John Harbaugh allows ruthless, unnecessary, distasteful touchdown pass at end of 56-19 win
BALTIMORE — John Harbaugh has a reputation of never letting off the throttle, and we saw him live up to that reputation once again on Sunday.
The Ravens were leading the Dolphins 49-19 with 2:33 to play, when backup quarterback Tyler Huntley was permitted by Harbaugh to pass to tight end Charlie Kolar for a 19-yard touchdown.
Final score: 56-19.
What could have made the unnecessary passing play even more distasteful is that Dolphins star Bradley Chubb had just been carted off the field with an apparently serious knee injury.
Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel, predictably, did not publicly criticize Harbaugh.
"I didn't really have any thoughts, like, you know, in terms of the opposing teams' decision making," McDaniel said after the game. "When you have a lead of multiple scores, you're free to do whatever you want. So you know, we have to defend it, we didn't."
Harbaugh and Dolphins defensive coordinator Vic Fangio have a history.
Two year ago, Fangio objected when in the final seconds of a 23-7 Ravens win, Harbaugh had quarterback Lamar Jackson run the ball rather than take a knee.
Jackson gained 5 yards, which gave the Ravens 102 rushing yards and extended their streak to an NFL record-tying 43 games with at least 100 yards.
“I thought it was kinda (B.S.), but I expected it from them,” Fangio said then, as Denver head coach. “Thirty-seven years in pro ball. I’ve never seen anything like that, but it was to be expected.”
Why?
“Because I just know how they operate," Fangio added. "That’s just their mode of operations there. Player safety is secondary.”
Perhaps Harbaugh had that in mind when he allowed for the ruthless touchdown pass.
“It is what it is," Dolphins defensive tackle Christian Wilkins said. "You know, regardless of what they call in that situation and whatever the situation is, we’ve got to be ready to defend that. And a lot of that stuff, I mean, it is what it is. You know, we just got to put our best foot forward always while we’re out there.”
Harbaugh has a history with the Dolphins.
In 2019, Harbaugh allowed a fake punt to be run while leading Miami 35-3.
Facing criticism, Harbaugh said then: "The point is and I know the Dolphins understand this, the objective is to keep your offense on the field and keep your defense off the field by any means necessary."
Earlier this season, McDaniel cited "karma" when he decided not to kick a field goal in the closing moments of a 70-20 blowout of the Broncos. He chose to kneel, when a kick would have set an NFL record for points in a game.
Joe Schad is a journalist at The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at jschad@pbpost.com and follow him on social media platforms @schadjoe. Sign up for Joe's free weekly Dolphins Pulse Newsletter. Help support our work by subscribing.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: John Harbaugh allows touchdown pass late in Dolphins-Ravens rout
