Ravens End Patriots’ Season, 28-13, in AFC title game
20 January 2013
FOXBORO — The quest for a fourth Super Bowl has again been put on hold. The chance for Tom Brady to match Joe Montana’s ring count in harmonious fashion against the 49ers wasn’t to be.
Photo by: Matt Stone
A stunned New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady.
Photo by: Nancy Lane
New England Patriots wide receiver Wes Welker is hit by Baltimore Ravens strong safety Bernard Pollard and Baltimore Ravens cornerback Corey Graham during the third quarter of the AFC Championship Game at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro on Sunday, January 20, 2013. The Ravens were penalized for Pollard's helmet to helmet hit.
For just the second time in the Patriots’ seven trips to the AFC Championship under Bill Belichick, they walked off the field in defeat. The Ravens used a dominant second half to eliminate the Pats, 28-13, yesterday at Gillette Stadium. As a result, Ray Lewis’ career will last one more game, and John Harbaugh’s Ravens will battle Jim Harbaugh’s 49ers in Super Bowl XLVII on Feb. 3 in New Orleans.
The Patriots just didn’t have it, the loss filled with harrowing missed tackles, empty possessions in scoring territory and two Wes Welker drops on third down. The Patriots invaded Ravens territory nine times but hardly finished the job with one touchdown, two field goals, two interceptions, one turnover on downs and three punts.
Brady was 29-for-54 for 321 yards, one touchdown and two picks, while Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco was 21-for-36 for 240 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. Anquan Boldin caught five of those throws for 60 yards and two game-turning scores.
The Ravens bombarded the Patriots with three consecutive touchdowns in the second half, and they methodically deconstructed a strolling Pats defense. The Ravens scored on drives of 10, 10 and four plays, and they only reached third down once, which displayed how easy it was to dink and dunk their way against the mismatches of their choosing.
Flacco put the Ravens ahead for good when he delivered a 5-yard strike to tight end Dennis Pitta, who shimmied past safety Steve Gregory to give the visitors a 14-13 edge in the third quarter.
The Pats’ next possession failed when Nate Solder’s holding penalty negated a third-down conversion, which eventually led to a punt. Flacco stayed in rhythm on the ensuing series, which concluded with a perfectly executed touchdown lob to Boldin, who out-jumped safety Devin McCourty for a 3-yard score and a 21-13 lead on the first play of the final quarter.
The Patriots couldn’t answer, either. Running back Stevan Ridley lost a fumble at the Patriots 47 when he was concussed by safety Bernard Pollard, who ended Brady’s season in 2008, Welker’s season in 2009 and injured Rob Gronkowski in last year’s AFC title game.
Four plays later, Flacco hit Boldin for an 11-yard score that drove a stake through the Patriots’ hearts. Brady drove deep into Ravens territory on the next two possessions, but a fourth-down prayer fell harmlessly to the ground and a tipped pass was intercepted by Dannell Ellerbe with 6:49 to play.
The Patriots had it going in the first half, stymying the Ravens’ offense in their first two possessions and getting a 31-yard field goal from Stephen Gostkowski to build a 3-0 lead in the opening quarter.
The defense began to sputter after cornerback Aqib Talib went down with a thigh injury, coincidentally after one of the most productive series of his short Patriots tenures. He defensed two passes against Boldin, including the one that yielded the injury. He did not return.
The Ravens jumped ahead for the first time when they marched 90 yards on 13 plays, only needing one third-down conversion along the way, to grab a 7-3 lead when running back Ray Rice ducked three tackles and scored from 2 yards out.
But Brady resuscitated the Pats on the next drive, which he capped with a 1-yard touchdown toss to Welker to make it 10-7. The Patriots were in position to make it a two-possession game before the half, but they crushed their chances with poor clock management. Brady scrambled for 3 yards to the Baltimore 7 in the final minute and tried to rush to the line in the waning seconds, refusing to use his final timeout until 4 seconds remained, which left them with nothing but a 25-yard field goal and 13-7 advantage at the break.
What’s that they say about the NFL? Not For
Long? It’s an undeniable truth. Change...
END
This must be a mistake..... my Patriots couldn't have lost.....
.