One day after the Ravens’ spectacular collapse in a 42-38 loss to the Miami Dolphins, head coach John Harbaugh said miscommunication and inexperience were at the heart of the fourth-quarter defensive meltdown, and he said the Ravens’ rookies in the secondary “have to grow up fast.”
Top draft pick Kyle Hamilton and rookie cornerbacks Jalyn Armour-Davis and Pepe Williams were all on the field for the biggest plays of the game, as Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa lofted touchdown passes of 48 and 60 yards to Tyreek Hill as part of a furious, 21-point fourth-quarter comeback.
Hamilton was often on the field as part of the Ravens’ three-safety look, with Chuck Clark operating as a dime linebacker and Marcus Williams patrolling the back end alongside Hamilton. Armour-Davis and Williams, meanwhile, were pressed into action with Kyle Fuller (knee) out for the season, Brandon Stephens (quad) out for the game and Marlon Humphrey unavailable late after apparently aggravating his groin injury during the game.
“There are certain guys who have to grow up fast,” Harbaugh said at his Monday news conference on Sept. 19. “They have to grow up. They’re young guys. They’re rookies who are playing for the first time. They know that. I’m sure they took responsibility for it; the coaches take responsibility for it. We all have to take responsibility for it.”
“I did not expect those things to happen in this game,” he added, “but I also understand that we have some young guys back there. We’re throwing guys out there for the first time in an NFL game against some fast players, and things are moving fast, and the game is on the line. That can happen, so if we had a veteran group back there, I’d be more concerned about it, but I think those young guys are going to learn fast.”
After the Ravens built a 35-14 lead, the Dolphins roared back with 28 fourth-quarter points, as Tagovailoa threw touchdown passes on all four of the Dolphins’ fourth-quarter possessions. Tagovailoa finished 36-for-50 for 469 yards and six touchdowns.
His final touchdown, a 7-yard score to Jaylen Waddle with 14 seconds left, completed the shocking Ravens meltdown.
On the first of Hill’s two touchdowns, Marcus Peters ran alongside Hill with outside position, and it looked as if he expected Hamilton to offer help. Hamilton, though, cheated toward a crossing pattern underneath, and by the time he recovered, the speedy Hill was three steps clear of both Peters and Hamilton and caught a 48-yard touchdown to cut the Ravens’ lead to 35-28.
On the Dolphins’ next possession, Hill blew past Armour-Davis, who appeared to expect safety help, but both Hamilton and Marcus Williams were lined up in the box and showing blitz. Williams scrambled to help late, but Hill was all alone for a 60-yard score that tied the game.
“They were just blown coverages, basically,” Harbaugh said. “… We didn’t play the technique right on the post to our defensive left. You have to stay on top of that as a corner. You have to stay on top of that as a safety. It’s three-deep coverage. Those guys know that.
“Then the other one was we didn’t have anybody in the deep half. That was a miscommunication if you want to call it that, and the deep-half player didn’t realize he was a deep-half player, and he needs to get back there. So those are mistakes.”
Harbaugh isn’t one to call out players publicly, and he said, “It’s easy to point fingers, it’s easy to talk about who’s at fault or whatever. … That’s not what we’re about.
“We really like those guys,” he added, “and we trust those guys. They’re going to learn from their mistakes. Sometimes lessons are learned the hard way.”
NOTEBOOK
RAVENS PLACE MEANS, ROSS ON IR: The Ravens placed linebackers Steven Means and Josh Ross on injured reserve after each was injured in the game against Miami. Means, back for his second stint with the team, tore his Achilles on his only defensive snap of the game.
“[He] played well, great guy,” Harbaugh said. “We appreciate him very much.”
Ross, the only undrafted rookie to make the initial 53-man roster, is going to IR with a foot injury. He did not play a defensive snap in two games but had been one of the Ravens’ top special teams contributors.
The Ravens also announced they waived practice squad outside linebacker Kyler Fackrell.
HARBAUGH SAYS DOBBINS STILL ‘WEEK TO WEEK’: Harbaugh had no update on running back J.K. Dobbins, who has been inactive in the first two games as he works back to full strength after the left knee injury that sidelined him for the entire 2021 season.
Dobbins practiced fully all last week, leading to speculation he might make his season debut against the Dolphins, but the team has been cautious with Dobbins throughout. In Dobbins’ absence, the Ravens’ run game has struggled mightily; the trio of Kenyan Drake, Mike Davis and Justice Hill totaled 28 yards on 14 carries against Miami.
Asked about Dobbins’ status, Harbaugh said, “He’s been week to week the last couple of weeks, so that’s what it is. When he’s ready, he’ll be out there.”
SHORT-YARDAGE WOES IRK HARBAUGH: Harbaugh said he was disappointed by the Ravens’ failures in critical short-yardage situations. The Ravens had first-and-goal at the 2-yard line late in the first quarter, and four straight running plays netted just one yard. Lamar Jackson fumbled on a fourth-down sneak, turning the ball over on downs. A play earlier, Jackson had appeared to score on a sneak, and after the play was initially ruled a touchdown, it was overturned upon review. Harbaugh questioned that decision.
Then in the fourth quarter, the Ravens opted to go for the first down on fourth-and-1 from the Dolphins’ 40-yard line with a 35-21 lead. Jackson was dropped for a 1-yard loss.
“Those are plays that just have to be made,” Harbaugh said. “If they’re made, we win the game. So, we’ve got to be creative. We’ve got to find a way to block people, because we missed a couple blocks. We’ve got to find a way to not necessarily run into the teeth of the defense.
“We’ve got to do a better job as coaches, getting the right play up or doing something they don’t expect, obviously,” he added. “Sometimes you want to challenge them, too, and we challenged them, and they won in that situation. … Both of those fourth downs should have been successful for us.”
The Ravens did have one successful fourth-and-1 in the first quarter, using some creativity: Tight end Mark Andrews came in motion, then quickly got under center and took a direct snap, plowing forward for 3 yards.
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