HEAD COACH JESSE MINTER
Opening Statement: "I appreciate you all being here. [I want to] start off [by] just really shouting out our team, players, coaches, everybody in the building — particularly the operations people that handle travel and the setup of a trip like that [with] everything that goes into it from the flights, the hotels, obviously having to go through everything going to a different country. [I am] just really proud of the organization and the plan in place for us to maximize it and try to be at our best for the game. Then, obviously, the game went down to the wire. [I am] proud of our team. They came through when we needed to. There are so many things — it is great to win a game, again, but then [there are] so many things that we can do better, that we can get better at and that we will chase. So, it is an exciting time for us. We are excited to get back here and have a normal week at home. With that, [I will] open it up for questions."
What time did you guys get in this morning, and how would you describe the flight home? (Jamison Hensley) "So, I think we landed around 8:30 [or] 9 a.m. I think for the most part — when we got onto the plane, there was still a lot of energy and excitement. It settled down as guys were settling in and tried to get a little bit of sleep. The cool thing was [when] we landed, we kind of had to go through customs as we landed back at BWI. We got back, [and] I think there were like 55 guys in the weight room right after we landed, which was cool to see. They really had kind of an optional schedule to lift today or tomorrow. So, that was fun. That was like a fun deal being in there [with] a lot of guys fresh off the plane, wanting to knock it out and kind of recover from the plane ride. I think that all that type of stuff helps, and so that was the travel home."
Do you know any more about the two centers, Jovaughn Gwyn and Ethan Pocic, and is the plan for G Vega Ioane to prepare to play there this weekend? (Childs Walker) "I don't have the full details, but they both looked like they will be a little bit [of a] long-term type of thing. I do think for this particular game — as we sort through making our roster better, obviously, over the next couple of days — [Vega Ioane] will be prepared, and he will prepare to potentially play that position. We will figure out the best five guys to put out there for this particular week as we may add a piece or two, obviously, from losing a couple of guys. But, major shout out to him — to be a first-round pick and sort of deal with the pressure and the things of that, and then obviously to be kind of rolled in there as a starter right from the beginning. Credit to the O-line coaches for over the last few weeks starting to work him there a little bit as an emergency situation. Once we lost Danny [Pinter] and we were kind of down to the two, you always want to have that third guy, particularly when one of the guys that we were going to potentially keep on practice squad got claimed. So, now you are trying to create depth at that position. Credit to him — he went in there and in a couple of critical moments of the game; our offense scored a go-ahead touchdown, and then obviously [was] operating on the last drive. So very, very proud of 'V [Vega Ioane].'"
How up to speed was G Vega Ioane with all the things that come with being a center — the pre-snap operation, all the protection adjustments and everything? Was there any change in those types of duties considering it happened in the second half? (Cordell Woodland) "Yes, I think [Vega Ioane] was up to speed enough to be able to do everything that we ask our centers to do, which was really cool. Now, he plays next to them, and I think those guys work really well together [on] making sure that we are on the right calls, the right IDs and things like that. So, he handled it really well. Particularly, I mean, we are on the plus side of the field trying to score a go-ahead touchdown as he has to go in there and play center, and we were able to operate. I think we ended up with one penalty that you could maybe equate to the newness of the operation there on that last drive or the second-to-last drive. But again, [he] just went in there and handled himself really well and handled the position, to your point, doing everything that we need that position to do."
Sticking with the offensive line — how are things standing with T Ronnie Stanley dealing with the toe injury, and having a chance now to make his first start and play the whole game, how do you think T Carson Vinson did at left tackle? (Luke Jones) "Yes, I do think Ronnie [Stanley] will — I think it was a good opportunity to allow this [injury] to be something that he might not have to deal with just over and over again, and that it gave it a chance to hopefully get right. I think he will be a lot closer this week to being able to push back. [To] Carson [Vinson]'s credit, I thought he played really well. Those guys have some good edge rushers, particularly in pass pro, and he held up really well. [I am] not sure he gave up any pressures. We did not give up a sack, which was nice. There are some elements of our run game that were really good, and then there are some areas where we will chase a lot of improvement. But for that guy being in his first start in a game like that, in an environment like that — [just] major props to him, and I thought he did a really good job."
Were you able to watch film on the flight home, or did you just reserve that for when you got back here? What did you see in terms of the penalties piling up? S Kyle Hamilton had some pointed criticism again afterwards, saying that it was basically not the way the Ravens defense should be playing. I think the word was unacceptable. (Jerry Coleman) "[I] was able to watch the film on the plane multiple times. Right now, you play an opponent every week. We really need to have the mentality that we are playing against ourselves, and we are playing against the standards that we have for ourselves. If we can stay out of our own way, how good could we be, in really all three phases? A lot of the penalties on offense set us back at critical times, when you have a chance to really extend and really maybe put a team in a position where it is a much tougher thing to come back from. Then defensively, we are chasing consistency. We are chasing getting everybody onto the same page. That starts with me, I would say, and just the plan and our processes of how we get to everything, how we operate. I appreciate players saying stuff like that, but I always look at myself first, and it is my job. I was brought here to help put these guys in a position to play really good defense. I do think we have the guys to do it. It is early. We are going through a few pains right now that I think will hopefully help us in the long run. But at the same time, I was proud of the defense. When we needed to get a three-and-out and get the ball back, we were able to. They get down there with a lot of time, really, [and] have the ball first-and-goal inside the two. I thought Nate Wiggins made a couple really nice plays after the penalty that was called on him. [I'm] just proud of them. They gave us a chance there. Again, there are a lot of things that we will chase [and] that we need to improve. I think everybody would tell you that. But again, I think we have the guys to do it, and I appreciate the players feeling that way — but it is all of us."
On that note, with the missed tackles, do you see some of those issues as an issue of technique? Is it guys being out of position and not being in a good place to make a tackle? What do you see? Where does that stem from? (Kyle Goon) "I think tackling is an art, and it requires a high, high level of detail. I would say that we are not detailed enough in tackling right now. That is the angles that we take to approach ball carriers, the body position that we are in as we are sometimes leaving our feet and trying to dive at people or make these big hits instead of just securing tackles. Most of the time, that is what it is with tackling. It is trying to get 11 guys to the ball. When you don't, and now it is only one or two guys, and you miss, [that's when] those missed tackles create big plays. We had another one on a tight end checkdown where you throw the ball to a guy, and I think we had three or four guys miss him. It goes from what probably should be a two-or-three-yard play on a second-and-long, to an explosive play past midfield. Again, [with] those types of things, we need to coach them better, starting with that, I would say. Then, we just need to continue to take ownership and practice in a way that allows us to make those plays in the games."
You certainly did not hesitate to give DL Nnamdi Madubuike a full slate of plays in his first game back in more than a year. How did you think he did with that? (Childs Walker) "[I'm] very proud of him. [It's] very, very cool to see, [with] his feelings and emotions before the game, knowing everything that he had kind of gone through. Again, I think part of the ramp-up with Nnamdi [Madubuike] was to get him in a position where once he was playing, he was playing. [For] some guys, you may put on a 15-play count. That was not something that, as we were talking, he was really interested in. [I] wanted to make sure that he was ready to go and felt like himself, and he has had a couple really good weeks of practice to help him be prepared. I thought he held up really well and he made some nice plays. He showed some rush ability. I think a guy like that, who has not played in so long, will get better and better and better as we go. [I am] excited to add him back to the defense."
You referenced QB Lamar Jackson's speech to the team on Saturday, and then we saw it after the game yesterday. What has been the impact of that vocal leadership from him? (Garrett Downing) "I mean, that is a major impact. When your quarterback is a guy that everybody loves and trusts, when he speaks, people listen. Lamar [Jackson] — I think he is very — I do not want to say calculated because he speaks from the heart. When he decides to speak up, it is not often, but when it is, you know what time it is, because he is willing to say things in those moments where a guy needs it — maybe an individual player needs it, or a group needs it, or a team needs it. We have a few different guys speak on our Saturday night meetings, and Lamar was up this week. It was just about a new season, going 1-and-0, and playing one [game] at a time. He has so much confidence in himself and the guys around him that we can be the type of team we need to be. Again, can we not beat ourselves? Can we get out of our own way? If we control the controllables for us, we have plenty of guys that can make the magic happen. If we can really take charge and control the things that we can control, we have the guys that can make it happen. We really need to do that first part, because that other stuff is already happening with some of our great players."
We are talking about G Vega Ioane's adjustment to playing center. With QB Lamar Jackson starting out training camp with C Danny Pinter, working with OL Jovaughn Gwyn and C Ethan Pocic has been obviously rotated in there, and now Vega — with that relationship between quarterback and center, Lamar was already making a change this year. What has it been like to see him navigate that relationship? Do you think there are things he is able to do to gloss over some of those transitions that the team has had to make? (Kyle Goon) "Yes, there are definitely things that he does. [Lamar Jackson] is just so cool, calm and collected. I mean, he is over there during the injury timeout, getting a couple snaps from 'V' [Vega Ioane]. I could tell [on] the first shotgun snap, he had a little juice on it. It was like, 'Do you want me to tell him anything?' And he was like, 'No, I will make it work, I will make it work.' To me, Lamar [Jackson] is the ultimate 'make it work' player. He will make it work. He will make it right. That is how he is — that is how great of a player he is. He does not let stuff like that bother him. He does not make excuses. He is just that type of guy. He has handled a bunch of different guys playing center [and] getting guys in and out of the lineup at the skill positions. All he does is put it on himself to make the plays to help us win games."
For offensive coordinator Declan Doyle to throw out what looked like the perfect play call with seven seconds left, what did that show you about your offensive coordinator, who is really just three games into play-calling, and how that just worked out so well in that scenario? (Valerie Preactor) "That is 'Dec' [offensive coordinator Declan Doyle]. He has so much confidence and conviction when he calls plays. [He] studies the game. I give credit to [game management coordinator/defensive assistant] Charlie Gelman, too. Those are very specific situational play calls that we talk through a lot throughout training camp and work a lot. You can work that situation every day in camp and every couple of weeks during the season you throw it into your situational script, [but] you can go a year or two without it coming up. But then when it comes up — are you ready to execute it, are you ready to call it, are you ready for the timing to be right? I think that says a lot about our guys — that when we needed it most, it is run to perfection, it is called to perfection and obviously executed at a really high level."
With C Jovaughn Gwyn and C Ethan Pocic, you said longer term. Is it anticipated both will be on IR? (Jamison Hensley) "Yes, I think they are both going to be in that range. We will figure it out here over the next couple of days."
With the offensive goal-line possession that you guys were not able to convert on, what do you feel like happened during that series? (Cordell Woodland) "Yes, we wanted to be aggressive. We had a couple of fourth-and-short opportunities. I like the decisions. The one early in the game, it [was] fourth-and-inches, [and] we don't get that [first down]. That is me giving our defense a really short field. So, I told [them] that. That was my [decision]. I will take that. But that was the confidence I had in our offense. Then down there [in the red zone], as well, we ended up probably having a lot more plays inside the 5 [-yard line] in this game, and so it is a good lesson of the amount of volume that you need to have ready down there, particularly as teams change looks maybe throughout the game or react to what you are doing. We really did not execute — I would say — the play call very well from a blocking standpoint, and we ended up letting the inside backer sort of run through. So, [it was] unfortunate. [I] don't dislike the decision to go [for it]. Obviously, whenever the play does not work, it is the same as any play that does not work. But, we want to continue to trust our guys, and I think especially down there nowadays, when you are inside those goal-to-go situations, again, this goes to the touchback rule [and] the kickoff rule — because of the field position on kickoffs and kickoff returns, sometimes inside the five, you are going to be really aggressive, because even if you do not get it, you hope to be able to keep them backed up. Now we were not able to, so again, it is what it is. But, I like the mindset and the attitude of going for it. Obviously, the results of the play were not what we wanted."
Obviously we have all heard a lot about the kick by K Tyler Loop and just the entire sequence leading up to that, with QB Lamar Jackson calling the timeout, and the fact that the play worked using that timeout. What did that entire sequence show you about what this team is capable of in high-pressure moments? (Samantha Croston) "I said it after the game, I think it is a good step for us. Not every game is going to be perfect, and I think we missed chances in all three phases again to kind of separate in the game. But, we got a three-and-out when we needed to. We went down and took the lead on offense. They were in range fairly quickly on the drive that they ended up getting a field goal, and so it was ultimately like 'no touchdowns' at that point. I thought the guys did a good job in that situation. It comes down to [the fact that] there are seven seconds left. The other guy I really want to point out, truthfully, is Travis Jones. Travis Jones got hurt on a second-down play when they had the ball, and he got himself off the field where, if he lays there, it forces us to use a timeout on defense in that situation. So, by him being able to get up and get off the field, knowing that that is a thing, [it] allowed us to save that last timeout, which we needed for the last play. So, all the little things that go into it [matter]. And then again, you get the ball to the 35 [with] seven seconds left, [it's] a scenario that you practice a lot. [It] says a lot about the guys to, in real time, against a real defense at real speed, to be able to execute it, get the timeout, and then for Tyler [Loop] to hit a ball that probably would have been good from 68 [or] 70 yards, the way he hit that ball [and] how high it went through the uprights [was] really cool to see."
Cowboys WR KaVontae Turpin only had 1 KOR the entire game. I think he only had 3 PRs, neither one for 20 yards-or-more. What did you like — along with K Tyler Loop's kick at the end and then S Keondre Jackson's field goal block — about the advantages you all were able to create on special teams? (Quentin Corpuel) "Yes, I was really proud of our special teams. We had kind of made a decision with [KaVontae] Turpin to be a little conservative with our kickoffs. We wanted to try to put the ball in an area where he had a decision to make, 2-or-3 yards deep in the end zone. A lot of those [kickoffs], we felt like he would bring out. We probably kicked a couple of them maybe a yard or two too far, where he took a knee and took the ball where it went, but we wanted to make him have to make some of those decisions rather than putting it down there at the three or four, and so I thought our guys did a good job. There was one we thought we covered pretty well when he did bring one out, and then I thought both the punt and punt return game ended up being critical. Ryan [Eckley] did a nice job battling through an illness. This guy is hitting some really good punts and having a game-winning hold [while] battling through a little bit of an illness there. I thought our punt return game, the one real opportunity that we had set up a huge, huge return — a 20-plus-yard return — that allowed the offense to have good field position on the go-ahead touchdown drive. So all in all, [I'm] really happy with special teams. Keondre Jackson — a dominant special teams player — making a huge impact blocking a field goal. So, [it was] great to see."
Just to follow up on two injuries — is NT Travis Jones doing okay? Then, obviously WR Zay Flowers had such an impactful game, but is the hamstring something you guys are continuing to monitor that might continue to affect how he practices or plays? (Kyle Goon) "Yes, Travis [Jones] is fine. It was just one of those where something really minor happens, and a lot of guys would lay there on the ground and have [the trainers] come out, but again, just the awareness by him to get off the field. [With] Zay [Flowers], I had some good confidence at a good point last week that he would be able to help us. Obviously, there is all the talk and concern about the field and things like that, so we were able to get him over there, he felt good about it and we wanted to keep it in the 20-to-25 snap range. I think he played 21 plays, the 21st being something special, and so I really want to shout out [head certified athletic trainer] Adrian Dixon, as well, for just working through that and helping the process of him being ready to play. I think, now, he is coming out of this thing really ready to push to be back in there closer to full time."
Moving forward now, you don't have to go out of the country, and you get to stay home this week. Last time you played at home, you kind of brought it up to the players about the importance of winning at home. Is that something you will reinforce this week, or is it something that maybe is just known? (Jamison Hensley) "Yes, the guys realize that. Part of me – I think you are always looking for things to talk about and motivate [the team]. I think for this particular team, for us — it is a one-game season. Every week is a one-game season. We want to go 1-0 this week. We want to chase the best version of us. If we can find that, we respect all the opponents that we are going to play. They are all going to have on a different uniform, a different helmet — whatever. But we are a team that needs to really, really just focus on us and take care of us, clean up things that we can do and that we have major control over. And if we do that, we will live with the results."