Baltimore head coach John Harbaugh was not having it during his in-game interview on Sunday, when his Ravens lost to the Bengals in an AFC Wild Card matchup.
The Ravens were down 3-0 at the end of the first quarter, when NBC sideline reporter Melissa Stark asked Harbaugh about a taunting penalty that was called on Baltimore cornerback Marcus Peters just moments prior.
“John, you told us your guys were going to be disappointed, so what did you think about that last penalty?” Stark asked, to which Harbaugh bluntly replied: “Well, I didn’t like that last penalty.”
The taunting penalty sparked a brief scuffle on the field between Ravens and Bengals players after Peters appeared to strike Cincinnati running back Joe Mixon in the chest after a tackle with 1:05 remaining in the first.
As the Bengals had the ball in the red zone, Stark then asked, “So what do you tell your guys defensively?”
“Our guys will be fine,” Harbaugh said. “It’s going to be a hard-fought game out here, we’re going to play a good game.”
When asked about whether he would put quarterback Anthony Brown in at some point during the game after the Tyler Huntley interception, Harbaugh smiled and said, “We’ll just see how the game goes, OK? Thanks.”
Harbaugh’s answer seemed indicative that he wanted no part of a quarterback conversation amid the drama surrounding Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson.
Jackson, who has been sidelined with a PCL sprain since Week 13, did not travel with the team to Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati, according to the NBC broadcast. Jackson and the Ravens couldn’t come to terms on a contract extension in the offseason, and the 26-year-old former MVP is set to become an unrestricted free agent when the new league year starts if the two sides can’t reach an agreement.
The Bengals eventually defeated the Ravens, 24-17, to advance to the AFC Divisional Round, where they will face the Bills.
Stark returned to primetime as part of NBC’s new “Sunday Night Football” crew after a two-decade hiatus. The veteran reporter, who has worked for NFL Network, replaced Michele Tafoya, who left to pursue a career in politics.