Baltimore Ravens, 24 Indianapolis Colts, 9
Thursday, future 1st-ballot Hall Of Famer LB Ray Lewis announced this would be his final season. This forced the media to literally rip themselves in half between the feel good ChuckStrong loveable underdogs and the glorious curtain-call-for-a-legend narratives. Their panic was evident all pre game and postgame. Either way, we seem to have forgotten to talk about football.
As always, a kickoff ensued and a football game followed. The action on the field? This was a rough debut for QB Andrew Luck. The experienced Ravens defeated him with just that, expierence. Luck was forced to throw the ball 54 times, but completed only half and none in the red zone.
On the other side of the ball, the Ravens offense was slow to put up points. Flacco and Co seemed to finally straighten out right before halftime and hit full stride in the 3rd quarter. It was the same decade-old Ravens formula; Lewis, S Ed Reed and LB Terrell Suggs kept the game close, until the offense could get moving. Even two lost fumbles by RB Ray Rice did nothing to swing the Colts in the right direction.
KEY PLAY: With 1:08 left in the half, Ray Rice supplied the big play to finally spark the Ravens offense. A 47 yard screen to the 2 that led to FB Vonta Leach's pounding touchdown. On the play were excellent adjustments by Rice, QB Joe Flacco and the first of two big time blocks by WR Torrey Smith
MVP: WR Anquan Boldin made all the big plays that needed to be made: catches of 50, 46 and a dagger touchdown in the 4th. He overpowered the Colts secondary and provided all the offense the Ravens would need.
Seattle Seahawks, 24 Washington Redskins, 14
It will be unfortunate if the injury to QB Robert Griffin III and its lasting impact upon his career lives as the memorable aspect to this game in NFL legend & lore. The Redskins jumped out to a 14-0 lead on the back of RB Alfred Morris, leading two of the most dominant ground drives of their already successful rushing season. It was the ability of the Seattle D to lift up to that physical tempo and remarkably not allow another semblance of success on offense from Washington for the rest of the game. Morris tallied 49 yards on the first two drives, and 31 yards in the rest of the game.
RG3's knee injury continued to get worse, by the 2nd half he was effectively at 1/4 of his normal speed. QB Russell Wilson, RB Marshawn Lynch ran the read-option game plan to perfection and Washington's defense looked uncertain and lacked confidence Seattle methodically put up the 24 points needed to win.
KEY PLAY: RG3's brutal knee injury and the resulting crucial fumble loss are sure to recieve replays all week. However, my pick was an unsung 3rd and 12 in the 2nd quarter. The Seahawks were vulnerable to a door slamming 3 and out, down 14. TE Zach Miller made a shoestring catch and pounded 6 hard yards to convert. It was a game changer, the rest, in retrospect, seemed almost inevitable.
MVP: RB Marshawn Lynch may have lost a fumble at the goal line but he also he more than made up for it with a crucial fumble scooping conversion and willed the ball forward for a 26 yard TD run that put the Seahawks ahead for good. He has been the workhorse that gives the Seattle D, rookie Wilson and weapons around room to shine.
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