Jackson, Henry, Hamilton & More: Ravens Press Conferences 10/17/24

Welcome to the Ravens Press Pass podcast. Today is Thursday, October seventeenth. Today we had a chance to hear from head coach John Harball as Ravens prepare to face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers next week on Monday Night football.

All right, good seeing everybody, appreciate everybody being here, a beautiful day, good practice. Are getting ready for a very tough opponent Monday night football in their place. I'm sure it'll be electric. And the Bucks you're playing at a high level. Coach Bowls does a great job with that team. The whole staff does. Baker Mayfield playing at a high level. Offense is ranked the top of the pack, and so

What question do you have John with there?

Henry?

I know you always going again to me.

You were familiar with me, But did you know the extent of kind of what he does to.

Prepare for games and prepare for his body?

Did you know that before you met kind of mat him?

No, I didn't. I mean I hadn't been around him. You know, I always heard he was a good guy. And he worked hard. But to see it firsthand, the level of professionalism from Derrick Henry, it's, uh, it's it's been great, and it's been really good for our young guys. I think to see that because you know, sometimes the best leadership is by example, and he's certainly providing it for those guys.

Chris Gowin and Mike Evans.

This the guys are playing at a high level.

What kind of matchup.

Problems and these guys can hate, oh, tremendous matchup problems. You know they've got they've got two of the best. And uh, they put those guys in spots you know usually usually uh, you know, fourteens in the slot, usually thirteens out there at X. Uh you single it, you single them up, he's a problem. And then you got fourteen to slot. If you single him up, he's a problem. They're both catch and run players. They're both contested catch players.

Three backs playing well.

They got a young guy just from Syracuse, is from right over here, Calvert Hawk. You know, he had a bunch of yards and played great. So it's a very deep offense.

Have you seen Baker evolved in these year one as a rookie to now how the game changed?

You know, I don't know that it's really changed. I think he's still playing like he plays. He's playing Baker ball, you know, at a very high level, you know, and they've I think they've done a very good job of building the offense around what he does well with his his two star receivers. You know, offensive line is playing well too, so all those things that kind of kind of come together for him. It seems at this point.

Luboarding is entering week seven hunboards where you to see the team not getting destroyed only a day, going mentally not only in their game, getting stronger, but multiply mentally mentally stronger.

Yeah, I mean, I hope, so you know that that's kind of the thing. It's uh, hopefully you can just continue to keep locked in, stay humble, work hard, maintain your faith every single day and understand that it's a long journey, you know, and it's a one week league. It's a one it's one day preparation, one day, one play at a time, and it's a one week league.

You guys have like a kind of hard and fast rule when you're playing someone like Mike Evans, and it's a fifty to fifty ball about the kind of when to turn your head, when to stay, you know, eyes on receiver, to try to play a.

Cutch of wind.

Yeah, that's a great that's a really great question.

You know.

I wish there was a hard and fast rule of when, because the problem is no two situations are ever exactly the same. You know, the timing, your leverage, your relationship, how far away you are, how close you are, where the ball is when the ball gets there, all those things are different. And it's probably more of a of a of a just a reaction type of a thing if you play through your fundamentals, you know. So we want to do a good job at the line. You're

John went to an aspect of your team is getting a huge amount of praise, like the offenses right now across the country, as your instinct as a coach to sort of say, like, hold your horses, let's not get ahead of ourselves. There's still a lot of work to do, or like you just block it out.

I mean, what's your.

Yeah, I think just put in perspective. I mean, it's not hard for guys to remember what was being said four weeks ago, five weeks ago. So noise is noise. New noise is new noise. So it doesn't matter. It's just pretty much at the end of the day, it's it's what you do every day to be the best player that you can be. We seek improvement, you know, we want to be We say one percent better, we say better better today than yesterday, better tomorrow and today.

John, you know, Lamar last Ture obviously having me a pe terrific year this season kind of you know, you look at the way he's played on the stats and just the way he's played a similar pace. What's the difference going from year one to year two forgot for him? And and is this maybe like the highest you've seen so many so much at it over the years, like it's this maybe the highest best version you've seen of him?

Yeah, yeah, well probably the answer honestly, answer is probably yes, just because you know, he's the most far long as he's been you know, uh, just as a player in development wise, and he's steady, steadily, steadily always He's that guy that kind of epitomizes what we're talking about there. He's always seeking to improve, very much a perfectionist. He wants to he wants every play to be perfect. He

John Hill was game one with DMPs and his senior advisable.

It was good.

It was really good. I think Dean kind of got settled in and and he and Zach and he's in there with the defensive coaches. Uh, just being a being a help and a sounding board and great input, great experience, good for all of us. You know, I have had a chance to talk to him about different things, and you know, you just, uh, it's always good to seek wise console. You know, it's a it's a it's a blessing to seek wise console. So and indeed is definitely wise console toper almost.

We also heard from quarterback Lamar Jackson.

We're talking about just like you're twenty two and one against.

Why is that people want to know what from your perspective, why have you been so dominant against the NFC.

Man just all around team effort, game planning. Probably just just because we send each other once a year, so it's like hard the game plan for us. So a little bit of everything, Lamar, How can.

You describe this chemistry with Derry.

Henry so far?

What did you think you thought it was gonna be that dominate on the running game?

Uh?

Yeah, yeah, I thought so, just because of what he's able to do, you know, the type of running back he years, and like him just wanting to want to do everything right.

You know, if it's just some type of mistake and be a mistake on.

My on my my my part, he gonna it's all good.

Like same thing with me. So it's like he just make everything easier for me.

As when you have Derrick Henry to fake the ball to because he's such a threat to.

Run, it very effective because guys like they trying to stop him before he gets started, so they trying to hit.

ABC gap it really don't matter. They just trying to stop him.

In the backfield before he's he get the rolling, you know, get to a second level or third level. So that play action definitely is effective.

I know you like to say you don't play against the other quarterback.

Yeah, play, But what's your relationship with Baker Mayfield?

And do you have any extra kick when you play against another quarterback that was in your draft class?

No, you know, I just I just want to win, you know.

I go out there and I just want to look at every game the same way.

And he's a tremendous quarterback.

You know, he has been since college, ever since I've on him, you know, even going back to Hosman, both of us one Housman the year, back to back from each other. Uh So, yeah, a little bit. You can say we've got a relationship a little bit from there. But outside of football, I really don't be around other quarterbacks.

So I I don't know. Every time you ask me about another quarterback, it's like know what to say. You know, I love the game. I love his game.

Man, he's still the same person from what I see, you know from Afar. He's still the same Baker, still making things happen for those guys.

Coach just talked about how you would like to be a perfectionist.

That being said, the way the offense is playing, Uh yeah, I mean things are things.

Going the way you expect it a little bit better as a room for improvement being a perfection.

Definitely room for improvement because, uh, sometimes things go the way I wanted to less sometimes they don't, and uh, sometimes I feel a way about it, you know, I get mad at myself. So yeah, but it's still like you said, it's room for improvement with our offense. You know, it's not a perfect offense. No offense is, but we're still working trying to get somewhere.

So the more you seem to have a real mastery of the offense, the line of you're playing this is a high level. Do you feel like like right now this season that you're playing as well as as you ever have.

I just think, my you know, my everything is like slow down even more, just from the years I've been in the league and seeing all type of defense, seeing all types of blixes. Uh, everything is just second nature right now. So I'm just trying to be a better player of myself, you know, each and every year.

So I just say, everything's just slowing down. That's what's helping it.

You hear more and more people around the country to say, Raven something or you or you just I don't wanna hear it.

I mean, people gonna say whatever they want to say.

You know.

Uh, we were just on to and we were the worst offense in the league.

So you know, just being foreign too right now, people gonna still say whatever they gonna say, you know, cause it can be a game we can come out with a with a win, but an ugly offensive game in there. So you know, it's the worst offense. So it's like each and every week it's gonna be something different. We just gotta focus on trying to be the best Raven offense that the Ravens ever had.

Is there's something to the Florida connection? You know, you say, Derek Henry all Florida guys, that trio going back to Florida this weekend?

Is there something.

Than other guys? What's what's with the Florida connection? What's behind it?

Man?

It's like that's what we breed down there, like just football. A lot of football players, don't get me wrong. We have some basketball players here and there are probably some doctors and lawyers, but.

So we breed football players.

Man.

We there's something we do down There's like a big family gathering on saturdays, you know, use football. There's always been that way from what I've known, you know, just somebody that's loving football down there.

That's all alight when you you know, I know you're focused on the next game and the season so forth.

But here we are.

You know, when it's six weeks in your name comes up in m VP conversations again, do you.

Do you hear?

That stuff is sort of what do you think if it is an easy to block out, how do you how do you kind of manage when all that hype I guess starts building again.

I know how I feel to be on too. I really don't care about the hype, you know, and not just being on too. I just know how the NFL works. You know, it's any given Sunday. So I'm not from the dwell on MVP trophy or anything like that. I never have, you know, even when I wanted, I never like dwelled on it. It was about me just trying to win each and every game. I'm man, and same thing from now, you know, I'm still trying to win these games to get the.

February and win the February.

I think people won't want to know what did you say on that dbreaker to side?

There we go I don't know who says.

Somebody probably recorded and said like it wasn't me, though I ain't say nothing, Lamar.

It seems like this offense is really going to another level. And year two under top Monk and how much more comfortable are you in this unit as a whole year over years been near the halfway film of the regular season.

A lot of comfortable or just same terminology just hearing it a year, being involved in it in the year and just talking with coach, you know about things I see what I see on the field, what I don't see is just hearing his take or what you know what he gets a lot of plays and and here and there. You know, it's just it's a it's a team effort. You know, it's not just me doing it myself.

Room running backs.

At the age of thirty, they they're declined a little bit. Derick Henry's leading the NFL and rushing at thirty. I mean what aging and everything else is like going up too?

So yeah, why why do you think that is his preparation? You know, him just loving the game of football. They gotta play a part him just all around just being a great person. You know, all of that gotta play a part in him having that having this much secess he's having us.

Next up is running back Derrick Henry.

So leading the NFL and rushing. It's He's done it at so many points of your career. Does it ever get old when you're a top the leader board?

I'm I'm I'm blanking it out. I ain't even thinking about it. Just focus on week by week how I can get better, how I can improve and you know, help this offense and you know that's really making each other better. And like I said on Sundays, focus on being one and oh gott to ignore the other stuff.

Do you ever look at the stats? Do you ever look at numbers? Things like that?

And just in general, I mean, I mean, I mean you you see them. You can't miss it.

I mean, especially get on your phones, so much stuff on social media and stuff.

But y'all just try to blank.

All that stuff out and just focus on but right now and what we need to do and focus on the game plan, executing that their practice and then going out there trying to put together good point, put together good game plan so we can go win.

The moment's post game locker room, like, it just seems like you were having so much fun on this team and love being here. Can you kind of put into context, I guess how much fun you are having you're having playing for this.

Team this year.

I mean, when you win everything, it's fun.

I mean that makes everything ain't fun, And you know, it's it's just about me playing football. I fell in love with this game when I was five years old, and you know, I know it's a business side to it, but when you're out.

There, you're just playing like you were a kid again.

And just like everybody else on the team offensive defense, we.

All went together to get a win.

And when you accomplish that, it's just a great feeling, the great accomplishment that we did something together.

So, yeah, it's been fun.

A lot we saw of the sideline clip of Justice and Keaton kind of giving you a hard time about not dancing every day.

Every day, every day.

Why do you not dance? I'm curious.

I I told him I should do when I was uh, in my my early like early stage of my career, I went my first but two or three years. Every year four I danced a little bit. I'm just oh, now I'm over it. Now I'll need a dancing to them. They'd be ready to dance anytime. I'd be like, maybe I'll have y'all dancing sideline so they can get glasse of y'all dancing, But I don't dance.

I had the ball to the reserve. Let's go to the south.

Line with the threat of Lamar running and with the passing game with they had now being where.

It is, you know, at a really high level.

I don't know if it's the right way to phrase, but is it ever been easier for you as far as ken because of all the other possibilities the defense has to prepare for.

I just think that, uh, they're doing a great job block in and give Lamar time guys getting open.

Uh, execution has been good.

Just you know, we we've been, you know, working hard and practice so I can come to life in the game. And that just goes to credit everybody doing their job, just so we can have big players on offense and you know, the messages well together to the past game and the run game. You need both to be able to create exposive plays and be able to get the

The last time the team played a prime time game, things worked out pretty well.

What about the under the lights national audience brings out the best.

In the Ravens room, which I mean, they've been playing the primestud games before I got here, And you know, I just think it's just the stage. You know, we just treated like a another game and you know, get prepared for it.

But you know, we going to Tampa. It's a very good team.

That's a a very good team, very good defense and who plays hard, who flies to the ball. I think they're solid all around, very solid. Probably one of the best defense we face this year. So it's gonna be au a good one, a tough match up.

Yeah, play you played on some very good teams in Tennessee.

Did you be though, go into this season thing, this could be the best offense I've ever played on.

No, I don't make no expectations, and I think you got to put the work in to uh to to to have the opportunity to get to that point, and I thought we been doing a great job, but it's still much a lot lot of things that we can improve on and get better at. And I think that's what we focus on there.

You Lamar's z Flowers and Nell, the other guys off off floor the guys. What good is into that order connection that does it build a special kind of bonding moment.

I think it's just I don't know, it's for the boys. I think we just all messed together. Well, I don't know, it's just I can't you can't really explain it, but I feel like the Ravens they like for the boys.

So there's been a thing around here. But yeah, I think it just.

Comes natural that we're all from Florida, that we've been around the same things. I'm up north and down south, so it's it's a little different. But I think it's just natural to just Florida boys.

Just natural. Sorry, U.

Six games into playing with Lamar, I'm just curious, not that you had expectations of what it might be, but how much maybe what your what were your thoughts, you know, on what you've seen of him up close versus maybe what you thought it would be.

I'm sure I answered this question before, Like what what you trying to say?

But like your your impression if of him having played alongside him now six games versus maybe when you thought things could be, Like.

Here my impression of him, what I thought when playing with him six games?

But I I'm trying to understand. I'm not trying to like call you out in front of just you.

Your impressions of Lamar this season? What you've seen from him? You know obviously you've you've seen him from Afar, You knew what kind of player he was. What what's your impression of him having now been alongside him? You guys have played six games, both played really well.

I mean, I think he speaks for itself. I mean I don't think, uh I need to stay too much. I mean I think it's that speaks for himself. It's played speaks for himself, that respect he has around his league. I've always respected his game, A big fan of his.

Derek, Derek, we sold the offensive line get some extra work in after practice. How much of that had sech group really jelled in recent weeks?

Yeah, I just think that's the chemistry they have of wanting to get better, wanting to make each other better, and you know, just finding any way to improve week at the week.

And I I loved them a I loved that about them.

And like I told y'all, uh Sunday in the locker room, I just told them, thank you cause the un selfishness putting their bodies online and you know they're doing to have a job blocking. It's much appreciated about me. See they coming off the field right now.

The look at 'em, Derek.

There was a clip from the r the Ravens about you and Lamar are having to talk before he had the uh bootlegs that to get you guys at first down at will? What is impressed to you about just what Lamar does to kind of get this offense into spots where the play can be successful before the snap, whereas Harkyo's audibles, play actions whatever.

Yeah, I think.

You know his experience in the leagues has gotten better and better and you know, his his his leadership. You know, uh since he's since he's been here, everybody respects him. You know, he expects ex excellens out out of everybody. He demands that and that's what everybody tries to do

In the locker room today we heard from a handful of players, including safety Kyle Hamilton.

Like Williams, probously's been an amazing recal physically, you see why it is what what are some of the special.

Things you because you watched the day fans that that makes him so good.

Yeah, he's been good for ever since I can remember, and you know I was young watching him and Johnny Menzel lighted up at a and m and you know he's been in the league I think ten plus years now and thousand yard seasons and all that stuff, and definitely want of better wide receivers of my generation, uh, just growing up. And you know, they got Chris Godwin who's been good there for a while as well, and Sterling Sheppard. A bunch of guys and tight ends playing well.

Kindle, what is your excitement level watching your offense? And if you were if you were on another team and you had to go against your offense.

What would be what? What would closure the most worried.

The most exciting.

Yeah, I was actually just talking to Zach Orr about that today and just watching our offense, uh operate out there. I don't know why everybody's messing with me today. Me Steve's got something to say too, But I was like, how would you stop, say flowers, and and he's just gave me like a.

I don't know the thing we don't have a worry about.

But I think I said something to the defense just in the dv's on the sideline, like during the Bengals game, saying like the offense is doing all they can play, it's up to us to go out.

There and win the game.

So I think they keep performing out there performing, we keep getting better. I think they's gonna be hard to beat us.

Well, and you have Brandon her parts.

You're saying that he's been playing really technically, So he's just some.

Really perfect passes, perfect.

Catches against him.

Oh, I guess what are a country tech guys know how to play the decent balls.

What are you seeing kind of do this season?

Yeah, I think, well, we need to start catching the ball, uh warning, to get more picks, more turnover and stuff like that. But uh yeah, I think it just he goes back to the technique and we're challenging so much practice that I feel like in the game it kind of just comes naturally. And me and s just speaking on BCS, get him his flowers. I think he's one of the most underrated players in this league, not just Corners.

Does his job. We can week out, We ask him to do a ton and he doesn't.

And me and Marlin were golfing the other day and we were just talking about b Steve and saying, like, he's really I think if you know football and watch it at a close level, like you can appreciate what he does. And he's really like one of the most technical corners like in the NFL that we have in our league. And it's impressive to see how patient or composed he is just on a play and play out basis. Technique never changes and you know he's a one play mentality kind of guy.

And it's, uh, it's fun to play with him. Yeah, w what's the emotion?

You know, you guys have forced a ton of tight window throws like it.

They haven't been easy.

Completions by any deans.

Do you kind of you know, take that into account when you're evaluating how how you're playing.

As a secondary.

Yeah, I think I think yes and no at the same time. You know, you don't wanna give up a touchdown, no, and no matter what manner it is, if they get lucky, if you get lucky, whatever. But I mean, I think a lot of a lot of football is not a lot, but sometimes it just comes down to luck.

Sometimes things like go your way.

And now I feel like last year we had some stuff going our way which like you know, helped us be first in points as whatever it may be. And you know, sometimes they don't, sometimes they do, sometimes they don't, And I feel like it's up to us to kind of eliminate the luck facker and just making us doing our job dropping locker and punishment, dropping interception. I don't know we need to come up with Maybe y'all can come up before. We usually do push ups, but I

But yeah, we also heard from wide receiver or Sean bag.

You ever seen.

Do you think he's playing the best.

That you've ever seen him? Yeah?

I think it's the best, you know, I've seen the more places I've been here, it seems like the game has sold down.

A lot for him.

How does that show itself on game day?

Yet?

Understanding the offensive and defenses are gonna.

Do, I mean, just playing you know what, smarter, being more decisive for the football, understanding where he wants to go to football, getting a certain you know, checks or looks that he's seen he fits best for the team and really giving them the keys of the offense.

And I think it's been working out in our.

Favorite yeah, the the kind of the phrase with this offensive picture poison. How does it affect things when every week it could be different guy or a couple of guys.

That that come up with a big plays.

I mean, I think that's a question for the other team. For us, it really don't. It don't really matter or change, you know. I think for us it's just you know, everybody just needs to be ready and prepared for when they number it's called.

And the the buy in that everyone seems to have offensively, but again, on any given day, your role could be wildly different, right when whatever, whatever it is, everyone's like, fine, that's my job.

As they bang, I'm in. It's it's not always like that. Why why is that happening here?

Just because the culture I feel like the Baltimore UH has here. You know, Coach Hars does a good job, you know, preaching team first, team first, and we got a lot of guys, you know, selfless gods to the ball end. And I think the only thing that anybody's concerned about right now is UH getting Lamar's Super Bowl.

How have you failed.

The game kind of slowed down as you've grown into where your role now and sometimes you out there, do you ever think like we're coming.

I'm I'm a little bit open.

I mean, I don't think I think that's that's the other perspective of what people have on me. I've never I never had that perspective. I'm always open and i'm'a continue to be so for Lamar, say Flowers is always open that he will continue to do so.

For Lamar, we know what we able to do. We know what we're capable of do.

Uh, what we're capable of doing, and you know, hopefully we continue to put that on show.

Extraction.

Thank your feeling is.

For this offense, cause every week with Marsa's there's room for improvement.

But you guys are still rolling, still winning.

I mean, not to get too far in detail like football wise, but I agree with Lamar. Every week we leave a lot of points on the field and it's a small thing. We just gotta clean up the details and really, you know, go back to work to the drawing board and sharpen those details made too. We can go out every Sunday, you know, plays our best ability.

You're listening to the Ravens Press Past podcast. Make sure you head over to the Lounge podcast feed. We sat down with Tyler Linderbaum for an interesting interview that dropped earlier today, so make sure you go ahead and check that out and subscribe to this feed as well as the Lounge. Thank you so much for listening. We'll be back with you again tomorrow.