Monday, January 08, 2001
Ravens 24, Titans 10
Baltimore's late blows take out Tennessee
By Mark Curnutte
The Cincinnati Enquirer
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Titans and Ravens don't really like each other, and Sunday's AFC divisional playoff game lived up to its hype as the closest football can get to a heavyweight title fight.
The main event of this NFL playoff weekend featured two quarterback knock-downs, a Don King-style spat over scoreboard footage, a black eye for Ravens defensive end Rob Burnett and Baltimore defensive tackle Keith Washington blocking a field-goal attempt after his helmet had been blasted off his head.
In the end, Baltimore was the last team standing, the result of a 24-10 victory that sends the Ravens to Oakland for the AFC title game Sunday.
The Ravens broke open a tie game when they scored a special teams and defensive touchdown in the fourth quarter.
Baltimore rookie safety Anthony Mitchell went 90 yards with a blocked Al Del Greco field-goal attempt for the go-ahead score. And linebacker Ray Lewis, the NFL's defensive player of the year who led both teams with 12 tackles, went 50 yards with an interception return to bury the Titans with 6:41 remaining.
“When you go into the lion's den, you don't tippy toe in,” Baltimore coach Brian Billick said. “You carry a spear. You go in screaming like a banshee and say, "Where's the son of a (gun)?' If you go in any other way, you're going to lose.”
The Ravens, who split two regular season games with
the Titans, are the only team to beat Tennessee at Adelphia Coliseum, and they've done it twice. The Titans are 16-2 in two seasons at what's considered the hardest place for a visiting team to win in the NFL.
Baltimore tight end Shannon Sharpe carried on a conversation with fans behind the Ravens' bench as the final minutes ticked away.
“We've got two home fields, (Baltimore's) PSINet Stadium and Adelphia,” Sharpe yelled. “You don't have to leave Tennessee, but you got to get out of our building.”
The Titans, who had the NFL's best record at 13-3, were favored Sunday. The team that finished inches short of tying the Super Bowl was almost in shock that its season came to an abrupt end.
“I'm disappointed because that club there in that locker room had a very good chance to be the best in the National Football League,” Tennessee coach Jeff Fisher said.
The Titans landed dozens more punches, running 81 plays for 317 yards compared to 43 plays and 134 yards for Baltimore. Tennessee had 23 first downs. Baltimore had six.
But the Ravens made the big plays when it mattered most. They blocked two Del Greco field-goal attempts, and he missed a third.
Baltimore's defense, which set a 16-game NFL record for allowing only 165 points, turned Tennessee away twice after the Titans' Chris Coleman blocked two punts deep in Ravens territory.
Late in the second quarter, the Titans started at the 25-yard line after Coleman's first block. But Del Greco hit the left upright from 31 yards.
Early in the third quarter, Tennessee too over at the 27 and marched to a first-and-goal at the 5-yard line, but the Ravens stopped Eddie George on two runs and forced Steve McNair to throw over Derrick Mason in the end zone. Del Greco was good from 21 yards for a 10-7 Titans lead.
McNair had returned after missing four plays in the second quarter. Lewis, coming clean on a blitz, leveled McNair after he threw the ball and pounded his left shoulder into the ground.
The Titans had a counter-punch of their own in the third quarter against Baltimore quarterback Trent Dilfer. Linebacker Keith Bullock got a clean shot on Dilfer's torso after he had released a pass, and Dilfer missed a series nursing bruised ribs.
The sparring started before the game did.
As the team's prepared for the kickoff, the scoreboard ran footage of Billick addressing his players after the Ravens' 24-23 victory Nov. 12 at Adelphia. Billick had referred to a magazine article that said the Titans were the NFL's best team.
“But not today,” Billick told his players.
The accompanying message board ran a caption that said, “Not in our house.”
Billick was not amused, calling the display “totally classless” but absolving Fisher and other Titans team officials.
“It wasn't my video,” Fisher said.
The game's key play — Washington's blocked field goal and Mitchell's return — was also its signature play.
Tennessee blockers pushed Washington's helmet off right before he jumped to knock down the ball.
“I got a good push into the line,” Washington said. “I got a nice piece of the ball.”
Maybe one reason these teams don't seem to like each other is they're a lot alike. They came in Nos. 1 (Titans) and 2 in yards allowed. Both are built offensively on running games.
And Baltimore is taking a page from Tennessee's miracle wild-card season of 1999 when the Titans went to Jacksonville and defeated division champion Jacksonville to earn a Super Bowl trip.
“It's forgotten that they had to fight their way up there last year,” Billick said. “You will see a lot of the same things ... the way they approached being the underdog, going on the road.
“Our guys are respectful of them. They really are.”
Baltimore ....... 0 7 3 14—24
Tennessee ....... 7 0 3 0—10
First Quarter
Ten—George 2 run (Del Greco kick), 7:43.
Second Quarter
Bal—Ja.Lewis 1 run (Stover kick), 9:46.
Third Quarter
Ten—FG Del Greco 21, 8:20.
Bal—FG Stover 38, 3:05.
Fourth Quarter
Bal—A.Mitchell 90 blocked field goal return (Stover kick), 12:12.
Bal—R.Lewis 50 interception return (Stover kick), 6:41.
A—68,527.
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING—Baltimore, Ja.Lewis 17-47, Dilfer 4-1, Je.Lewis 1-1, Gash 1-0. Tennessee, George 27-91, McNair 5-31, Thomas 1-4.
PASSING—Baltimore, Dilfer 5-16-0-117, Banks 0-1-0-0. Tennessee, McNair 24-46-1-176, O'Donnell 1-1-0-19.
RECEIVING—Baltimore, Ismail 3-53, Sharpe 1-56, Stokley 1-8. Tennessee, George 8-52, Mason 7-88, Wycheck 5-31, Thigpen 3-25, Kinney 1-9, McNair 1-(minus 10).
MISSED FIELD GOALS—Tennessee, Del Greco 45 (BK), 31 (WL), 37 (BK).
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