Lamar Jackson is a once in a lifetime talent. And the Ravens are still going backwards
John Harbaugh has spent nearly two decades leading Baltimore,But his failure to get the most out of his quarterback is a fireable failingThere are losses, and then there are those defeats that show us exactly who a team are,The Steelers’ 26-24 win over the Ravens on Sunday night was the latter,It wasn’t just a loss; it was a referendum,The game was vintage, grubby, beautiful AFC North football.
A rivalry game with a playoff place on the line.Big plays.Dumb decisions.Cris Collinsworth making unintelligible noises on commentary.In the final three minutes, four plays swung the win probability by more than 40 percentage points.
The Steelers, missing DK Metcalf and Darnell Washington, scored on four of their five second-half drives, three of them touchdowns, with Aaron Rodgers finding Calvin Austin for a 26-yard score with 55 seconds left.Baltimore, by contrast, couldn’t get out of their own way until Lamar Jackson strapped on his cape, completing seven of his final nine passes, throwing two touchdowns and converting a ridiculously clutch fourth-down strike to Isaiah Likely with 21 seconds left and the season on the line.It should have been the defining moment of Baltimore’s year.Instead, they botched it.With 12 seconds remaining and a timeout in hand, the Ravens took a knee.
They had plenty of time to churn out an extra five or 10 yards, to turn the 44-yard field goal attempt into a chip shot and kill the clock.But John Harbaugh chose safety.Rookie kicker Tyler Loop missed the kick wide right.The Steelers celebrated a division title and the AFC’s No 4 seed.Baltimore went home.
It was classic Harbaugh.He has spent years skirting the edge of something great without ever quite stepping into it.The Ravens have been waiting to make The Leap for four seasons.They have lost in the wildcard round, the divisional round and the conference championship.Now, in a wide-open AFC, they haven’t even made the dance.
Their record with Jackson in the playoffs stands at 3-5.They haven’t cashed in on his prime, and the failures are starting to blur together.For years, Harbaugh’s strategic vision – which is vital in win-or-go-home games – has dimmed.The best coaches store up sneak attacks for specific opponents, pick on weak spots until they gush blood and go to creative lengths to hide the deficiencies on their own rosters.Being late finding the right countermove can cost you a game, a playoff berth or a championship.
The margin for error is that small, and Harbaugh doesn’t seem to have the goods.And in the biggest moments, his teams play tight.ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported on Sunday that Harbaugh’s future is “up in the air.” That’s fair.He has overseen 18 seasons of mostly sustained success in Baltimore and won a Super Bowl in the 2012 campaign.
But that was a long time ago,And the disappointments since then far outstrip the highs,This season was particularly cruel,An early injury crisis crushed the team on both sides of the ball,Jackson spent the season playing through various injuries.
Nnamdi Madubuike, the linchpin of the team’s pass-rush, missed the bulk of the year with a neck injury.Harbaugh barely got to coach the version of the team he envisioned.But it’s also the second wasted year with the Jackson-Henry backfield combination, with poor plans along the offensive line and on defense.The Ravens also looked unprepared on defense.Harbaugh promised changes in the middle of the season and the team traded edge-rusher Odafe Oweh to the Chargers for safety Alohi Gilman.
The defense, able to push Kyle Hamilton closer to the line of scrimmage, got back on track.Getting healthier certainly helped, too.From Week 9 onwards, Baltimore’s defense ranked seventh in success rate and ninth in defensive EPA per play.But it was too late.And in crunch time, the Ravens defense fell apart again, giving up a late touchdown drive to a Steelers team with no timeouts and a dysfunctional group of wide receivers in 60 seconds.
Harbaugh deserves credit for breathing new life into his tenure,It’s easy to say Jackson has carried his coach, but it was Harbaugh who believed in the quarterback before the rest of the league woke up to his talent,The partnership peaked for two years, with Jackson falling a single vote short of back-to-back MVPs last season,Anyone suggesting Harbaugh is a dolt must reckon with his 180 wins, his pre-Jackson Super Bowl ring and Jackson’s 2023 and 2024 seasons,But partnerships, like teams, can grow stale.
Next season will be year nine for Harbaugh and Jackson, and they look further away now than they did when they last missed the postseason, in 2021,Jackson has just two years left on his contract – and there are rumors of tension between the head coach and quarterback,A jolt of something – anything – new is what the Ravens need,If Harbaugh is let go, the hottest name will be Chargers defensive coordinator Jesse Minter, who spent his early coaching career in Baltimore,If the Ravens step outside the familiar, they could pair up Jackson with an offensive mind with fresh ideas, whether that’s Mike McDaniel, Klint Kubiak or Kliff Kingsbury.
Harbaugh has been the model of consistency – before and after his Super Bowl win.But when you’re working with a once-in-a-lifetime quarterback, consistency is not enough.Failing to reach the Super Bowl, let alone win one, becomes a fireable offence.The Ravens are talented.They are close.
But close has become the problem.When your season ends with a knee and a missed kick, it is hard to avoid the conclusion that the moment finally passed Harbaugh by.Nick Emmanwori, S, Seahawks.It felt fitting that Seattle clinched the NFC’s No 1 seed in the most Seattle way possible: playing suffocating defense.The 49ers were in scorching form coming into the winner-takes-the-top-spot contest – they had put up at least 37 points in three straight games.
None of that mattered on Saturday.Seattle’s defense restricted the 49ers to a solitary field goal in a 13-3 victory, holding Kyle Shanahan’s offense to its third-worst success rate of the season.Emmanwori proved to be the difference-maker again.Seattle are loaded with stars across their defense, but Emmanwori ties the three levels together.He posted the highest pressure rate (40%) of any Seattle pass-rusher, led the team in run stops (three) and gave up just 28 yards on seven targets in coverage.
Without Emmanwori, the Seahawks’ defense would be great.With him, it is special.Because of his size, speed, versatility and intelligence, the Seahawks can get to defensive looks that few others in the league can replicate.It’s hard to think of another rookie who has stepped into the league and shouldered Emmanwori’s workload on a league-leading defense.The reward is significant.
Barring a Super Bowl return to Levi’s Stadium in February, the Seahawks won’t be packing a suitcase for the rest of the season.And they will enter the postseason as the NFC’s most complete team.Their defense is the best in football, they top the charts on special teams and their run game has finally come alive.If Sam Darnold can stay within himself – a fairly substantial “if”, even now – Seattle should make it back to San Francisco.Myles Garrett gets the record.
pic.twitter.com/wQ3NabSA3cHe did it! Myles Garrett wrapped up his brilliant campaign by breaking the league’s single-season sack record.His 23rd sack of the year, against Cincinnati in the fourth quarter, pushed him past Michael Strahan and TJ Watt for the top spot.And he did so in a way only he can: Garrett crossed the line of scrimmage 0.
23 seconds after the snap, the fastest get-off on any sack this season, according to Next Gen Stats,It was a strange game overall for Garrett,He abandoned other responsibilities and focused almost exclusively (and understandably) on the record,But Cincy were equally focused on stopping him from chasing history,He faced a double team or chip block on 42% of his pass-rushes, the highest rate in a game this season, with Joe Burrow also shaving almost half a second off his average time to throw.
Eventually, though, Garrett got home.There will be some whining about extra games, circumstances, or, if you’re Zac Taylor, the post-sack celebrations.None of it sticks.Garrett picked up the record in 432 pass-rushing snaps, 100 fewer than Strahan and almost 200 fewer than Watt during their record-breaking years.He will finish the season with another Defensive Player of the Year award and a cool note on his Hall of Fame plaque.
Zero.The Jets have managed the unthinkable: they completed a 17-game season without intercepting a pass.Yes, you read that right.Zero.They’re the first team in NFL history to go a full season without an interception.
It is hard to overstate how impossible that should be,Jalyx Hunt, the Eagles edge-rusher, has three alone this season,Eventually, a tipped ball or a dumb quarterback decision goes your way,Not for these stanktastic Jets,They finished the season 3-14 after being pounded by the backup Bills 35-8.
It’s the kind of historical anomaly that should get any coach fired,Making a coach one-and-done is brutal,But Aaron Glenn has done nothing in his single season in charge to prove he has the makings of even a competent head coach,His game management has been poor, the team’s offense devoid of ideas and the defense, Glenn’s calling card, has been uncompetitive,Over the last five weeks of the season, the Jets’ average point differential was minus-26.
8.There’s losing, and then there’s quitting.The Jets’ players look like they chose the latter over the final months of the season.When that happens, the coach should be toast.Although even without Glenn the team would still be stuck with bumbling owner Woody Johnson, who has overseen a Jets playoff drought that stretches back to the 2010 season
Rukmini Iyer’s quick and easy recipe for roast sweet potato, feta and butter bean traybake | Quick and easy
A brilliant, warming 30-minute traybake, all in one tin. I love the combination of roast sweet potatoes with crumbled feta and a bright, fresh pesto; adding butter beans to the mix brings another hit of protein, as well as getting more legumes into your diet – win-win! A jar or tin of chickpeas would work just as well, if that’s what you have in, and feel free to substitute the parsley for other soft herbs, should you wish.Prep 15 min Cook 30 min Serves 22 large sweet potatoes, scrubbed or peeled (up to you) and cut into 1½cm chunks570g jar butter beans (or 400g tin butter beans), drained and rinsed2 tbsp olive oil 2 tsp smoked paprika2 tsp flaky sea salt 200g block feta, crumbledFor the spring onion pesto 25g flat-leaf parsley, leaves and tender stems3 spring onions, trimmed and roughly chopped50g almonds, or pine nuts 50ml extra-virgin olive oilJuice of ½ lemonHeat the oven to 200C (180C fan)/390F/gas 6. Tip the sweet potato chunks, butter beans, olive oil, smoked paprika and a teaspoon of sea salt into a roasting tin or tray large enough to hold everything in almost one layer, mix well, then roast for 30 minutes.Meanwhile, blitz the parsley, spring onions, nuts, olive oil, lemon juice and half a teaspoon of salt in a high-speed blender or chopper
Overnight oats, spinach pie and cheesy corn muffins: Alexina Anatole’s recipes for make-ahead breakfasts
The saying goes that you should breakfast like a king, and I’ve long found that the key to making that happen during the busy work week is to batch-prepare breakfast at the weekend. As we start a new year, the focus is back on balance, and these dishes offer both nourishment and flavour, while also being ideal for making ahead. The overnight oats are a source of fibre, the muffins are high in protein and the pie is a source of both.Prep 5 minCook 10 minSoak OvernightServes 4120g rolled oats 1 tsp ground cinnamon 4 small pears, 2 grated, 2 to garnishSalt120ml freshly squeezed orange juice (from 3-4 small oranges)2 balls stem ginger, finely chopped, plus 1½ tbsp syrup from the jar 200g greek yoghurt, plus extra to serveSliced pistachios, to serve (optional)In a small bowl, mix the oats, cinnamon, grated pears and a pinch of salt. In a second bowl, stir the orange juice, chopped stem ginger and ginger syrup, then stir this and the yoghurt through the oat mix
How to make the perfect breakfast tacos – recipe | Felicity Cloake's How to make the perfect …
Breakfast tacos should not be confused with tacos eaten for breakfast. Of course, they often are eaten for breakfast, but the stuffed flour tortillas eaten on both sides of the southern US border are quite different from the tacos mañaneros of central and southern Mexico, the rich, corn-based tacos de canasta (“tacos in a basket”) or the smoky beef barbacoa that Monterrey-born Lily Ramirez-Foran recalls being her dad’s favourite Sunday breakfast. Instead, Texas Monthly explains, breakfast tacos “marry the key elements of an American morning – scrambled eggs, bacon, potatoes – with the Mexican staples of salsa, cheese, refried beans … genius.”Although they’re originally a Mexican creation, according to José R Ralat, the magazine’s taco editor (what a job title!), these $3 treats are now so popular north of the border that they’re the subject of regular taco wars, mostly between those who claim Austin as their spiritual home (often blow-ins, according to their fiercest critics), and those who know that no single city can take the credit. The fillings may vary, from pork chops to chilaquiles and beans to cheese, but Ralat maintains that all should be salty, soft and, above all, comforting, and told the Washington Post a few years ago that “the greatest breakfast taco is the one made at home”
Poon’s at Somerset House, London WC2: ‘The tofu dip alone is worth booking a table for’ – restaurant review | Grace Dent on restaurants
The cooking is refreshingly light, delicate and, you might even say, wholesomeIf you find yourself ice-skating at Somerset House in central London over the next week or so (and hurry: you’ve got only until 11 January before it closes), then first please accept my commiserations. Second, please also note that the Chinese restaurant Poon’s, by Amy Poon, scion of the Poon’s restaurant dynasty, recently rooted itself in the New Wing.Ice-skating itself I have nothing against, but we can all agree that these slippery yuletide stampedes on temporary rinks are the polar opposite of festive, so surely it would be far better to be hiding indoors in the warmth with a round of prawn wontons, a bowl of nourishing “magic soup”, or some wind-dried meat claypot rice. Plus, when the weather outside is frightful, the decor in Poon’s is utterly delightful. So gorgeous, in fact, that within two minutes of entering this dusky, muted salmon-pink, twinkly peach, womb-like space, I found myself asking for the name and brand of the paint shade, because it felt instinctively one that, if applied to my own walls at home, would solve many existential problems
Benjamina Ebuehi’s recipe for yoghurt panna cotta with banana and tahini crumble | The sweet spot
I’m of the opinion that we still need dessert in January. In a month that’s typically grey, dreary and ridiculously long, it’s the little things that spark joy. Granted, I’m not necessarily reaching for anything too rich or heavy, but when I’m craving a bit of sweetness, the likes of this yoghurt panna cotta really hit the spot. If you squint, it could easily be mistaken for a fun breakfast pot.The crumble will make more than you need for this, so save the leftovers in an airtight container for a handy crunchy snack
How to turn the dregs of a bottle of beer into cheesy rolls – recipe | Waste not
If you don’t fancy the last warm finger or two of beer in your can, save it to bake into these fluffy, flavourful rollsI often don’t finish a large bottle or can of beer, leaving a bit in the bottom that barely seems worth saving. When I remember, I’ll pop it in the fridge and save it to add to a stew or batter, but today’s rolls are my new favourite way of using it up.You’ll need just 150ml beer to make these fluffy, super-flavourful buns. They’re a serious treat, and wonderful straight from the oven or dipped into a hearty stew. To build good gluten strength, especially when working with wholemeal flours, always add any extra flavourings such as cheese and herbs after the dough has had its initial proving time
Oil prices fall after Trump says Venezuela will send up to 50m barrels to US
Australia Post apologises for losing Aboriginal artist’s painting worth $4,000
AI consciousness is a red herring in the safety debate | Letters
Wave of Grok AI fake images of women and girls appalling, says UK minister
Jacob Bethell plays starring role in Ashes Wars Episode 5: A New Hope | Barney Ronay
Bethell’s elegant first Test century presses pause on Australia’s Ashes party