Having forged an unlikely path to the NFL playoffs, the resilient Ravens will take the familiar road to Pittsburgh for Sunday's AFC Championship game.
The Steelers, the Ravens' most bitter rivals, represent the last obstacle in Baltimore's bid to return to the Super Bowl for the first time in eight years. Pittsburgh became the only home team to win in this weekend's divisional playoff round, beating the San Diego Chargers yesterday, 35-24.
The Ravens (13-5) will play the Steelers (13-4) for the third time this season at 6:30 p.m. Sunday at Heinz Field for the right to advance to the Super Bowl in Tampa, Fla., on Feb. 1.
The warm glow of the Ravens' 13-10 victory over the Tennessee Titans on Saturday had not worn off around Baltimore yesterday. Anywhere you traveled, be it to malls or simply going to church, Ravens purple reigned. Fans wore Ravens jerseys, sweat shirts and jackets, while cars went by with Ravens flags struggling against the wind.
For fans planning to travel to Pittsburgh for the game, tickets are likely to be in short supply because the NFL is making few, if any, available to the public. On premium ticket sites such as StubHub, razorgator, findticketsfast.com and ticketzoom.com, prices ranged from $140 to $2,200 last night.
Ravens linebacker Terrell Suggs said after Saturday's victory that the team "can't wait for next week." When you consider that the Ravens were 5-11 last year - and have a new head coach and a rookie quarterback - being one win from the Super Bowl seems improbable.
"Not everybody gets to play in the AFC Championship," Suggs said. "There is something special going on around here. We aren't going to say what it is until we find out where the road ends. We are feeling really good."
Pittsburgh swept the regular season series against the Ravens, winning at home on Sept. 29 in overtime, 23-20, and in Baltimore on Dec. 14, 13-9.
The Ravens' last victory at Heinz Field was on Christmas Eve 2006, when Steve McNair threw three touchdown passes in a 31-7 rout. But they have lost seven of their last eight games in Pittsburgh and are just 4-10 in their 13-year history there.
The Ravens-Steelers rivalry, which matches a grinding, physical style of football, has been known for occasional cheap shots, game-changing turnovers and questionable officiating calls.
This season's series produced a little of everything.
