The Tribune Democrat, Johnstown, PA

Pro

January 20, 2013

Flacco, Baltimore Super Bowl-bound

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — By BARRY WILNER

The Associated Press

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Oh, brother!

John Harbaugh and his Baltimore Ravens set up a family reunion at the Super Bowl, shutting down the New England Patriots 28-13 Sunday in the AFC championship game.

The Ravens reached their first Super Bowl in 12 years, thanks to three touchdown passes from Joe Flacco and a defense led by Ray Lewis that made Tom Brady look downright ordinary.

Next up for Harbaugh and the Ravens is baby brother Jim and the San Francisco 49ers, who beat Atlanta 28-24 earlier in the day for the NFC title.

They’ll meet in two weeks in New Orleans – what a place for a party to celebrate the first brother-vs.-brother coaching matchup in Super Bowl history.

It also will be quite a last game for Lewis, the emotional linebacker who will retire after the matchup with the 49ers, who opened as a 5-point favorite.

Driven by Lewis’ pending departure from the NFL, Baltimore’s defense stepped up in the playoffs. Brady was 67-0 at home when leading at halftime, but this was no contest in the second half.

It also was a first for the Patriots, who hadn’t lost an AFC championship at home.

After they had avenged last year’s AFC title game loss at Gillette Stadium, many of the Ravens gathered on the field jumping, chest-bumping and whooping before several thousand fans wearing Ravens jerseys – mostly Lewis’ No. 52 – who remained in the stands.

As in the previous two playoff wins against Indianapolis and Denver, the Ravens (13-6) were brilliant offensively in spots. This might be 17-year-veteran Lewis’ team, but it’s also Flacco’s, and the quarterback’s six road wins are the most in playoff history.

“It was pretty awesome,” Flacco said. “We were here last year and thought we had it, but came up a little short. Guys came out in the second half and made plays. ... We put pressure on them like that, and it worked pretty well.”

Flacco, the only quarterback to win a playoff game in each of his first five seasons, was dynamic with his arm and precise with his decision making. Looking much more the championship passer than Brady did, his throws of 11 and 3 yards to Anquan Boldin and 5 to Dennis Pitta all were perfect.

New England (13-5) lost a home AFC title matchup for the first time in five home games. The loss denied Brady and coach Bill Belichick a shot at their sixth Super Bowl. They’ve gone 3-2, losing their last two times in the big game.

Instead, it’s the AFC North champion Ravens heading to the Big Easy, seeking their second NFL championship. San Francisco has won five.

“This is our time. This is our time,” Lewis said as he and a few teammates were receiving the AFC championship trophy. “All these men out there, there might just be only five of us up here, but every man out there sacrificed this year for each other, and man, we did it and we’re on our way to the Super Bowl. That’s awesome.”

The Ravens have gotten there the hard way, with no postseason bye. Then again, five of the last seven Super Bowl champions took that route.

The Ravens also were pushed into a second overtime in frigid Denver last weekend before eliminating Peyton Manning and the top-seeded Broncos.

And now they’ve cast aside the league’s most successful franchise of the last dozen years.

New England (13-5), which hasn’t won a Super Bowl since the 2004 season, had four injuries, the scariest when running back Stevan Ridley was knocked flat by Bernard Pollard in the fourth quarter, forcing a fumble. Baltimore turned that into the final touchdown, on the only short scoring drive it had, 47 yards.

The Ravens gained just 130 yards in the first half.

Brady guided a 13-play drive to Stephen Gostkowski’s 31-yard field goal for a 3-0 lead. Neither defense yielded a big play, and punters Zoltan Mesko and Sam Koch were the busiest guys on the field.

That changed when the teams switched sides for the second quarter. Baltimore again was pinned deep, at its 10, but Flacco led a 13-play drive. Ray Rice, whose 83-yard run on the Ravens’ first play from scrimmage in their wild-card round victory here three years ago, ran left untouched for the TD.

Awakened by Baltimore’s march, the Patriots staged a long one of their own, 79 yards, aided by a 15-yard personal foul by Ravens linebacker Dannell Ellerbe. Wes Welker picked up 24 yards on a short pass, then got free in the right corner of the end zone after a mix-up in the Ravens’ secondary, making it 10-7.

It was 13-7 by halftime as Gostkowski connected from 25 yards, with New England outsmarting Baltimore several times. Danny Woodhead ran for 7 yards on a direct snap on fourth-and-1 in the drive. Defensive end Paul Kruger, who’s good at sacks, not much in coverage – found himself downfield on Aaron Hernandez on what became a 17-yard reception.

But Brady made a mental error himself, not calling timeout quickly enough after a short scramble. So the Patriots didn’t get a shot at the end zone and Gostkowski made his second kick.

Shockingly for an offense that scored 557 points this season, that was it for New England.

The touchdown by Pitta capped the Ravens’ best drive of the game, covering 87 yards in 10 plays and made it 14-13. It started with a 15-yard defensive pass interference penalty.

NOTES: Brady now has 5,949 yards passing, the most in NFL history for the postseason. ... Patriots CB Aqib Talib hurt his thigh and DT Kyle Love injured his knee. Backup safety Patrick Chung was helped off the field after one play.Welker’s touchdown came 4:18 before intermission and capped an 11-play, 79-yard drive. He scored on a pass to the right as cornerbacks Corey Graham and Chykie Brown appeared to get crossed up on their assignments.

 

Text Only | Photo Reprints
Pro
  • ballet.JPG Pirates ruin Latos’ winning streak

    Pedro Alvarez singled home a pair of runs in the first inning, and the Pittsburgh Pirates ended Mat Latos’ streak of 21 regular-season starts without a loss, beating the Cincinnati Reds 4-0 on Tuesday night.
    Latos (6-1) hadn’t lost a regular-season game since last August, setting a club-record streak of avoiding defeat. He couldn’t overcome Pittsburgh’s three-run first inning.

    June 18, 2013 1 Photo

  • Walker throws Four solo home runs lead Reds past Pirates

    Todd Frazier wasn’t going to let left-hander Francisco Liriano get another fastball by him. He guessed right and hit one a long way.

    June 17, 2013 1 Photo

  • Bruins blank Blackhawks, take 2-1 series lead

    Tuukka Rask shut out the Chicago Blackhawks in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup finals on Monday night and got enough help from the Bruins' offense to do it without another exhausting overtime.

    June 17, 2013

  • Alvarez Pirates Pirates get past Dodgers

    Rookie Gerrit Cole won again, getting home run help from Pedro Alvarez and pitching the Pittsburgh Pirates past the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-3 Sunday.
    Cole (2-0) allowed three runs on seven hits and no walks in 5 2/3 innings. The top pick from the 2011 draft won in his big league debut last week.

    June 16, 2013 1 Photo

  • slide.JPG Dodgers pin 11-inning loss on Pirates

    Brandon Cumpton catapulted from Triple-A anonymity to big league starter in a span of three days.
    At the moment, he has no immediate plans to go back.

    June 15, 2013 1 Photo

  • Locke pitches Bucs to another shutout

    Jeff Locke barely made the Pittsburgh Pirates starting rotation out of spring training, winning a battle with Kyle McPherson almost by default after McPherson struggled and a better option never materialized.

    June 15, 2013

  • Torn right calf muscle sidelines ace Burnett

    A.J. Burnett is wearing a walking boot over his torn right calf and isn’t sure when he’ll be ready to return.

    June 15, 2013

  • Toews, Shero among league’s award winners

    Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews got another victory on Friday. The trophy he wants the most is still up for grabs.

    June 15, 2013

  • Local sports in brief 6/15/2013

    June 15, 2013

  • chuck.JPG Giants spoil Morton’s return

    Charlie Morton didn’t view his return to the majors after undergoing Tommy John surgery as a make or break proposition.

    June 13, 2013 1 Photo

Poll

Do you think Edward Snowden, the American who claims to have given documents about classified phone records to journalists, should be:

A. Charged by the Justice Department for leaking classified information.
B. Is a hero because he brought to light questionable government tactics.
C. I'm not sure.
     View Results
AP Video
Obama Renews Call for Nuclear Reductions Raw: Car Jumps Curb in NYC, Injures 8 Obama: 'Lives Have Been Saved' by NSA Programs Obama: Friction in Afghan Talks No Surprise Unusual Heat Wave Bakes Alaska Raw: Massive Protests Fill Brazilian Streets Raw: German President Welcomes President Obama Fans Cheer Dramatic Heat Comeback Raw: Arizona Wildfire Scorches 8 Square Miles Hoffa Mystery Still Fascinates After 4 Decades Raw: 1 Dead in Shooting at Mo. Apartment Complex Raw: Huge Fire Near Yosemite National Park 3 Charged in Ohio With Enslaving Mom, Daughter Kid Couture: Spending Big Bucks on Babies
Community Calendar
Loading…
Events by eviesays.com
House Ads
Hyperlocal Search
Premier Guide
Find a business

Walking Fingers
Maps, Menus, Store hours, Coupons, and more...
Premier Guide
Order Photos


Photo Slideshow