Jim Irsay and Bill Polian at M&T Bank Stadium (where there is still no love for the Irsay family) (IndySportsNation.com / November 22, 2009)
Great Day for Football: M & T Bank Stadium is one of the best in the NFL. Combine the rabid fans with a state-of-the-art venue (and great press box view) and this is definitely a great place to watch/report on a game.
The weather at kickoff was a comfortable 56 degrees.
It doesn't get much better than this for a late November Sunday afternoon on the East Coast. I saw a few Colts jerseys on my way into the stadium, although some of them were #19, Johnny Unitas jerseys. Fans here still remember their beloved Baltimore Colts and wanted nothing more than to end the Indianapolis Colts' perfect season.
INDY vs Ravens: When the Colts were introduced prior to the game, the crowd let out quite a few loud boos. On the scoreboard instead of listing Colts and Ravens, it said INDY and Ravens. The people here refer to the team as the Indianapolis pro football franchise, not the Colts. The Mayflower incident has left deep scars here in Baltimore, and this is another prime example of the way football fans feel about losing their team.
Fast Start: Should we be surprised that Peyton Manning and the offense got off to a fast start again in Baltimore? For all the hype the Ravens defense has gotten over the years, Peyton has had few problems against the Ray Lewis & company.
Pierre Garcon beat Fabian Washington for a 66-yard completion on the first drive of the game. Peyton then hit Dallas Clark who made a spectacular one-handed grab to give the Colts an early 7-0 lead and also move the Clark past former Baltimore tight end John Mackey for most receptions by a Colts Tight End.
"To break the record it's just a tremendous honor, everything that Mackey has done for the position, he revolutionalized the position and kind of made receiving tight ends like me, gave us a job," commented Clark.
At the end of the first quarter, Peyton was 6-for-9 for 127 yards and a touchdown. Another fast start for #18.
Clutch Call for Coach Harbaugh: After the Colts scored on their first drive of the game, Baltimore appeared to give the ball right back on the ensuing kickoff. Jacob Lacey forced a fumble, kicker Pat McAfee recovered giving the Colts a chance to take an early 14-0 lead.
However, John Harbaugh threw the challenge flag and after a lengthy review, the officials ruled that Lardarius Webb's knee was in fact down prior to the fumble.
"On the scouting report they were saying he (Webb) was a fumbler so I decided to take my shot, I hate that we got the challenger over-ruled, but I felt like I got it," commented Lacey.
The ruling in favor of the Ravens was a key play to keeping Baltimore in the game early; the drive would end with a Billy Cundiff 46-yard field goal.
I Meant to Keep the Flag in My Pocket: Harbaugh appeared to challenge a second play late in the second quarter when Reggie Wayne hauled in a 15-yard reception on 3rd and 6 from the Baltimore 33-yard line. It looked like Wayne only got one foot down, but then upon further review, he did drag the other foot down. For some reason, Harbaugh consulted with the officials and was allowed to take back his challenge before the review started. That announcement caused a certain Team President to voice his displeasure in the press box, Harbaugh needed that time-out on the Ravens field goal drive just before halftime.
College Football Atmosphere: The tailgating lot we walked through on the way to the stadium had a college football feel to it. Then, we witnessed a few things which also felt like this was a Saturday afternoon game. The Ravens are the only NFL team with their own marching band. I interviewed their "band director" in January of 2007 when I was here for the Colts-Ravens playoff game. The band performed on the field prior to the game and also at halftime. They also played tunes during the game as well.
The Ravens also have both guy and girl cheerleaders. While most NFL cheer squads simply dance to music (not that there is anything wrong with that) the Ravens have two groups who perform college-like stunts with guys holding and/or throwing the gals into the air. From my vantage point in the press box, looked like they did a fabulous job.
Speaking of College Football: I always enjoy seeing the players congregate at midfield following a hard-fought 60-minute game. There was a nice group of former Rutgers Scarlet Knights chatting it up after this one, led by Colts linebacker Gary Brackett.
"Scarlet Knights, baby, we're in the league. Today, you got Ray (Rice) , myself, Eric (Foster), L.J. (Smith), you know we're definitely in the league," commented Brackett. Gary even made mention of the Rutgers loss Saturday (a 31-13 loss to Syracuse) showing these guys haven't forgotten where they came from.
Halftime Analysis: Baltimore had to happy with newly signed kicker Billy Cundiff. He connected on four first-half field goal attempts (46, 44, 38, 36) the last of which made the score 14-12 at the half. The rushing statistics were very similar, Baltimore had 14 carries for 58 yards (4.1 average) while the Colts rushed the ball 13 times for 54 yards (4.2 average) This really favors the Colts though, since they run as an alternative to Peyton Manning's passing, while the Ravens would prefer to first establish the ground game. Joe Flacco did attempt 19 passes in the first half, but many were almost like running plays, short, safe attempts.
The Other Tight End: Jacob Santi got the start Sunday in place of the injured Gijon Robinson. The second-year pro from Virginia certainly made his presence felt. Santi caught six passes for 80 yards. He hadn't caught a pass this season, and had career totals of 10 receptions for 64 yards and a touchdown.
"You prepare every week like you're going to have to make a play and never know when it's going to be your time. Today, I had a few opportunities, and thankfully, took advantage of a few," commented Santi.
Santi did have a major mistake, fumbling in the third quarter at the Ravens one-yard line costing the Colts a sure touchdown.
Steel Curtain Defense: When Joe Flacco hit Derrick Mason for a 12 yard completion down to the Colts' one-yard line early in the fourth quarter, I was already looking ahead to the next Colts drive to see what Peyton Manning could do for an answer. However, the Colts held Baltimore out of the end zone, forcing John Harbaugh to send out Billy Cundiff for a 20-yard field goal. "That was huge, Gary Brackett, Clint Session, they were just telling us the whole time, 'Don't get moved, don't get moved.' That's what we pride ourselves on, we work on it every day in practice and we held up," commented defensive tackle Daniel Muir.
Do What We Do: I didn't actually hear any of the Colts defenders ring this familiar tune after the game, but I've seen this team enough to almost get brain-washed into saying it myself. This team has a special knack for pulling out plays when they need them most. The Ravens picked up 86 yards in the fourth quarter but only had three points to show for their efforts. The defense did what it does, bent but didn't break, and afterwards the players celebrated a remarkable 19th consecutive regular season victory.
"We take a lot of pride in what we do, and obviously, historically, the offense has been what it has been. Defensively, we go out there day-in and day-out practicing to make plays. The other teams that we play don't give us respect. It's OK, it's fine. If they do, that's fine. We're out there trying to play as hard as possible-make plays for this team, and hopefully, get a big win," added Dwight Freeney.
Just another case of the defense doing what they do, and the entire team doing what they do....win games.
It doesn't get much better than this for a late November Sunday afternoon on the East Coast. I saw a few Colts jerseys on my way into the stadium, although some of them were #19, Johnny Unitas jerseys. Fans here still remember their beloved Baltimore Colts and wanted nothing more than to end the Indianapolis Colts' perfect season.
INDY vs Ravens: When the Colts were introduced prior to the game, the crowd let out quite a few loud boos. On the scoreboard instead of listing Colts and Ravens, it said INDY and Ravens. The people here refer to the team as the Indianapolis pro football franchise, not the Colts. The Mayflower incident has left deep scars here in Baltimore, and this is another prime example of the way football fans feel about losing their team.
Fast Start: Should we be surprised that Peyton Manning and the offense got off to a fast start again in Baltimore? For all the hype the Ravens defense has gotten over the years, Peyton has had few problems against the Ray Lewis & company.
Pierre Garcon beat Fabian Washington for a 66-yard completion on the first drive of the game. Peyton then hit Dallas Clark who made a spectacular one-handed grab to give the Colts an early 7-0 lead and also move the Clark past former Baltimore tight end John Mackey for most receptions by a Colts Tight End.
"To break the record it's just a tremendous honor, everything that Mackey has done for the position, he revolutionalized the position and kind of made receiving tight ends like me, gave us a job," commented Clark.
At the end of the first quarter, Peyton was 6-for-9 for 127 yards and a touchdown. Another fast start for #18.
Clutch Call for Coach Harbaugh: After the Colts scored on their first drive of the game, Baltimore appeared to give the ball right back on the ensuing kickoff. Jacob Lacey forced a fumble, kicker Pat McAfee recovered giving the Colts a chance to take an early 14-0 lead.
However, John Harbaugh threw the challenge flag and after a lengthy review, the officials ruled that Lardarius Webb's knee was in fact down prior to the fumble.
"On the scouting report they were saying he (Webb) was a fumbler so I decided to take my shot, I hate that we got the challenger over-ruled, but I felt like I got it," commented Lacey.
The ruling in favor of the Ravens was a key play to keeping Baltimore in the game early; the drive would end with a Billy Cundiff 46-yard field goal.
I Meant to Keep the Flag in My Pocket: Harbaugh appeared to challenge a second play late in the second quarter when Reggie Wayne hauled in a 15-yard reception on 3rd and 6 from the Baltimore 33-yard line. It looked like Wayne only got one foot down, but then upon further review, he did drag the other foot down. For some reason, Harbaugh consulted with the officials and was allowed to take back his challenge before the review started. That announcement caused a certain Team President to voice his displeasure in the press box, Harbaugh needed that time-out on the Ravens field goal drive just before halftime.
College Football Atmosphere: The tailgating lot we walked through on the way to the stadium had a college football feel to it. Then, we witnessed a few things which also felt like this was a Saturday afternoon game. The Ravens are the only NFL team with their own marching band. I interviewed their "band director" in January of 2007 when I was here for the Colts-Ravens playoff game. The band performed on the field prior to the game and also at halftime. They also played tunes during the game as well.
The Ravens also have both guy and girl cheerleaders. While most NFL cheer squads simply dance to music (not that there is anything wrong with that) the Ravens have two groups who perform college-like stunts with guys holding and/or throwing the gals into the air. From my vantage point in the press box, looked like they did a fabulous job.
Speaking of College Football: I always enjoy seeing the players congregate at midfield following a hard-fought 60-minute game. There was a nice group of former Rutgers Scarlet Knights chatting it up after this one, led by Colts linebacker Gary Brackett.
"Scarlet Knights, baby, we're in the league. Today, you got Ray (Rice) , myself, Eric (Foster), L.J. (Smith), you know we're definitely in the league," commented Brackett. Gary even made mention of the Rutgers loss Saturday (a 31-13 loss to Syracuse) showing these guys haven't forgotten where they came from.
Halftime Analysis: Baltimore had to happy with newly signed kicker Billy Cundiff. He connected on four first-half field goal attempts (46, 44, 38, 36) the last of which made the score 14-12 at the half. The rushing statistics were very similar, Baltimore had 14 carries for 58 yards (4.1 average) while the Colts rushed the ball 13 times for 54 yards (4.2 average) This really favors the Colts though, since they run as an alternative to Peyton Manning's passing, while the Ravens would prefer to first establish the ground game. Joe Flacco did attempt 19 passes in the first half, but many were almost like running plays, short, safe attempts.
The Other Tight End: Jacob Santi got the start Sunday in place of the injured Gijon Robinson. The second-year pro from Virginia certainly made his presence felt. Santi caught six passes for 80 yards. He hadn't caught a pass this season, and had career totals of 10 receptions for 64 yards and a touchdown.
"You prepare every week like you're going to have to make a play and never know when it's going to be your time. Today, I had a few opportunities, and thankfully, took advantage of a few," commented Santi.
Santi did have a major mistake, fumbling in the third quarter at the Ravens one-yard line costing the Colts a sure touchdown.
Steel Curtain Defense: When Joe Flacco hit Derrick Mason for a 12 yard completion down to the Colts' one-yard line early in the fourth quarter, I was already looking ahead to the next Colts drive to see what Peyton Manning could do for an answer. However, the Colts held Baltimore out of the end zone, forcing John Harbaugh to send out Billy Cundiff for a 20-yard field goal. "That was huge, Gary Brackett, Clint Session, they were just telling us the whole time, 'Don't get moved, don't get moved.' That's what we pride ourselves on, we work on it every day in practice and we held up," commented defensive tackle Daniel Muir.
Do What We Do: I didn't actually hear any of the Colts defenders ring this familiar tune after the game, but I've seen this team enough to almost get brain-washed into saying it myself. This team has a special knack for pulling out plays when they need them most. The Ravens picked up 86 yards in the fourth quarter but only had three points to show for their efforts. The defense did what it does, bent but didn't break, and afterwards the players celebrated a remarkable 19th consecutive regular season victory.
"We take a lot of pride in what we do, and obviously, historically, the offense has been what it has been. Defensively, we go out there day-in and day-out practicing to make plays. The other teams that we play don't give us respect. It's OK, it's fine. If they do, that's fine. We're out there trying to play as hard as possible-make plays for this team, and hopefully, get a big win," added Dwight Freeney.
Just another case of the defense doing what they do, and the entire team doing what they do....win games.
