For instance, Gruden said Dalton threw a great ball on the third pick, the one on which cornerback Lardarius Webb made a diving grab and set up Baltimore's last score.

"Outstanding throw. Caldwell didn’t come out of his break at the angle we had been working on," Gruden said. "Andre is supposed to come out of an angle toward the sideline and he threw it and Andre came out more vertical. Andy does a great job anticipating routes and where guys are supposed to be. I think Andre’s feet at the top of his break got a little bit stuck in the ground. He didn’t really come out of it like he normally does, and he anticipated it."

But Gruden said Dalton shouldn’t have thrown the first two. On the first one he figures if Dalton had to do it again, he would have run for the first down, got a few more yards, and then settled for a field goal.

On the second one, Gruden says he never should have thrown it into that type of coverage without Caldwell getting inside leverage.

But, in the end, he’ll take it.

"He scooted away from the rush, made a ton of audibles and stepped up in the line of fire," Gruden said. "He checked down on the TD to Caldwell. He’s a pro. There’s no doubt about it. He’s made some plays the past couple weeks that not many people can say they’ve made better."

Live and learn.