The Ravens are dedicating this season to former offensive line coach Joe D’Alessandris and former wide receiver-returner Jacoby Jones, coach John Harbaugh said Monday.
D’Alessandris, 70, who’d overseen the Ravens’ line since 2017, died Sunday morning. Jones, a playoff hero and All-Pro kick returner who played for the team from 2012 to 2014, died July 14 at age 40.
“Those are two people that we’re going to dedicate our season to this year, and do everything we can to make them proud of us when they’re watching from where they’re watching,” Harbaugh said. “So we appreciate those two great men very much.”
D’Alessandris was hospitalized about two weeks ago for an undisclosed acute illness. He was expected to require treatment “for an extended period of time” after experiencing complications from offseason surgery.
Harbaugh said a somber mood settled over the team’s offensive linemen Monday in the wake of his passing. Left tackle Ronnie Stanley, who was drafted a year before D’Alessandris’ hiring, and Patrick Mekari, who signed with the team in 2019 as an undrafted free agent, both addressed the team, Harbaugh said.
“Those guys that had been with him for a long time, even the young guys who were impacted by him — the rookies, even — they were a little quieter today, and locked in, as was the whole team, especially in the team meeting,” Harbaugh said. “I think his memory’s going to be on our minds, and it should be, and it should motivate us.”
Jones was honored before the Ravens’ preseason opener against the Philadelphia Eagles. His 70-yard touchdown catch late in the Ravens’ 2012 divisional-round playoff game against the Denver Broncos, known as the “Mile High Miracle,” helped the team win, 38-35, in double overtime. He also had a 108-yard kickoff return touchdown in Super Bowl XLVII against the San Francisco 49ers, the longest play in Super Bowl and postseason history.
Jones died “peacefully at his home” over the summer, according to his family in a statement through the NFL Players Association. The Orleans Parish Coroner’s Office determined the cause of death was hypertensive cardiovascular disease.
