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John Harbaugh is full of them. If you were Broncos coach Vic Fangio, led 23-7 at home and leading with 30 seconds left and timeouts burning in your back pocket, you’d be throwing stone too.
Before everyone gets up and applauds Harbaugh, Fangio’s contemporary with the Baltimore Ravens, for having the final say in Monday’s garbage row, keep two things in mind:
1. While we are taking the Teddy Bridgewater train to the end of the line, number 5 has, shall we say, a little an injury record. Broncos quarterback Drew Lock needed – and needs – all the low-leverage clichés in “play” situations, at “play” speed, that you can possibly give him.
2. If you are going to lose, NFL rules encourage close losses on blowouts.
Seriously. You have to squint a little. But it’s right there in the books. Point differential Actually Questions.
See, in the event of a tie to settle a division winner or a wildcard place, tiebreaker # 9 is “Best net points in common games” – that is, matches against opponents of the AFC.
Tiebreaker # 10? “Best net points in all games. “
Tiebreaker # 11? “Best net touchdowns in all games. “
So here is. Even late 16, a desperate cause, I push him.
That’s why the New York Giants, down 27-7 against the Broncos at home, went gonzo after the 2-minute warning in Week 1, shooting a touchdown in the trash when time expired. .
“So you throw the ball into the end zone with 10 seconds left?” Harbaugh hit back on Monday after being called out by Fangio earlier today. “I don’t know if there’s a 16-point touchdown that will be possible there.”
Spare us, Johnny. The NFL bushido says if you’re lagging behind, you keep swaying. Even if it’s silly, one cartoon character is swinging while the other guy stiffens your face.
He also says that if you agree with the outcome, be a gentleman. Be a pro. Put away the sword.
Fangio, who has worn the NFL shield for nearly four decades, has stuck to written and unwritten rules. Harbaugh has stayed true to his ego.
Something about all of this seems a bit… personal. Is not it ? Uncle Vic knows everyone in this league. He worked with John on the Ravens team in 2008 and 2009. Then, more importantly, he was defensive coordinator for Jim Harbaugh, John’s brother, from 2010 to 2014 – first at Stanford (2010) , then with the 49ers (2011-14).
In December 2010, Fangio told the San Francisco Chronicle that his departure from the Ravens was “very mutual.” Several media have reported that Uncle Vic was courted by Jim Harbaugh “a number of times” before finally agreeing to join Cardinal’s staff.
“It is a miracle (that) this has happened,” Jim told The Mercury News in September 2010. when asked to work with Fangio.
Things that spring up, above all. If there is was bad blood bubbling, beneath the surface, everyone did a great job covering it up. Or it’s relatively cool.
When Harbaugh and the Ravens chose three seconds to go to lead the ball with star quarterback Lamar Jackson in their own 20s rather than take a knee, Fangio went ballistic. Channel 9 footage showed the Broncos coach first frantically saluting his defense to get closer to the line of scrimmage, then, when the play is over, remove his helmet and throw him to the ground in disgust.
Temperatures warmed up again on Monday morning, when Fangio called the final piece a “bull (expletive)… but I’ve been expecting it ever since (Baltimore). In 37 years of prom, I’ve never seen anything like it. But that was to be expected. And we expected it. “
The Ravens were chasing an NFL record – 43 straight games with at least 100 rushing yards per team. Baltimore was 97 before the final snap. John Harbaugh said Monday in response to Fangio’s spikes they went, in part because the Broncos had requested timeouts to try to score late. As if it was a private and sacred affront.
“Their concerns,” Harbaugh told reporters, “are certainly not ours.”
When the Ravens coach yelps about his “concerns”, the one at the top of the list, number one, is the ego of man. If there is a carrot at the end, no stick is too short.
The guy played halfback JK Dobbins in all three preseason tilts this summer, only for Dobbins to sustain a knee injury ending the season. Did we mention that the Ravens were, at the time, looking for another NFL record who cares – 20 straight show wins?
You can’t reason with these people. You can’t rationalize with them. You just let them go, wish them luck, and cry for those in their care. Jackson, especially.
Forty-three consecutive games. Congratulations, Johnny. Here is a lollipop. Now stop treating the rest of us like suckers.
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