Ed Reed: Ravens didn’t try to hurt Chris Johnson

The Ravens didn’t intentionally try to hurt running back Chris Johnson in their last meeting against the Titans, safety Ed Reed promised on Wednesday.

“Nothing is ever intentional to try and take any guy out,” Reed said during a conference call with Nashville reporters. “My game has never been like that and I know these guys don’t play like that either.”

Johnson suffered a sprained ankle in a 13-10 playoff loss to the Ravens at the end of the 2008 season. Johnson had 72 yards and a touchdown late in the first half of that game, but didn’t return. He ended up missing the Pro Bowl because of the injury.

Some Titans, and some of the team’s fans, wondered if the Ravens intentionally tried to take Johnson out of the game, twisting and turning him on a play involving linebackers Ray Lewis and Terrell Suggs well after the whistle. It occurred just a few plays before Johnson was injured.

“Chris didn’t get hurt on that play,” Reed said. “He had his back stretched out a little bit, but that wasn’t the play that hurt his ankle. He got hurt on another play, when I want to say it was (nose tackle) Brandon McKinney fell on his ankle on the sideline. Any time you get a guy like Chris Johnson, his size, and one of those d-linemen fall on you, it’s going to be tough.

“I talked to Chris after that and was like, ‘Everything is in between the whistle.’ “

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(tennessean.com)