During his post-practice press conference Tuesday, Ron Rivera said he thought his offensive line played ‘better,’ which was good because the Ravens “are an established team with a bit of a tone and a tempo to how they do things, and that’s why John Harbaugh has been around so long.”
Grant Paulsen heard it in real time, and revealed that he initially thought Rivera put the Ravens – ‘not the Chiefs, by the way’ – on a bit of a pedestal given their history.
But after a second listen?
“It kind of dawned on me that we’re here in Year 4, but Rivera still talks sometimes like they’re a young group coming together and starting to build,” Grant said. “I understand we all interpret things differently, so I will listen if people say I’m making too much of this. But I hear this comment and it resonates with my feeling that the internal urgency is still not quite where I want it to be. Rivera talked about his five-year plan when he was hired, but we’re in Year 4 now and still building? There’s really no reason you’re not on the same level as the Ravens yet. This is basically a .500 team over two years, and we’re looking up to them like they’re superior? Shouldn’t you be at that level?”
“That’s the question,” Danny responded. “The standard is still so low somehow, and I can’t believe people accept this. When Jay Gruden was doing the best he could and chopping the wood he was given, it was fine, but when Ron Rivera picks every player, trainer, person who has anything to do with football operations…the expectations are higher, but he sets these soft notes, and it’s unbelievable to me.”
Grant recalled how Rivera answered a question last year if 2022 was a must-year in terms of a playoff berth, and the reporter was shut down.
“It is okay to have expectations,” Grant said. “That comment felt like he was saying ‘we’re practicing against the varsity today,’ and four years in, it shouldn’t feel that way when you’re practicing against a team like Baltimore. Am I on to something here, or is this an overreaction?”
Take a listen to that segment in full above!
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