The Baltimore Ravens and New England Patriots weren’t in the same division. But don’t let that fool you. They sure hated each other like they were. Between 2008 and 2015, the two teams met eight times, including four fights in the playoffs. And if you ask anyone who was actually on the field, it sure felt personal.
Former Patriots WR Julian Edelman, of all people, gave it some well-earned credit this week.
On his “Games with Names” podcast (minute 52:30), Edelman and comedian (and Ravens diehard) Stavros Halkias relived the carnage from the 2013 AFC Championship Game, as well as the brutal, back-and-forth rivalry that sneakily defined an era of AFC football for just under a decade.
“[The Patriots and Ravens] were a rivalry, that’s what people don’t realize,” Edelman said. “We would play each other because we always won our divisions… and the Baltimore Ravens were never scared to come to Foxborough.”
Never scared is putting it lightly.
“There were teams that used to [crap] their pants driving up Highway 1,” Edelman added. “Baltimore came in ‘09, they didn’t give a [crap]. And they beat our [butts] right from the jump of that game. I hated it.”
Edelman recalls Reed, Belichick, and getting lit up in Baltimore
Of course, Edelman couldn’t get through the episode without bringing up Ed Reed—because how could you not? The Hall of Famer was quite literally everywhere. His range, instincts, and ability to bait quarterbacks into bad throws made him a nightmare for even the most seasoned offenses, including those led by Tom Brady.
Edelman recalled taking a hit from Reed on a post route and described what it was like going against Reed, even in his twilight years:
“I remember Ed Reed’s last year, he lit me up in Baltimore,” Edelman said. “We ended up losing… I played in it, he lit me up on a post and he was just so swaggy about it. Got up, he was just, like, a competitor.”
Naturally, that brought up Bill Belichick’s legendary obsession with Reed’s game tape.
“Bill used to show like a 40-play cutup of Ed Reed every time we played him,” Edelman laughed. “We’re like, ‘Bill, we saw this six weeks ago,’ and he’d just show another cutup.”
More than anything, Edelman kept coming back to one word: fear.
“I played against these teams. Those were no fly zones,” he said. “If there was a mistake in the middle of the field, you were getting knocked out. That’s what Baltimore did. They instilled fear.”
Edelman’s tone throughout made one thing clear: the Ravens were more than another tough opponent. They were a team that showed up, hit hard, and never gave an inch. Those games weren’t about finesse. They were survival. And Baltimore never flinched.