Ravens defensive players want coordinator Dean Pees back

By Edward Lee

January 2, 2018

The report that surfaced Sunday morning found its way to the players who make up the Ravens defense. And if it is true that defensive coordinator Dean Pees is planning to retire after Sunday’s 31-27 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, some players say they hope Pees calls an audible.

“Dean has to make the decision for him and his family,” outside linebacker Terrell Suggs said. “If he thinks it’s time to hang it up, then he’s going to do so. We’re going to miss him, but we’d love to have him back so we can finish. Don’t nobody want to finish like this."

Added rookie cornerback Marlon Humphrey: “He’s a great defensive coordinator. I hope he can stay with us for another year.”

Several players said they were uncertain the 68-year-old Pees would step away, and the best person who could answer that — Pees himself — left M&T Bank Stadium shortly after the game had ended, according to a team spokesman.

If Sunday night was Pees’ final regular-season game as the team’s defensive coordinator, he might have much to be proud of. The defense finished the regular-season leading the NFL in interceptions with 22 and total takeaways with 33.

The Ravens had allowed the fourth fewest points per game at 18.1 and were in the top 10 in fewest passing yards allowed per game (213.9), total yards allowed per game (322.8), third-down defense (37.2 percent success rate) and red-zone defense (47.6 percent). The unit was poised to finish in the top 10 for the fourth season in a row.

Those numbers might change, however, after Sunday’s loss. Cincinnati gained 146 rushing yards courtesy of a ground game that had been ranked second-to-last in the league. And with the Ravens nursing a 27-24 lead, the defense surrendered a 49-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Andy Dalton to wide receiver Tyler Boyd on fourth-and-12 with 44 seconds left in the fourth quarter.

This was cornerback Brandon Carr’s first year with the Ravens, but it did not take him long to understand Pees’ value to the defense.

“His fingerprints are all across this defense,” said Carr, who tied a career high in interceptions with four. “Just the years that he’s been here, you’ve seen the shutouts and big-game defenses that we’ve had from his play-calling. So without him, moving forward, if it happens that way, we’re going to miss him. But at the same time, it’s going to be time for the next person to step up, that next signal caller for the Ravens defense to go out here and call some plays for us.”

If Pees does retire, finding his successor will be a significant priority in the offseason. Coach John Harbaugh has promoted from within on all three occasions during his tenure when he’s had to hire a new defensive coordinator, and linebackers coach Don “Wink” Martindale is expected to be the top candidate. Martindale was the Denver Broncos defensive coordinator in 2010 and played a crucial role in developing young linebackers C.J. Mosley, Zachary Orr and Patrick Onwuasor.

There could be some intriguing options outside of the organization. Chuck Pagano was fired by the Indianapolis Colts after Sunday’s win against the Houston Texans, and Pagano was the Ravens defensive coordinator in 2011, the year before Pees took over. Indianapolis defensive coordinator Ted Monachino was the Ravens linebackers coach from 2012 to 2015.

Although word of Pees’ plan began trickling to the players before Sunday’s game, Carr said there was not much talk among them.

“If anything, [it was,] ‘Let’s go out with a bang.’ That was the main thing,” he said. “But I didn’t put too much weight into it. I’ve been around long enough and lot of stories come out around this time, a lot of distractions. It’s just noise. Just block it out. I don’t think anybody talked about that today.”

But with an unclear offseason awaiting the organization, the defensive players spoke glowingly of how meaningful Pees has been to them.

“All I can say is I appreciate him,” defensive tackle Brandon Williams said. “He’s the best defensive coordinator I’ve ever been around. From his resume alone, he’s a top defensive coordinator. If he’s not here, hopefully God is with him, and he has a great life and is prosperous in what he does. Hopefully though, he’s back. He’s a guru.”

Said Mosley: “I love him. He’s had a long career, way before I was born. I love him as a man. Obviously, it’s something out of our control, but he’s got my full support no matter what he does.”

Trey Flowers in no rush to bring attention to himself and his potentially career high sack numbers

By Jeff Howe

December 31, 2017

FOXBORO — Defensive end Trey Flowers is peerless among Patriots pass rushers over the past two seasons, and he has a chance to set a career high today in the regular-season finale against the Jets at Gillette Stadium.

Flowers has 6.5 sacks, which is just shy of his seven from a season ago. Barring a late charge from linebacker Kyle Van Noy (5.5 sacks, but potentially inactive due to a calf injury) or rookie defensive end Deatrich Wise (five sacks), Flowers will lead the team in back-to-back seasons.

It just isn’t a huge deal to him.

“It is what it is. I’m not looking for any milestones,” Flowers said. “As long as we get the win, as long as I do my job, that’ll be cool.”

Flowers has been impactful across the board. He leads the Patriots with 20 quarterback hits, 18 pressures and 44.5 disruptions (sacks, hits and pressures). Those numbers would have led the team last year, too, even including all playoff games, which is indicative of the punishment Flowers has levied upon opponents.

Plus, Flowers missed two games this season, and offenses targeted him far more frequently than in 2016, when the Pats also had Dont’a Hightower, Jabaal Sheard, Rob Ninkovich and Chris Long to help the pass rush.

Flowers, who is consistently businesslike with his approach, said it’s just been his job description to be better this season, and there’s nothing more to it.

“I know my role has increased, so therefore my opportunities to be productive have increased,” Flowers said. “It’s my job to continue as such and keep getting better.”

The stats don’t always tell the story, either. A great pass rush might not result in a sack, but maybe an incompletion or interception, or possibly even a sack for someone else. But regardless of how Flowers’ season is measured, it’s blown away his production from his breakout campaign from a year ago.

“I’m not a real numbers guy,” Flowers said. “I’m more about impact. Oftentimes, you probably get a good rush, but he could let the ball go in a second and it’s an incomplete pass, so there are things like that. I’m not a big numbers guy. I want to be as impactful as I can, do the best job I can.”

How a punter changed the course of NFL history

12 Sep 1999: Tom Tupa #7 of the New York Jets passes the ball during the game against the New England Patriots at the Giant Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Patriots defeated the Jets 30-28. Mandatory Credit: Ezra O. Shaw /Allsport

By Noah Frank

December 29, 2017

WASHINGTON — With nine of the 12 available playoff spots already locked down, along with seven of the eight division titles, there are very few important NFL games being played this weekend. In fact, the only game that will affect both a playoff spot and a potential division champion is Carolina vs. Atlanta, with the Panthers having already made the playoffs.

But just because there aren’t many meaningful games doesn’t mean there can’t be some fun ones. In that vein, it’s worth taking a look back and appreciating one of the craziest games in modern NFL history, the aftermath of which’s far-reaching effects are still being felt.

You may remember Tom Tupa (he finished his career with one season in Washington in 2004). A punter with an alliterative name that rolled off the tongue, he was also a college quarterback his senior season at Ohio State, and even a starting quarterback in the NFL, going 4-9 over 13 starts with the Cardinals between 1989-91. Perhaps that’s why when he was the Cleveland Browns’ punter and Bill Belichick was head coach, he was used to score the first two-point conversion in NFL history. Tupa’s fake from the holder position was actually used three times in that 1994 season, earning the nickname Two Point Tupa.

Fast-forward to 1999. Tupa is now playing for the New York Jets, under Bill Parcells, with Belichick as his offensive coordinator. In the opening quarter of the first game of the season against the New England Patriots, franchise quarterback Vinny Testaverde goes down in a heap, his Achilles ruptured.

Parcells had a decision to make. An obscure NFL rule did not allow him to activate his bench quarterback, Rick Mirer, until the fourth quarter, without losing his emergency quarterback (and punter), Tupa. Parcells rolled the dice on putting Tupa under center — the gamble worked.

Tupa wasn’t perfect, taking a number of sacks, including one which led to a fumble and a New England touchdown. But he was otherwise pretty spectacular.

Tupa entered the fourth quarter 6-for-11 for 165 yards and two touchdowns. He came in with his team down 10-7, but Parcells pulled him in favor of Mirer for the fourth quarter, with the Jets within five points. The Jets took the lead with a pick-six with under 10 minutes to play, but Mirer threw the game away — literally. He completed just four of his 11 passes, gaining just 28 yards and throwing a pair of interceptions, including the one that led to the game-winning field goal by none other than Adam Vinatieri.

The Jets missed the playoffs by a single game, with the opener against the Patriots a glaring missed opportunity. Had they made it, Parcells may never have retired, as he did at the end of the ’99 season, opening the door for his assistant, Belichick, to become the next head coach of the Jets. But the Patriots fired their head coach — Pete Carroll — as well. That led to Belichick joining the Patriots and, after a successful stint at USC, Carroll to the Seattle Seahawks.

The rest is not just history, but the dominant history of the league for nearly two decades, with New England drafting Tom Brady the next summer and winning five Super Bowls during his tenure. The fourth win came over the defending champion Seahawks, coached by Carroll, on the final play.

What might the last 18 years of the NFL have looked like if Parcells had let Tupa finish that game? We’ll never know. But it goes to show how even the most simple, insignificant-seeming choices can have ripple effects still felt across the league years later. Who knows — maybe something wild will happen this Sunday, the true impact of which won’t be felt for years to come. If we’re lucky enough to get anything like a Tom Tupa Game, hopefully whoever our unlikely hero is gets a chance to finish the job.

WATCH: That Time a Punter Played QB for the Jets and Threw 2 TD's | NFL Highlights

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