Oh, did the Ravens need this one.
For their playoff chances. For their self-esteem. To get the media off their backs. To get their nervous fans back onto the bandwagon.
Here's all you need to know about Sunday's 30-7 knockout of the previously undefeated Denver Broncos at M&T Bank Stadium: The Ravens finally played like the Ravens again.
They played with a swagger that was missing in their previous three games, three losses by a combined 11 points that left this team questioning itself, no matter what certain players tell you.
And they played with a chip on their shoulder the size of a giant redwood, which has always been the Ravens' way.
You want to talk about attitude?
How about Derrick Mason, the ultimate pro, wigging out and firing his helmet along the sideline in the first quarter after not getting a holding call on Broncos cornerback Alphonso Smith?
Sure, the helmet toss drew a flag: 15 yards for unsportsmanlike conduct.
But Smith grabbed so much of Mason's jersey, you'd have thought they were dating.
And firing the helmet sent a message: We want this game. And no one's taking it away from us.
Not the Broncos. And certainly not the referees.
Ray Rice, who rushed for 84 yards and caught five passes for an additional 24 yards and might be the best all-purpose running back in the NFL right now, was asked how good this win over Denver felt.
He flashed a smile you wanted to press in a scrapbook.
"It's special," he said. "It's an emotional game. It was a game that we needed, especially coming off the bye week. To come out and play all three phases the way we played, that was special."
Think the players were a little fired up for the Broncos? How about John Harbaugh?
Did you see the Ravens' coach waving his arms and exhorting the crowd for more noise in the fourth quarter?
The guy was so pumped, I thought he was going to jump into the stands and join the fat guys with the purple camo pants and face paint and 40 pounds of beads around their necks.
Whatever he was doing, it worked.
"The fans got rolling today," Harbaugh said after the game. "It was good to be in our stadium. Those two purple walls - on the side and in the end zone, when they got cranked up and our defense was on the field ... it made a difference."
Here's another thing the Ravens did yesterday that they hadn't done for a while: They made big plays again.
