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Tom Zbikowski averaged 11.5 yards per punt return this preseason, and looked really comfortable and sharp in that facet of the game.
Last night, he looked neither comfortable nor sharp on his four punt returns.
Zbikowski averaged just 1.3 yards per return last night, and the low point of his evening came when he caught a punt at his own five-yard-line, danced around towards the middle of the field, and was nearly brought down in the Ravens' end zone for a safety.
In his Tuesday afternoon press conference, head coach John Harbaugh was asked how he would evaluate Zbikowski's performance on punt returns last night.
"Disappointing," Harbaugh said. "Tom was disappointing. I think [there were] tough balls over his left shoulder that he had to go get. That's tough. I think he did a good job catching the ball and securing the ball, but I think he tried too hard to make a play. Sometimes, guys will do that their first outing. You've got to respect the guys covering a little bit more, take the ball north-south.
"Jimmy Leonhard is a good example of it, he's been doing it for a long time. He understands the geometry of that play. Zibby will learn from that."
Harbaugh said he had a "good-hearted" chat with Zbikowski on the train ride back from New York.
"He'll be fine, but we need better," Harbaugh said.
Would the Ravens consider switching Zbikowski out and going to another returner?
"We'll see, we never rule anything out," Harbaugh said. "Chris Carr is an option, and [we have] some other guys. But I think Zibby can be good at it."
