Welcome to the Ravens Presspass podcast. It is Wednesday, October twenty third. The Ravens are gearing up for their game this Sunday on the road in Cleveland against the division opponent, the Cleveland Browns. Today we had a chance to hear from head coach Sean Harball and some of the players. Is the Ravens prepared for that divisional matchup? Let's kick it off with Coach Harpball, right.
Great to see everybody here. We sure appreciate you being here. A short week turnaround after Monday night game. We finished the game less than forty eight hours ago and we're back at it and our guys were in today very tenant, very on point, with a mindset to get locked in and get ready for a big division game on Sunday
at one o'clock in Cleveland. We've had many, many tough battles in Cleveland with Cleveland, very physical football team, very aggressive football team, a very hungry football team, and we understand that tough environment always, especially for the Ravens. So we're looking forward to it. We're excited about the opportunity. The other thing I mentioned is we had three former Ravens that were made the top fifty for Hall of
Fame induction. So congratulations of those guys, SiZ Terrell, Suggs, Marshall, Yanda and Hillodi Na. Those guys are well deserving and in my mind they have my vote. I don't have one, but they have my vote for first ballot Hall of Famers. So what question do you have, John?
We saw Keith.
Mitchell out there that you know his twenty one day window is starting. Do you expect them to is our timetable? And when he would return? Do you think it's going to take the full twenty one days?
Anything that you know?
I think that's all good question. You really don't know anything. He don't expect him to be back this week in honesty, not that Hey you never know. We'll see how it looks tomorrow when we're out there full speed. But he's been away quite a while, so want to get him, get him going, get him moving, get him practicing football and get him ready, you know, hopefully within the three week window. That would be the goal. For sure.
It's the kind of pinchmark and not just being out there today, but that that three week endo to kind of be out there for good.
Yeah, I mean that that'd be the goal that we would want him back. Sure, we want him back at the three week window at the latest. That would be the benchmark. I would think, uh, something before that'd be great.
You know, Uh, the litmus test.
The Limus test. Oh that, Yeah, they practice as well. He can make all the change direction cuts, he can he's uh, he can be productive. But also he can protect himself. It's probably the most important thing that we feel like he's strong enough to protect himself. Uh, that'd be the number one thing.
John the Cleveland announced that Jameis Winston will start quarterback.
You've seen a little bit of him, but I'm sure you've seen a lot of.
Them take concepts over the years. What what's your perception of you?
Yeah, very talented guy. He's a he's a guy that you know, our coaches have a lot of our offensive coaches have a lot of connection with Danny Bryer and here best pals and that's that tells us much more than they're they're they're they're both great guys, but uh, he's a he's a great quarterback. Very talented quarterback. Over the year, is highly touted, highly decorated quarterback play.
A lot of football.
Can throw the thing all over the field for sure, push the ball downfield, does a great job with the Reids. Those are the things that it's a little different, you know, because it's it'll probably be a little different offense. And you know what Deshaun was doing. Because any offense, any quarterback brings his own flavor to the offense. They're gonna have a different play caller. How much that's gonna change with Ken doing it now instead of Kevin, we just
don't know. So we've got to get prepared for the things that we think that they're capable of doing. But mainly we got to get prepared to play our best game on defense and do things right the way we do them.
It's going to ask that in a short week. How much does that complicate when they change probably the quarterbacks one thing, but chase play callers.
Does that force you to watch old Buffalo tape of Ken's offense.
Or how do you go back that?
Well, No, his influences are in the offense already. I think he's you know, he's been the offensive coordinator, so he's he's been putting the offense together. They're always you know, it's a collaboration so we understand the plays in there. How he calls him in the game could be different, could be the same. You just don't know. And really for us, we need we need to play our defense at called. Well, that's that's our goal. That's what it'll be.
Give him a short weet. Any expectation for Marlin or any hope Marlin gets.
Upper Yeah, I'm hopeful. I'm hopeful as all those guys are guys that have a chance to be back. So we just have to see how it plays out during the week and the guys that are ready, you know, they'll play. And the guy doesn't quite make it, then he won't be able to play. And right now we don't know who that's gonna be.
Coach.
After watching the table, what did you see from the second Gary against the Bay?
You see any improvements there?
Oh yeah, I mean I saw a lot of things in there, but I saw some big plays. I saw a lot of yards after seven minutes in the fourth quarter. I mean I think it was two hundred yards in the last seven minutes, So kind of changes the dynamic the way I look at it. Any any play we make, it doesn't get us in that place. You know, offense special teams and defense, and it never even goes down that road. You know, the game's over. So and that's the way we would have been played the last seven
or eight minutes. So you know that's on us, though, you know, we got to you gotta close people out. We played a great football game after. I was really happy with the fact that the way we handle the momentum. I mean, you're going in Monday night football, hot football team, excited, crowd, place going crazy, and they jump out to a two score lead, just keeping them, keeping them from going fourteen to nothing with something.
You know.
Then you go back down the field again and Marlin puts a stop to it momentum wise with your favorite word, momentum puts a stop to it with the interception, right, and then our offense, you know, so we go down we score six straight times on offense, we come up with six straight stops on defense. So that's that's a that's a that's impressive.
You know.
What we like to do is make the play or so at the end it finishes the game. You know, they did it. We did eventually, but anywhere along the way it could have changed that and that's really where most of those yards came from goshot.
The numbers says you guys are thirty second.
But along with what you just said, a lot of times you guys are.
Up by so much teams have to throw in the fourth quarter, and maybe that hurts the numbers in terms of the ranking things.
Yeah, I mean, yes, I do think that. I mean, it's it's reality. You know, they're not running, they're not running the clock out, running the ball in for a minute at the end. That that has an impact on stats. But what we're looking at is the things that we need to do better, and we know there's a lot of things we need to do better. We need to detail things out better, all three levels of our defense so that we can be a complete defense and a
consistent defense. We're capable of it. We're going to get there. I do like the upside of it, I really do. I mean, I feel good about the upside because I think our guys. I believe in our players. I know they're very good players. I know our coaches are very good coaches, and we just got to get there. And when we get there, what does that look like? You know, I'm excited about that.
In the moment.
Most weeks and you're probably looking at the week improvement. But do you ever look at the table of performance like Lamar had on on Monday and think about how he's grown as a passer in his general masters of offense?
Yeah, I probably do. I mean I think I think about that every day, honestly, you know, all the way back, you know, because really, what you're trying to do, you know, try to do your job as a coach. All of us try to do what's best for your players. You know, same thing with the secondary. We're trying to do what's best for our players, secondary linebackers, pass rush, no different for you know, our quarterback or any of our or
Derek or any of our players. You try to try to build it and put it together in a way that you know brings out the best in your players around their skill set. So I think I feel like I think about it every day, but I don't really look back and think, oh man, it's really great. Probably will someday. I do think it's really great, and I'm really happy and excited. But I think Lamar, I think we think the same way as players and coaches. We're looking at the next game, you know, and you're You're
really only as good as your next game. I know he looks at it that way, and that's how That's how I look at it too.
Has been really good against the bulitz this season in particular, even much more so than in past years, and obviously the offense is consequently has been good against it.
What's your why?
What what explanation did in your Yeah, there's there's I wish there was one silver bullet to it. Yeah, I mean, I just think we've I think we've been intentional about it. That's probably the why. You know, we've been very intentional about not just that, but that has been a big one.
You know, how we how we attack people. We're gonna blitz this in various ways, and played various coverages behind it, you know, and we've tried to build something and Lamar that's I mean, I would say Lamar has been the most intentional about it. He's been locked in on that from day one. So it's it is showing up and we have we have to keep it going. We're gonna get different blitzes. Cleveland is a big blitz team. I mean,
they're one of the best blitzing teams in football. Jim Schwartz does a great job, and we're gonna have to be on point.
Pass off SAT And you talked a lot about you, Lamar and Todd munkin kind of going back and putting this all continuing to build on this offense. When you think back to some of those conversations and you watch this offense now, do you see a lot of the key components the principles that you guys wanted to hone in on this season.
Are you seeing that when you watch them right now? Yeah?
I am seeing it, you know, And I'm excited about it because I think a lot of it is coming. It's being brought to bear by by Lamar and by the players, and that was the intentionality of it. But we have ten games regol season games left, one at a time, and we've got to keep building on it.
Changes on the Hands team. I mean, with two kicks being covered this year, both against you.
Thanks for reminding me of that. I am aware of that. It was one of the players I was referring to. You're gonna cover that kick? It's kind of over. Yes, we will, We'll look at it. You know, not everybody wants to be on the Hands team. I can I can tell you you really. I mean, it's it's it's it's tough, tough duty. But you know, yeah, the rest of the league is over and we're we're you know, we've given up two that's uh, that's not the that's not we're not. Nobody's very envious to that right now.
So we'll flip some guys around, try to get some guys in spots that we think can make sure we come up with the next one.
When you look at the level that Ronnie Stanley has mean team this year, do you think it's simply a matter if he's able to make kind of all the physical movements that were hard for him last year with the knee.
Or why do you think he's playing at the level with he is?
I think that's part of it. Yeah, that's probably a big part of it.
He's uh.
And and also because of the fact that he's been able to train the wh last season fully, so he's just stronger, you know, the ankle, the feet, they're stronger, you know, So this ol lower body strong because you've on to the train and it's definitely showing.
Up with Derek he's on a pace or stork pace, rushing yards He also leads the league in carries as well. Are you happy with this work We talked about this before. Are you happy with this workload? It's like nineteen per game I think right now.
But is that kind of Weir's thirty it is, I will thirty is kind of a high number.
You know.
I've protected myself on that. I'm happy with it. I'm happy with it because, you know, it does mean that we've had a lot of carries in the fourth quarter, which means that we have the lead, and that's what you want. I also feel like over the course of the season, it's going to be okay. If it's not nineteen or twenty five. You know, when it's ten or twelve, that's okay too. Other guys be getting those carries as well, or hopefully we'll be throwing the ball for a bunch
of yards. But that's one thing about Derek. You know, you'll never hear him concern himself with that. He wants it. There's no debt about it. But he wants He wants it because it helps us win, you know, and that's that's all he ever talks about.
Thanks great, guys.
Thanks.
Next up is quarterback Lamar Jackson.
More.
I don't know if you were. Derrick Henry is on his page right now to set the old time or the single season rushing record. What do you think so far?
I mean seven games in.
What do you think his chances are?
Is there? I feel like he is. He has a great chance of achieving that. I think he can do it. I believe he can do it.
Yeah, Lamark, do you feel any different when you're playing on Monday nights? All sorts of uh, you know, record boards that you now become a part of in terms of as he touched down to appoints. What about playing on Monday nights really as you are playing at that level?
So, I don't know what it is about Monday night. I just love playing football, you know, trying to win. That's the biggest thing for me. So when I'm out there, uh, trying to do anything possible to get us a dog, that's all.
Well.
There there's just tomes of media chattering exciting about this offense and keep saying it's unstopped and whatnot. When you hear that, because in your.
Head, nothing just goes in one ear and out the other, you know, Uh, like I said before, you know it just early in the season, they were just saying we were the worst team and in in the league, and and each and ever we we just been read about proving ourselves right. And that's pretty much what we've been doing. Not right about the outside.
I know, it's come on, Derek can release the league in rushing and carries. You're right now eleventh and rushing you l you're leading the league and passer rated. I mean, when you talk about this backfield, when what you the threat you guys suppose, I mean, how dangerous is this backfield with you guys and obviously with Justice Hill and those guys are the back there as well.
Yeah, just uh definitely uh Justice Hill as well. Uh but like I said before, it's just a pick pick your poison offense. You know, we got guys out there on that receiver is just doing a great job getting open on catching the ball again yards after catch, got great tight ends off the line, praying playing great, and
the running backs just doing what they're doing. And we just got to keep getting better each and every week because we still, I believe, we still make a little small hiccups and games where we stopping drives from you know, just putting teams away early. But we just gotta keep getting better each and every week.
From keeping Mitchell's to turn and what he could add to this offense.
I'm loving it, but just keep you just keep getting better, like I want you to be a thousand percent when you out there, And we're doing pretty good right now without him, but we can't wait to have him back.
Definitely, when you watch Ronnie out there protecting you this year, does he does he remind you now of the guy back in twenty nineteen and twenty twenty before he had all those injuries.
That make absolutely that's that that was the only thing with running, you know, just the injuries. He was just trying to get back to where he was and I feel like he's he's feeling pretty well, feeling pretty good now. He just the same running I've been new, you know, ever since I entered the league.
How big a difference does that make for you when you have that kind of trust and faith that your left tackle is gonna hold up in past perception.
I made my job a lot easier, you know. I get to go through progressives, get the ball out and just have successful uh plays.
Now you try to push and you try to push. Uh, you know, praise aside and things like that. But you've been really good against the Blitz this season. Why do you think that's the case? And and is there any part of you that relishes?
Is when the team splits you. Now that's pretty much what I study, like the blixes, that's the that's the main thing, you know, Uh, catching the defense in the blix or they just trying to catch us to just try to knock us back from having positive yards. The best thing for me is just go in the film room get of course, you get with y'alls, get with death and we just go in and uh, how can I forget?
Uh?
Who's enough room with us?
Oh?
Oh my god, pray for anyways, I don't even matter. But yeah, we just in a room just trying to get better.
Uh.
But blixes just one of the main things we go over the most. And knowing the protection, the pickups and stuff like that.
So may bring a young quarterback having a big pass preussure coming in your face or facing the bullets coming in. I'm sure it makes you panic. Do you remember kind of when you started being able to maybe slow down the rain and not panic.
You got to ask that question again. If you gotta ask that question, and Danny, who's been in the room with us. Danny's in the room with us too. I could not say Danny for some reason, but Danny. Yeah, but ask that question one more time.
I'm just saying, how long did TIKEI to kind of adjust to just feeling panic from guys blitzing you or pressure.
That you feel.
How different is your mentality facing the bullets now than it used to be when you were young quarterback?
Pretty when I was younger, I'll see the blis happening, and now pretty much just try to beat the blitz without flipping and protection. Sometimes I'm like, Okay, it's a guy. I'm gonna be hot. This guy gonna be by itself, you know, untouched. I can just get the ball out and sometimes I had to pay for it. So my biggest thing, like over the last few years, was like just getting my line to where they should be going.
And if a god's gonna be free, I'm gonna know how to navigate the ball and get away from them. Just to get us in a positive situation, that's all. It seems that.
It seems that the widers the screen game, whether they're the wide receivers order, running backs are as good as it's been in years here.
Why do you think that is just working hard? You know, all the all the mistakes we made, the things that was a problem for us, We just trying to make it like just taking second nature right now. And that's pretty much what we've been doing. The the things we mess up, we try to practice over and over till we get it right and just get on one accord.
Or are your connection with Sean Damn that's kind to be growing over the past few weeks particular. What do you think to click you.
Yield at anything, particularly plays that is allowing us.
To be more successful, just just all the rent now just playing football. He doing a good job of getting open. He's been doing a good job of getting open, you know, just getting him involved with with what's going on. You know, we got a lot of dynamic guys on the offense. Sometimes it's hard for him to get the ball, but he has been going each and every week defensive eyes on everybody. It's like who who who got a guard? Or who got a double and one on one matchups. I love our receivers.
Do you feel like Justice Hill is kind of the on sung hero against the Bloods. I mean, whether he's picking.
Up a block, catching the ball out of the backfield. Man, I'm glad we gave Justice that extension. I feel like that that helped us out a lot. But yeah, he's been he's been that guy, Justice, He'll been that guy.
Man.
He's just he's just swung up when we need him to.
The Browns got to their emergency quarterback last week, which is a pretty rare thing. If the Ravens are ever in an emergency emergency quarterbacks, I hope.
We not ever in that. I don't even like the question, but I didn't even hit a question. You didn't even get to finish. But I hope we never in that situation. He would be the best one on the team, you think, any one of them. Hopefully we don't need it, dude, that's not even thought my mind.
Derek's seen a little ticket. He got run down on that long run the other night. He called himself washed up a little bit.
One.
No, I just felt like he slowed down like he thought he was. He thought he was going, you know, but it's the NFL. You know, Guy's gonna keep Guy's gonna keep running after you know, especially a guy like that. They don't want him to have a ninety yard run on them. And you know, but now he definitely not slow.
He's just talking, uh, you know, running after the people.
You got up there on a big block one of Derek's ranzo. What's your mentality and your willingness to get upfield and block for your guys to back.
Yeah, I just seen Derek cutting backcross the field. I was like, I don't want him to get stopped in the backfield or just cut back into his game two yards. It was like, I'm trying to help help him score, you know, from way out. And that's pretty much what was going through my mind, Like just help him score. That's all. Nothing more, nothing less.
Is that the person had the kind of running space to keep up with him.
I mean you had to kind of.
Get in front of him to be his lead block or did you Did you realize how fast he was running next to him like that?
I thought he was going already, Like when I was pushing on Winfield, I'm thinking he's running past me, but he was. He was just trying to like see like which direction he was going to have to run in and then when I looked at him and Field, I'm like, bro, you should have been run past me. Bro like, but you know it is.
What was the reaction in the locker room to do you block and lead? There's some guys who were like, hey, don't put yourself at.
Risk like that.
Oh no, no, no, nobody really said nothing. You know, there was like appreciate that, like you know, but nobody really said nothing. Man, We're trying to win, like we're trying to do whatever it taste to win. Thank you, I appreciate you.
Today. We also heard from running back Derrick Henry.
Was my job getting on the South and uh, make the best out of the play, and they're been making it easiest. So I give the credit to all of them for the stats and everything else, but as far as such as I don't try to worry about that and like an opportunity to try to try to try to make the best of it.
There d people are talking about just how you know, kind of defied the trends of of running backs in their thirties. Did did you feel like teams this offseason were looking at you, counted you out, or were underestimated what.
You still can do? It don't matter.
Uh went to the team I was supposed to go to and that I I wanted to go to. No, I can't worry about what people say or just that in the third I do what works with Derrick Henry and from a Baltimore Raven and I wanna do the best I can to help us win each and every week there.
I don't know if you saw, but uh, Anthony Ewards just been joking about all the YO.
Wants to see you and the whole.
I mean, how do you feel like that.
Could work out?
I mean everybody got an imagination. Everybody imagination always goes in their head the way they wanted to. But yeah, I know I I I was talking uh on marks uh podcast this today. I was like, we gotta set up a a training camp. Well, basketball players come out here and put these pass on to see they really can k can get through it. But uh, he's a he's a tall guy, so I mean at least he he't gonna tackle me low, So we might as to try that out one day.
Derek, how excited are you for Keith Mitchell to get back on the practice field?
And I don't know how much you've been able to watch him, but you know, what are your impressions about him and and what he could do uh to help this running game and when he gets back on the field, I.
Mean, it's kid is a a a speed gamon. I mean, I know we y'all saw that last year. You know, talk my mom, see she was.
Out the roof.
So that just add another dynamic into this to this offense. You know, I'm uh a bet guy, so I'm gonna try to help as much as i can, give him as much game as I can, you know, uh power teammates, and you know he's fought hard to get back. Don't to be able to play this season. Happy for him and can't wait to see if you on the field, dere got to Lamar.
Have traded back and forth offensive Player of the Week awards the last four weeks. You went, you went to you an, has there been any banter, Has there been any smack talk or anything of that?
Nah? All the same is just us, you know, practicing hard. You know, you know, playing a transition to the game, and you know, just focus on getting better. We got the wattle and I feel like once you put the team first and you know, focus on execution and and being determined on what we wanna what we wanna be as a team. Then the individual stuff just been addressing with that.
Tic care of so Dereck, I see you have that him award back.
There is that something that you got after the game from Moner Night Football or.
That was last week?
Yeah, this week I went to him. So we'll see next.
Year you think you could be him this week?
I don't know.
We'll we'll we'll see, We'll see. But this is a great defense.
I know that record doesn't show that, but this defense, they their physical, the goat to the ball. They are inexperienced defense. I feel like they're solid on all from the top of the bottom. No, I see it every week, but it's probably one of the best defense.
We finite, Derek.
This franchise said a history bringing betteran guys and they bring the joy back into the game of them.
How much fun are you having and how much of that attributed to culture here?
Yeah, it's doing a lot of fun.
I'm not smiling right now, but I'm happy inside. So yeah, I've been enjoying us and you know, thank God for for for argument, you know, just opportunity.
Like the contigue, get the critique of the offensive line was a stounding at.
The end of the season.
Right now, you guys are record.
Offensively with the rushing yards producing you know, significant pass yard.
It's just what does they speak to their turnaround and just you know you're.
Supporting this to him and the guys that you saw originally getting critiqued are now get out a lot.
Yeah, like I said, they deserve all the credit anything I do.
Well, you know, make sure you mentioned them first.
Before you mentioned me.
And those guys, you know, like you said, they took them all to eat and just like better work and what about here every single week, So don't give me credit out your.
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