Henry, Jackson & Others: Ravens Press Conferences 1/7/25

Welcome into the Ravens Press Pass Podcast. It is Tuesday, January seventh, and the Ravens are gearing up for their wild card game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. It's going to be Saturday night, eight pm at M and T Banks State. As they prepare for that game. Today, we had a chance to hear from quarterback Lamar Jackson.

Any forever? Uh, not that I know of. I'm just surprised or something. I don't know. I'm chilling.

Did you already have any any birthday celebrations?

Nah?

Not really. Ill just be thankful, grateful, that's all.

You seemed like you were dialed in a soon as the game ended last week.

Could you talk about the preparation and focus going into this week?

Oh? Yeah, you know, we know it's at State. You know it's when to go home. Man, it's a team we've been very familiar with, great team at that when you go home, you just lock, then doubt then well more.

The results aside.

You've played in quite a few playoff games at this point count of career.

What have you taken away from those experiences that has it impacts or maybe has changed your preparation now compared to you know maybe the first couple of playoff games you got.

Right before, Uh, the game would be to me, playoff game is a lot slower. You gotta be try to be mistake free.

Uh.

The games won would turn over battle and keeping the ball in your control, you know, moving the ball down the field, getting first downs, putting points on the ball. Obviously that's how you win those games.

Lamar, what do you mean by slow?

Like usually people say it speeds up in the playoffs.

What do you mean by like it's it's like it's gonna be quick turnarounds. I believe know that this team is it's offense ball, you know, and the disappon the offense ball like it's it's go back and forth. It's a lot of back and forth. That's what I mean by slow, Like a lot of back and forth.

A or Uh marciall Yan is a finalist for the for the Hall of Fame. You know, just uh going back to early in your career when he was here, I'm curious how impact he was for you as a player and uh kind of helping you and as you got started.

Uh, very impactful. Just how he used to adjust the line. You know, I really didn't have to say too much. I really didn't really have nothing to say at all. You know. It was like my first full year taking over, and he pretty much would let me like lead in a way, but like lead by example, cause I really didn't have the voice. It'll be marshaling, like like getting things done, and just how he went by himself, how he conducted business. I feel like he should have been there,

Man.

He's well deserved.

La mar lot come with playing in a playoff game in general, But is there anything actually knowing the opponent that you're playing, playing Pittsford or the third hime?

Uh nah Na, Really it's gonna be uh it's it's gonna be a very good game. I said, uh uh, that's what I believe it'll be. Before the last seam, you were asking me a lot like about.

Your record against the Steelers, and you said had as well as you wanted to in the games that you played them.

But having that win under belt in this most recent matchup.

Does that change.

Mentality or is there a sense of a competent to coming from it that you were able to put together ahead the.

Game against the Steelers. I was always comforting, No, always confident. Uh, but that game doesn't even matter no more. You know, it's wanting to go home right now. So I'm locked in with the same mindset I had before that last game.

Or you mentioned turnout those before.

How do you help point those without it?

But I guess lessening your aggressiveness.

Uh, keeping the ball in our hands, Uh, keeping them away from those guys those scripts. Uh, don't throw the ball into traffic, stuff like that. What we should be knowing, we should not do.

What what stays about you about the knight and the night atmosphere at Mty Bay stating what stands out to you about the night atmosphere for a prime time game in Baltimore?

Just to know it's the fans, whole flocked nation, just in the building, feeling like they on the field with us, the lights, how they do the lights? You know, certain more parts of the game, just everything about it, and plus were at home. How good is the field to go into it?

He called brother playoff game with Carrick Kenner.

I'd rather not be cold. But but you say we got Darren Henry, so that's a bonus. It's great, man, It's great, man. I don't believe nobody like hitting in the cove like no one's likes, not even the defenders like hitting in the core. I believe, especially with it like a two hundred and fifty pounds almost running back running downhill. Let you. I wouldn't want to do it, but it is great for us.

Are you ready for a game? Possibly on top of it.

Dont matter. I'm ready for any game, Lamar. I know we don't hope.

Sorry, I know we don't know about the status and say Flowers, but how does this offense pop?

And say if he's not aut available.

Uh man, that's god up, you know. But we're hoping he can come back, you know, hoping he got a chance. We don't know what's going on. I don't know what's going on, but hopefully we have him. But if not, another guy step up and we're gonna be ready to row.

No, mar you have lost him earlier in the game last week, and then you know pushad Baiten really stepped up in the connect you with him nine touchdowns this year, his progression, how much of it do you attribute the fact that the symptom is healthy all year? You guys at that time didn't really work it out.

Yeah, Like like you said, him just being healthy and he'd been had that in him though, like Baitman always been that type of guy. I felt like we left more. It's still things left out. You know that he didn't get you know, on the field during regular season, but hopefully you know this playoff run, we make things happen.

You are heading into six games and you have you played the sixty playoff teams. You ever, even during this week, do you ever think about those past games to either as motivation or is your your.

Mind just going forward? The arline going for I don't really think I was young in the beginning, like and it happened fast, Like it don't happen fast. But you know, the only one I do, be honest with you, the only one I do think about is the SC Champions Shure, That's probably the only playoff game I do think about, Like who was wrapped up? But my mom, I'm I'm focused now though, Like it is what it is at this point, everybody stands that game we lost, that's it.

Has it been a motivational trip for you for this team in this whole season?

Yeah, I believe I said that throughout the season, like I thought about that. Yeah, definitely.

I mean, but now we're here for the second season, so better.

Real body, it still is not.

Though my Uncleol was couldn have uh back Andrews, you know a hundred percent last year, you know at this time was playing in the year.

I think you can stop you do that.

But it's huge, man. So I always say this market is like a security blanket, like we peanut butter and jelly, you know, like he's that guy man, And for him starting slow this year and people with doubting him, I don't know where a doubt came from with Mark, I

Lamarro, is it?

Do you have to remind yourself not to be too amped up for games of the stakes. Is that something that in your career you've sort of I don't wanna say battled, but is that something you still have to remind yourself, uh to settle down in these games?

Yeah. I just be too excited, that's all, you know, too assy, Like I'm seeing things before it happened, Like, oh, I gotta calm myself down. But just being more experienced, I've I've found a way to about balance it out.

Laura talking about your voice, and you've mentioned more and you grow as a leader. I guess who are some of the people that you've tried.

To learn leadership come and what characters to have you cry to yourself.

On as a leader of seven.

I never really try to mimic uh my leadership after anyone, Uh try to piggy like get things from them, you know. I'm I pretty much just lead by like how I care myself, you know, lead by example like that.

Uh.

I never looked at anyone else and tried to learn anything from them. What leadership, Lamar, what have you seen from the defense?

They've really turned it around since I think week eleven, So just kind of what do you say from that.

Side of the ball. Just the chemistry. I felt like guys just had to get build chemistry with one another, and they just playing like they've been playing since last year. There's a couple of new guys, but the same defense.

Mark.

Looking back at some of your previous very cold games, seems like you don't.

Like wearing sleeves.

Is that something that you kind of stuck with or is it depending on how cold it is or what.

It Probably depends on how cold it is. I feel like I've been just doing pretty good with how I've been playing without them, so I've been cool.

We also heard from running back Derrick Henry.

Yeah, you mentioned that it's been a few years since being in the the playoffs. What do you think it's going to be like, you know, get back in there and getting periods in the postseason again.

I'm excited.

Uh there's a different atmosphere during the postseason, you know, because everybody knows what's at stake. So just uh excited about be back in the atmosphere. Like I said on Saturday, it's been a while.

So do you notice the folkus or intensity goes up a little bit a notch as opposed to the way it was a week ago.

I mean that's what you know, you expect from yourself and and everybody expect out of out of each other. You know, just be a lot down the uh more than you know you were before, and just pay attention to the more details and just go out there and play the best game you can, but not try to get too overwhel I'm gonna make it more than what it is.

There is there anything different from playing a you know, a playoff game versus playing a playoff game versus a division opponent.

I mean when we're playing you know, Distiller, so we know it's always tough. I mean during the season, those FC North matchups, the fourth quarter battle, so that's where we anticipate. You know, we don't take an a point a lot there, but we know, you know with AFC North Division, the point of the rivaly, we know it's alway gonna be a four quarter battle.

Marl was just saying, like, I'm I wouldn't want to have to try to tackle Derek on a on a cold night in January.

Me, do you do you think about it that way?

Do you do you want to sort of make it uncomfortable unpleasant for the defender to come up on you in these games.

Focus on doing my job the best way that I can every single play, to be effective on offense and help us get an end zone, put ourselves in the best position, best position to win, not really focus on what somebody else thinking of.

Good there are in terms of you know, talking about being effective on the offense, you just speak on like what impact playing alongside Lamar has had on.

You in terms of your job.

I'll answer this a lot during the season, But you know, Lamar as Lamar the best player in this league, and I feel like if anybody played against some you know, he's a benefit to in any.

Player and.

Happy and uh glad to be able to play beside him. A few tar All of famer and he makes everything different from different for everybody. He's a dynamic pair player. You gotta respect his arm and his legs. So you know with with eight you always got a chance there.

I saw it after Haracard got named to the Pro Bowl. You shouted him out on your Instagram store. What what is the kind of fond of you guys and how much respect do you have for him and what he.

Does at Yeah?

Uh, Juggernaut oungsong hero to go out there and mass treet pull out the way for me every single game, especially in the cold, which is not easy.

You know.

I know he played the main but you know, it's a little different in the NFL. Got a ton of respect for Pat, you know, being his teammate and when I wasn't so, and I'm happy that, uh, you know, I finally being his teammate. He's blocking for me and he's doing the hell of a job this season. He deserves all the recognition, Derek.

Even on on both sides of it. I'm curious what stands out to you about the atmosphere at the Mtbay Stadium for a night primetime game and and all that goes into that.

Yeah, that's just as lockdown as we are. And we're definitely gonna need that on Saturday. You know, bring your coat, your blankets, your hot chocolate, your cough whatever you need to to be loud, and we would need allowed in that stadium. We would need that energy. We need to fans intense for sure on Saturday.

What like, what's it like when new your team's up by you know a little bit, and they're in the second half, fourth quarter and They're like in new the ball going.

Yeah, let's close this out. How How does that? How does that make you feel? What's kind of the feeling that you get with it that happens?

Yeah, just close the game out, the security win. That's all I'm focused on is it's finishing. It's it's what we're preached and that's what we say to each other in the huddle. Just finish, finish the game and just got out here with the victory.

The argument that or productive and value on this offense has an argument against Lamar Jackson as an empty candidate.

It's learning it.

Do you have any of the thoughts about that city, give.

Your impact on the offense as a negative or Jackson's mvv bid or the campaign, you have any thoughts on what your impact is for his case.

Y.

I mean, you could put anybody by Lamar and they gonna have a hell of a year.

A just type of player.

He is My success shouldn't shouldn't knock his or you know, vice vice versa. Lamar is one the main reason why I came here, you know, to play with a Hall of Fame quarterback, MV caliber quarterback. And you know I've been seeing all the chatter. I think, uh, I forgot who said it? You know, selling Breaking two with him and josh Al Lipop had hell of the year's I mean hell of you this year. So you know, I feel like Lamar h his case. I felt his stats

I'm just curious personally, how does your mentality in the playoffs differ as but as the regular.

Season it doesn't at all. But I still got a job to do or a it's the regular season in the playoffs. But I think it's just you know, we know it's at stake, and we know we gotta do to.

Get We want to go two more.

Please cold games.

Again, cold weather games.

I don't care.

We gotta play whether it's cold, raining hot, Like, go out there and get the job.

Now that I'm mad at me.

As you were deciding to come here, did you think maybe I could be the difference between them being really good and then taking one more step.

I'm not gonna get into to all that. I just want to come here and make an impact and be adding peace to his offense, to this team to help them get get where they want to go. And you know, just week as the first step and got to work hard this week and prior to execution to guard there doing on Saturday.

Next up is Pro Bowl defensive lineman Namdi Madam k.

So, I know you guys felt like, especially at the beginning of the year, that there was a lot better.

You guys can probably a lot better.

When did you kind of get a sense that this defense was kind of turning that cool?

I've always had that sense, but you know, in every season, you're going to go through your hills and your valleys and stuff like that. It's about just catching your momentum and keep going. And the guys in the locker room navigate up and we're starting to catch our rhythm and playing good football right now.

You know this arrivalry very well at this point. I mean, do you do you like the Pittsburgh is part of what you have to go through to get where you want to go.

Yeah, I mean they're just another person in our way. You know, the team in our way to get to we know where we want to get to, and you know that's why our thur't practicing and working hard and doing it than we can to be a best self on some on on Saturday.

So that how did How does the UH the experiences of of UH last year and being in the playoffs, like, how does that shape this team in the mindset going into this for season?

You know that feeling in playoffs, you know, last year is not a good feeling because you know where where we could have been. And it's definitely a different focus now with the guys in the locker room God just out and doing everything we can, you know, to make sure that we're putting our best football out there now, especially playoff time turning up another notch.

So I can feel that everybody's locked in.

So it's a good feeling.

How does it feel to have both we had you guys get double digit sacks and the and the world does he play in that too?

To help lot?

Sometimes there's there's play in there in the path.

Yeah, it's it's great, it's great. You know everybody's boring on the d line. You know, Docinson having a career year, Kyle Vin or as well. You know, it's it's a gret feeling. Everybody's going after, everybody's hungry, everybody's hunting. So you know we're gonna you take that momentum from the regular season and bring it to the playoffs. You know, that's the only way to do it.

I'll be curious from a defensive perspective, how tough would Derick Henry be in January when it's cold and and him running downhill if you had to go against him?

Huh, super tough, Cause super strong, guys, We're big, super fast, and you know it's getting cold now, so you know things are are gonna hurt a little bit more. So you know, thank I'm not on the other side of the sea. But you know he's gonna do his thing, and you know the guys may be ready.

So that's it.

I mean's as a defensive player, how do you feed off the energy in the stadium for these night games.

It's it's gonna be a different environment just the person time. We're hosting the h uh Pittsburgh and in Baltimore in the playoff game, so you know it's gonna be high energy. Everybody needs to come out and bring whatever you gotta bring to be rowdy as possible, cause energy is gonna be electric and we're gonna feed on that and we're gonna play, you know, to to that standard that we can and we know we can, so it's gonna be exciting.

We've seen you.

Take on more and more of the pregame or speeches, and we've always known you to be a salt spoken guy when you when you talk to us. How how did you sort of step into that role?

And and have you have you been enjoying it?

And you know what?

Yeah, I think I guess around you, I'm more soft spoken, but out there I'm I'm cool. I'm a little wild, you know, I'm wild. I do my thing, you know, roll And I've been talking. It's like man, you you I feed off you too, man, you you you get everybody going, you know, and I've been starting to At first it's kind of, you know, different, but now I'm starting to get a roll of it.

You know.

It's definitely somebody that uh like, uh roke on I respect and he's like, man if I feed off Fiel'm like, yeah, like I definitely need to talk more. So I've been doing that and now it's kind of being my little thing and me and me and Rocann's a little thing. But you know, overall, if he feels it before the game, he does it. If I feel before the game, I do it. Whatever we gotta do to everybody going to play our basketball.

Sorry, that is prepared versus just off the cuff.

Always really off the cuff. Really, you know, it's not something that we talk about like Friday or Saturday. It's really like game game day and just however you're feeling, just whatever is in your heart saying and just play your heart out there.

You ever, like in the car on the way to the stadium, think about like if something comes to mind, maybe I'll.

No, I just let it flow.

Yeah I think it. I think too much. It doesn't combat something, and I just let it flow and just say what I'm my hard and everybody feels and ibody's ready to go.

Yeah, okay, yeah, channeling any movies or TV shows or anything.

No, No, don't you know.

I mean.

Lamar Jackson said a minute ago that he doesn't think about a lot of the playoff losses, but in the AFC Championship, give me last year still sticks with him. Does that come up in the defensive room at all this whole season, that championship game lost as a motivator or how does that played out?

It does?

It does as a motivator. It doesn't br bring it off so much. But when it does come up, you know, Zeo just talks about how that feels and how you know when the end of that game was everybody was thinking of my man, what I could have done better or what I should have done to make us win that game? But now is the time to do it? Now is that time to capitalizing the things that you believe that he should have done. So we do it the right way at this time.

So no motivation, but you brought up.

The fact that this would be the first game against Pittsburgh playoff game in Baltimore. Is there a feeling of one to represent of alright, this is their turn to come here.

We're gonna show 'em what it's like.

Absolutely, the energy, the focus, it's all there. It's play out football. You know it's a winner. You go home and everybody knows what's at stake, and uh, everybody's locked in the locker room. You can feel it. And it's just one day at a time. At this point.

Last game against Pittsburgh, Jalen warm and really critical in their checkdowns.

Then the whereas really effected in that regard?

Do you get how much of a focus is he's been getting here and make sure that doesn't happen against.

All the all the running backs have been a focused you know, he hasn't been like the main focus based somebody that we're accounting for obviously twenty two. You know, all all the backs are good, they're downhill back, strong back. So we know what's ahead of us, and we're preparing for. You know, we're doing everything we can to uh make sure that we eliminate those things from you know, slipping away in our hands, and you know we have the right man for the job to do it.

Not.

I know it's early and you know game prep, but it looks like their starting right guard has a broken hand and might try to play Saturday. Is that something that's already already made its way to it's got our How does that maybe that how you guys kind of prepare for something like that?

Uh?

I didn't, I didn't know that, but you know, whoever's out there, you know, murd Marider to play, you know it doesn't, then it's spars to play out football.

You know, it's it's winner go home. So yeah, it's not.

It's that's my take on it. Samdi, What is it.

About Kyle Vinoy who's full play NFL and athlete SAMs at thirty three that's having a career year.

What have you seen them that's impressed you the most? And Kyle he's he's like a football giru. He knows so much about the game. He knows so much about like secondary and all these stuff that like me and doctre like, huh, how'd you know that? Like how'd you pick up on that?

Like, he's just so.

Knowledgeable about about the game of football. He takes care of his body, He just he just he knows what it's like to win a championship. He knows what it's like to to win a Super Bowl. So he know, he knows a lot of stuff about football that a lot of us players that haven't got to that point yet don't know. So he kind of gives us insight of things that we can do, little things that we can polish up to it just be the best self on uh on game day. And he helps us a lot, a lot.

In the locker room today we heard from Pro Bowl inside linebacker ropewand Smith.

I'll see the Steelers again every teams kind of what's the mentality is now playoffs side?

Oh, the mentality is real simple. We win to go home.

We had the bank, gotta protect it by any means necessary, so we find for our lives and everybody know that.

And hey, get your popcorn ready to be ready. What are some of the challenges. We're facing a team that you know so well for a third time.

They know what you're gonna do.

You know what they're gonna do.

Absolutely, we know what they're gonna do. They know what we're gonna do. So it's gonna be about the best man win. Got a lot of respect for the guys. Russ's been doing it for a long time. Running backs run very hard, tight ends make plays obviously, pickings on the outside and O line play well together, so you know, excited about the matchup.

They know us, we know them, So it's gonna be about the best man At the end of the day.

Rookwond does how you guys finish the season going for and O after the by?

Does that do anything for you?

Confidence momentumise would under it is going into this game.

Uh, the game is all about momentum at the end of the day. But the game is played for a reason. So we have to go out do our jobs, uh to the best of our building, and we do things to the best all ability will like the results. And I think it's just that simple, just going out and posing your will, doing your one to eleven myself including and we do that like the chances up on New Year to chasing that first win.

On the Steelers.

That's a raven in a long time.

How much is it sort of east that hitch in a sense that you have on one of.

The Steelers game and you know how that feels like?

Count of this team? Yeah, I I beat them prior to this game. I'm not sure. Uh, I mean as a raven, I I.

Beat them prior to uh this game. So not sure where that came from. But uh no, we can beat any any team that's out there in the field. We know that I have the utmost respecting confidence in each and every guy go out there on the field with and it's about going out there and doing our job to the best of our ability, regardless of who the opponent and it's a division rival, Pittsburgh, so we're excited for it.

Only the fourth time the Ravens have had two guys with double David Sacks what if?

What a fail? Away? And Calvin or What's upression? The most about those guys is here.

Yeah, how those guys just remain consistent, Chuck Dennis, all those guys, prepairing those guys day in and day out, kV the Ageless Wonder and then dopph Man. Got a lot of respect for him, just putting his head down his work. Despite what the credits and they say say, He's always a guy just put put in the work, come in, bus is till day in and day out, and he's reaping some of his rewards. But I think he's just getting started. And as well as kV. I think kV is just showing what he can do and

I haven't been around here for a little bit.

How much this last year's playoffs situation.

Sure here you have guys this year.

Yeah, like every time you go to the playoffs, You go in the playoffs wanting to win the big game, and at the end of the day, you just have to take it one game at a time, knowing that last year didn't end the way we wanted, so just using that as fuel. But you can't jump right back to the AFC Championship game because it's a damn good Pittsburgh team that's coming in here and we have to take care of business at the end of the day.

Guy on at his star cloud, especially in this last game, yourself included.

But everyone's I've talked is like, yeah, that's great, but we have a bigger ball in line.

Is that something that's talked about in this locker about.

Mentality here, it's understood, Like they say, what's understood doesn't need to be explaining.

Each and every guy understands what the goal is.

Each and every day we go out down the field and it's the horse to Lombardi. But at the end of the day, it starts one game at a time, and it starts at the Bank Sunday, Saturday versus Pittsburgh, and so that's what it is. But it started, you know, today with practice and preparation. So We're excited and we know what this team have at stake, and we know what we can do as a team as well.

We know you're a new man, but are you happy with Disgusa On the other side, we have to tackle Derek I not you.

Oh yeah, I'm very excited that there's on my team and he's bruising other guys throughout the AFC right now. So yeah, he's a big man and once he gets going, man, it can be a long night for a lot of people. So yeah, I'm definitely excited he's on my team and I'm not going up against him because definitely can create a lot of problems for any defense.

Bro, the all the guys are talking about is alwayser.

It's kind of like you're saying it too. Where do you think that grounds from.

I think that comes from just each and every guy just knowing how close we were, but also just knowing how good we are as well, and just knowing that opportunities don't come like this so often. So it's about taking advantage of each and every opportunity you get. As far as on the field, taking advantage of each and every play, doing your job. And I feel as if each and every guy and win. Each and every guy do their job to the best of their ability, each

Sure, it's a national football.

League, it's the playoffs, but we have to make more plays and we have to impose our will at.

The end of the day, one more place you and Nomini of Shardan splits his pregame speech duties.

What makes him good at it? What's a good nominee matter behave? Pre games?

Reach ound like.

He got some good self. He's firing, Man, I got like his oys.

You look like man, I do not want to run up on that guy.

Look like he'll send me to I CU or something.

But like, no, man, he definitely get the guys going, and he knows exactly what to say when to say it, so he after the guys ready to go. He's been doing a long time with the d line and now when he gets it with the group, it's just it's pretty special. I got a lot of respect for beats.

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