Here’s what Ravens coach John Harbaugh had to say about the Falcons to the Baltimore media on Tuesday, ahead of Saturday’s game against the Falcons:
Opening statement: “Good to see everybody; (I) appreciate everyone being here. (We) had a good practice, and we’re working hard. What questions do you have?”
You’re going up against a familiar face in Falcons defensive coordinator Dean Pees, who seemed like he was back at practice today. What do you remember from going against Dean? “I go way back with Dean. He was my defensive coordinator my senior year at Miami (University). (We) kept in touch over the years. I think he’s one of the great defensive coordinators in the National Football League; no question about it. Obviously, all the things that we see on tape have his imprint on them, for sure. (Their defense) plays super hard, very physical, very sound, very well-coached defense. So, that will be a challenge for us, and we’re looking forward to it, but we understand what a well-coached defense they are.”
This is your first look at Falcons QB Desmond Ridder. Do you go back and look at his college tape, or do you have enough of his pro stuff to scout him? “No, we don’t really look at the college tape. We have reports, and we saw the college tape in the draft, but we’re looking at their offense, what they’ve done throughout the course of the season, all the pieces and all the parts of their offense, and then how he fits into it this past week. That’s what we go by.”
Both teams have run the ball really well this season. What do you see from their rushing attack? “Yes, they’re downhill. They run the wide zone play. They’re kind of along the lines of the Tennessee Titans. (Falcons head) Coach (Arthur) Smith was in that system; that’s kind of the system he grew up in. They’ll run the wide zone, they’ll run the play action off of that, they’ll run the boots off of that. (The) drop back passing game is timing; get the ball out quick. Then they have their mixer runs off of that, but that’s where it starts.”
We didn’t see QB Lamar Jackson today. Are you still behind the barricade, or did he come out and do any practice? “Yes, I’m not commenting on any of that stuff right now this time of year. We’re just going to try to get ready for the game, and the guys will be on the injury report. You’ll see when the injury report comes out what the statuses are.”
It was a stated goal last year about getting the running backs more involved in the passing game before Gus Edwards and J.K. Dobbins were lost to injury. With both of them back now, is that a goal down the stretch? “We’ll see how it plays out. They’re involved in the routes, where the ball goes, kind of where it goes in terms of what the quarterback gets, what he sees (and) what the defense plays. Those guys are certainly involved. The backs have been involved in the structure of the passing game all season. So, that’s not going to change, and I’d love to see those guys get the ball. Screens are something that we’ve had some success with this year at times. That’s always a possibility, too.”
There are officially 10 ways you can clinch a playoff spot this weekend, including some ties and losses. Have you gotten up to speed on what these are? “I did. I got the list; I think 10 is about right when I think of the list. So, like we said yesterday, the only one thing that we know is that we need to win. That’s what we need to be responsible for doing, and that means we have to go out and play our best football. We have a very good team coming in, a very determined team coming in who also is fighting for a playoff spot. It’s going to be tough conditions; it’s going to be a tough opponent and we have to go play our best football. That’s what we need to think about on Saturday.”
You mentioned yesterday possibly needing to think about tie versus win if the game gets to overtime. At what point does that become a factor? “I think that becomes a factor if we get towards the end of the game, or overtime like that. I’ll know already. I have a pretty good idea already right now based on the scenario. We’re going to be trying to win the game.”
You mentioned the conditions; it’s rare that we get a day as cold as it’s projected to be here. Are you doing anything extra this week at practice to get ready for that? “We could lock everybody in the freezer or something like that for 10 minutes? Just practice outside.”
For more content about the Atlanta Falcons
On Facebook at Atlanta Falcons News Now
On Instagram at DorlandoLed
Atlanta Falcons coverage on The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Bow Tie Chronicles
Atlanta Falcons 2022 schedule
Sept. 11: Saints 27, Falcons 26
Sept. 18: Rams 31, Falcons 27
Sept. 25 Falcons 27, Seahawks 23
Oct. 2 Falcons 23, Browns 20
Oct. 9 Buccaneers 21, Falcons 15
Oct. 16 Falcons 28, 49ers 14
Oct. 23 Bengals 35, Falcons 17
Oct. 30 Falcons 37, Panthers 34 OT
Nov. 6 Chargers 20, Falcons 17
Nov. 10 Panthers 25, Falcons 15
Nov. 20 Falcons 27, Bears 24
Nov. 27 Commanders 19, Falcons 13
Dec. 4 Steelers 19, Falcons 16
BYE WEEK
Dec. 18 Saints 21, Falcons 18
Dec. 24 at Baltimore, 1 p.m.
Jan. 1 vs. Arizona, 1 p.m.
Jan. 8 vs. Tampa Bay, TBD
About the Author
