Ravens’ Michael Pierce explains why he avoided returning interception for touchdown

Baltimore Ravens defensive lineman Michael Pierce intercepted his first career pass in the team’s win over the Cleveland Browns on Saturday.

Pierce’s interception of Bailey Zappe ended the game for good. Pierce caught the pass and appeared to have a gap if he wanted to try to return it for a touchdown. But after gaining 6 yards, the 355-pounder gave himself up for a slip and began celebrating.

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Pierce was asked why he didn’t return the ball.

“There’s a long history of big man interceptions and fumbles and all that stuff being turned into memes,” he said via NFL.com. “At the risk of ruining my own career, it was time to go home. So, the bus ran out of gas. We were good.”

Pierce joined the Ravens as an undrafted free agent in 2016. He became a starter in 2017 and played one season with the Minnesota Vikings in 2021 before returning to the Ravens. Saturday’s game was the 99th of his career.

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“I’m glad I caught it, more importantly,” he added. “Honestly, I don’t want to curse too much on TV, but man, you know what I’m saying? Man, he really threw the football.

“I had pretty good hands. I’m glad I grabbed it and like I said, the coach preaches smart football and like I said, I didn’t want to end up being a meme on Instagram, my wife and everybody. They all laughed at me so we did the right thing and moved on.

Ravens running back Derrick Henry is congratulated by Lamar Jackson after scoring against the Cleveland Browns on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)

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Baltimore won the game 35-10.

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