One day after John Harbaugh and the Baltimore Ravens ran a play against the Denver Broncos with three seconds left, prioritizing a rushing record instead of lining up in victory formation, head coach Vic Fangio called the decision “kinda bulls–t.”
“Thirty-seven years in pro ball, I’ve never seen anything like that,” Fangio said in his Monday press conference. “But it was to be expected, and we expected it.”
Lamar Jackson’s carry with five seconds left in Baltimore’s 23-7 win allowed the Ravens to finish with 102 yards on the ground, marking the 43rd consecutive game they’ve topped the century mark — tied with the 1974-77 Pittsburgh Steelers for the longest streak.
After that final play, Fangio slammed his headset on the ground. Denver’s 9News reported that Broncos players were “livid” walking back to the locker room. Drew Lock drove the Broncos inside the Baltimore 10-yard line with the game clock winding down, but Anthony Averett intercepted him in the end zone with five seconds remaining, setting up that final rushing attempt and chance to flip over the century mark.
WARNING: GRAPHIC LANGUAGE
Harbaugh took responsibility for that decision after the game, saying it is “100 percent my call.” Jackson said that Harbaugh told him “we’re gonna go for it” after Averett’s interception.
“It’s one of those things that I think as a head coach, you’ve got to be mindful of your team and your players and your coaches and what it means to them,” Harbaugh said. “It’s a very, very tough record to accomplish and it’s a long-term record. So I’m not gonna say it’s more important than winning the game for sure, and it’s certainly not, but as a head coach, I think you do that for your players and you do that for your coaches. And it’s something they’ll have for the rest of their lives.”
The Ravens extended the record this season while without J.K. Dobbins and Gus Edwards. The team’s top two running backs suffered season-ending injuries during the preseason.. Additionally, their Week 1 starter, Ty’Son Williams, was inactive on Sunday as Latavius Murray, Devonta Freeman and Le’Veon Bell passed him on the depth chart.
Both the Ravens and Broncos now sit at 3-1.