Ravens coach John Harbaugh on Monday reiterated the explanation he gave in the minutes after the 23-20 loss on Sunday, saying there is “nothing less safe” than a three-point lead against an offense as good as the Bills'. (Nick Wass, AP)
A day after a gusty call backfired, Ravens coach John Harbaugh said he stands by his decision to go for a touchdown on fourth-and-goal instead of asking Justin Tucker to kick a go-ahead field goal in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s 23-20 loss to the Buffalo Bills.
“I feel the same way as I felt during the game and after the game,” he said Monday.
Harbaugh reiterated the explanation he gave in the minutes after the loss, saying there is “nothing less safe” than a three-point lead against an offense as good as Buffalo’s. He said if the Ravens had scored to go up 27-20, “I think we have a better chance of defending that.”
Instead, quarterback Lamar Jackson threw an interception, and the Bills started from their 20-yard line instead of from the 2-yard line, where they would have been if Jackson simply threw an incompletion.
Harbaugh took widespread criticism from fans and analysts in the wake of the loss but said he had no regrets about steering away from the “safe decision” of kicking a field goal.
As he reviewed the end of the game, he also noted that outside linebacker Odafe Oweh made the correct play when he went for a strip on Bills running back Devin Singletary in the final two minutes. The Ravens wanted to let Singletary score, even help him into the end zone, so they could get the ball back. But Harbaugh said Singletary was going down on his own, so Oweh was right to try for the turnover. The Bills ultimately ran the clock down before kicking a game-winning field goal as time expired.
As for cornerback Marcus Peters’ outburst on the sideline, which ended with him screaming and throwing his helmet to the ground, Harbaugh said he’s not concerned about lingering tension.
“Marcus is an emotional guy; I’m an emotional guy,” he said. “I don’t anticipate any issues at all.”
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Originally published at Tribune News Service