The Ravens completed an improbable turnaround from a dysfunctional, 5-11 also-ran to confident playoff team yesterday behind a rookie quarterback and first-year coach.
Playing in front of a full-throated crowd of 71,366 at M&T Bank Stadium, the Ravens thumped the Jacksonville Jaguars, 27-7, to clinch the sixth seed in the American Football Conference. Now 11-5, they will play the Miami Dolphins in South Florida next weekend in the first round of the NFL playoffs.
-The Dolphins captured the AFC East title on the final weekend of the regular season with a 24-17 victory over New York Jets. The Ravens beat the Dolphins 27-13 on Oct. 19 behind a dominant performance by their defense.
"It means we have a chance to keep playing," Ravens coach John Harbaugh said after the game. "That's the great thing about the NFL. They play for the championship. We'll have an opportunity to be in the tournament, and we'll have an opportunity to prove if we're the best team in the NFL. That's what we're going to try to do."
It was a near-perfect day in Baltimore, from the almost balmy temperatures - for December, anyway - to the halftime ceremony feting members of the Colts' 1958 championship game, to the methodical dismantling of the Jaguars.
The Ravens exceeded expectations of most fans with the turnaround from a disappointing 2007 season, when they lost nine straight games at one point.
Mercury Aatif Morris, a 24-year-old music teacher at Crisfield High on the Eastern Shore, said he had similar expectations.
"I expected them to go 5-11 again and have kind of a rebuilding season because of the rookie coach and quarterback," said Morris, whose father named him after the former Miami Dolphins running back. "I didn't expect them to have a shot at the AFC North title or the playoffs.
"I think they can do a lot of damage [in the postseason]. They have good defense, they can run the ball and the quarterback doesn't make too many mistakes."
Quarterback Joe Flacco, the team's first-round draft choice in April, had perhaps his most effective day of the season. He raked the Jacksonville defense for five passes of at least 25 yards, completing 17 of 23 for a season-high 297 yards.
He completed passes of 48 and 47 yards to wide receiver Mark Clayton, 39 yards to Derrick Mason and 36 yards to Troy Smith on a trick play in the third quarter that led to Matt Stover's second field goal and final score.
