In Week 16, during Sunday Night Football against the Patriots, Ravens head coach John Harbaugh made a mistake that led to harsh criticism from both fans and analysts. The decision even caught the attention of Rob Gronkowski, who shared his thoughts on it days later.
Rob Gronkowski Comments on Harbaugh’s Controversial Derick Henry Decision
With 12:50 remaining in the fourth quarter, Derrick Henry took a handoff from two yards out, slipped a tackle, and walked into the end zone, extending the Ravens’ lead to 24-13. This was Henry’s second score of the game, along with 128 rushing yards.
Unfortunately, that was Henry’s last touch of the night. Running backs Rasheen Ali and Keaton Mitchell rotated in for the remaining two drives. During those possessions, the Ravens’ offense punted and then fumbled the ball away.
New England ended up outscoring Baltimore 15-0 during that final stretch, as the Ravens lost 28-24. Baltimore is now 7-8 on the season, two games behind the AFC North-leading Steelers, proving how crucial the week 16 loss was.
The Patriots’ legendary tight end appeared on Kay Adams’ show Tuesday afternoon and shared his thoughts on the Ravens’ offensive decision-making.
He first questioned the team’s game plan, saying, “I don’t understand the Baltimore Ravens gameplan on the offensive side of the ball — the rotation between the running backs.”
Gronk is STUNNED the Ravens didn’t feed Derrick Henry late in Sunday’s game…
Henry didn’t have a single touch in the final 12:50 of the game 🤯@RobGronkowski | @heykayadams pic.twitter.com/BVfp9T1hN5
— Up & Adams (@UpAndAdamsShow) December 23, 2025
He also pointed out that now is the time to increase Henry’s workload, not decrease. “Everyone knows when Derrick Henry gets the ball more and more and more, he warms up more and more and more. He gets stronger, he gets faster, he gets quicker, he gets more explosive.”
On the overall approach, he said, “It doesn’t make any sense to me,” finally adding, “The Baltimore Ravens offensive game plan is a little iffy. I don’t know what’s going on over there with the coaching staff and how they’re calling this.”
This season has gone wrong for Baltimore in many aspects, but it almost always starts with the coaching staff. The one consistent thing they have week after week is the ability to rely on Henry. If Baltimore strays from that, then it has no identity.
The Ravens still have a path to the playoffs with two weeks left. They head to Green Bay to face the Packers in week 17 and fly to Pittsburgh to play the Steelers in week 18. The Ravens will need to win both to have a chance at the playoffs.
Henry currently ranks 8th on PFSN’s RB Impact metric. If the Ravens can get back to feeding their superstar running back, they have the opportunity to do some serious damage in the final weeks.
