It's been how they operate forever, getting guys who fell down the draft for personality reasons that Tomlin can coach up to get amazing value from. AB was the greatest example of course.

Lynn Swann, John Stallworth, Hines Ward, Santonio Holmes ... they had some excellent ones that had character but the few that were divas.

Metcalf doen't quite fit the pattern of drafting a talented receiver with personality, he should have matured by now. But overall, he's been acting fine except for this and in Seattle, I don't recall any issues with him.

He's been better this year for sure

He's their one Man beater and he's out against a team that plays a ton of Man, so.. Let's go Brownies! Going to be a physical game

3 TNF Christmas games.

1. WSH vs. DAL ... no one cares, both were already eliminated.
2. DET vs. MIN - kinda surprised that Minny's QB had like 51 yds throwing and still won. Not that DET had any chance of getting in ... very slim but now officially e.


3. DEN vs. KC - better team won.

All teams have ups and downs, but man that Lions loss was one of the biggest meltdowns I've ever seen. I'm sure they'll bounce back next year, but holy shit

Sat games notable:
1. Ravens > Packers - of course this is important as Ravens keep hopes alive and impressive dominant win on the ground. Backup GB QB was no slouch, did well on stat sheet but hard to beat Henry with 216 yrds. If they play like this, they will represent AFC North with a 9-8 record.

Sun games
1. Chi vs. SF - every game that Chicago is in is fun to watch. You'd think they were going to pull this one out but not today.
2. Steelers vs. Browns - pretty pathetic showing by Steelers, no offense, no DK and it's a corp of practice squad WR's. Suspension of DK is becoming a significant factor and he won't be on the field next week either. Balt should thank that Detroit blue hair fan. Based on this week's play, I cannot see how Baltimore doesn't leap frog over Steelers in this anemic division.
3. NE vs. NYJ continues to impress with a solid game, albeit vs. the Jets. Pasta is looking forward to the playoffs.
4. MIA > TB and SEA > CAR sets up another final game will advance to playoffs in the other anemic division in the NFC. And set up SEA vs. SF for the NFC #1 seed. Should be good game. That NFC West has 3 teams in division with double digit wins, strong.

Remember when we said the Steelers were going to pay for bringing DK in? It's actually worse than anyone could have imagined - most of us assumed he'd get penalties going after other players. But right when they needed him most, he decided to attack a fan. Amazing

Looks like Darnell Washington is out too, with a broken arm

If the Ravens can't stop that offense.. whatever

The Official *NFL* thread
 

Wow! Skinny, what the heck happened!!

Ravens lose the game on a missed 44 yard field goal.

Really thought that Baltimore would beat the Steelers.

Heartbreaking loss, to say the least.

Lamar played well. The rookie kicker choked.


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Wow .. NFL got what they wanted for the last game of the season. Pretty solid game overall between both teams, typical BAL vs. PIT type of game. Really liked how 4th Q was intense back and forth. PIT had no time outs left but gets in and leaves a min on the clock. Boswell missed PAT and then Baltimore makes a couple of really good plays down the field, gets into a sure 3 pt for the win but kicker says, I don't want to go to playoffs and shanks it right ... WTF?




I mean no other game is worth any comment ... but Carolina gets in on ATL win ... that's the only other game that meant anything. Rest were just seeding.

So far on Black Monday in the NFL:

Atlanta Falcons, Morris .. gone.
LV Raiders, Carroll ... gone.
Cleveland Browns, Stefanski ... gone.
Arizona Cardinals, Gannon ... gone.

Man Lamar gets fucked by his team every season :lol

I wrote this on a discord during the game, after Hamilton and Gilman collided heads going after another awful Rodgers pass

https://i.imgur.com/cNhsB8Z.png

The reason they lost was that Hamilton wasn't there to 'fix' the defense, which has absolutely zero pass rush. It was inexcusable to let that Steelers team, without their two only good players on offense, score 26 points.

I don't blame the rookie kicker missing a 44 yard field goal in one of the hardest stadiums to kick in. (especially after Boswell, one of the best kickers in the league, missed a PAT). Steelers scored 3 points when Hamilton was in the game, 23 points after Hamilton went out.

Edit to put it more clearly:


That, and all the penalties on offense. Ravens had 10 drives in that game.

5 drives had penalties (punt, punt, punt, punt, missed FG)

5 drives did not have penalties (TD, FG, Int, TD, TD)

This has been a problem before, but they fixed it this year, and were the least penalized team in the league, until this game.

I wouldn't call any year being able to watch Lamar play as "wasted" especially when he was injured for 16.5 of the 17 games. I used to laugh at the "fire Harbaugh" people, but it's no longer a clown opinion. It's a legitimate opinion now. That doesn't necessarily mean it's the right one, but it's a real one now. We'll see what happens. I still lean towards keeping him, and fixing the other problems, which he has been able to do for a long time now.

What they really need is a pass rush, and new guards. They'd be back in peak form with those two things. Everything else is fine. Might need a new kicker too LUL

Ravens really snake bitten past few years with crazy finishes in practically all season ending games. Last year, Andrews dropped a sure pass for a 2 pt conversion in the End zone to even the game up.

Everyone thought that maybe Metcalf was the idiot for getting a 2 game suspension (and he was) that might have made a difference in the game but didn't end up making a difference on outcome.

Whereas Justin Tucker, prob one of the most reliable kickers ever, but a scumbag, probably would have made a difference in this game. Commentators set Loop up to be some sort of young phenom, Ravens went everywhere looking for a kicker with ice in his veins, 'he was made for moments like this', and then #wideright.

But let's be honest and take a step back. Whichever team won is just an asterick in this season ... no team in the AFC deserves a spot in the dance, frankly speaking. But must admit, this was a really good tense game till the very last second, I guess as a football fan, that you gotta like to watch, entertaining as hell.

Steelers fans donating to Ravens kicker Tyler Loop's cause following his missed field goal.

Following Loop's missed field goal that sealed Pittsburgh's Week 18 win over Baltimore, Steelers fans have been making donations in his name to the John S. Mulholland Family Foundation, which provides for food-insecure, working poor families in the District of Columbia. Many fans have been donating $26.24, a reference to the final score.

This marks the second straight year where an opposing fan base has rallied around a Ravens player following a season-ending loss. Last January, Bills fans donated to tight end Mark Andrews' charity after Andrews dropped a pass that would have tied the score late in Baltimore's eventual 27-25 loss to Buffalo in the divisional round of the playoffs.

Ravens fire Harbaugh? That's a bold move IMO, he'll be the number one coaching option for most teams looking, has those Andy Reid getting fired by the Eagles vibes.

https://www.tsn.ca/nfl/article/repor...er-18-seasons/

If Flores wasn't suing the NFL he'd be an option for some teams, hopefully he is anyway he deserves another head coaching opportunity.

Since it seems last minute, it probably came down to them wanting to make changes at both coordinator positions, and him not going along with it (as he never does, often to his own detriment), and since he was on the hot seat for the first time, they will wipe them all

Both schemes are good (great even, defensively, as you see in Seattle) but on the offense the playcalling has been questionable, with Lamar making up for a lot of it in 2 MVP seasons. On defense, the players seem poorly coached and unprepared (and losing Madabuike), with Hamilton making up for a lot of those deficiencies.

As for candidates, I trust the team to make the right call. Would love Kingsbury as OC with Lamar + Henry + Ricard. Not HC though. The idea I have seen floated is to bring Jesse Minter back, who is part of the Ravens/Michigan defensive system. Orr is gone anyway, and they'd just need someone for offense.

Edit: Also I disagree with anyone who thinks this came down to a missed field goal. Every year has ended in a similar way, this time it was in the regular season due to many reasons. It was clear weeks ago that anything short of a Super Bowl appearance would probably mean he would be gone. I don't necessarily agree with the move, but I get it.

I am surprised with the firing of Harbaugh .. wow! I thought they could work things out if there were tensions between LJ and Harbaugh. He is probably now the #1 free agent coach. Will be hard to find a better coach tbh. Might be better to let LJ go, trade him and get some good draft picks ... I dunno.

There's an established narrative that if a coach/QB duo doesn't make it to the Superbowl within five years together, statistics show it won't happen.

The two of them have been tied together longer than that, and it hasn't happened. If the Ravens aren't changing QB, they had to change coaches.

It's the way it goes.

Harbaugh just signed a 3 year extension in Baltimore but I think the rule for coaches is as soon as he is hired by another team, Baltimore doesn't have to pay his salary. And very high likelihood that he will get hired unless he decide to sit out a year and wait for next hiring cycle if he doesn't like any current openings.

If he does want a HC position, possibilities:

Browns - stay in AFC North and stick it to Baltimore.
NY Giants - good building blocks, kid QB seem to have 'it', with a bit of coaching Dart has the potential be an exciting starting QB. NY, big city market.

I would not wish the Browns HC job on my worst enemy. That will either go to a first time HC, or a retread who has no other choice.

Right after Harbaugh got fired, Dolphins leaked that they were talking to Chad Alexander as a potential GM. That would be an instant connection right there

My dream team is probably Jesse Minter as HC/Defensive play caller and Kliff Kingsbury as OC. A lot of people like Stefanski, and I think he'd do well there too, and coaches a very Ravens style offense. I think Kingsbury is more of a guy who would scheme up crazy plays making use of Lamar's tools. Either one would work for me

Most likely they'll hire someone they've bene watching for years that nobody talks about. Nobody would have guessed Andy Reid's special teams guy would become one of the best coaches in the league.

Statement of firing came from owner, not front office, GM. I think this is the start of organizational decline. Rumour has it that front office was against the firing so there is a meddling owner. Good luck moving forward.

Following a 'comprehensive evalutation' ... how comprehensive could it be after 2 days? I feel that with a coach of that status and tenure, you gotta take your time and work towards a 'mutual decision' to part ways situation/PR if you're a classy organization.

Where are you getting this shit from lol

This was always going to happen if they didn't get far into the playoffs, depending on how far things went. The Pats game probably tipped the scales,. and this game sealed it. Could have been a Texans loss too, or even an AFCCG loss if they made it that far.

For Harbaugh, this season was Super Bowl or Bust. He got 5 stabs at it with Lamar, and they will try someone new now. It's nothing against him, but I think it was even you who said before the season that this is a 'must win' year. Well they didn't, so changes had to be made. And obviously you try a new coach before anything. This is the team with the best front office in the league along with the Rams and Eagles, and the best, most football savvy non meddling owner. I don't know if the new guy will immediately bring success; only one team out of 32 gets to do that. But I trust the team to pick the right one. It's probably someone we aren't even aware of, like Harbaugh was back then.

Their first interview request was Anthony Weaver, so they are indeed considering bringing back coaches from the Harbaugh tree

NY Times - Why the Ravens fired John Harbaugh, and what they need from the next head coach

By all indications, the Ravens were leaning toward moving forward with Harbaugh, even after their shocking loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers late Sunday night kept them out of the playoffs.

As of midday Tuesday, several people at the Under Armour Performance Center said Harbaugh was likely to be back with some changes to his coaching staff at the coordinator level.

However, plans changed as the day unfolded. The result was something neither side initially anticipated. That was clear by the Ravens not even having a statement ready for when the news broke Tuesday evening. That was clear by the fact that Harbaugh didn’t even get the opportunity to inform his staff of his departure.

According to team sources, team president Sashi Brown and general manager Eric DeCosta handled that responsibility and met with Harbaugh’s staff.

And what else was clear is this wasn’t a mutual decision, an agreement to amicably part ways. This was a firing, which seemed the most unlikely result of all.

Yes that's his agent's side of the story, but the story remains the same. Nothing indicates "the start of organizational decline" as you suggested

Organizational decline takes time, I said this is the 'start of the organizational decline' ... we can only tell in the months or year ahead. But I don't know how you can say there wasn't a strong disagreement between owner and front office, and the way he was let go so suddenly. H didn't get a chance to say farewell to his staff or break it to them himself. The way they treated him was a bit cold for being there for 18 yrs, c'mon after that tenure, he should be treated like family. Guy brought the franchise 1 SB as it is.