The Ravens got their chances and made the plays they needed, against a great all around effort by Indy, but the Ravens constantly shot themselves in the foot.
- 64 yard kickoff return? Blocked in the back
-
Strong Redzone D? Helmet to Helmet hit in the endzone
-
Ed Reed pick? Fumbled
-
Another Ed Reed pick? Erased by Interference
-
Big Ray Rice run? Fumbled
-
Drive to the edge of scoring range late? Deep shot picked off.
It isn't enough to play well against the Colts. You have to play smart and disciplined. A team that makes that many mistakes with not stick with the Colts. The Ravens fumbled and turnovered their way out of the playoffs. The vaunted Ravens run game that was suppose to steamroll the Colts speed defense was held under 100 yards. The Ravens averaged 3.8 YPC on their first 18 runs and fumbled their 19th. Flacco completed less than 60% of his passes, was held without a TD, and threw 2 interceptions.
On offense the Colts were ineffective on the ground with all 3 backs under 2 YPC, but they moved the ball through the air to the tune of 30 for 44 with 2 TDs to 1 INT. It was a balanced attack with 7 players catching a pass for the Colts.
Rust? Chokers? Soft? Not so much.