Ravens' John Harbaugh suggests rookie players lack the toughness of their NFL predecessors
Baltimore Ravens coach John Harbaugh told reporters Monday that players who have recently come out of the college ranks are "not as callused up as they used to be."
In his post-practice press conference, Harbaugh responded to a question about rookie tight end Hayden Hurst missing practice by insinuating that rookies do not have the same level of physical toughness as those who played more than a decade ago.
"We used to practice twice a day in full pads," Harbaugh told reporters. "And those players know — I’m talking to you out there who played in the National Football League or played in college 15, 10 years ago — it’s not even close to being the same thing."
Harbaugh, who played defensive back at Miami (Ohio), told reporters that most incoming players don't have a "certain type of football fitness" that allows them to avoid injuries. He said that muscles, joints, tendons and ligaments tend to "toughen up" over time, explaining the importance of practicing in order to build up that strength.
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"(Muscles, joints, tendons and ligaments) callus up a little bit, and you can practice all day and run all day," Harbaugh told reporters. "Our guys coming in right now, most of them don’t have that. So you practice for half a practice, and all of a sudden, things start tweaking on them."
Contact Tom Schad at tschad@usatoday.com or on Twitter @Tom_Schad.