Head Coach John Harbaugh
(opening statement) "Good to have everybody here. We appreciate you guys being here and being at the game. Obviously, a very good team win. You start with the defense. The defense played lights out throughout the whole game, and that was fun to watch. But, all three phases did what they had to do to win; we're proud of that. I guarantee our guys aren't satisfied. There are plenty of things that we can look at and do better, coaching and playing. We'll do that, but I'm proud of them for the win. Especially [because] we did get to the quarterback. We had seven sacks, five by defensive backs – I think that's very noteworthy. [We] forced three turnovers. We had the one turnover [on offense], though – that's one too many. Our defense did a great job forcing turnovers. Third-down defense was excellent, yards. And then stopping … holding [Joe] Mixon low on the rushing. That's a big, heavy duty task, and we did a good job with that. On the downside, Otaro Alaka left the game and didn't return. It looks like … It looks bad. It looks like he'll probably be out for the year, so we're very disappointed about that. He had been doing a really, really great job on special teams. He was really coming on. I'm very proud of him for the way he was playing. Just another adversity in his career, but it's part of his journey now, and he's going to make the most of it. So, with that, what questions do you have?"
(on ILB Patrick Queen's performance) "I think you're spot on with that. Of course, Marlon [Humphrey] got the forced fumble, Patrick [Queen] was there and picked that one up. He did a really good job in coverage across the board. I believe he had an interception, too. Didn't he? Didn't he have an interception? Oh, two fumble recoveries. There you go, I'm losing my mind here. But he was all over the field. I just thought he was better in coverage. I thought he did a really good job after the first completion. He did a good job manning Zone Coverage, and he just played a really solid game."
(on the key to stopping HB Joe Mixon) "I think that was it; we just kind of played good assignment [and] physical defense up front. We defeated the scheme. We were solid. We were strong on the edge. We played through the cut-back angle really well, and our inside guys were very stout. When you do that, you have a really good chance to stop the run."
(on what he attributes QB Lamar Jackson having only two rushing attempts and the second-most passing attempts in a game) "I don't have anything to attribute that to right now. It's just the way we played. It's just the way the game played out. It's just the way it was called. We'll talk about it later in the week, maybe."
(on if QB Lamar Jackson's reported knee injury changed the gameplan at all) "No."
(on if the plan all week was to play both G Ben Powers and C/G Patrick Mekari with G Tyre Phillips out) "Yes. I think also, with that, which is part of it, the other part of it is to give them a chance to go play and then come back out and watch the game a little bit. They're both good players. They both are ready to play. And not to put too much on their plate if we didn't have to, because we had both of them available to play. So, I thought that … it worked out well for us. I'm looking forward to seeing the tape to see how they played, but it was [offensive line coach] 'Joe D's' [Joe D'Alessandris] idea, and I think it worked out really well."
(on OLB Pernell McPhee's overall performance and his pitch count) "Well, we don't have a specific pitch count for Pernell [McPhee] as much we kind of have it for all of the guys on defense. We're not really trying to play too many guys too many snaps. We try to play everybody. We have a number of personnel packages designed to get everybody on the field doing what they do well. So, nobody should have to play too much, unless we have an injury, or unless a package ends up being predominantly played, because of what the offense is doing to us. So, I felt like we were kind of right on target with that. Generally speaking, we don't say a number, but we rotated our packages the way we normally do. But to your point about Pernell, he played really well. He's been setting edges. He's been very physical. I think he's also been a leader [and] a tone-setter for our defense. He's kind of showing the young guys the way every day and what it means to be a Raven and how to Play Like a Raven. He does it by example, and he does it by what he says. He does it by his work ethic every day."
(on how defensive coordinator Don Martindale did with the pass rush and getting after QB Joe Burrow) "Absolutely. [Defensive coordinator Don] 'Wink' [Martindale] did a great job; he called an aggressive game. I think he had a good feel for what was going on there in terms of the protections and things like that. I thought our defensive staff … 'Wink' will be the first to spread the credit around and tell you that our defensive staff, [outside linebackers coach] Drew Wilkins and all the guys involved there … [defensive line coach] Joe Cullen recovered very well in the back end … [Pass defense coordinator] Chris Hewitt, but also the players. The players are the ones to do it. It's one thing to put a gameplan together, and that's good, and that's important and valuable, and we really value it. I really do. I think 'Wink' did a great job and the whole staff, but let's give credit to the players, really, above all. Sunday is the players' day, and those guys came out and executed. [They] played with great discipline, great energy, and it was really great to see."
(on if the five sacks from the secondary speak to the deception in the gameplan) "It does. I think it's kind of emblematic of what you guys have watched here the last three years. It's kind of how we piece it together. It won't be that way every week. It'll change from week to week, but that's something I'm really pleased with. I'm very happy. We're capable of doing it, and I think we have the guys to do it, too. Our guys bring it now. They're good blitzers, and they can tackle. So, you've got the guys that can do it."
QB Lamar Jackson
(on the defensive effort from today and the season CB Marlon Humphrey is having) "Marlon [Humphrey] – I feel like he should be up for defensive MVP. If not, you could give it to him early. Our defense played lights out. They just make our job a lot easier. I wish we could've scored more points for them instead of just two times – or 17 points – which is, I feel like, the three points were for 'Tuck' [Justin Tucker]. But offense – we've just got to start clicking right away."
(on how his knee affected his mobility) "It was alright. It didn't really affect me at all."
(on if his amount of passing attempts were a result of how the game progressed, or the gameplan entering the game) "I feel like that's just how the game progressed, really. It wasn't game-planning to be like that. I'll say gameplan, it was 50-50. But we got out there, and it was just a different defense, I would say."
(on TE Mark Andrews saying the offense needs to get better and his thoughts on the state of the offense) "I feel the same way. We need to get back to how we were last year. We go out there, and we perform at a high level like we do. I'll say we're fine though. We'll get to practice, and we're going to regroup and watch film, and we're going to get right."
(on what hurdles the team needs to clear to get back to the offense of last year) "I would say the little things right now. With us on offense – just keep getting first downs when we're on third down. Converting – that's probably what I would say is our biggest downfall – is converting and finishing drives. We get better at that, [and] we're going to be good."
(on how happy he was to connect with WR Marquise Brown in the end zone) "I was happy, for sure. I wish I could've connected with him more this game. I feel like there were still opportunities out there left for my offense that we should've finished drives. Much credit to [Marquise Brown] and Mark [Andrews]."
(on what the week was like for him with his knee injury and illness and if there was any doubt he would play) "No, it wasn't no doubt. But I still need to be out there getting my chemistry with my guys. I wish I could've been out there, but like you just said, I was sick. But this week, it's going to be totally different because I'm going to be out there every day. So, I'm going to be good."
OLB Pernell McPhee
(on what made the difference in his performance today) "[I] just keep chipping [away] – practice on my work ethic, practice on my one-on-ones, practice on my eyes and just keep pushing. It's early in the season. To me, it feels like the season just started. So, I just came out today and tried to be a tone-setter – just try to be a tone-setter for my guys."
(on forcing turnovers) "Yes, we preach that in practice. We work on it in practice. We work on flying to the ball. We have great guys. We have All-Pro guys that do a great job of getting the ball out or finding the ball. We have 'ballhawks.' It's great when you have good guys out there who can force turnovers, and not only force them, but pick them up and score. Just, shoutout to the defense – the secondary; Marlon [Humphrey], 'Juice' [Marcus Peters]. Just shoutout to those boys – they're some real 'ballhawks' – and the rest of the secondary, [too]."
(on getting in the backfield and forcing pressure on opposing quarterbacks) "Yes, that's like every week. I tell Matt [Matthew] Judon every time I go out on the field with him, 'Meet me in the backfield,' because that's how it goes to grab the quarterbacks, whether it's from a blitz or a four-man rush. We preach it in practice. We do a lot of one-on-ones in practice, and it just carried over to the game this week. And we just have to keep preaching it, keep getting ready week to week. And it's early in the season, like I said, so I think it's just getting started. I think we're going to be 'meeting' at the quarterback a lot this year."
(on CB Marlon Humphrey) "MVP. (laughter) No, that's a great guy, man. I'm happy for him. He studies the game. He treats the game right. He plays the game right. He plays it with a swagger – an attitude. He stays focused. Shoot, he keeps me in it when he comes on the field sometimes, yelling. [He's] just a great player – a great athlete. And it's the beginning – like I said – of the season, and I think there's a lot more to come. He's a 'ballhawk.' So, yes, MVP – best cornerback in the league. Him and 'Juice' [Marcus Peters]." (laughter)
(on Bengals QB Joe Burrow) "Oh, it was great playing against him. He stood in there and took a lot of great shots. Shoutout to him for bouncing back. Salute to him. I just can't wait to see him the next time we play him. I think he carried out the gameplan. He did a great job though, man. And shoutout to him. He's a tough guy."
(on setting the edge) "Yes, yes, I think we did a great job. I wish they would have had less [rushing] yards than 70, but I think we did a great job. We pride ourselves on setting the edge more than pass rushing, because we want to stop the run first; that's what comes with rushing the passer. 'Haddy' [Jihad Ward] did a great job. 'Ferg' [Jaylon Ferguson] did a great job. Tyus [Bowser] did a great job. Shoutout to those guys, and shoutout to Coach 'Wink' [defensive coordinator Don Martindale] for calling a great defensive game and drawing up the gameplan."
"And you all stay Corona-free out there, alright?"
S Chuck Clark
(on what the defense saw from the Bengals that allowed them to put so much pressure on QB Joe Burrow) "I don't think it was anything we saw from them, actually. It was just us running the way we run and just executing. The past couple of games, we've executed here and there, but we didn't execute like we did today. We've just got to take advantage of the opportunities we've got, to be honest."
(on where he sees this defense heading) "We want to be the best. We want to be No. 1 in every category, so that's our goal, and we'll let the chips fall from there."
(on looking ahead to next weekend's game in Philadelphia) "The focus is to go on the road and get a win at the end of the day. They're a great NFC opponent, and we just need to go on the road and get a win."
WR Devin Duvernay
(on his 42-yard end-around run early in the game) "I just came around the end, and it was wide open. So, I just ran and made the most of it."
(on getting a little more involved in the offense today and how he sees himself contributing going forward) "I've just got to keep making the most of my opportunities when my number is called, and we'll go from there. I'm prepared, I'm ready, and I look forward to every opportunity that I get."
(on the Ravens' defense bringing so much pressure today) "It's really exciting. Sometimes they bail us out when we're not clicking so hot. But, big shoutout to them. They give us energy as well."
TE Mark Andrews
(on the offense starting strong in the first half but struggling in the second half) "Yes, we came out pretty fast [in] the first half. I don't know about schematically; I was just going out there and playing fast and doing what I can. I know today, it was good to see … I know in the first half, we were kind of flying around, doing our jobs, and I was happy with what we did. And we have a lot to get better at. [We'll] look at the film, get better and be a better offense. I know our defense balled-the-heck-out, man."
(on if he's satisfied with the victory even with the offense struggling at times) "Every win is a blessing, and whenever you can get one, you have to take that and run with it. But there are times when our offense isn't clicking, and we need to get better. So, it is what it is."
(on if QB Lamar Jackson not participating in two practices this week affected the Ravens' offensive performance) "No, I know Lamar [Jackson] is a professional. He's a guy who's going to get in his playbook [and] do his thing. So, all of us just have to go out there and play our game – do our jobs to the best of our ability. And I don't think that has anything to do with it. He's the MVP. That's the guy. That's our guy."
(on the offensive gameplan) "I just feel as a gameplan, 'G-Ro' [offensive coordinator Greg Roman] tried to get the ball in the receivers' hands [and] tight ends' hands, and in the first half, we did a good job of that. So, I don't know really what the reason for it was, but it was good to see. Obviously, we just have to keep that going. We have to be better in all aspects – the run game, pass game, everything. So, we have a lot to get better at."
(on third-down conversions) "It's huge. Third downs are 'money downs.' Those are the biggest downs that you can get. Whenever you can get one, obviously, that puts the defense down and puts us up. So, those are the same things I look for. Those are the downs I love. But, as an offense, we have to continue to keep getting better at that. When you can start completing almost all your third downs, that makes a difference."
ILB Patrick Queen
(on what it meant to him to have the performance he had today against former teammate QB Joe Burrow) "It means everything. I prayed about it, and that's just what I really wanted. I knew when I got drafted and Joe [Burrow] got drafted that we were going to be seeing each other twice a year. So, it's the start of a great rivalry. I'm glad I got the first win out of it."
(on how it felt to execute the gameplan at such a high level) "It's all [defensive coordinator Don] 'Wink' [Martindale], man. 'Wink' dialed up the plays and we just executed them. Joe [Burrow] is a great player. He's been throwing his tail off. We knew that coming into this game that we had to stop that; we did not want to give up 300 yards passing like he had been getting. So, 'Wink' drew up the plan and we just executed it. Shoutout to 'Wink'. Shoutout to the whole defense. Shoutout to the whole staff."
(on what he saw on both turnovers and if he has more ammo to trash talk QB Joe Burrow now) (laughter) "Joe [Burrow] knows I'll talk a little trash, but Joe's my guy. I love him to death. When he went in for a quarterback sneak, I got a few words in with Joe. We know how it gets between us; we're competitive. We always want to be great. We always want to win. So, I know it's going to be a fun rivalry all the way until the time that we're done. (Reporter: "What about those two plays? What did you see on the sack and the scoop-and-score?") "I got blocked on the sack and just extra effort to the play. I got the ball out off the hit and just 'saw ball, got ball.' The other one, 'Marlo' [Marlon Humphrey], who should be defensive player of the year at the end of this year with how he's playing, just punched the ball out and I was there. Extra effort, like I said, and then just scoop-and-score."
(on if the confidence of the defense grew throughout the game) "Of course. This whole week we had a great week of practice. We knew coming into the game that we were confident. Like I said, we bounced back from a few weeks ago that we lost. We've just been coming to work every day trying to get better. As long as we keep taking those steps, we're going to keep stacking these weeks together."
(on what was going through his head when he was running the touchdown back) (laughter) "Score. Nothing else but score. I've seen a lot of people getting chased down the last few weeks on scoop-and-score. So, I didn't want to be one of them."
(on if he knew CB Marlon Humphrey was this good and if it's difficult to speak positively about an Alabama player) "Don't say 'Bama' [Alabama] around me, man. (laughter) No, I knew Marlon [Humphrey] was great. I didn't know he was this great, though. This was like something I've never seen before. That's all the hard work that he's putting in coming to light. So, I'm happy for him. I just can't wait to see what he'll do next."
(on how the team felt to lose the shutout) "We didn't want them to score at all. The three points that they got, we didn't want them to have. That's what we were fighting so hard for on those few short yardage plays. We were just fighting and fighting, because we did not want them to get any points. We did not want to let up, and we did. We're going to fix the stuff that we messed up on down there, but at the end of the day, we played a great game. I just really want to celebrate with my teammates."
(on if it's still surprising to see receivers not know CB Marlon Humphrey will attempt to punch the ball out) "We were sitting there talking on the sideline. We were like, 'Bro, you see Marlon [Humphrey], why do you still run the ball?' Just get down; it doesn't make any sense. He does this over and over and over. But it's football at the end of the day. They're trying to get yards and Marlon is just Marlon. I'll live with that situation any day."
CB Marlon Humphrey
(on the defense having seven sacks today, including five by defensive backs) "It goes to show that we've got a lot of guys who, when we blitz, you don't know who is going to be free. Whenever we blitz, we all come thinking, 'I'm going to get the sack.' All guys that are blitzing are thinking, 'I'm going to get the sack.' Sometimes you get freed up, and you never know who it might be. We've got great pass rushers, but it's really good when you can have some DBs [defensive backs] get in there and get some sacks."
(on OLB Matthew Judon describing the defense as fun, and how he would describe what this defense is) "Man, I had a lot of fun today. I would definitely have to agree with that, but another thing I think is we're all just … We don't really care who makes a play, and I think that's what makes it so fun. Whoever makes a play, it seems like we all celebrate, like we made it. 'PQ' [Patrick Queen] just scooped and scored off a fumble recovery, and we all come together, guys are coming in from the sidelines, and let's take a picture in the end zone, because we feel like we all had our hand in that play. So, it's really fun, it's really great. Whoever makes a play, it doesn't matter, we all celebrate like we did."
OLB Matthew Judon
(on what allowed the Ravens' defense to bring such a good pass rush today) "We just knew where we could execute and plays that we could run, and we'd just seen some stuff on film that they allow a couple of free runners from the edges. So, our DBs [defensive backs] did a great job. They got to [Joe Burrow], [and] they got him down. I think every starting DB got a sack; that's kind of unheard of, and that just means we're sending people from anywhere and everywhere. So, it's kind of hard to pick up opposing offenses, and the DBs executed today. Marlon [Humphrey], Jimmy [Smith], DeShon [Elliott], Chuck [Clark], 'M.P.' [Marcus Peters], they're sack specialists now. So, they cover, and they're also sack specialists."
(on how he would describe this defense and what it is capable of) "This defense is fun. That's the best way I can describe it. This defense is fun, and when we hit like that, everybody is on point, and we're just fired up. We feed off of each other's energy, and it's just a fun defense."
