Head Coach Kevin Stefanski (11.8.23)

 

Opening statement:

“Okay, starting our work week here on a Wednesday. Great challenge for our football team going on the road against Baltimore. Division leaders, playing really well on all three sides of the ball. So, it’s a great challenge. We’re looking forward to it. It’s a great place to play, great atmosphere. So, we got to have a great week of practice, really is what we’re focusing on. You talk about their team offensively – Lamar (Jackson) [is] doing a great job spreading the ball around. Still always a threat to make off-schedule plays, he did that versus us in the first game. So they really challenge you on the perimeter. They challenge you certainly up front with a really good offensive line and a good scheme, run scheme as well, and good players throughout that perimeter, obviously with (Mark) Andrews at tight end is outstanding. Defensively, great, great challenge. I think Coach (Mike) Macdonald does a great job. They can pressure you. They can play coverage. They have various fronts that they can throw at you, coverages, you name it. So really about having a good week of preparation to get ready for that defense and then special teams have always done a great job under Coach (John) Harbaugh, as we all know. So really, the coverage phases, their return phases do a nice job, both from a technical standpoint, a scheme standpoint, and they play really physical. So great challenge. It’s what you get in the NFL going on the road in this division. So, we’re looking forward to it. But with that, I’ll take any questions.”

 

Who’s your left tackle going to be on Sunday?

“We have options. We’re going to work through all those options this week.”

 

What are the options?

“The tackles on our roster.”

 

What’s the short-term plan, though? I see Dawand (Jones) is out today. James (Hudson II) said he was going to go and work at right side. 

“Yeah, we’re working through all of our options. James certainly has played on both sides, so we’ll work through those. Both through walkthrough and practice today.”

 

With Dawand do you know if he’s going to be available Sunday? 

“Don’t know. Yeah, not going to practice today.”

 

How hard is it? I guess the two backups on your roster are new. So what kind of a challenge is that to get these guys ready? 

“That’s…you know, coaches work around the clock to get new players ready. I think of (James) Proche got here and was thrust into the game not just as a returner, as a receiver in this last game. So that’s what you have to do as coaches, get some new guys ready to play. That’s what we’ll do if need be.”

 

What games does (Greg) Newsome have to play, Sunday? 

“Yeah, I think we’ll see how this week goes. I know he’s not practicing today. We’ll see what tomorrow brings.”

 

If Dawand misses another day of practice. How difficult would that be then for him to move over to the left side after? 

“Yeah. Again, we have options. We’ll work through each of them. As a coach, you always have contingency plans, especially along the offensive line. Going into every game you talk about if you were to lose a guy here who would slide over those types of things. It’s just part of the life that you lead with contingency plans. Just getting ready.”

 

Last Wednesday you had a lengthy injury report and you said that you guys were adjusting practice to kind of handle that. Is that the plan this week as well? Or is it kind of back to a normal practice?

“It’s close to a normal practice. We’ll have pads on. I think it’s important to get our work done today so we’ll get a lot of full-speed work today.”

 

I assume that you’d agree that the offense hasn’t gone the way you guys planned when you’re in the lab with (Deshaun) Watson full strength, it seems more similar to last year with multiple tight ends. Are you okay with it? You think you could ride that out that way to where you want to go? 

“Yeah, I think we’re always of the mindset of whatever it takes that week. Obviously, like you mentioned, Deshaun hadn’t been in there for a little bit there now, getting him back, of course you start to alter things, but it’s really a week-to-week basis. What you feel like gives you the best matchup in that week.”

 

Is it less important who actually starts at left tackle versus right tackle? Because guys are coming from everywhere? 

“In some ways, yeah. I mean, you still have that technically blind side for the queue, especially a righty. But yeah, I think as you’ve seen with how we’ve operated, we feel like both tackle positions are really important. I don’t know if it matters less than it has in the past. I’m not sure.”

 

James (Hudson) hasn’t played a ton for you this year, but how has he played when he’s been out this year and then even going back to last year? 

“Yeah, he’s a trustworthy player when he’s out there, knows what to do, plays really hard, physical football player.”

 

Kevin, going back to that tackle position, is Joel (Bitonio) an option there or are you just thinking through?

“Like I said, we have options.”

 

How important is like Bill Callahan in all of this to make sure the guys are ready?

“Very. Yeah, you know, Coach (Callahan) does a great job with the game plan, with developing players, all those things. So, I lean heavily on his expertise really in all situations, but particularly right now.”

 

Their running game has really taken off since the last time you saw them. What’s different about it? 

“I thought they ran the ball really effectively last time we played them. You can get all certain types of runs. You can always get gap schemes from them. That’s what they’ve done quite a bit in the past. You add the quarterback run element to all of those runs and it adds a layer of difficulty. But they do a nice job, really, I’d say, in all their run types. And really, again with the threat of the quarterback, running just makes you have to do certain things on defense.”

 

I know they use a lot of eye candy, it seemed like against you guys, too, and I know we talked about that with the 49ers since they like to do that, but how do you think the defense is at adjusting to those type of things? 

“Yeah, I think if you see around the league, eye candy, shifts, motions are up, and they’ll continue to go up. Teams do them for a reason and they’re trying to distract sometimes. They’re trying to gain leverage, gain a gap, if you will. So those are things that we work very hard on in practice. In the scheme, there are various things that you can do to try to help your players, and we’ll always continue to do that. But shifts and motions and motions before the snap and fly motions, those types of things are certainly here to stay in the NFL.”

 

How has Lamar elevated his game this season?

“He’s playing at a very high level. I mean, former MVP can make every throw, very difficult, off-schedule. He’s playing very well.”

 

When you look at the film from that first Baltimore game and see the mistakes that you guys made in run defense, are they easy corrections to make? 

“I think going back to that one, there’s always corrections. Sometimes it’s assignment, sometimes it can be simple alignment, it can be technique. You give them credit. They had some good run types, and we can do a better job second time around.”

 

One of the goals your team had was to win the division. Do you feel it’s on the line with this game?

“Yeah. I mean, every team wants to win the division. We’re focused on this game, this week. Really want to win this game this week.”

 

They added a running back (Keaton Mitchell), activated him off the injured list and he went for 138 against Seattle. What dimension does he add to their running game? 

“Yeah, runs hard. I know size-wise, maybe not the biggest, but runs hard. They have multiple guys that they can hand the ball to. They have the receivers that they can hand the ball to. And then, like we mentioned, Lamar can keep the ball. So, they have a lot of options there in who they can spread the ball around to.”

 

What are the biggest challenges for a quarterback facing the Ravens’ scheme?

“Multifaceted, because they do so much. They can sit in a four-down front and just play simple zones like teams will do around the league. And then they can get in a variety of different fronts and disguise and bring pressure from all areas. So, I’d say their versatility really makes the quarterback have to trust his eyes.”

 

You’ve said before, every completion is important. Why do you think it’s been so difficult for Watson to complete short passes? 

“I’d have to look at the numbers. Are you going off of last week? Yeah, I wouldn’t – I think we’re early into his season, if you will. So not a major concern.”

 

When you look at the Ravens’ offense, they’ve got Rashod (Bateman) is backs from when you played them, Odell (Beckham) is out there, now Keaton Mitchell, Ronnie Stanley. Is it almost a different ballgame than when you’re playing for the first time? 

“I think that happens so often, Mary Kay (Cabot). Even though we only played them, whatever it was five weeks ago, I think injuries are part of this game, both losing guys and gaining guys back. So that’s always part of the game. There are some games you play a team back-to-back and they may not have a guy that they had earlier, but that’s just again, part of our job doing, making adjustments, understanding who their players are that maybe we didn’t see. So, the players have a good scouting report on them.”

 

It seems like JOK (Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah) has had some big games against them, do you expect him to be a big part of this one?

“Yeah, JOK is a huge part of what we do. You’re right, he’s played well versus this team. Looking forward to having him out there Sunday.”

 

Kevin, you’re halfway through the season here, right? Kind of the unofficial halfway point and you never really know how a season is going to go when you get into training camp. You guys have had some tough moments here, losing some guys. What are you most proud of so far and what are you most focused on trying to shore up here? 

“Yeah, it’s hard for me to make halfway point assessment-type things right now. I’m just so focused on this one. But like we’ve talked about a bunch, that’s the NFL with guys in and out of your lineup and you have to make adjustments. I think the guys have done that and we have to continue to do that.”

 

You said you can’t replace Nick Chubb, but you’ve been able to recreate your running game with three different guys. Do you feel like those skill sets have complemented each other pretty well and that each guy brings something to the table that really works? 

“Yeah, I do, and I think we’re learning. Pierre (Strong) showed up late to campus, so really getting an understanding of what he fits for us. Obviously, Kareem (Hunt) showed up late but was in great shape. And we kind of know Kareem and know his skill set and then Jerome (Ford) is still a young player, so part of it is just getting to know your players and fitting them in there when appropriate.”

 

Any update on Nick and the second surgery? 

“I don’t. Yeah, no update. He’s here today but doing well.”

 

You said you were confident that Deshaun would be able to protect himself. Were you satisfied with the way he did? He took a couple of big shots. 

“Yeah, took a couple of big shots. Again, as we know, that’s the NFL. And his goal, our offensive line’s goal, is always to keep him clean. Sometimes that doesn’t happen. He has the ability to go get first downs with his feet. He’s shown that over the course of time, he’ll continue to do that. And then it’s about being smart towards the end of that run.”

 

Back on Tony’s (Grossi) question about the short passes, specifically from this past game against the Cardinals, do you have a concern at all about some of the short passes or was it just a first-half thing? 

“Yeah, I really don’t.”

 

Did Cameron Mitchell’s hamstring injury come during the game? 

“Yes.”

 

Is Mike Ford the guy if Greg can’t go?

“We have options.”

 

At the beginning of the season, there was a lot of excitement about just some of the multi-dimensionality of your pass game with Deshaun offensively. When you just look the numbers on the surface, they don’t really jump out as far from a production standpoint. Are you happy with how that whole piece of the playbook has played out here and how maybe you give a little more explosiveness in the past game, besides what, Amari (Cooper) has done? 

“Yeah, I mean, our pass game, we want to lean on. Like you mentioned, Amari, Dave (Njoku), Elijah (Moore), I think those things come in bunches. He’s doing a great job. He’s doing what he’s asked to do. I think he’s a threat with the ball in his hands. So those are all things that will continue to grow over the course of the seasons.”

 

How different is this Ravens defense from earlier in the year when you guys faced them? 

“Yeah. It’s so hard to compare. I mean, they’re playing well. Obviously, they’ve played well at home the last couple. Have gotten guys back off of injury, good players, but they do a nice job. Schematically, they play hard, so we understand the challenge.”

 

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