Baltimore Ravens coaches and players discuss their upcoming game against the New England Patriots on Sunday Night Football.
On facing the Patriots...
"You really don't look at the record when you look at the tape – you look at the tape, and you look at the scheme and the players and how it relates to what you're trying to do. It's a very big challenge, because they have a great coaching staff. They always find ways to scheme up their opponents in different ways; we have to try to anticipate that. Especially with what we do offensively, which is different than what a lot of people do. They have very physical players on defense, for instance. They have a physical offensive line and downhill running game, with a really good, young back. It's a big challenge. Their special teams are as good as anybody in the league."
- Ravens Head Coach John Harbaugh
"It's still a Bill Belichick-led team. So, you have to respect them and give them the respect they deserve. You have to play hard against them, because they play hard. They're a well-coached team. They work well together. That team has always been a plug-and-play type of offense. Their defense has always been that way, as well. So, you have to definitely give them their respect. They're still a good football team, and you still have to go out there and bring your best, because they're going to bring their best."
- Ravens Defensive End Derek Wolfe
On Cam Newton...
"I watched Cam since Auburn. Everyone in the country did. Everyone knew about Cam – Superman – doing his thing. A lot of us looked up to him. He's a mobile quarterback. He does his thing. He won the Heisman, won the college championship, won MVP, went to the Super Bowl. I followed him a lot, wanted to get to where he's at. Now I'm here, now I've got to play against him. I just can't wait to do that."
- Ravens Quarterback Lamar Jackson
"We've played against Cam Newton before, obviously. The last time we played against him, he had a very good game against us – we remember that. So, that will be the challenge. He's an excellent quarterback. [He's] a very aware player, very talented, [has] a great arm. [He] can beat you with his legs, as well. So, that's our challenge this week."
- Ravens Head Coach John Harbaugh
"He's a big-body guy who can move, so you have to tackle him like a [running] back. You have to be aware of him at all times. People forget that he won the MVP not too long ago; that wasn't that long ago. So, he's still got it. He's still a good football player. I have a ton of respect for him. I've played against him a bunch. So, we just have to respect what he can do with his legs."
- Ravens Defensive End Derek Wolfe
On the Patriots secondary...
"They have more than two quality corners and players back there; they have a whole group. That's a very good secondary, very well-coached, very coordinated. They work well together with the front and each other – I think that's a mark of a great secondary. They also are ballhawks. They're very aggressive attacking the ball at the catchpoint; that's something we're going to have to be very conscious of and very aggressive towards. They've got 10 interceptions so far this year – that's to your point. It's definitely a great part of their team, and I think it's something they focus on."
- Ravens Head Coach John Harbaugh
On the Patriots defense...
"Going against Coach [Bill] Belichick is always an extreme challenge. When you look at their defense right now, they're extremely fundamentally sound. They play very physical, as they always do on the front. They have every adjustment in the book as far as how they can play certain things, and they can change it up on the fly. It's a great challenge from that standpoint. I think everybody knows what a legendary coach he is in this league, and everybody has a lot of respect for that. At the same time, we're just focused on … Once you recognize that, you focus on, 'Hey, it's time to get ready to play this game. It's time to get ourselves ready to go.' I think that's what we're focused on, really, is getting ready for those three hours on Sunday."
- Ravens Offensive Coordinator Greg Roman
