The playoffs started a week early for the Baltimore Ravens—essentially—in this must-win contest against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Win, and the Ravens knew they would grab the sixth and final AFC playoff spot. The Patriots had already beaten the Bills earlier in the day, so all the pressure was on the Ravens to pull out a victory.
Despite the fact they were playing at home, and facing a reeling Jacksonville team with a mirror-opposite 5-10 record, it would have been understandable if the Ravens came out and played tight. First year head coach. Rookie quarterback. Untested offense. Not exactly the formula to assure success in a pressure situation.
But players who had not been counted on to contribute heavily when the season began saved some of their best performances when it was needed most. Stand-out performances from players like Joe Flacco, Mark Clayton, Le’Ron McClain, Chris Chester, and, yes, Frank Walker, helped seal the deal for the Ravens, who breezed to a 27-7 win over the Jags.
Whether the team came into the game tight or not, there was certainly a wave of tension that rolled through the stands as Jacksonville grabbed an early 7-3 lead. A good opening drive by the Ravens’ offense had stalled, and led to a Matt Stover field goal. Then, miscommunication in the defensive backfield gave the Jags an easy touchdown, and a 7-3 lead. That was followed by a missed 48-yard field goal attempt by Stover. And then, with Maurice Jones-Drew and David Garrard slashing up the middle of the Ravens defense, Jacksonville marched 60 yards down the field and appeared ready to extend their lead.
That’s when Ed Reed once again took charge and changed the complexion of the game with an interception of David Garrard. Tension turned to thrills, with a signature Ed Reed interception return, flipping the ball to 340 pound Haloti Ngata, reprising his role as a former high school rugby star.
Now riding a wave of momentum the Ravens offense exploded on the Jags for three quick touchdowns. By halftime the Ravens had accumulated over 300 yards of offense and a 24-7 lead. The tension had lifted and the game was essentially over. The Ravens were headed to the playoffs. The real playoffs.
Who would have thought it possible four months ago?
It required big performances from the expected cast of characters, like Ed Reed, Ray Lewis, Todd Heap, Willis McGahee, and Derrick Mason. But it also included surprise contributions from role players who played like bona fide stars. The grades reflect elevated play across the board, just the kind of balance that should make the Ravens a very dangerous playoff contender.
Quarterback: A
Joe Flacco saved his best game of the season for the final game of the regular season. Joe was 17 for 23—a 74% completion percentage—for 297 yards. Good enough for a 116 passer rating. Although he had no TD throws, he was a good steward of the ball for most of the game, with no picks. He threw a better long ball than in pass weeks and repeatedly beat a drawn-in Jaguar defense that dared him to throw over the top. He was also more daring throwing the ball into traffic and throwing sharply on short routes, giving his receivers a chance to make plays.
He did get a little greedy late, making ill-advised throws, including a long pass into triple coverage to Mark Clayton on a post pattern. Troy Smith was in for a handful of snaps, mostly handing off the ball. But he threw a nice out pattern that Terrance Copper dropped. And Troy had a thrilling catch and run on a flea flicker. A stumble on the turf may have prevented a touchdown.
Running Backs: A-
Le’Ron McClain set the tone early for the Ravens by gashing the Jags for a couple of eight-yard runs early in the opening drive. An effective rushing game forced the Jags to crowd the line of scrimmage, which opened up the passing game later. McClain was once again effective running on the goal line, scoring twice. He finished with 70 yards on 25 carries. Willis McGahee may have also had his strongest showing of the year. He ran the ball much harder than he had earlier in the year and was effective as a change of pace back. He had two catches for 25 yards, including a very sure-handed catch of a ball thrown behind him, with a linebacker draped over him. Willis had just four rushing attempts yielding 24 yards and a touchdown. Rookie Jalen Parmele broke off a nice 31 yard run when the game was out of hand.
Wide Receivers: A
The upswing in Mark Clayton’s game continued. He seems to be developing a real chemistry with Joe Flacco. Mark made two, long, circus catches that were monumental to the Ravens win. He also was effective finding the soft spot in the Jags zone coverage, or astutely stretching for a first down after a catch. That describes all four of Mark’s catches, and each one was memorable, giving him 128 yards receiving on the day. Derrick Mason had six catches for 77 yards, including a reception at the Jags five that gave him 10,000 career receiving yards. For a battle tested aging veteran there’s little to no sign of a lost step in 85’s game as evidence by his nimble footwork to avoid oncoming defender Pierson Prioleau to pick up yards after the catch.
Tight Ends: B
Todd Heap went uncovered multiple times and made the most of each opportunity. Each of this three catches for 25 yards helped extend drives. And he continues to block well in Cam Cameron’s scheme.
Tackles: B
The Ravens played so many three-tackle sets with Adam Terry, Jared Gaither and Willie Anderson that side judge Joe Larrew eventually stopped announcing that Terry had reported into the game as an eligible receiver. They were an imposing force lining up on the left side, leading for two fullbacks out of the backfield. The group was best on the goal line and in pass protection, although rookie defensive end Derrick Harvey, whom the Jags acquired with the eighth overall draft pick originally held by the Ravens, did give Jared Gaither some troubles at times. Harvey sacked Flacco twice.
Interior Line: A
The interior group may have had its best day of the year. They were outstanding in pass protection. They adeptly picked up blitzing defenders. Chris Chester continues to play so well that it will be difficult for Marshall Yanda to get back his right guard spot. He had many notable blocks that showed great quickness, for instance, pulling and meeting the onrushing Clint Ingram in the hole, and a nimble block in space on Mike Peterson on Willis McGahee’s touchdown run. Ben Grubbs was also excellent on the goal line for both McClain TD runs, and he showed his own light footwork on a screen. Jason Brown was his usual commanding self.
Cornerbacks: A-
When the official injury report was announced before the game, and the starting lineups revealed, one name stood out. Frank Walker at corner. Uh oh. More tension for Ravens fans, with Fabian Washington out with a toe injury. But Frank Walker was another player who would save his best performance for the final regular season game. Yes, he was barking in the face of the Jags offense and could barely contain his passion between plays. But he also backed up his words with outstanding coverage. Granted, the Jags did not show up with the league’s top receiving corps. But Walker defended a number of well-thrown balls that could have hurt the Ravens. He also forced a fumble. The Ravens secondary shut down the Jags passing game completely in the second quarter as the game was getting out of hand for the visitors. Corey Ivy had trouble covering Reggie Williams early, but settled down as the game progressed. The Jags mostly threw away from Samari Rolle’s side of the field.
Safeties: A-
Ed Reed had two interceptions to give him the league’s top honors for the 2008 season. He may have also cemented the Defensive Player of The Year award for his strong play to finish the year. Although he takes chances pitching the ball around after interceptions, that same risk-loving mentality leads to the picks to begin with. He is also tackling harder than in the early part of the year, as evidenced by a vicious hit on Reggie Williams for a loss of yardage, which was overturned when Terrell Suggs shoved Garrard after the throw. Jim Leonhard continues to struggle with his tackling. For instance, he was faked out by Maurice Jones Drew, to turn a two-yard loss into a 22-yard gainer. In pass support Leonard played well.
Linebackers: B-
The linebacking crew struggled early to stop the Jags’ cut-back runs and was gashed up the middle. There was also confusion between Rolle, Reed and Ray Lewis on a touchdown to a wide open Alvin Pearlman, which appeared to be Lewis’ man out of the backfield. It was Pearlman’s only catch on the season. Ray, and particularly Bart Scott, strengthened at the point of attack as the game wore on. Scott forced a fumble, recovered by Lewis. Jarret Johnson was consistent off the edge. Terrell Suggs made a bone-headed hit on Garrard that cost the team field position. But he also showed that when he puts in the effort he can dominate the line of scrimmage.
Defensive Line: B
Justin Bannan had a very good game, including a nice run stuff for a two-yard loss. Marques Douglas and Brandon McKinney were also very effective in run support. Ngata did not play his best game, including a missed arm tackle on Jones-Drew and a personal foul call that forced a deep Ravens kick-off to start the second half. Trevor Pryce was also quiet.
Special Teams: B+
The coverage unit has really picked up its game and is starting to gel in time for the playoffs. Darren Stone, Terrance Copper, Marcus Smith, Dan Wilcox and Brendon Ayanbadejo all pitched in with outstanding coverage. Sam Koch continued to show why he is tops in the league pinning opponents inside their ten yard line, although he had a couple that just rolled into the end zone for a touchback. Yamon Figurs was benched from kick return duties in favor of Tom Zbikowski, who ran hard on a 22 and 26 yard return. Stover made two short field goals and barely missed 48-yarder that would have been his long for the season, and which ended a 14-kick streak. The old veteran is showing great consistency from 45-yards, in. When it was learned that Stover was the only Ravens’ player to accept an invitation to join the ’58 Colts reunion the night before the game, teammates joked that it was because Stover had actually played on that ’58 team. He gets kidded for his longevity, but the respect was there, too, as he received one of the bigger ovations before the game after John Harbaugh elected to have the special teams unit announced.
Coaching: A
Cam Cameron responded strongly when the Jaguars committed to taking away the rushing game and the short pass. He trusted Flacco to throw deep over one-on-one coverage, and it paid off. He showed the Jags a number of decoy calls with Troy Smith before pulling out a flea flicker to great effect. A second flea flicker also burned the Jags. On defense, Rex Ryan put players in a position to succeed. He shaded Reed to Walker’s side of the field, but still managed an aggressive attack. He also responded well after the Jags burned the defense with runs up the middle by Jones-Drew and Garrard. Jerry Rosburg should be commended for whipping the special teams unit into shape. And, of course, John Harbaugh gets credit for having the team prepared, and dominant, in a must win situation.
Officiating: C
Well, chalk up another horribly confused explanation on a fumble call, or non-fumble call, depending on which version of the NFL-Officating-To-English dictionary you consult. I am referring to a second half run by Maurice Jones-Drew that at first appeared to be called a fumble recovered by Ray Lewis. I listened to the explanation three times by the referee Alberto Riveron, but I still don’t know what was initially called on the field and why it was not challengeable by the Ravens. It once again raises the question of whether the NFL replay system answers more questions than it creates. On that basis alone this crew gets a C.
Broadcast: B
Dick Enberg and Randy Cross appeared to coast through the game. There were nice references to 1958 Colts championship team woven into the game. And Cross gave a nice account of Eric DeCosta scouting Flacco. But all in all, the broadcast lacked much sizzle for a game that was essentially a playoff play-in game.
None of that matters now however, as the real playoffs are set to begin. Baltimore heads to Miami Sunday to start what should be a very interesting journey into uncharted waters for this young team. By most accounts that is a break for the Ravens, with a veteran 11-5 New England team eliminated, thanks to wins by the Ravens and Dolphins. Time will tell whether Cam Cameron’s second trip back to Miami will be as fruitful as his first, with more on the line this time.
Happy Festivus.
