TELL US: What'd You Think Of The Harbaugh-Tomlin Handshake?

The Ravens fell to the Steelers Sunday at M&T Bank Stadium.

By Sean Welsh
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December 3, 2012

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It was almost as difficult to analyze as the loss itself.

Ravens head coach John Harbaugh and Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin shook hands after the game, and like many would expect an embrace between the two men to be, it was awkward.

I saw the post-game handshake on television as most fans did, but the cameras caught the exchange late—after the handshake, but not before the uncomfortable departure.

Check out the video with this post to hear exactly how oddly the exchange appeared in real time.

It wasn't exactly as intense as the handshake between Harbaugh's brother, Jim, and Lions coach Jim Schwartz in 2011, but it was something.

TELL US: What's your take on the handshake? Was it just a normal post-game handshake between rivals? Was Harbaugh trying to be too gracious in defeat? Or was Mike Tomlin doing everything but ducking John Harbaugh? Leave a comment.

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Jim Jones

4:00 pm on Monday, December 3, 2012

Tomlin said good job and shook his hand, what is the issue here? Did you want them to hug and pat eachother on the back? Tomlin does nothing but compliment the Ravens in his press conferences and on numerous occasions has said he respects our team and franchise. We just lost to a third string QB in our own house, perhaps the team needs to worry about more than a post game handshake!!!

number9dream

6:45 pm on Monday, December 3, 2012

It was a great game.

Hey man, what do you expect when two elite quarterbacks go mano a mano?

Evets

7:17 pm on Monday, December 3, 2012

Actually, it was 2 third string QBs dueling it out. And it was a great game if you are a Steelers fan, which I am.. GO STEELERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Evets

6:49 pm on Monday, December 3, 2012

I think Mr. Tomlin was afraid that the urge to use silly challenges and wasting timeouts might be catchy, so he declined to shake Mr. Harbaugh's hand.

Buck Harmon

6:55 pm on Monday, December 3, 2012

good point..

Jon

10:30 pm on Monday, December 3, 2012

I don't understand why the press is making such a big deal out of this. Harbaugh said congratulations and Tomlin said thank you. They didn't hug, but it seemed rather cordial. It's not like they're close friends.

Jon

7:24 am on Tuesday, December 4, 2012

Can there be two of us registered? That's interesting.

John Doe

11:07 pm on Monday, December 3, 2012

Tomlin should have shaken Cam Cameron's hand and said, "Hey diddle diddle, you used Ray Rice way too little."

DARRELL HAMMERBACKER

7:17 am on Tuesday, December 4, 2012

Tomlin and Harbaugh know each other pretty well.Both Coaches are probably more intense then their Players so it's no big deal. They know these 2 Teams are the only ticket on TV when they meet.Harbaugh knows the Ravens opened the gate for Cinci and the Steelers if they don't play 500 ball the rest of the Season.

Evets

7:27 am on Tuesday, December 4, 2012

Maybe Mr. Tomlin was not pleased with Mr. Harbaugh's comments after the Ravens beat the Steelers in Pittsburgh: "The better coached team won, the better team won, the tougher team won, the team that deserved to win won." Not exactly a gracious winner there, Mr. Harbaugh.

Karen Goad Williams

8:01 am on Tuesday, December 4, 2012

Tomlin was a real jerk, not even looking at him, kinds reminded me of another Harbaugh handshake when Jim got snubbed, but I just think it is a matter of Tomlin being king jerk...

Kate

9:56 am on Tuesday, December 4, 2012

i'm not a steelers fan, nor a ravens fan, but i have to say that tomlin is a classy guy. there is nothing to say bout this, he is not a jerk, like some say. he said congrats, that's it.

MikeC

8:11 am on Tuesday, December 4, 2012

Tomlin is class. Harbaugh is someone who wears his emotions on his sleeve. If you do that, they're bound to get hurt and you're bound to see some poor behavior now and then. He takes this stuff way too seriously. Sure they're paid tons to do what they do and at any time during a down period they're liable to lose their job. I'm sure Harbaugh can only coach well by showing his emotions so blatantly, but he has to remember that they're just guys. Tomlin has every right to toot his horn as Harbaugh does. Smacking another guy down gets him nowhere. Showing another guy up gets him nowhere. Showing respect for the other guy will get him everywhere he wants to be. Tomlin shook his hand, said good job and Harbaugh took after him. Not very classy.

Rosebud

8:19 am on Tuesday, December 4, 2012

Are you serious right now?? This whole thing doesn't even merit any comments. It is what it is.

Fran Acle

8:23 am on Tuesday, December 4, 2012

I think Tomlin was rude.....but not surprising for a Steeler

Vicky Brumbaugh

8:34 am on Tuesday, December 4, 2012

To say that a football coach wears his emotions on his sleeve is a statement of the obvious. Yes, everyone involved in sports on a national level receives lots of money to do what they do, but you cannot eliminate emotions from the sport. Anyone who has played, coached or been slightly involved knows this. It's no less silly for Pittsburgh to call this game a huge success than it was for Baltimore to call the last game a huge success; in both cases, it was not won by either quarterback, regardless of their placement in the lineup. Move on.

Pstroms

10:09 am on Tuesday, December 4, 2012

Who cares about the handshake, it was a bad loss for the Ravens, it happens. You are going to lose a game or two to a lesser opponent throughout the course of a season. Hopefully this is a wake up call for them, it usually turns into motivation..

John Doe

10:30 am on Tuesday, December 4, 2012

They should have hugged on the 50-yard line for about 30 minutes.

Holton F. Brown

10:22 pm on Tuesday, December 4, 2012

to evets ... two third string QBs? at least our 3rd stringer (!?) has a 9-3 recrod and division leadership

Evets

6:32 am on Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Well, I do not have a 3rd string QB, but the 3rd string QB for the Steelers has been to 3 Super Bowls and has 2 rings. Just sayin...

And my comment was obviously meant as a joke in response to number9dream's joke about "2 elite QBs."

Iggy Cobb

10:05 am on Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Football is a game that generates tremendous emotion from players, fans and coaches. That being said, what do you expect from MT? Typical stiller attitude, no class! That’s for you stiller fan.

Michele

11:46 am on Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Tomlin was being a jerk. At the end of every game no matter who wins or loses, the coaches always congratulate each other and Tomlin didn't even look in his direction. Then when he finally did, you could just hear the nastiness is voice. It is what it is. There is always going to be bad feelings between the Ravens and the Steelers.