"We let them off the hook," Reed said loudly to make sure everyone could hear.
"We" was the Ravens' defense, which has been one of the most consistently dominant units of the past decade. "Them" was the Atlanta Falcons, which improved to 7-2 after an exciting -- and some would say controversial -- 26-21 victory over Baltimore (6-3). In what was viewed as a possible Super Bowl preview, neither team disappointed as each club held the lead in the final minute.
The difference was the Falcons' last offensive drive, where they marched 80 yards in 45 seconds against a Ravens' defense that had snuffed out those scenarios many times before. A 33-yard touchdown catch by Falcons receiver Roddy White over Ravens cornerback Josh Wilson sealed the game for Atlanta.
Wilson argued vehemently with the referees that he was pushed but no flag was thrown.
"I was playing coverage, man, and I guess it's tough to play good coverage in this league," said Wilson. "I don't know. I can't call it."
The Ravens have felt they were on the short end of calls or no-calls before. But the overriding theme in the locker room this time was that they missed chances to make key stops.
"They made the plays at the end and we didn't," Ravens cornerback Chris Carr said bluntly. "It was a very difficult loss. With our defense we figured that we would stop them."
Baltimore Ravens
Comments