Baltimore might have lost Sunday's game against the Indianapolis Colts, but Kyle Hamilton etched his name in Ravens lore after putting together a performance for the ages.
Playing makeshift nickel cornerback after Ar'Darius Washington was placed on IR earlier on the week, Hamilton returned to the position he thrived at during his 2022 rookie season.
The safety-turned-nickel back ended Week 3 with nine tackles, two tackles for a loss, three quarterback hits, one pass defended, and three sacks. Hamilton sacked Garden Minshew thrice in the first half alone.
It was arguably the best game in Hamilton's career to date, and he did it out of his natural safety position.
Now his teammate in Baltimore after he signed with the franchise this summer and a former first-overall, no less, Jadeveon Clowney gave Hamilton all the flowers following Sunday's loss (h/t Rocco DiSangro).
"I call him the Avatar. 6'4 at safety, can run, can hit,"
— Rocco DiSangro (@RoccoDiSangro) September 24, 2023
Jadeveon Clowney with high praise and a new nickname for Kyle Hamilton after his 3 sack game #RavensFlock pic.twitter.com/hylYQEMKJr
"I call him 'The Avatar,'" edge rusher Jadaveon Clowney said. "Six–four at safety--can run, can hit." In case you are not aware, Clowney was referencing Disney's movie saga "Avatar."
Quoth Uncle Iroh: "It is the combination of the four elements in one person that makes the Avatar so powerful."
The studio must have loved this free advertising!
Clowney also acknowledged he "likes playing with him," adding, "I think he’s a great player, smart guy. Kyle, he’s going to bring it."
The veteran rusher, however, was a little bit mad at the overall team performance, mostly about the offense utterly failing to capitalize on the multiple opportunities they had throughout the game to put an end to it and bury the Colts.
"I thought the game was over ," Clowney said. "We put our offense in a position to win the game, or we thought we did."
"Today, we let one slip away," Clowney finished.
The Ravens went on to fumble the rock (four times through the afternoon, actually) literally and figuratively, ultimately allowing the Colts to tie the game, send it to overtime, and win it with a walk-off field goal by record-breaking kicker Matt Gay, the first ever to hit four 50+ yarders in a single game.
Better days are ahead, not for Clowney and Hamilton who are already excelling, but for the Ravens as a whole after dropping a game they seemed to be very committed to losing.