Ravens Meltdown

The Pittsburgh Sports Buzz has heard the phrase over and over again. It was a tale of two halves. So I will not use that one. The Steelers just took it one half at a time and the strategy worked.

After the Ravens failed to score on the first possession of the game the Steelers methodically took it down the field, thanks in part to a lengthy pass interference call on the Ravens. Then Rashard Mendenhall took it in for a touchdown. That made the Steelers and their fans feel pretty good. But, anyone who has watched these 2 teams play knew that the game was far from over. Each of the 2 games in the regular season were decided in the fourth quarter and this game would be no different.

Anthony Madison returned the pass interference favor with a 33 yarder of his own and Ray Rice found a hole 13 yards out and the Ravens were back in the game and tied up at 7, then the drama began.

A penalty on a kickoff return backed the Steelers up near their goal line. Ben dropped back to pass and Terrell Suggs, ala James Harrison, tomahawked the ball as Ben was starting his motion. Hmm...., a ball on the ground and no whistle blown. The majority of the players on both sides stood and wondered why the referees did nothing until Cory Redding decided the ball was lonely and picked it up to take it home. Any number of players had their chance at it, but Redding took advantage of the misfortune of the Steelers and the Ravens took the lead.

Soon after that Ben handed off to Mendenhall for a short gain and another turnover. It didn't seem to be a hard hit but the ball was simply jostled out of Mendenhall's grip and the Ravens recovered. At this point, playoff games past started flashing through the PSB's memory.

Remember how the Steelers made a formerly unknown tight end for the Chargers an All Pro. Alfred Pupunu had an inauspicious career til one AFC Championship game where he could drop nothing and would not go down when he made those catches.

Luckily there was still one half to play and remember what I said, this game would not be be decided until the 4th quarter. After the fumble Flacco connected with Todd Heap on short TD pass and Mo was on the Ravens sideline taunting the Steelers.

The thing about it is the Ravens haven't had much luck getting past the Steelers in the playoffs. What was said in the locker room at halftime. Maybe coach Tomlin reminded them that this team has been to the playoffs, and they didn't need to panic. Maybe he didn't say anything. This is a veteran team and if they didn't know there were 2 halves in a game then why even go out for the second half. They didn't need to be reminded as evidenced by the second half.

They did not instill confidence back into the fans immediately in the second half. The initial drive fizzled and they gave it back to the Ravens. That's where the tide turned in this game. The sure handed, 405 carries without a fumble, Ray Rice didn't know what hit him. Rice broke free and that other Safety, Ryan Clark made a beeline toward him and punched the ball free from Rice. LaMarr Woodley recovered and Mo standing behind all the Ravens players took off his Ravens helmet and put on his Steelers helmet. Roethlisberger found a wide open Heath Miller in the back of the end zone and the Steelers closed the gap. The fans were back in it and the stadium was rockin'.

Any QB nicknamed "Joe Cool" would surely settle his teammates down and take control. "Joe Cool" promptly completed a pass to that other Safety, and the Steelers had the ball back. Ben found Mr. Reliable, Hines Ward, for the score and tie after the conversion by Suan Suishman. If you looked closely on the Ravens sideline after this score you might have seen Mo in full Steelers gear. The game was tied up and so was the turnovers.

Surely, "Joe Cool" could stem the tide and muster up something to get Mo back on his side, right? Wrong. Joe Cool became Joe Butterfingers when he couldn't even handle a snap from center. Brett Keisel corraled it and the ball was again the Steelers. Mo was rounding the endzone and headed for the Steelers sideline. Suan Suishman put a 35 yarder through the goal posts and the lead was back to the Steelers.

A couple of punts followed and a return for a TD nullified by a holding penalty on the Ravens. Flacco threw a pass to Anquan Boldin that bounced off his chest as if he were wearing armor and the Ravens settled for a field goal to tie the score.

If you were Dan Dierdorff you were thinking this could be the first overtime playoff game under the new NFL overtime rules. If you were the Pittsburgh Sports Buzz or a Steelers fan you were thinking this is where Ben puts the Ravens away. Ben gets sacked and it is 3rd and 19. A look at the Ravens sideline reveals overconfidence that they'll get the ball back. No way Ben will convert a 3rd and 19. Who's the target? Sure handed Hines Ward or Mike Wallace outrunning the defense. Streaking down the right sideline is Antonio Brown, Ben heaves it and Brown passes the defender, reaches up and pulls it in, the ball slips up the jersey but Brown pins it against his helmet controls it and goes out of bounds. After a pass and a few runs Mendenhall takes it in for a TD. A look at the Steelers sideline and Mo is standing beside Coach Tomlin giving him a big hug.

The Ravens make one last futile drive, but Mo has already chosen his team and the Steelers sack Flacco and Houshmanzadeh drops a pass on fourth down. It's over. The Steelers will play against the New York Jets next week in Hines' Field. "Classic" as Hines said.

The Ravens have