BALTIMORE -- For the most part, the Ravens blamed themselves.
For the most part.
"We didn’t play well enough to win the game in the end," John Harbaugh spoke after his Ravens were beaten by the archrival Steelers, 28-24, Sunday at M&T Bank Stadium, this after two starting offensive linemen to injury and a starting linebacker to an ejection. "I thought we fought hard, competed very well. ... Of course, we’re not pleased with losing the turnover battle. That’s something that we always want to win.”
Right. And he easily could've stopped there, given that Lamar Jackson was picked off twice and lost two fumbles, spelling a minus-3 turnover differential. Or he could've focused on losing All-Pro left tackle Ronnie Stanley for the season and right guard Tyre Phillips, both to ankle injuries, forcing his offensive line to shuffle in flight.
Nah. That's never been how the Harbaughs roll, is it?
So when Harbaugh was asked about linebacker Matthew Judon being ejected in the second quarter for his arm "intentionally" striking field judge Rick Patterson, according to referee Brad Allen's official call, rather than shrugging it off, Harbaugh replied, "I was told what the replay showed. I’m quite sure that … I’m very confident that Matthew didn’t touch an official on purpose. I was told he was trying to release his hand away. There was some contact there, but it wasn’t anything he was trying to do – that’s what I understand the case to be.”
OK, so he's sticking up for his player. That's fine. Besides, Harbaugh might've had a point based on a closer look:
But by answering the question and never stating that this call wasn't partly responsible for the loss ... yeah.
So when Harbaugh was asked about two aspects of the Ravens' final drive -- no time added to the clock despite Cam Heyward being down a second time for injury following a 32-yard Baltimore completion, then Minkah Fitzpatrick apparently making contact with the head of wide receiver Willie Snead on the game's closing incompletion -- he again seized the opportunity.
Asked specifically if he'd been given any explanations for either, Harbaugh replied, "I was not. I was given ... I asked about the time, I got no answer on that. I think they said the time was fine. As far as the last play – the shoulder to the helmet – no. They didn’t say a word about it. They just ran off the field.”
Right. The Ravens got robbed. On a day their quarterback singlehandedly kept the undefeated opponents in the game.
Asked later why he was seen pointing to his head after the game, whether that was aimed at anyone in particular, Harbaugh replied, "Yes. I was talking to the official, the back judge, coming off there saying … I was asking him about the hit to the head on the pass in the end zone.”
The hit to the head having been the cleanest conceivable pass defensed one will ever witness at any level of football:
Minkah has every right to play that football, and if one watches his eyes and body language, that's all he did.
But don't take that just from me:
Regarding the end of #PITvsBAL, Minkah Fitzpatrick is making a play on the ball so the contact to the receiver is not a foul. Any incidental contact by an opponent’s hands, arms, or body when both players are competing for the ball isn't a penalty. pic.twitter.com/2UBsXTCIWb
— Gene Steratore (@GeneSteratore) November 1, 2020
I'm guessing Gene Steratore would know.
Or hey, take it from Snead himself:
“It just felt like a bang-bang play, but in those situations, you just hope for the best," Snead said. "And it didn’t go our way this time, so we just have to keep moving forward and learn from it.”
Asked by a Baltimore reporter if he felt there was "an obvious penalty on the last play," Snead came back with this: “It could have gone either way, to be honest. When I got hit, it just happened so quick. As soon as the ball touched my hands, I got hit. So, it’s like, you never know. I didn’t know how he hit me, seriously, but I got hit in the head. So, I’ll just leave it at that.”
He did. By a guy playing the ball. After the ball touched his hands, by his own admission.
Thing is, Harbaugh knows this, too. He just can't handle losing to the Steelers any more maturely than he ever has in the past, maybe the single most distasteful -- and candidly, disrespectful -- element of this otherwise extraordinary rivalry.
Maybe Harbaugh could take a cue from his quarterback.
"The turnovers, I feel, are the reason we lost the game," Jackson said. "I put that on me. The start of the game, the first drive ... a pick-six. And then we drive to the red zone ... I fumbled. I’ve got to get the ball out quicker, because we know they’re dominant up front. I’ve got to clean those up, and I feel like we would’ve won that game. That’s all there is to it."
Or from one of his veteran cornerbacks.
“It was a tough game that came down literally to the last play," Marlon Humphrey said. "This is a great rivalry, and I think what makes it so great is how the game came down to the end today. You look at what they did, and they played pretty well. We had a lot of turnovers, but we were kind of able to overcome it for a second. There’s a lot for us to learn from it."
Or from his team's newest defensive star.
"This is football. You’re not going to win them all," defensive end Calais Campbell said. "I feel like we fought hard. It’s definitely a little frustrating because you want to win every ballgame. But at the end of the day, we’ll regroup, take it one play at a time and come back and be ready to go the next one."
Not one Baltimore player complained about any of the aforementioned calls, even when broached.
The Steelers are 7-0, the Ravens 5-2. There'll be a second serving of professional sports' greatest current rivalry this Thanksgiving at Heinz Field. For Harbaugh alone, a fresh bottle of whine.
