The Baltimore Ravens were leading the Denver Broncos 23-7 with just three seconds left on Sunday when they decided to tie a NFL rushing record instead of kneeling down to end the game and man did the Broncos not like that at all.
In case you missed it, Ravens coach John Harbaugh had his team run the ball so they could get over 100 yards rushing as a team. Lamar Jackson picked up five yards to lift the team over the 100-yard mark and the Ravens became just the second team in NFL history to have 43 straight games of over 100 yards rushing as a team.
It was a pretty dorky way to tie a NFL record that nobody cares about but I have no problem with Harbaugh doing that – you play to the final whistle and if you want to do something dorky like that then, well, the other team has a job to do and should try to stop you and be done with it.
Broncos coach Vic Fangio, however, wasn’t happy at all. First there was this video where he seemed mad at his defense and the situation:
WATCH: The Broncos sideline was enraged as the Ravens decided to run the ball on the final play of the game rather than take a knee. #9sports #BroncosCountry pic.twitter.com/QshWgAbkpX
— 9NEWS Sports Denver (@9NEWSSports) October 4, 2021
Then on Monday he didn’t hold back. There’s a bad word here so if that’s not you’re thing then you’ve been warned!
Vic Fangio, on the Ravens not kneeling on the final play Sunday:
“Yeah, I thought it was kind of bullshit, but I expected it from them.”
Why did he expect it?
“Because I know how they operate. That’s their mode of operation there … player safety is secondary."
— Andrew Mason (@MaseDenver) October 4, 2021
That seems like quite a shot to take at the Ravens and their concerns for player safety.
Here’s video of Fangio talking about it:
Vic Fangio on the Ravens decision to run the ball late to try to get to 100 yards, “I thought it was kinda bullshit.”#BroncosCountry @CBSDenver pic.twitter.com/TxZcKCs0p9
— Michael Spencer (@MichaelCBS4) October 4, 2021
Here was the play:
The @Ravens keep the streak of 100-yard rushing games alive, tying the NFL record of 43 games. #RavensFlock pic.twitter.com/aluv7h4y03
— NFL (@NFL) October 3, 2021
Again, seems like a lame take from Fangio. This is a professional sport, you play to the final whistle even if the other team pulls a dork move.
Twitter had reactions about the complaining by Fangio but also about how he used three timeouts in the final 30 seconds while trailing by 14 points.