middle of a playoff push. Today they were back on the practice field and gearing up for that final run. And after practice today we had a chance to hear from head coach John Harbaugh.
Okay, good seeing everybody. Appreciate you guys being here. A good start to the week. What questions you have.
Going to get the Giants be in a heavy favorite everyone. They're gonna hear all week about help and Piston Boston leads. Any concern about that, do you try to do anything to kind of counteract out.
We're excited to get back to work. You know, we had a good week. I think our guys made the most of the week. Different guys different things. We had some rest player wise. We also had a bunch of guys training and working and getting ready for what's ahead. We have a four game season in front of us right now. This is the season as we've kind of begins now. The season is important to determine, you know, the important outcomes for the rest of the way, and
that's what we're focused on. So we're gonna be focused on this game, but everything we've got into it, uh, and then we'll go from there.
John We obviously all reported about the statement on Deontay Johnson last.
Week, but is there a path for him to beet back with the team after the suspension.
I think this statement said that there'd be no further comment on that, So we'll just kind of leave it at that and we'll see where it goes as time permits.
Does does the suspension include practice as well?
I think I just said what it says. It's a suspension this week, right, That's what it is. Suspension. You mean suspension. There's no practice during suspension. Yeah, that's how suspensions work.
There's been three instances with guys that have kind of come out but unhappy with the role. Are you okay with the buying in the locker room and term of roles and all that or is that just always a challenge in individual situations.
I think we've been doing great. I mean, we've got guys that are out there playing heck hard. Are you talking about the receiver room? Is that every talking about not.
Just receiver room, but Eddie Jackson and Marcus Williams.
And yeah, guys have been professional. They work hard, guys want to play, and uh, you know, it's based on it's based on opportunity, it's based on performance, it's based on need, all those things. Our locker room has been fantastic, you know, and guys have been working hard. You saw the way they practiced out here today, So I'm really happy. You see how hard they play every single week. We're in a great place and I love our guys.
John, do you have any update on Deante Hardy's injury situation?
Uh?
No, I have no update on that.
Yeah, John, help pleased?
Are you just?
I mean you've had just about everyone on the practice field. I mean you had to buy weedon.
You talked about some of the guys that that time off could help you feel good about where your team is Helplies. Now do I feel great about where our team is at? I mean we had almost everybody, all but one guy out there today. He's dealing with a hamstring, so he'll be a day to day going into the game. We'll see if he can make it to the game.
And the rest of the guys out there practicing fast and good and excited for what's in front of us, really happy with where we're at and can't wait to see what we do over the next week, two weeks, three weeks, four weeks into the playoffs.
I know week fourteen buy is probably a little unusual, But did you feel like it came at the right time but maybe a little reset or would you have liked to kind of keep it.
Going it might have.
I mean, I'm happy with where it's at. You know, you kind of you take it. It's like any circumstance, you take it as you find it. But I can find a lot of positives in it being this past week, you know, I felt like it was at the right time. I think it's an opportunity really for us to really kind of just heal up and freshen up and continue to get stronger. I mean, we want to play our best football right now. That's what we're really focusing on doing.
Everything else is just is just a sideshow. Everything else is just a distraction. None of it's important. What's important is is our football, you know, the football, getting the football right, playing our best football, uh that we're capable of playing. Everybody locked in for that. That's what it's really all about. Nothing else matters, Everything else is just just just static.
Health.
You know how close Michael Pierce to being able to come back, And I know you've got some time in his window. He practiced full today so and then Travis Jones as well, and it was.
He practiced full today too.
So having those guys back, how much does that help?
That time?
That huge? Those guys are great players. I mean, those guys are game wreckers inside, you know, those guys being being being ready to go, being one hundred percent. Uh is a is A is a possibility for us, A massive possibility, two massive guys playing massively good football. That's the idea inside and the trenches there. These games are gonna be one in the trenches. That's where it's going to start. So uh, that's what we want to do. We want those guys out there doing what they do.
And I know, with three games and love of danger, trying to scout as much as possible ahead, were you able to do even some self I knew a lot of times in your body we could do a lot of self scouting as well. Were you able to do that or was it more focused as coaches looking ahead?
Oh? It's focused on all that. I mean, the self scouting is part of it, because you want to understand how people see you, you know, and how they're going to gain plan against you. You try to do that as you go. We do a really good job of that as we go. But I also think a chance to really kind of take a deep dive then plan going forward. You know, the players, you know, they focus on the rest. The coaches, they get to work on all these things, and it's very comprehensive everything that has
to do with the next four weeks and past. That is what we're looking at in terms of finding ways to make plays, score points, get stops, you know, all the different things we can do keep people off balance, great problems for our opponents, put our players in position to make plays. I mean, those are the things that we're trying to find. Turn over every stone that we can along those lines, and we can come up with and that's what we did. John, you said justin Tucker
was going to have to figure his things out. Have you talked to him since you return and where does his head seem.
To be at?
I talked to him. He's in a great place. Yeah, He's in a great place, John, you have.
A chance to watch the first episode of art.
I did not.
I did not. I will say, you know, like you do get home at night usually we work pretty late at night. Don't get a lot of TV watching time, you know, as a football you know, in this football coaching world during the season. So there were a couple of shows I got caught up on, but that wasn't one of them. So I hate to set them right there. Sorry, guys, I mean I was there. I know what happened already.
I didn't have to see it. I watched Yellowstone, Man, I'm fired up to get a Yellowstone back to watch. Do I plan to watch? I don't know. We'll see, I'll see, all right.
We'll see how it goes.
You know, it's a good story, you know.
Yeah, how do you want.
To ask the key stretch coming up? What's been your message to the team or do you feel like I've even had to say anything? Like you guys kind of know what it is.
I thought pretty much shared most of it with you already, you know, through the press conference. I mean, guys know and uh, but we try to speak it, you know, we're all trying to be on the same page. But this is our opportunity and it's about the football. Let's go play our best football. Weren't a good place. We got a bunch of great players, a bunch of great coaches. We got some tough opponents in front of us, starting with the Giants on Sunday, and let's go see what we're all about.
We also heard from several key players today. Here is wide receiver Zay Flowers.
In the discussion, Oh no, already, you know that ain't my decision to make, or that Deontae is still going. He one of my guys. He want to guys, so what you got much to say about it?
So he'd absolutely be welcome back.
Say yeah, you'll be welcome back, cause it it's a difficult to super block back distraction. They're not a discratching the distraction. Nah, it's not a discratch.
Can you ever remember.
Another time of your career where you're looking at a stretch ahead where you're so close to goals.
That you guys want a team as a team and even that you you're at that position you gotta lock in.
Uh yeah, but we we we still trying to take it one game at a time. You know, it's we came off a boy wee. So we just trying to get our legs back under us, and you know, just take a week by week from here on our It's eight weeks left in the season, full regular season, four to the super Bowl, so we gonna take it one at a time.
They'll know it's a late by week.
But did you feel like it came at the right time.
Yeah, I feel like it came perfect time, like we could get our body more ready for the playoffs and we get our body more ready for these last four games and going.
A little roam.
After that, after that field game outviously, what's been kind of a message once you guys just getting back to work now and focus on obviously are your first time this game with just coming off for that work, it's another message.
I mean, we just gonna play our ball. It ain't you know, it was nothing to it for real. It's just we made mistakes, and I mean we made mistakes on all parts offense, defense, rush, team, So it's just like you can't blame no one, so it's all of us. So we all gonna take it and we're gonna keep moving forward.
I mean, did you did you get to watch football a little bit when you're off.
Oh nah, I ain't watching. I don't watch football.
Once summer I was gonna say, I was wondering I play help him watch and be in re groove form it a little.
Bit kind of helps refocus.
Yeah, nah, nah, I ain't watch it. It felt we're not playing Sunday. But yeah, I ain't. I won't watch football that much.
Or did you spit part ready?
Oh I had a pool party with my family. I hung out with my family the whole time.
Yeah, alright, individual made as.
If you be able to stay in.
The lungery and expect me your like individuals you have.
To do with personal Uh honestly, I I'm not even gonna lie. I just wanna win. So anything I could do, anything I gotta do, I'm gonna try to do that the older team. And if that's catching one pass, if that's catching ten passes, that's what i'm'a do now after the game more than.
His mother custom out for that, Yeah more?
What do you think that that's a floridam all when you're playing.
With him out there? Do you do you think there's chances for lamar or do you.
Do you not?
If I'm wanna be honest, he can run a ball whatever you want. It's just up to him if you want to run it. So it's not nobody stopping him from running. It's really itself if you want advise it, if you want to run. So you know, I'm I can't really tell him what to do. He got two MVPs, so I'm gonna let him do what he do best.
Have you guys had those conversations because he kind of hinted last time that he was letting you guys go through your progressions.
Almost Oh no, not really mean we just played. We just played the game. We play off him, whatever you want to do. That's what we all.
Here is wide receiver or shot bateman.
We've been playing for a long time now. Thirteen game is straight. Some teams already had their vibe, but we didn't. So it's definitely good to go take a break, see some family, and come back to the game. I think we all didn't need that.
You got your pretty heavy favorite going into this Giants game. I think everyone's talking about how you guys sh Everyone's saying how you should beat the tie. How do you go about not overlooking.
Fam I mean being a Ravens football player. I think we should be the giants. But I mean, obviously we gotta go out and do what we need to do. And I think that's what we need to focus on right now, is doing our job for.
Shot I having such a late by kind of what does that do for for you in the and the rest of the team.
Uh late by, Yeah, just having a weight line, you know, having that for the stretch from uh. I, I definitely think it comes at the right time. We all been going hard, like I said earlier, but you know it just give guys a mental break, come back fresh, uh mentally, you know, eager to play finish the season. We got playoffs coming up, so uh definitely a much steed of time right now.
Hart starts for doing you know, season starts now.
These next four games. What's kind of a being here the message in East two.
Guys one fourth playoffs, you know, importing these possible games.
I mean, all we know is every game is the same. I mean, you had to last for important but or rall, there's a team and we're just thinking that to win every single game whatever that looks like. We're not worried about you know, we're all worry about the playoffs, but we're not worried about you know, what game is going to get us there and and uh, the losses and this and that. We just worry about winning and you know, changing our bits and being our bus and then.
You guys got this league by so it's kind of like a breather here, but not really just because coming at your schedule, how do you approach just having.
That many games?
Nessa in, Uh, we're forced too, so we got to find a way. So it is what it is.
It is what it is.
It's hard, but you know, guys find.
Out what to do.
Next? Is kicker justin Tucker?
Just how does the team approach is playing this many as many games and in a crazy span?
Yeah, I think we all understand the challenge that's ahead of us. You know, it almost doesn't make too much sense to look too far ahead, uh and concern ourselves with you know, the schedule. Everybody's got different challenges that they're facing schedule wise across the league. What we can control is how we approach our meetings today, how we approached practice, and how we approach our preparation heading into this game, most important game of the season, as far
as we're concerned. You know, we feel like that every week. But maintaining that mindset is what will service well down the stretch here these uh these last several weeks in the regular season.
We're not on a championship team.
You've been on multiple playoff teams here at this franchise. Does this locker room have.
What it takes the lock.
In and get this done?
Absolutely? I think it starts with uh, you know, our leadership. You know I say that in every single every single man in here with uh you know, with a roster spot, with a locker, with a little real estate in this locker room, every single one of us will be counted on in a significant way at some point. And when the time comes, I'm sure each and every guy in this locker room will be ready to perform.
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