Ravens thank the crowd for 5 Texans false starts

Looking straight into a television camera, Ravens outside linebacker Jadeveon Clowney delivered a thank you and a message to the fans.

“I love you all, fans,” Clowney said. “You all keep bringing that energy. You all keep us in the game, keep us going. We’re doing it for you all and our families. So, shoutout to them for coming, showing up and supporting.”

“We’re going to need them next week,” Clowney told reporters.

Clowney wasn’t the only one who attributed the Ravens’ 34-10 win over the Houston Texans to the fans. The Ravens had a paid attendance of 71,018 and, based on the stats, it seems like every one of them was hollering at the top of their lungs.

The Texans finished with five false start penalties. They were also called for a delay-of-game penalty.

The Ravens’ defense played its heart out, but that was also on the fans, outside linebacker Odafe Oweh said.

“I thank the crowd,” Oweh said. “The Bank’s always loud. And then, obviously, we’ve got a scary defense, so they were thinking about that as well. So it’s a great combination.”

Linebacker Roquan Smith said he was talking to some of the edge rushers about the noise this week. They told him they “really enjoy” the noise from the fans because it makes the snap counts predictable.

The fans have been helping all season. According to the Ravens, they’ve helped cause more opponent false starts (19) and delay penalties (9) than any other home team during the 2023 season (regular + playoffs). Smith said he got a taste of how hostile M&T Bank Stadium was last year. Now he’s looking forward to continuing to see it in the postseason.

“I don’t know what they be on, liquid courage or what, but they be at the top of their lungs, and I love to hear it,” Smith said.

Kansas Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who is one of two quarterbacks who could come into M&T Bank Stadium next week, said on a Manningcast that Baltimore is one of the only stadiums he doesn’t use verbal signals.

“So make sure you guys come out loud as crap next week,” Smith added.