There was plenty of tension built up between the Baltimore Ravens and Tennessee Titans heading into their Wild Card matchup, and Mike Vrabel and John Harbaugh were a big part of it.
That didn’t stop the two head coaches from having a little fun before Sunday’s kickoff at Nissan Stadium, though.
Vrabel and Harbaugh provided arguably the most memorable exchange between coaches during the 2020 regular season. Harbaugh took exception with Titans players congregating on the Ravens’ midfield logo before the teams’ Week 11 game. Baltimore’s head coach needed to be separated from Malcolm Butler and appeared to deny a handshake from Vrabel following Tennessee’s overtime win.
Harbaugh and Vrabel met prior to the Ravens-Titans first-round tilt and joked about the aftermath of the teams’ previous collision.
“It was funny, with this whole thing from last time,” Harbaugh said. “All of this stuff about who could win the fight. I was just like — I didn’t want to say — the guy is like 6-foot-5, you know? It just cracks me up.”
“Somebody asked me this morning,” Vrabel replied. “I was like, if fighting coaches is going to help us win, I would do it. But unfortunately, the players are gonna be the ones that are gonna determine the game.”
Harbaugh’s Ravens ultimately won the battle on the field, notching a 20-13 win and a ticket to the divisional round. Baltimore celebrated on Tennessee’s logo following its game-sealing play and Lamar Jackson elected not to shake hands with any Titans players.
Unfortunately for football fans, the Ravens and Titans are not scheduled to meet during the 2021 regular season. But perhaps they’ll square off in the playoffs for the third time in as many campaigns.
