It was an ugly pass to surrender, a 41-yarder thrown by Kenny Pickett, and a game-winning reception to blame on Marlon Humphrey's one-on-one man coverage of Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver George Pickens.
Now, for the question everybody is asking themselves following Baltimore's loss to the Steelers last Sunday: should Humphrey have been there in the first place?
Of course, he had to. Let's be honest for a minute here, folks, but also acknowledge that Humphrey whiffed on that play.
#Ravens CB Marlon Humphrey on allowing the George Pickens TD catch in the 4Q: “You kind of get beat sometimes when you blitz the house. Obviously, you don’t want to be on the end of a game winner. It happens sometimes at the corner position.” pic.twitter.com/KUrz2FxHhi
— Jamison Hensley (@jamisonhensley) October 8, 2023
The Ravens have been waiting for Humphrey's return since he first went down injured in training camp. The cornerback suffered a foot injury, decided to undergo surgery to make the quickest possible return, and missed the first four games of the season, but finally made his comeback in time for a crucial divisional matchup.
Humphrey returned to the practice field for the first time earlier last week and just a mere days before the pivotal game against the Steelers, yes, but the Ravens secondary was in dire need of help even with the backups playing great defense to date.
That, however, doesn't mean Humphrey shouldn't have done more to stop Pickens from grabbing that ball, let alone completing a 41-yard reception. Humphrey carries the third-largest contract among cornerbacks in the NFL. He's paid $19.5 million per year. He must do more out there on the field.
Yes, it was only a play. But it was the play. Had the Ravens prevented that touchdown, they would have been in a position to still win the game. Baltimore was leading 10-8 with just 1:20 left to play. It was a 2nd-and-9 snap.
Had Humphrey broken that pass, Pittsburgh might have failed to covert the next play, might have been forced to kick a 50+ yards field goal, and who knows what could have yielded.
"You get beat sometimes when you blitz the house. Obviously you don't want to get beat on a game-winner but sometimes it happens as a cornerback. I felt great. It felt good to be back."Marlon Humphrey, Baltimore Ravens
Humphrey had the audacity of saying "You get beat sometimes," blaming the gaffe on " the house." Humphrey played most of the defensive snaps on Sunday across fellow CB Brandon Stephens.
Pickens himself said that he was "surprised" by the fact that Baltimore dared to put him in a one-on-one situation against Humphrey without any safety help deeper down the field. He was right.
The Ravens gambled, and the Steelers simply capitalized. George Pickens, while already reasonably good, is only on his way to becoming a superstar wide receiver. Humphrey will have to deal with much tougher assignments going forward, starting with covering DeAndre Hopkins in London next Sunday. Here's to hoping he does a better job.