Jan 3, 2015; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger (7) is sacked by Baltimore Ravens outside linebacker Courtney Upshaw (91) and Ravens outside linebacker Elvis Dumervil (58) in the fourth quarter in the 2014 AFC Wild Card playoff football game at Heinz Field. The Ravens won 30-17. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
Few gave the Ravens a chance of pulling off the upset Saturday night against the Steelers, a team they had never beaten in the playoffs. And you can’t really blame them after the team largely struggled over the last four weeks of the regular season. Momentum often determines who advances in the postseason, and many times who wins the Super Bowl. And coming into Wild Card weekend, Pittsburgh had all of it.
Clearly, however, the Ravens players and coaches have a short term memory. They were clearly the more motivated and determined team Saturday night. The game plan was excellent, the execution was very good, and the end result was a win that keeps an improbable Super Bowl bid alive. Momentum has clearly shifted in favor of the Baltimore Ravens.
As we do each week, we have assigned letter grades to each unit based on their performance. While we oftentimes focus on the final stats, it’s usually best to look at the big picture when you want to get the whole story. Here are my Baltimore Ravens grades for the Wild Card round of the NFL playoffs.
Next: Offense: Where, oh where, have you been?
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