John Harbaugh is hardly the most popular guy in town these days. Beginning with the complete and utter trainwreck of a game plan during the AFC Championship Game against the Chiefs in January, right on through Week 2 of the 2024 NFL season, Harbaugh’s ability to lead the Ravens lies squarely in the crosshairs of fans who would love to see owner Steve Bisciotti send him packing.
I understand the emotion. I get the frustrations. Fans are sick of the blown fourth quarter leads. They are tired of the postseason abandonment of the team’s strengths. Harbaugh’s clock management and abysmal usage of challenge flags is infuriating. And perhaps most disheartening of all is his coaching staff’s inability to get the most out of a very talented team.
Firing him now makes no sense. That’s a complete disruption of a season that is just two weeks old. If the Ravens lost games 3 and 4 after a (2-0) start, these “Fire Harbaugh” discussions wouldn’t be happening – at least not with the conviction and venom that we’re seeing and hearing after two weeks.
And for those who are calling for John’s head, let me ask, “Who would be the head coach if Harbaugh was fired?”
There’s no one on the current staff capable of replacing John. I’d suggest that is by design, but that’s another topic for another day. So, the lack of in-house head coaching prospects would force Bisciotti and GM Eric DeCosta to look outside of the organization. But even if Bisciotti targeted one of the greatest head coaches of all time, Bill Belichick, does that guarantee a complete shift in a winning direction?
Belichick, or any new coach for that matter, would have to take a crash course in Ravens personnel. He would have to quickly get familiar with the entire coaching staff to understand their roles and core competencies. He’d have to embrace the current culture and its idiosyncrasies to maintain some level of continuity. He would have to immerse himself into the team’s current schematic structure.
At the end of the day, it’s a big, big ask, even with a resume like Belichick’s. And there’s certainly no guarantee that the results would be any better.
Bisciotti will ride out this storm and if it is simply a passing shower, cooler heads will have prevailed, and the season can get back on track. However, if these unsettled atmospheric conditions eventually morph into a tsunami by season’s end, then the conversation shifts towards change – dramatic change. And that’s something that the Ravens owner, a big believer in organizational continuity, will try to avoid.
As for Belichick, I don’t think he’s a fit for an owner like Bisciotti. He’ll look for a young coach with a bright and lengthy future – one who could skipper the team’s sideline for a decade plus. You know, someone like Mike Macdonald.
And let’s not forget DeCosta’s role in hiring a new coach. Do you think that he’ll want a coach in the building with a history of making personnel decisions like Belichick? DeCosta has a big ego. You don’t get to his office chair without one. It’s practically a prerequisite. Let’s not forget that while he was an assistant to Ozzie, EDC had chances to go to New England to become their GM – a move that would have taken the native New Englander home. But he resisted the overtures, knowing full well that he would be Belichick’s slappy. I seriously doubt that he’s had a change of heart.
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Shock The Monken Tonight
A lot of criticism has been directed towards Todd Monken and his limited use of Derrick Henry in the fourth quarter after the Ravens had taken a 10-point lead with 12:11 left in the game. Pardon the Interruption’s Michael Wilbon was effusive in his criticism of Monken, even comparing Henry to NY Yankees’ Hall of Fame closer Mariano Rivera. And Monken refused to use him, per Wilbon.
These specific criticisms are completely sensationalized – at least in this case. After the Ravens took a 23-13 lead, the Raiders next drive produced a field goal. When the Ravens got the ball back with 9:15 to go up by 7, the first play from scrimmage was a 5-yard run by Henry. The next play was a poorly read RPO by Lamar Jackson who was dropped for no gain. After a neutral zone infraction by the Raiders, the Ravens faced a 3rd-and-1 from their own 29. Then Henry was called for a false start moving the Ravens back 5 yards. One play later they were forced to punt.
During their next possession the Raiders moved the ball 70 yards to tie the game at 23 with 3:54 left on the clock.
So, the way the game played out, Monken doesn’t deserve the criticisms for not properly using his “Mariano Rivera” to close out the game. Monken is deserving of criticism for tipping off opponents with his substitution packages and an offense that schematically fails to put its playmakers in position to succeed. That said, putting players in position to succeed is a challenge when the offensive line is a disaster.
The Doghouse
One of the most infuriating things about Harbaugh is his commitment bias. Harbaugh has this annoying tendency to continue investing time, resources and lately losses, into a failing project or course of action. And this year’s failing project is Daniel Faalele.
Crosby and Wilkins vs. the right side of the Ravens OL pic.twitter.com/qH8D8AuWOc
— Ted Nguyen (@FB_FilmAnalysis) September 18, 2024
The end result: pic.twitter.com/HQNvaYxGTa
— Cole Jackson (@ColeJacksonFB) September 16, 2024
Faalele, aka Olay-Lay, is a fish out of water. His footwork is looks like Frankenstein doing the cha-cha. He is not a starting caliber NFL guard and he’s lucky to be in the league at all. There is no conceivable way that Ben Cleveland can be worse than Faalele. A review of Cleveland’s work during weeks 17 and 18 of the 2023 season proves that he’s not.
Ben Cleveland in weeks 17 & 18
64 pass-blocking snaps
2 pressures allowed
0 sacks allowed
85.9 PFF GradeThe new RG? 🤔 pic.twitter.com/JzADq9x45Y
— PFF BAL Ravens (@PFF_Ravens) February 20, 2024
Yet Harbaugh will go on and on trying to convince us all, as if we are watching football for the first time, that Faalele is better than Cleveland. Pure commitment bias. Pure coaching malpractice. Pure stubbornness.
“If Ben [Cleveland] had earned at the job at right guard, he’d be the starting right guard. So, [when] you look at the tape, he didn’t beat out Daniel [Faalele] or anybody. I think Ben is a good player. I like Ben.” ~ John Harbaugh
Look, a 50-gallon trash can is only a slight downgrade from Faalele and it would be lighter on the salary cap. Harbaugh doesn’t “like” Ben. Why even use the term “like”, it feels awkward. Unless, Harbaugh is simply trying to defuse the rumors that he dislikes Cleveland. It is known in Ravens circles that John doesn’t like Ben. Maybe John has a pet squirrel that Cleveland has his eye on. Maybe he’s still chapped that Cleveland flunked conditioning tests in the past. Maybe he doesn’t like the way he practices.
Maybe Harbaugh shouldn’t like the way Project Faalele PLAYS in games that count!
Over a year later and Ben Cleveland talking about eating squirrels is still insane pic.twitter.com/1brfexE18T
— RAMEY (@HoodieRamey) April 21, 2022
This Ben Cleveland situation reminds me a bit of the enigmatic Bryant McKinnie. In 2012, McKinnie dressed in all of the Ravens regular season games. He started NONE, and took just 59 regular season snaps in 2012 through 15 games. In week 16 when the Ravens started their JV team against the Bengals in a meaningless game, McKinnie had 69 snaps.
Then, suddenly, after 16 weeks, Harbaugh had an epiphany. McKinnie at left tackle made the 2012 Ravens team better. So he started all four playoff games including Super Bowl 47. I don’t need to remind you what happened.
Cleveland isn’t the end-all, be-all at guard. But if he still has a pulse, he’s better than Faalele. He just needs to share the secret password to escape Harbaugh’s doghouse.
Oh, and if somehow Lamar is injured due to Faalele’s woeful inadequacies, the shit will hit the fan.
[Related Article: The Ravens Need to Start THIS O-Lineman!]
Mandrews
Mark Andrews needs 1 TD reception to tie TE Todd Heap (41) for the most all time in Ravens history. Eventually that’s going to happen. But Andrews just doesn’t seem right.
During training camp, Andrews was a beast. He was dominant. There were virtually no signs of the lower leg injury that sidelined him for 7 games last season. Then came the car accident, after which, he seldom practiced.
Harbaugh denied that the accident had any lingering effects, but the eyeball test tells a different story. Against the Chiefs, Andrews hauled in a short pass on a 3rd-and-4 midway through the 4th quarter in Kansas City, Lamar hit Andrews with a short pass to the right just inside the numbers. Andrews cradled the ball in the fetal position with no defender around him. He laid still on the field after a 3-yard gain. Andrews could have rolled for the first down. He didn’t. It was an odd effort for someone with Andrews’ talents.
Fast forward to the game against the Raiders. Monken dialed up this cute little gadget play that features a tight end behind center, flanked to the back left and right by Derrick Henry and Pat Ricard, respectively. Lamar stood a few yards directly behind the tight end – the tight end that is usually Andrews. Only this time it was seldom used Charlie Kolar – another indication that Andrews isn’t 100%. Another situation that routinely involved Harbaugh’s disingenuous response to an injury question.
Tua
Speaking of well-being, I’m concerned for Tua Tagovailoa. If you’ve watched the documentary below on Tua, it’s hard to walk away from it without a positive vibe. Tua is a very likable man with an unwavering devotion to his family. And that family is what he should be most concerned about now that he’s faced with a career ultimatum – walk away and retain mental faculties or continue to play and put your life at risk.
During last Thursday’s game against the Bills, Tua suffered another concussion following a blow to the head and neck area that wasn’t all that violent, relatively speaking. And that brings into question, how will Tua respond neurologically if he sustains even stronger blunt force trauma.
The Thursday night play on which Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa suffered another concussion: pic.twitter.com/q7P5L7LiaK
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) September 13, 2024
It’s not my life, not my career. But that said, here’s hoping that Tua does the sensible thing and retires.
Quick Hits
You’ve heard it said that defense wins championships. After two games, the Ravens have provided proof to support that long-standing belief. Baltimore (0-2) is ranked No. 1 in offense, No. 15 in defense, for the moment. The pass defense is ranked 32nd. Given a secondary with all of that talent and a fairly decent pass rush, the results are borderline shocking as are the ongoing fourth quarter collapses. The Q4 hemorrhaging isn’t anything new. The unsavory late game trends encompass no less than three defensive coordinators: Wink Martindale, Mike Macdonald and now Zachary Orr. The common denominator? John Harbaugh. Perhaps this is the result of a failed philosophical approach that Harbaugh refuses to give up on.
More commitment bias?
If you haven’t heard Tom Brady as a color analyst yet, Sunday you’ll get that chance. FOX’s No. 1 team is covering the Ravens at Cowboys… Baltimore holds a 5-1 all-time series lead vs. the Cowboys, including a 1-1 mark in the Dallas. Under Harbaugh, the Ravens are 3-1 vs. the Cowboys (1-1 in Dallas), with these teams last meeting on a Tuesday night in Baltimore during the 2020 COVID-affected season (Ravens won, 34-17)…The Ravens are currently listed as 1 ½ point favorites over the Cowboys who have the league’s worst red zone defense. Will the Ravens 18th-ranked red zone offense improve? Will the 32nd-ranked pass defense stop bleeding?
I just had a bad flashback!
21 Responses
sorry tony where i do believe monkens packages are giving the defense what the ravens are doing don’t understand why they can’t put hills and henry in the same backfield together to maybe surprise what they are doing running or passing or one or both can block . i do think that all the coaching changes do play a part in this 0-2 start given mcdonald gone the defensive back coach gone and dline coach gone replacing that will take time especially when you didn’t play most starters in the preseason unfortunately practice only does so good
Great post, Tony! Agree that changing horses in midstream rarely produces desired results! As for Bisciotti, continuity is fine up to a point, but when you keep doing the same things over and over again and expecting different results, that’s the Einstein definition of…..insanity! Perhaps the answer could come from a change in philosophy, particularly on……offense!
This is a very simple formula: If Ravens HC = John Harbaugh, then the Ravens will never win another superbowl. A lot of fans, myself included, have been saying this for a decade.
IMO continuity is VERY overrated. The timing was right to make the change at HC AFTER the loss in the AFCCG and the owner blew it….plain and simple. Nobody would have questioned the timing if Harbs got replaced w/ Mike MacDonald. Not only did the coaching staff blow the game, but the owner blew a chance to try and go in another direction. Until a change is made, this team will never move forward.
I’m so tired of the local media giving Harbs a pass for the title he won back in 2012. Enough already. Would your wife still give you a pass for a nice bday gift from 12 years ago if the last 12 since have been crap? I think not.
I’ve never been a big Harbaugh fan and have often wondered what his record would be if Kyle Boller hadn’t gotten hurt! Often overlooked in the debate is that Flacco took the Ravens to within a game of the SB in his rookie season that was unprecedented! He was so good, in fact, that they promised to surround him with quality receivers, which they never did! All he did his entire career here was make chicken salad out of chicken crap!
Great article. My only quibble: 3rd and 1 with a 250 lb running back, a 300 lb fullback, and the greatest rushing QB in nfl history…why are we being cute?
Thank you IC. To your question, I think a simple handoff to 250 pound Derrick Henry without the risk of illegal formation or a false start from an unfamiliar spot on the field would do just find.
Falele did better at tackle jeep him there. He was good enough to play left and right tackle. And looked good in the rotation with Moses. How quickly we forget that.
With all due respect, if Faalele looked as good as you describe at tackle, they probably wouldn’t have burned a second round pick on Rosengarten. Given the current mess that is the right side of their offensive line, I suggest a front that looks like Stanley-Voorhees-Linderbaum-Cleveland/Mekari-Rosengarten.
Great Article! My question for you or really anyone who reads this…when will the owner finally say enough is enough? Do we need to see a Lamar injury for ownership to realize, “hey maybe prioritizing a Derrick Henry signing over losing the ENTIRE RIGHT SIDE OLINE wasn’t the smart move”. I get it, we love “consistency” but the stubbornness by our coach by game 2 to not even consider Ben Cleveland, very very shocking.
Great article as usual Tony. Harbaugh’s continual in-game mismanagement is becoming more obvious each and every week to not only the Ravens Flock, but also the national media. His lack of candor and honesty regarding certain players and team injuries (Eisenhower was more forthcoming about the D-Day invasion than Harbaugh is about a pulled groin} would embarrass most politicians. I am thankful that your site is one of the very few, if not only, local place where we can get the facts regarding this very flawed coach who has lasted far past his expiration date-all in the name of continuity. I fear that the X and O’s brain drain we have had (Weaver, Mcdonald, Joe D, Dennard) is going to be too much to overcome. Ownership needed to make the tough decision last off-season to promote Mcdonald and bump Harbaugh to a “Senior Management” position. Not doing that could very well haunt this team for the near future.
So WHEN (not IF) the Ravens are 0-5 what will happen then? Same excuses?
I’d like to know what you all predict the record will be after the next 3 games:
at Dallas
vs. Buffalo
at Cincy
0-5
1 – 4
2 – 3
3 – 2
Have to agree. We already started the season. The only way Harbaugh is gone during the season or even after the season is if he decides to walk away or the team goes mutiny on him and quits playing for him.
Never understood the whole OL makeover especially when we are so close. If anything if Harbaugh wanted continuity after all the coaching and player changes one would think he would have talked with EDC about keeping more of the OL. This changeover impacts the whole offense.
Cleveland vs. Faalele is a no-brainer. Cleveland proved himself to be capable in limited time last season. Faalele has prove to be a total handicap, the weakest link. What do I know, I’m just a guy at the end of the bar.
The Tua situation is scary. Personally I fear for his health and hope he and the organization work it out. I hope he doesn’t try to continue to play in the future. He has family and friends who love him. Don’t cut it short.
Well, I think it’s worth asking:
According to Sarah Ellison’s notes Cleveland got 2 reps in training camp and everything else was at backup center. So when did Cleveland get a shot at the RG spot or to compete against Faalele for it? I don’t understand the beef with Cleveland. I don’t want to get rid of Harbaugh either. He’s still one of the top 5 coaches in the league. The only coaches left in the league with more superbowl titles than Harbaugh is Andy Reid and Mike Tomlin. So, you would be real hard pressed to find anyone who could do what he has done. Your biggest obstacle is gonna be Steve Bisciotti. I like Coach Harbaugh too, so I’m a hard no on getting rid of him despite his weird doghouse thing with Cleveland. Being the head coach he has a right to run the team how he wants to. And if it was anyone of us doing the HC job we would want to do it our way too. So as frustrating as it is I’m content to keep Harbaugh 🙃
Great to hear from you Toni. Hadn’t seen an article from you in some time.
Thanks Ironside but I have been posting articles: Tony Lombardi
Hey TL: great insights, as usual.
Here’s the elephant in the room, with my disclaimer. I love Lamar; I love watching Lamar run; juke/escape a sure sack; rocket a pass (even it is 10 yards from the intended target). Ah, there’s the rub.
By now, it should be crystal clear – his accuracy will never be good enough to win, regular season or playoff time. Will never get to “The Vince”.
Yes, he will never be a Gardner Minshew!!! OR Baker Mayfield. OR Tua T. OR PatrickM, etc.
Admitting the truth will set us free.
Go Ravens!!!
RG
You can clearly see that Mark Andrews poor body language is a concern. If its not the car wreck maybe its him wanting to be a true number 1 TE with another team? They seem to favor Likely with his speed and YAC ability. My guess is a little of both. I expect Andrews will be playing elsewhere in 2025.
Great article Tony and the same thing I have been saying. Olay lay will probably start the game because there is not way Harbaugh will not stick to his word. When (not if) Parsons burns him in the first series he needs to be pulled and put in Cleveland / Mekari. Add little TE chip blocking for Rosengarten to help and lets see how this goes.
End of the day… I see a motivated Ravens team going to Dallas but if we lose, man o man it may be curtains for John. We wont make change during the season though…ride it out till the end and then overhaul. Again…wonder what a Mike Vrabel type HC would be like with this team? Defense would be solid and i dont think he would care who the Offensive Coord was and would encourage aggressive style.
Tony good analysis. This could be my last season as a season ticket holder. I saw first hand at the game Gardner Minshew chew us up with accuracy even while being sacked and under pressure. He did not scramble and he hit his receivers who caught the ball in stride. I am sorry as I have said all along Lamar is an average passer at best. What sets him apart is his running . Accuracy is again average at best. He panic runs and gives up on his receivers alibi are not the best at getting open O line is not opening running lanes and protection is fair. Harbs, well really a blind man in a snow storm could have seen not to challenge those two plays. Really what is he doing, well he does not know. Are secondary again problematic.
My prediction sadly 9 and 8 and we miss playoffs :(.. Harbs last year-time to see who is available. My recommendation Steve Spagnola–he has history and familiarity with Ravens and certainly he is more in charge on field.
And speaking of hot seats and continuiy, was MlkeMac ever given a future HC offer?
Future head coach – Anthony Weaver. Knows the players and the Ravens culture. Players love him. And he could probably pull a good OC from Miami.