OWINGS MILLS, Md. — Finish. It was the buzz word in the locker room following one of the most frustrating losses in one of the most frustrating starts to a season in Ravens franchise history.
So what does it mean to finish?
"Finishing is a habit," said head coach John Harbaugh on Monday. "The idea is that you finish everything – finish everything all the time – and that’s kind of the way the program is built, [and] that’s the way we built the whole operation. You finish your workout. You finish your film study. In practice you finish the play. You finish the communication. You finish the call... You just have to finish. You have to make it a habit to finish. And it’s not easy, because the other team is trying to do the same thing."
Sunday’s 24-20 loss to the New York Giants was the Ravens' third fourth-quarter collapse of the season.
"We got to get better in the red zone, both sides of the ball. We got to get better on third down, both sides of the ball. We can’t make critical errors in critical fourth down situations, both sides of the ball," said Harbaugh.
Two turnovers in the final three minutes of the ballgame did in Baltimore. Lamar Jackson’s poor choice to force a pass, following a fumbled snap with a three-point lead, was intercepted. That led to the Giants’ game-winning touchdown.
"The basic rule that I think Lamar would tell you, and any player would tell you in that situation, is that you try not to make a bad situation worse," said Harbaugh. "But that’s definitely one that he’s going to want back."
Is Lamar trying to do too much?
"You can describe it that way probably. In that situation it’s probably a really apt description," replied the head coach.
Just how statistically bewildering is this Ravens season so far? They have held double-digit leads in each of their first six games. They are the 39th team in NFL history to do that. At 3-3, they are the only one not to have a winning record.
"We have given up leads in the fourth quarter in three different games. That’s not something that I’ve ever experienced," said Harbaugh. "It keeps happening. We’ve got to get it fixed."
Could a veteran receiver help them try to do just that? ESPN is reporting that 35-year-old free-agent DeSean Jackson will visit the Ravens on Tuesday.
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