Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson initially stated Monday's loss to the Kansas City Chiefs felt identical to the team's AFC Divisional Round loss to the Tennessee Titans last season.
However, the reigning league MVP clarified his comments on Wednesday. Jackson said he was referring only to the outcome of the game, rather than the actual game plan:
“Nah, just the outcome,” Jackson said, via Andrew Gillis of NBC Sports Washington. “You hate losing. I was just basically saying the outcome of the game, not really as much as the scheme.
The Ravens lost that playoff game to the Titans by a score of 28-12, with the offense struggling to score points and move the ball.
Baltimore scored 20 points against the Chiefs on Monday, but also totaled just 228 yards of offense, with Jackson passing for just 97 yards.
But Ravens head coach John Harbaugh pushed back on the idea teams are hoping to force Baltimore to move the ball through the air, instead saying the Ravens just failed to capitalize on their opportunities.
“It wasn’t the same defense that they lined up,” Harbaugh said, via Gillis. “I thought they played very well, they had a good understanding and they were well coached by Steve Spagnuolo, they were very disciplined in their assignments. They knew what they wanted to give up and what they didn’t want to give up. We weren’t able to hurt them, we weren't able to get them on their heels and get them chasing us.”
Still, it is hard to ignore Spagnuolo's defensive approach.
The Chiefs packed the box and sent constant pressure after Jackson, sacking him four times. Even when Jackson had a clean pocket, he had a hard time delivering throws on target and missed a potential touchdown to Marquise Brown at a key juncture.
Opposing teams are likely to at least try and replicate what the Chiefs did Monday night, though Jackson and Harbaugh figure to make adjustments as well.
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