They say it is better to be lucky than good and no one can testify to that better than the New England Patriots right now.
Clinging to a 23-20 lead in the final minute of the AFCÂ Championship Game against the Ravens, the Patriots allowed Baltimore to drive all the way down into field goal range for a shot to tie the game. Billy Cundiff only had to hit a 32-yard field goal to send the game into overtime, but he couldn't get it done.
The Ravens strangely seemed to be rushing to get the kick off despite the clock being stopped after an incompletion and a timeout burning a hole in coach John Harbaugh's pocket. He never used it, though, and Cundiff pushed the kick wide right to put the Patriots in the Super Bowl.
Luck wasn't only in evidence on the kick. Two plays earlier, Joe Flacco hit Lee Evans in the end zone for what looked like a touchdown, but Evans couldn't hold the pass after Patriots cornerback Sterling Moore swatted it as he came down in the end zone. The drop and the missed kick are going to eat away at the Ravens for the entire offseason.
All of that should not lead you to believe that the Patriots didn't earn this win. They overcame three turnovers and came back after falling behind 20-16 in the third quarter. The deficit could have been even bigger if not for the Pats defense holding tough after kickoff returner Danny Woodhead fumbled deep in their own territory moments after Torrey Smith's remarkable catch and run put the Ravens ahead for the first time all day.
That allowed the Patriots to regain the lead with a touchdown and they did just that at the end of a 10-play drive early in the fourth quarter. They were stoned three times inside the five-yard line before Tom Brady used every inch of his body to push the ball over the goal line. He took a massive hit from Ray Lewis on his way into the end zone, but Brady's vibe was that of a man who was not going to be denied a touchdown on that particular play.
Brady is one of the few Patriots still around from their dominant four AFCÂ titles in seven years run last decade. He didn't have a great day with two picks and several other inaccurate tosses that fell incomplete. He made a play he had to have to get back to the Super Bowl, though. Another one of the holdovers helped make the lead stand up.
The Ravens drove the ball to the Patriots' 30-yard line with just under four minutes to play in the game and faced a third-and-three to keep the drive moving. Vince Wilfork, who was a monster all day, stoned Ray Rice for a loss on third down, though, and, after the Ravens passed on a 50-yard kick, harassed Flacco into an incompletion on fourth down.
Flacco might be the guy who has the most nightmares about the late errors by Cundiff and Evans. He heard all season that he wasn't good enough to get his team to the Super Bowl, but Flacco played as good a game as he's ever played on Sunday and his teammates let him down. His work kept the Ravens in the game while their run game faltered and he made more plays than Brady.
Unfortunately for Flacco, that's not what matters. What matters is the final score at the end of the game and, on Sunday, that read 23-20 Patriots. And that means Brady, Wilfork and Bill Belichick are heading back to the Super Bowl.
No comments:
Post a Comment