SAN DIEGO — Terrell Suggs wasn’t actually surrounded by fire or devils, or any of the other dark imagery associated with hell as he tried to capture the emotional state of the Baltimore Ravens after their latest road predicament.
Seated at his locker Sunday night after the Ravens were embarrassed by the San Diego Chargers during a 34-14 debacle of a road loss that squandered the frontrunner status Baltimore had built in their chase for home-field advantage or a first-round bye, the Pro Bowl linebacker was in a state of disgust.
"It’s a reality check, we’re in hell right now," Suggs said. "We’re in hell, but we got a vacation home in hell. This is normal for us. I feel disappointed. I feel we let our fans down. We could still get that first-round bye. All of that could still happen for us, but we need a little help now."
One day later, the Ravens (10-4) got the assistance they needed from the San Francisco 49ers to regain the lead atop the AFC North division.
Jim Harbaugh, Ravens coach John Harbaugh’s brother, and his 49ers defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers, 20-3, Monday night, a key development that gives the Pittsburgh an identical record to Baltimore again.
The Ravens own the tiebreaker over the Steelers due to sweeping the annual series and are now in position again to earn a first-round bye and a home playoff game should they win their final two regular-season games against the Cleveland Browns (4-10) at home Saturday and the Cincinnati Bengals (8-6) on the road.
The Ravens have clinched at least a wild-card playoff berth by virtue of the New York Jets’ loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.
However, playing at M&T Bank Stadium is looking like a vital necessity for the Ravens to have a legitimate shot at making an extended playoff run considering their uneven performances on the road this season.
The Ravens are perfect at home, 7-0 heading into this week. However, they’re 3-4 on the road.
And they’re coming off a game where the Chargers never even punted, scored 27 points before Baltimore answered, allowed Philip Rivers to carve up the secondary with only six of his 23 throws falling incomplete as he was never sacked and surrendered 415 yards of total offense and a season-high for points allowed.
In the playoffs for the fourth consecutive year, the Ravens relinquished their hold on becoming the top seed in the AFC with their loss to the Chargers. The New England Patriots are in front now for the No. 1 seed.
"We haven’t let it get away yet, obviously, but the control of it we certainly let get away," Ravens coach John Harbaugh told reporters Monday at the Ravens’ training complex prior to the 49ers’ win. "That’s disappointing. That’s something that we really wanted to hold on to. That was a target for us. It’s a sense of accomplishment, because the first thing you have to do is make the playoffs. It’s tough to do.
"The next two weeks are going to play out in terms of exactly what that is going to mean for us. Are we going to be at home? Are we going to be away? If we are away, where do we have to go? If we’re home, who is going to be coming here? To ourselves in the best position that way, we have to win. We still have to win our next two games, starting with the Browns. We have complete control over the next two weeks, as far as what we do. That’s what we need to take care of."
The Ravens were rooting on Jim Harbaugh’s team against their AFC North rivals.
"We’d have been real interested for a lot of reasons anyway because it impacts our team," Harbaugh said. "It’s going to be interesting to see what happens. We have no control over it. We’ll be watching it. We just have to see how it goes."
Against the Chargers, the Ravens’ usually stout defense allowed three rushing touchdowns as San Diego scored on its first five possessions.
Quarterback Joe Flacco was intercepted twice and sacked five times.
Former Ravens reserve outside linebacker Antwan Barnes registered a career-high four sacks, running past offensive tackles Michael Oher and Bryant McKinnie.
"It was just bad," Flacco said. "It was an ugly one. We’re really already in an all-win situation and we’ll continue to be in that. We just got to get back on the horse and go get one this week.
And rookie cornerback Jimmy Smith got torched by wide receiver Malcom Floyd while cornerback Cary Williams didn’t fare much better against wide receiver Vincent Jackson.
At one point, Suggs was seen yelling at Harbaugh on the sidelines and strong safety Bernard Pollard berated Smith after he gave up a touchdown pass.
Harbaugh downplayed anything that was captured by cameras that could have been interpreted as internal discord.
"Yeah, I didn’t even know there was an issue," Harbaugh said. "Pretty much whatever they saw happens pretty much every game. That’s what an NFL sideline is like, especially when you’re trying to fight, dig your way out of a hole. For me personally, part of our style is to interact with the players throughout the course of the game a lot.
And I’m always asking guys what they think or sharing my thoughts or whatever.
"I get a lot of energy from our players. We’ve got a brotherhood. When you’re a team, a real team, we are a real team, we are a band of brothers. And guys are just out there fighting, trying to find a way to get the job done. So, whatever might have been seen, I really think that’s what it is.
Privately, players complained about communication issues on defense. Publicly, they denied there were any problems.
"We were on the same page," free safety Ed Reed said. "There was no bad communication issues on the field. You’ve got to be able to talk to each other. There’s a certain way how you say things. We’re all professionals, we’re all men. We win together, we lose together."
The Ravens took some satisfaction in qualifying for the postseason again.
"The disappointing part is we didn’t come out and do what we were supposed to do," said middle linebacker Ray Lewis, who returned from a toe injury that sidelined him for four games. "Outside of that, the thought process is the same: Getting into the playoffs is the No. 1 agenda. It’s one thing trying to get home field, but the bottom line is when you get to the playoffs, everybody’s record goes back to 0-0."
The Ravens are hoping to overcome their road woes.
They’ve already lost on the road this season to the Chargers, Tennessee Titans, Jacksonville Jaguars and the Seattle Seahawks.
"I think the fact that we haven’t won as many games on the road as we should have is disappointing," Harbaugh said. "We’ve been traditionally pretty good on the road the last few years. So, that’s something that we have to look at, and we will."
