Baltimore won their Wild Card playoff game at Miami (27-9) last Sunday by virtue of outstanding defensive pressure
and turnovers.
The Baltimore Ravens had the Miami Dolphins and Chad Pennington under pressure throughout the game as they forced
four interceptions, including one returned 64 yards for a touchdown by Ed Reed, and won 27-9. Reed led the defense
with 2 interceptions, while Jim Leonhard and Fabian Washington each accounted for the other two. Pro Bowl selection,
Terrell Suggs recovered the Dolphins fumble. Pennington was sacked three times.
The Dolphins led the NFL this season with the fewest give-aways (13).
With the victory, the Ravens advance to the AFC divisional round and play the top-seeded Titans in Nashville.
The Dolphins took a 3-0 lead in the first quarter on a 19-yard field goal by Carpenter to cap an 8-play 50-yard
drive. The Ravens repsonded with a Matt Stover 23-yard field goal with 2:47 left in the quarter to knot the game
at 3-3. Stover's field goal capped an 11-play 59-yard drive.
However, it was Reed's play in the second quarter that ultimately did the Dolphins in.
Facing a 3rd-and-8, the Dolphins were put in a passing situation. The Ravens
countered by blitzing and at the same time placed double coverage on Dolphins receiver Ted Ginn. Feeling the
pressure, Pennington rolled to the outside and tossed the bomb deep down the side of the field. However,
Reed made an outstanding over-the-shoulder catch and returned the interception down the sideline for a 64 yard
touchdown. Reed's touchdown came with 2:30 left in the half. Stover's PAT was good for the 10-3 Ravens lead.
A 31-yard Matt Stover field goal with 16 seconds remaining in the first half extended the Ravens lead to 13-3.
The field goal capped a 7-play 46-yard drive which consumed 1:21.
In the second half, Terrell Suggs recovered Patrick Cobbs fumble at the Miami 19. Four plays
later Le'Ron McClain scored on an 8-yard run for the 20-3 Ravens lead.
Trailing 20-3, the Dolphins were in the midst of a 58-yard drive to the Ravens 13 yard line when Reed
came up with his second interception on the day.
Pennington finished the day 25-for-38 for 252 yards with 4 interceptions and 1 TD pass. The Ravens
further suffocated the Dolphins offense allowing only 52 yards rushing. In addition to the Ravens defensive
pressure, the Dolphins offesne was left to start with poor field position.
Ravens rookie QB Joe Flacco was 9-for-23 for 135 yards with no turnovers. Flacco scored the final points of the game on a
5-yard touchdown run with 3:53 remaining to produce the games final, 27-9.
The Ravens defensive performance was much like their 27-13 victory at Miami earlier in the season (Ocotber 19, 2008).
Ravens
3
10
7
7
27
Dolphins
3
0
0
6
9
Team
Qtr.
Time
Scoring Play
Drive
Score
Dolphins
1
8:17
D.Carpenter 19 yd. Field Goal
8-50, 4:15
0-3
Ravens
1
2:47
M.Stover 23 yd. Field Goal
11-59, 5:30
3-3
Ravens
2
2:30
E.Reed 64 yd. interception return (M.Stover kick)
10-3
Ravens
2
0:16
M.Stover 31 yd. Field Goal
7-46, 1:21
13-3
Ravens
3
7:33
L.McClain 8 yd. run (M.Stover kick)
4-19, 2:09
20-3
Dolphins
4
13:09
R.Brown 2 yd. pass from C.Pennington (kick blocked)
The Cardinals defense was sensational, limiting Michael Turner to 42 rushing yards,
harassing Matt Ryan and scoring points on its own with a TD and safety. The offense was also strong as Edgerrin James
led a revitalized Cardinals ground game while Kurt Warner and Larry Fitzgerald made big plays in the passing game.
The Chargers rallied from a 17-14 fourth quarter deficit behind an outstanding defensive effort, punter Mike Scifres and the
all-purpose assault by Darren "Tank" Sproles to defeat the Indianapolis Colts, 23-17 in overtime. Sproles played the key
role in the Chargers AFC Wild Card win over Indianapolis, recording 328 all-purpose yards, third-most in an NFL Playoff
game.
Once teams are ranked for the playoffs, positions do not change:
American Football Conference
1. Tennessee Titans (AFC South Division champion)
2. Pittsburgh Steelers (AFC North Division champion)
3. Miami Dolphins (AFC East Division champion)
4. San Diego Chargers (AFC West Division champion)
5. Indianapolis Colts
6. Baltimore Ravens
National Football Conference
1. New York Giants (NFC East Division champion)
2. Carolina Panthers (NFC South Division champion)
3. Minnesota Vikings (NFC North Division champion)
4. Arizona Cardinals (NFC West Division champion)
5. Atlanta Falcons
6. Philadelphia Eagles
NFL 2008 PLAYOFFS DIVISIONAL WEEKEND SCHEDULE
Saturday, January 10
AFC: Baltimore Ravens at Tennessee Titans - 4:30PM ET
NFC: Arizona Cardinals at Carolina Panthers - 8:15PM ET
Sunday, January 11
NFC: Philadelphia Eagles at New York Giants - 1:00PM ET
AFC: San Diego Chargers at Pittsburgh Steelers - 4:45PM ET
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