The Ravens are back on HBO’s “Hard Knocks” for the first time since the venerable series’ 2001 premiere season, this time sharing each hour with their AFC North neighbors.
The eighth and final episode of this in-season look at the division debuted Tuesday night, going behind the scenes as the Ravens and superstar quarterback Lamar Jackson prepared for their season-ending playoff loss to the Buffalo Bills.
Key Ravens scene
It was the end of the Ravens’ season and of this edition of “Hard Knocks,” so the most intense drama naturally flowed from Jackson experiencing the loss in Buffalo.
He could not have projected more confidence in the days leading up to his climactic meeting with Bills franchise quarterback Josh Allen, and that did not appear to change after he turned the ball over twice in the first half.
“That’s me, bro,” he said on the sideline after he fired an interception in the face of pressure from Bills linebacker Matt Milano. “I seen them send a blitz. They go single-high, but [wide receiver Rashod Bateman] killed ’em so bad, so I’m like, I just throw it. I didn’t hold the safety.”
In a painful twist, Jackson urged his teammates to “protect that ball, hold that ball” moments before he lost his grip on a fumble that led directly to a Buffalo touchdown.
But the episode captured how Jackson was the one lifting his teammates on the sideline, making them believe he would lead a comeback, which he did.
After tight end Mark Andrews fumbled to cut short a potential go-ahead drive in the fourth quarter, Jackson told his most trusted target: “You have my back, I got your back.”
His message did not change after Andrews dropped a pass that would have tied the game at 27 with less than two minutes left. The tight end sat by himself on the bench, head down. “It’s all of us,” Jackson told him. “We a team, bro. It ain’t just you.”
He did not hide his pain and frustration, usually directed inward, in the postgame locker room.
“I ain’t gonna be all right,” Jackson said.
The result wasn’t what any Baltimore fan wanted, and Jackson played his part in that. At the same time, he carried himself like a guy who’s finally on the verge of dragging his team over the hump in one of these epic playoff games. Maybe next year.
Other Ravens tidbits
Quarterbacks coach Tee Martin made an interesting point early in the episode, saying, “I treat the Buffalo Bills as a member of the AFC North.” By that he meant that for Jackson to reach a Super Bowl, he’s going to have to get past Allen and Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes, the other MVP-level quarterbacks who play outside the Ravens’ division.
“Hard Knocks” stayed locked on Jackson throughout the week of preparation.
“Just stay with it,” he said of his mindset in topsy-turvy playoff games. “Don’t get complacent. Don’t get out of it. Don’t let nothing mess with your mind. Don’t let up, just next play.”
When coach John Harbaugh said the Ravens would be practicing inside on the Friday before the Bills game because their outdoor fields were still frozen, Jackson said: “We can’t go outside?”
“We could try,” Harbaugh said. “That’s not a bad idea.”
Jackson laughed off those who thought he might be daunted by freezing temperatures and snow in Buffalo. “That’s what we fixin’ to do; we fixin’ to have fun,” he said as the Ravens ran through their final workout in the less chilly air of Owings Mills. “I don’t know what they talkin’ about.”
“What do you think they’re going to do defensively? What would you try to do?” Harbaugh asked.
“Try to bring pressure here and there, try to get us off track,” Jackson replied. “I’m ready. We’re ready.”
He met with CBS announcers Jim Nantz and Tony Romo the day before the game. “I get mad at myself more than anybody,” he told them. “Even my mom, she could be on me, and I’m like, ‘I’m madder than you.’”
Nantz compared watching Jackson with highlights of Chicago Bears great Gale Sayers he remembered from childhood. Jackson wasn’t in the mood for such frivolity. “We better win this game,” he said.
Much of the rest of the episode focused on the Ravens’ plans for Allen, one of the few players in Jackson’s league at creating something out of nothing.
“You can defend everything right. You can do everything right,” defensive coordinator Zach Orr said. “And the guy still finds a way.”
He counseled his pass rushers never to leave their feet. Outside linebacker Odafe Oweh added that it would not be a day for freelancing. Every defender needed to stick to his part.
To that end, the Ravens drilled hard on their “plaster” concept for sticking with Allen’s receivers during his inevitable scrambles.
“Where are their receivers going?” Harbaugh said from the back row of a defensive meeting. “Deep. It’s vertical plaster. Where are our eyes? On our man.”
Safety Kyle Hamilton explained plaster as “kind of like being white on rice.”
“If we didn’t practice anything else this week, if we practiced that, it would be the most important thing,” Harbaugh said.
Despite losing, the Ravens did limit Allen to one explosive pass play early in the game.
The episode ended on the Ravens’ final team meeting Monday in their auditorium. Harbaugh called it a “sobering day.” At the same time, he told his players, “I hope I can remind you of that joy we had this year.”
Best non-Ravens scene
This was a Ravens episode but did feature a few brief scenes of the Steelers packing up and processing their resounding playoff loss in Baltimore.
“Tough conversations need to be had,” edge rusher T.J. Watt said. “You can’t keep doing the same things and expecting different results. That starts with myself.”
“I never, ever prepare for failure to be honest with you,” coach Mike Tomlin said of his sixth consecutive playoff loss. “It’s a waste of time. I can’t hurt too long, because then it jeopardizes what’s ahead.”
Tomlin left no doubt that he’ll back in the AFC North fray with renewed enthusiasm come September. “I need this,” he told his team. “It ain’t always good, but man, it’s me. I love it even when it’s miserable.”
Episode MVP
Jackson was the player of the year in the AFC North, and he was the main character in the “Hard Knocks” finale. His skill and belief had the Ravens in position to chase a Super Bowl, and there was no doubt who remained the centerpiece, even as they coped with terrible, final disappointment.
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