OWINGS MILLS, Md. -- After the Baltimore Ravens and San Francisco 49ers wrapped up their three days of joint practices, Ravens wide receiver Steve Smith said he won the office pool because players had an over-under on the number of fights he'd get into with the 49ers.
"I had zero, so I got all the cash," Smith said.
Surprisingly, there were no fights at all between the teams. There weren't even many close calls, perhaps a result of the Harbaugh brothers' message of keeping everyone safe.
The practices were still fast. They were intense. And they were productive because these eight hours of on-field work couldn't be replicated.
"I feel like we got a week-plus worth of work in," Ravens coach John Harbaugh said. "It's not just because of tempo and attention to detail. It's the fact that you just see schemes that you're not going to see. You can practice for months out here and you're not going to see the things we see because our team doesn't do those things on both sides of the ball. [It was] very valuable."
The Ravens went to great lengths to make the 49ers feel at home. There were signs in the Ravens' dining area welcoming the 49ers, and there were even 49ers logos painted in one end zone for all three fields.
This comes just 18 months after the same two teams were battling for the Lombardi Trophy.
“Honestly, I don’t think either side could have predicted this, but it’s been very professional,” Ravens cornerback Jimmy Smith said. “We’re sharing the facility, sharing showers. Everybody has been cool.”
This is the first time the Ravens have held a joint practice with another team in their 19-year history. It's also the first time that John and Jim Harbaugh coached together on the same NFL field.
"You look over there every now and then and say, 'Wow, that's unique,'" John Harbaugh said of working with his younger brother. "It was fun to work together. Smart guy. I have even more respect for him now than I did before."
Even though there is a family connection, many thought the workouts between the Ravens and 49ers would get heated. San Francisco tight end Vernon Davis thought there would be fights because that's what happened when they scrimmaged the Oakland Raiders.
"We have all been helping each other," linebacker Terrell Suggs said. "They are an NFC team and we’re an AFC team. You would have never thought the two teams would have gotten along so well. I guarantee you if we have to face them in Arizona in February, there isn’t going to be that much brotherly [love].”