The Chargers are headed to Baltimore for a date with the Ravens this Sunday and that means Ravens defensive coordinator Wink Martindale is going to be the next man to try to come up with a plan to slow down Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert.
Herbert has thrown for 1,576 yards and 13 touchdowns through the first five games of the season and Martindale had an evocative way of describing what he’s up against when he spoke to reporters on Thursday about Sunday’s game.
“He’s one of those guys that could throw a strawberry through a battleship,” Martindale said, via Jonas Shaffer of the Baltimore Sun.
The colorful way of describing a quarterback’s arm strength isn’t something you hear everyday, but it also isn’t something that Martindale came up with on the spot. Martindale used the phrase when he was the Broncos defensive coordinator to describe former Ravens quarterback Joe Flaccoand former Jets and Bills head coach Rex Ryan used it several times during his coaching career. Martindale worked under Ryan at the University of Cincinnati and Rex’s brother Rob is currently on the Ravens staff as the inside linebackers coach.
Whatever the origin of the phrase, it helps to illustrate the challenge that the Ravens face this week as they try for a fifth-straight win and an early leg up in the battle for playoff position in the AFC.