Ravens' John Harbaugh sounds off on controversial tackling technique: 'Bad play'

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Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh sounded off on the hip-drop tackle technique when he was asked whether there was a challenge to teaching proper tackling.

The NFL decided to ban the technique during the annual meeting, among other changes. It drew lots of blowback from the players, but Harbaugh was in the camp that supported the tackle ban.

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Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh looks on during the second quarter of the game against the Miami Dolphins at M&T Bank Stadium on Dec. 31, 2023 in Baltimore. (Todd Olszewski/Getty Images)

"When did you ever hear about the hip-drop tackle until like two years ago, three years ago, right? That’s because it was discovered, probably, in rugby and started being executed as a standalone technique," Harbaugh said. "It’s a three-part movement, [and] you’ve got to execute that play. You’ve got to be close enough to that ball carrier to actually get him around the hips, pull him close to yourself, swing your hips through and drop on the back of his legs. 

"If you’re that close, wrap him up, tackle him and take him to the ground, like Ray Lewis used to do and everybody did for 100 years before that. But you’re talking about a tackle that the ball carrier has no method of escape from; he can’t escape. So, when you drop down on the back of his legs, it’s a mass ... And it’s 25 times more likely to have a serious injury. 

Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh speaks to the media during the NFL Combine at the Indiana Convention Center on Feb. 27, 2024 in Indianapolis. (Stacy Revere/Getty Images)

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