Ravens’ 12-game winning streak ends.
Saturday, January 11, 2020, M&T BANK STADIUM, BALTIMORE: Nothing stays the same, and some things never change. The Baltimore Ravens and Tennessee Titans aren’t the same teams of years ago when they competed fiercely against each other for AFC Central Division titles and Super Bowl berths. The dogged competitors who played by then are gone…Ray Lewis, Eddie George, Ed Reed, Steve McNair, and many others.
But one thing seems to have stayed the same.
In three memorable postseason games, each Ravens-Titans contest was won by the road team. Back then, the Titans shouldered more disappointment because–on paper, at least–they had the better team in most of those match-ups. This time, that shoe fit the Ravens, a team that sported the league’s best regular-season record and was much better-positioned to break its home-team playoffs jinx.
History proved otherwise, though, as the road team won again, this time 28-12, in the Divisional Round before a record crowd of 71,754 fans eager fans. They walked away in shock after watching a rusty, sloppy home team get beaten handily by a team that had a record barely above .500.
With its 12-game winning streak ended, the loss marked the fourth time in four Ravens-Titans playoff meetings that the road team won. And it was the first time in nine years that a #6-seed had beaten a #1-seed. The last tango of that sort came when the Jets beat the Patriots, 28-21, in the 2010 Divisional Round.
With the loss, the dream of Ravens’ fans–hosting AFC Championship Game–also came to an end. It would have been the first first time in Ravens history–and the first time since the game was created as a result of the 1970 AFL-NFL merger–that Baltimore would have had the championship played on its soil. The only other time was in 1971 when the Colts beat the Raiders, 27-17, to advance to Super Bowl 5.
But now the Titans will travel to either Kansas City or Houston for next Sunday’s AFC title game. And, if they win, Tennessee will be the first #6-seed to win the AFC title since Pittsburgh did it in 2005.
In losing Saturday night, the Ravens may have been victimized by their own strategy–resting starters in the regular-season finale against Pittsburgh. That decision, plus a bye week, seemed to contribute to the Ravens’ uncharacteristically slow start.
There were dropped passes, three turnovers, and the inability to contain the Titans’ workhorse running back, Derrick Henry. Henry ran for 195 yards on 30 carries–the most yardage gained against the Ravens in the team’s postseason history. His performance took the pressure off QB Ryan Tannehill, who completed just seven of 14 passes, but threw for two TDs and played to a 109.5 passer rating.
Baltimore, on the other hand, had poor field position all night, thanks, in part to special-teams penalties, dropped passes, poor tackling, and getting beat at the line of scrimmage. The Ravens didn’t score a first-half touchdown for only the second time all year, and (as a result) faced its largest deficit of the season–22 points–when the Titans led, 28-6, in the third quarter.
Lamar struggled mightily (photo, The Ringer)
So for the second consecutive year, Baltimore made an early playoffs exit. Last year, then-rookie Jackson fumbled three times and struggled mightily with few explosive weapons to support him. This year he had the weapons, but their health became an issue. Usually steady RB, but now hobbled, Mark Ingram, had only 15 first-half yards.
Luck didn’t go the Ravens’ way, either. An early pass bounced off the hands of tight end Mark Andrews and was picked off by safety Kevin Byard. That play set up a 12-yard scoring pass to TE Jonnu Smith, who leaped over Brandon Carr to make a spectacular catch.
The Ravens–with their +97 first-quarter point differential and an offense that averaged 33 points per game–couldn’t answer. Jackson was stoned on the first of two fourth-and-1 failures near midfield. Previously this year, Baltimore had been eight-for-eight on such plays. Tannehill took advantage quickly, hitting Khalif Jennings on a long TD pass play that turned Marlon Humphrey completely around.
Justin Tucker cut the 14-0 deficit by eight points by kicking two field goals. But those scores were countered when Henry took the game into his hands. He ripped off a 66-yard gain and then finished off the drive by lining up at quarterback and throwing a jump pass for a touchdown.
Meanwhile, the Ravens’ bumbling continued after halftime. Jackson lost a fumble and, later, was intercepted by Kenny Vaccaro. Baltimore, on the other hand, didn’t force a turnover for the first time in their playoff history.
Yes, Jackson did find Hayden Hurst for a late touchdown, but more drops came in the fourth quarter (the team had seven on the night) and allowed four sacks. Baltimore’s shocking fate was sealed.
The Titans–a team that has posted 9-7 records in each of the last four years–then danced off the field with yet another surprising playoff win over a higher-seeded opponent. They head to their first conference title game in 17 years.
As the clock neared midnight, the gridiron at M&T Stadium offered further proof that while nothing stays the same, other things just never seem to change. In this case, a magical season came to an end.
