Three days after the Ravens’ first collapse of the season, cornerback Marlon Humphrey’s telephone was nonetheless making him mad. The Ravens had squandered a 21-point fourth-quarter lead in a 42-38 dwelling loss to the Miami Dolphins, and Humphrey, one of many staff’s most social-media-inclined gamers, was letting himself get indignant yet again.
“Dang, bro,” Humphrey recalled saying within the wake of the Week 2 implosion. “Look what they stated.”
“You’re on Twitter?” operating again Gus Edwards advised him. “Get off that.”
“Dang, bro,” Humphrey stated, recounting their trade at a media availability two weeks in the past. “I believe you’re form of proper.” He deleted the Twitter app from his telephone and stated he’s used it solely sparingly since, preferring to have an middleman tweet for him when he desires to have interaction together with his 190,000-plus followers.
The ever-present perils of social media have been made abundantly clear Sunday, after the Ravens’ fourth collapse of the season. About an hour after the staff’s last-minute 28-27 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, quarterback Lamar Jackson lashed out at a fan who’d tagged him in a tweet saying the Ravens shouldn't decide to him financially.
Jackson, a pending free agent with over 1 million followers, advised the fan to “STFU” — “shut the [expletive] up” — and ended his remark with a vulgar insult. Earlier than the message was deleted hours later, it had been retweeted hundreds of occasions. The trade grew to become fodder for sports activities speak in Baltimore and past.
Ravens coach John Harbaugh stated he met Monday with Jackson to debate his tweet, which he known as “so out of character for him.” (Jackson was scheduled to handle reporters Wednesday, however a quadriceps damage delayed his information convention.) Harbaugh additionally stated the incident mirrored his extra basic wariness of social media.
“Actually, you simply beg guys to not get into the Twitter world proper after the sport, particularly after a loss,” Harbaugh stated Monday. “It’s by no means going to be constructive. It’s not going to be a pleasant place. … That’s not the best way [Jackson] speaks, that’s not the best way he talks, it’s not the phrases he ever makes use of. I’ve by no means heard him say issues like that earlier than, however he desires to win. I’m certain he’s annoyed, similar to all of us are, and that’s only a place you simply don’t wish to dwell proper after a sport.”
It may be onerous to keep away from. Defensive lineman Calais Campbell stated Wednesday that “all people” engages with social media after video games, particularly video games with extra constructive outcomes. “While you win,” he stated, “you wish to have a look at every thing.” However he added: “While you lose, it’s like, ‘Eh, flip this off.’”
After Sunday’s loss, during which the Ravens gave up leads of 19-10 early within the fourth quarter and 27-20 with about two minutes left, gamers stated they couldn’t let the sport “beat you twice.” No matter how Week 12 had ended, they needed to regroup in time for Week 13, a house sport in opposition to the slumping Denver Broncos.
“On the finish of the day, the primary factor of ‘Don’t let it beat you twice’ is that you simply transfer on and begin making ready for the following sport,” Campbell stated. “You don’t need that hangover, the place you’re nonetheless annoyed, nonetheless form of moping round, and also you don’t put together like you need to, you don’t put the work in. However the work we’ve put in thus far already this week has been nice. We've got much more work to place in.”
Inside linebacker Patrick Queen, one of many staff’s hottest gamers on Twitter, is aware of what awaits him on the platform. Generally it’s critics he’ll interact with. Generally it’s memes he’ll chuckle at.
“For me, actually, I get on Twitter as a result of Twitter’s obtained a variety of humorous stuff on it, clearly, and stuff,” Queen stated Wednesday. “So I like to take a look at humorous movies and stuff, but when I see any individual [mention] me, generally I would reply. Generally I won't. It's what it's. Half of them don’t even know what they’re speaking about anyway, so it's what it's.”
Outdoors linebacker Tyus Bowser, who co-hosts a bimonthly radio present for PressBox through the season, stated he was requested at Tuesday’s taping how he handles conditions the place he feels virtually compelled to remark. Bowser stated he often holds his tongue; the much less consideration he pays to social media feedback, the extra probably he's to keep away from additional blowback.
“These individuals who in all probability are underneath a basement, don’t have something going for themselves — it’s like, why do you give that spotlight to these varieties of folks?” he stated Wednesday. “As a result of you might have higher issues to perform. You may have higher issues to fret about. So in these conditions, I don’t fear about them. I imply, individuals are going to say what they wish to say, however on the finish of the day, we’re execs. We’re guys who play this sport, and so they’re simply spectators. So not too many individuals know what they’re speaking about, so there’s no cause to even give them guys the eye.”
Campbell, who’d joined a small group of reporters round Bowser within the locker room after observe, appeared on, impressed.
“Who stubborn you out, man?” he joked.
“Hey, man, I’ve been by means of rather a lot prior to now 5 years, man. So whenever you begin seeing stuff, you’ve simply obtained to discover ways to block it out.”
“Don’t even learn it. Don’t even learn it. Flip it off!”
“Hey, man, I’m making an attempt to. I’m making an attempt to.”
Campbell shook his head. “That Twitter, that modified the sport, bro. We will all see what all people thinks of us.”
“Hey, I’ve been seeing it, man,” Bowser stated, grinning. “I’m making an attempt to avoid it.”
Week 13
Broncos at Ravens
Sunday, 1 p.m.
TV: Chs. 13, 9
Radio: 97.9 FM, 101.5 FM, 1090 AM
Line: Ravens by 8 1/2
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