Coach John Harbaugh said he respects Lamar Jackson's opinion but he doesn't agree with the reigning NFL MVP's assessment that the Baltimore Ravens overlooked the Tennessee Titans in last season's shocking divisional-round upset.
"I don't think we took them lightly, personally. We just didn't play well," Harbaugh said in a 25-minute video conference call Monday. "If you want to go back and rehash it, we can. But we're going to try to become a better team in that circumstance at the end of the season, just like we tried to become a better team throughout the season and we were very successful with that."
The Ravens won a franchise-record 12 games to finish the regular season and entered the playoffs with a 14-2 record, the best mark in the league. But Baltimore abruptly exited the postseason in falling to the Titans, 28-12, on Jan. 11 in the divisional round after being a 10-point favorite. The Ravens became the first No. 1 seed to lose to a 6-seed since 2010.
Last week, Jackson said on Complex's "Load Management" podcast that he wants to focus on "not peeking ahead this season."
"That's what happened in the playoffs, and we end up losing to the team people had us favored over," Jackson said. "It's any given Sunday. You can't underestimate no team, no opponent and that's what we did. ... They caught us by surprise. That's all it was."
Harbaugh said Jackson's comments didn't upset him.
"Lamar said it, so I respect his opinion on it," Harbaugh said. "If he views it that way, that's how he views it. That doesn't bother me."
Jackson also made headlines last week when he tumbled over a jet ski in a video posted on social media. While playing beach football, Jackson ran with the ball before colliding with the parked jet ski and falling headfirst into the water. He was not injured on the fall, a source later said.
Asked if he had a chance to speak with Jackson about the video, Harbaugh said, "That's between me and him. So it's not something that I need to comment on publicly."