The All-Time Greatest Plays In Raven History
by BAL_Hawk on Jun 5, 2009 12:29 PM EDT
48 comments
Since Bruce Started the "All-Time" posts, I thought it would be appropriate to debate the "All-Time" greatest plays in Raven history. There are so many meaningful plays. It's hard to choose one that I would consider the greatest. I believe that it will be easier to deduce if many people throw in their opinions. Remember that we need to take the meaning of the play into account along with the overall meaning of the game. Therefore, I think that excellent plays made in the post season, especially the 2000 post season and Super Bowl, deserve the most consideration. I can think of three great plays off the top of my head. They all happened in the 2000 season, but this is not the only criteria for great plays. Feel free to nominate any play in any season, but be sure to provide your reasoning.
Anyway, I'll get the ball rolling. I'll name three plays and then nominate the play that I think is the best.
Shannon Sharpe's catch and touchdown versus the Raiders in the 2000 AFC Championship Game.
At the point in the game where this play happened, both teams were scoreless, and the Ravens offensive line was being dominated. This play literally set the tone of the game. Wih their defense that year, the Ravens would dominate if they had a lead. It is arguable that the Ravens would not have gotten to the Superbowl if this play was made. It sealed the game early on.
Jermaine Lewis' kickoff return for a touchdown in Super Bowl XXV. Watch the video from 3:00.
This play may be the weakest of my group, but it was still an amazing, game-breaking play. It was game-breaking because the Giants had just scored on a kickoff return. The Ravens had the game in hand, and this play officially sealed the Super Bowl victory. I would have liked to select more plays in the Super Bowl, but since the Ravens easily rolled over the Giants, there were not many better than this. Again, this play my be the weakest of my group, but I put it in here because of the inspirational factor. Jermaine Lewis had lost his unborn son, Geronimo, only days before the Super Bowl. His touchdown still gives me goose bumps.
Ray Lewis' interception and touchdown versus the Titans in the 2000 playoffs.
This play is my nomination. I believe that this may be the greatest play in Raven History. In the game, the Ravens had been going back and forth with the Titans. The Titans kicker had missed several field goals and kept the Ravens in the game. At the point where this play had happened, the Ravens had just returned a blocked field goal for a touchdown and taken the lead 17-10. The pressure was now on the Titans. They needed to score and stay in the game. On the next drive, Steve McNair passed the ball to Eddie George, and Ray Lewis was able to wrestle it from his arms and return it for a touchdown. This play embodied the Ravens 2000 season, and has been a good example of Raven football in the subsequent years.
These are just my nominations. Let's hear everyone's opinions and come up with a consensus.
The opinions posted here are those of the administrator of this blog and his loyal readers. They are in no way official comments from the team, and should not be misconstued as such, even though he thinks he could do just as well or even a better job!
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Gotta be Ray
Effectively ended Eddie George’s career right there. Ripped out his heart and destroyed Eddie’s will to play football.. That is the clear winner for me as well.
by DT711 on Jun 5, 2009 12:34 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
+1
You have to hate losing more than you love winning.
by Mr MaLoR on Jun 5, 2009 8:08 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Certainly turned the tide in our favor.
As did the Sharpe TD run. Both were the defining moments on our run to the SB. Jermaine’s TD return just sealed the deal and was motional as he pointed to the heavens where his son recently went.
However, if you’re looking at the greatest plays regardles of the situations, you have to put C-Mac’s unlikely return of the missed FG that stnned not only the crowd and opponent, but a national TV audience as well.
Almost as good were Ed Reed’s two TD returns over 100 yards as well as his great TD return in this year’s playoff game in Miami.
It appears that the defensive and Special Teams TD’s are the most exciting as they are more unexpected than the offensive ones.
Bruce Raffel
by Bruce Raffel on Jun 6, 2009 2:05 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
.
It appears that the defensive and Special Teams TD’s are the most exciting as they are more unexpected than the offensive ones
I’d say that’s been debatable for most of the Ravens’ history.
Water covers 2/3 of the Earth's surface. Ed Reed covers the rest.
by Ampallang on Jun 6, 2009 2:40 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Ouch!
Somewhere, Matt Cavanaugh is cringing.
Bruce Raffel
by Bruce Raffel on Jun 7, 2009 10:39 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
depends
Are we talking greatest play or most important play during the super-bowl run, because if not I think both of the Ballhawks 108 yard interception returns should be up for debate. More specifically the return against the Browns, because it was down in the ever nasty all black uniforms, and it was a sick grab.
by Ravens in PA on Jun 5, 2009 1:37 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Yeah...
Ed Reed’s 108 yard, record breaking interception return was one of the best plays last year, and his return versus the Browns is one of my personal favorites. The formal debate is about the “All-Time Greatest Plays In Raven History,” but there’s nothing wrong with bringing up other awesome plays. At the very least, it makes an interesting football conversation in this boring part of the off-season.
by BAL_Hawk on Jun 5, 2009 3:45 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
road to/in playoffs impact plays
special note: Scott slamming Ben on his head is always awesome.
1. ray vs. mr. ed
2. shannon saved our dead in the water O. if he doesn’t catch/run that we punt from the end zone.
3. washingtons huge block/return of tenn. field goal try before ray iced it with The Play
4. stockleys SB catch to set the tone (once we got a lead -OVER)
5. leonhards fumble causing hit this year in tenn.
6. gooses flop on gannon
7. the Heap extended play clock catch.
10. jermaines sb return.
15. stovers 50 yarder in tenn. playoff game
25. jamal lewis fumbling the ball for a TD on the goal line in the SB…oh yeah he had control ; )
by raven on Jun 5, 2009 2:44 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
That was an awesome hit! When I remember Scott, I think of this play.
by BAL_Hawk on Jun 5, 2009 4:21 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Probably the biggest hit on a QB ive ever seen
Ravens fans loved how it knocked the air out of both Ben and every Steeler fan in the world
Bleeding Black and Gold since 1989 baby, Blitzburgh is back, time for a repeat!
by Steeler_ on Jun 6, 2009 2:48 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Heap’s “extended play clock catch” was a lucky play.
That missed call made up for the bad call on Suggs in the first game.
by BAL_Hawk on Jun 5, 2009 7:19 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
We'll call it even, okay?
Bruce Raffel
by Bruce Raffel on Jun 6, 2009 2:06 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Can we get a...
Reed honorable mention? I mean any of his endzone-to-endzone interceptions would qualify, especially the record-breaker against Philly this year. Plays like that are why Madden ’10 is rating him at a perfect 99 this year.
by jackmca on Jun 5, 2009 2:59 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
The best play ever made was by Joe Flacco!!
This came with 4:24 remaining in the last quarter of the AFC championship game when he threw a sweet ass pick-6 to Troy P.!!
The very existence of flamethrowers proves that some time, somewhere, someone said to themselves, "You know, I want to set those people over there on fire, but I'm just not close enough to get the job done."
-George Carlin
by Cdsumm on Jun 5, 2009 3:05 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
You’re really sad. This is not funny.
by BAL_Hawk on Jun 5, 2009 3:33 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
- infinity
Yucky
You have to hate losing more than you love winning.
by Mr MaLoR on Jun 5, 2009 8:08 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
i like troy…if it had to be anyone sticking it to us may as well be troy. who didn’t know that pass was coming. right flat short. lol. the testaverde blind spot rears it’s ugly head.
it was like we had given up at that point. their was a tone of time on the clock. but, like the last drive at home against you flacco throws the pick with good time left. nice young qb we have but he needs to cut that shit out.
by raven on Jun 5, 2009 3:12 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
We were on our way at the time!
Remember it was only 16-14 and we were around our 35 yard line, and driving for a game winning and Super Bowl here-we-come FG with around 4 minutes left. If Troy doesn’t pick that, we’d have had the parade after beating the Cards!
Bruce Raffel
by Bruce Raffel on Jun 6, 2009 2:08 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
remember when (off topic)
1998 Baltimore Ravens
Regular Season
Week 1 Sep 6 L 20-13 vs Pittsburgh Steelers so close
Week 2 Sep 13 W 24-10 at New York Jets
Week 3 Sep 20 L 24-10 at Jacksonville Jaguars
Week 4 Sep 27 W 31-24 vs Cincinnati Bengals
Week 5 Bye Week
Week 6 Oct 11 L 12-8 vs Tennessee Oilers painful close
Week 7 Oct 18 L 16-13 at Pittsburgh Steelers this really hurt
Week 8 Oct 25 L 28-10 at Green Bay Packers to depressed to play this one
Week 9 Nov 1 L 45-19 vs Jacksonville Jaguars quit
Week 10 Nov 8 W 13-10 vs Oakland Raiders regroup
Week 11 Nov 15 L 14-13 at San Diego Chargers (leg tripped jermaine cheaters)
Week 12 Nov 22 W 20-13 at Cincinnati Bengals
Week 13 Nov 29 W 38-31 vs Indianapolis Colts
Week 14 Dec 6 L 16-14 at Tennessee Oilers sooo close
Week 15 Dec 13 L 38-28 vs Minnesota Vikings
Week 16 Dec 20 L 24-3 at Chicago Bears looking at draft
a few breaks that year and almost a playoff team. the blow outs followed ver very tough loses. hard for a young/new team to overcome but this was a good team.
by raven on Jun 5, 2009 3:31 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Floyd Turner was super
the name i was looking for..this guy never got his props for what he did.
by raven on Jun 5, 2009 3:33 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
What About Sharpe's Other Big Play?
I think it was the playoff game against Denver. Didn’t T-buck essentially intercept another Dilfer special and Sharpe basically “juggled” the ball out of T-buck’s hands and take it for a big gain, maybe a TD? I think THAT play was the most important of all time.
One could almost argue without that play our run is stopped.
Please correct me if I am wrong.
Maybe not the most important, but Jermaine Lewis’s ranks up there; it is, by far, the most inspirational. Totally agree about the goose bumps.
My favorite was Goose pancaking Gannon of the Raiders that is classic!
by vlad755 on Jun 5, 2009 3:57 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
I Was There!
Sharpe snagged the Dilfer pass out of the air after a deflection and ran 50+ yards down the sidelines for the TD that sealed it. I specifically remember ‘Who Let the Dog’s Out’ playing afterward but I digress…I believe that was the only home playoff win for the Ravens in their history.
BK
by BKsportstake on Jun 8, 2009 6:03 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I was there as well
We sold our seats in the top of the stadium and splurged for Club Level seats in the sun. It was real cold that day and I could see in my binoculars my friends up in the nosebleed section freezing while we were baking in the sun at Club Level. That convinced me to move up to the Club seats, as we sit in the sun and even in the coldest weather, as long as the sun shines, we are toasty. The alcohol probably helps a bit too.
Bruce Raffel
by Bruce Raffel on Jun 8, 2009 8:41 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
your right..afc wild card game…very close at that point ball thrown to jamal who bats it in the air. sharpe grabs it and takes it for a TD. sharp is the greatest offensive ravens player of all time.
by raven on Jun 5, 2009 4:01 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
On that play
Sam Gash (?) destroyed Bronco’s Bill Romanowski out of bounds on a blind side block as Sharpe ran down the sideline. YouTube the play and watch that hit!
Bruce Raffel
by Bruce Raffel on Jun 6, 2009 2:10 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
You Are Baiting Me
To throw Ogden up there against Sharpe…
Sharpe is by far the greatest offensive skill position player the Ravens have ever had, slightly edging out Jamal Lewis in my opinion.
But for overall best offensive player in Ravens history I still have to go with Ogden. I swear, against certain opponents he almost seemed bored pass blocking against them in some games…
by vlad755 on Jun 8, 2009 11:52 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
in 1998 jermaine lewis had 41 catches for 780 yards w/ an average of 19yards a catch. best yards per catch average in the NFL for players with 10 or more caches. imagine if he was used full time as a reeiver the numbers he would have posted. this was under Marchibroda. Rosevelt Potts had 9 more catches in 1998 than Clayton had this year. LOL. ……
why did billick dog house him in the receiving game? would you give up some of his returns to make him an every down receiver after seeing what he did in’98? i would have in a heart beat!!!
he has to go down as one of the most underused players in recent history along with Brian Mitchell and a younger Priest Holmes. special teams really screws guys up once they are pigeon holed in that roll.
by raven on Jun 5, 2009 4:07 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
I don’t know which is the best play ever in Ravens history, Ed Reeds first record for the longest INT returned for a TD (106 yards Baltimore vs. Cleveland, Nov. 7, 2004), or when he broke his own record for the longest INT returned for a TD (107 yards Philadelphia vs. Baltimore, Nov. 23, 2008).
by Strangebru727 on Jun 5, 2009 6:17 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
The Browns game
was better, considering it was a division rival that was driving for a game tying or lead taking TD while the Philly TD was icing on the cake and gave McNabb his job back after getting unceremoniously benched.
Bruce Raffel
by Bruce Raffel on Jun 6, 2009 2:12 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
If I could combine 2 plays
I would put Jermaine Lewis’ 2 punt returns against the New York Jets in 2000.
A few days after the death of his new born child, the coaches tell Jermaine that he does not have to play if he does not feel he can. He fights the pain, comes out there on Sunday, and wins the game for us. Jermaine pointing to the sky, dedicating those two returns to his child, I nearly get tears seeing him do that. That was an incredible effort by someone going through a situation like that.
But, I will give it to Ray for sure. Like DT711 said, that play single handily ended Eddie George’s career.
You have to hate losing more than you love winning.
by Mr MaLoR on Jun 5, 2009 8:12 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Chris McAlister
107 yard missed field goal return for a touchdown.
by DerFeurer on Jun 5, 2009 10:40 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
For pur excitement of the unexpected,...
…it hs to be the C-Mac missed FG return just before halftime in that Broncos (?) game. Of course, it was so close to halftime that I was inside heading from the Club Level to the Lower Level to meet my friend for a beer and MISSED it!!!
Bruce Raffel
by Bruce Raffel on Jun 6, 2009 2:13 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Dallas
Surprised there’s no love for the two runs versus Dallas last year. People forget, without those HUGE plays, we probably don’t win that game.. Without that game, we don’t even make the playoffs.. Not as big as say, Ray vs. Eddie, but I would take that over J. Lew in the Bowl. We had that game on ice with or without the return.
by Voodoo Child on Jun 7, 2009 12:51 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Agreed
After the McClain run, Dallas went down the field and scored pretty easily and EVERYONE in attendance and watching on TV thpought they were going to pull it out. Then McGahee sticks the dagger in their hearts and you could feel the breath be taken out of all of them, especially Jerry Jones and all the old Cowboys there to turn off the lights of the stadium.
Bruce Raffel
by Bruce Raffel on Jun 8, 2009 11:55 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I think that just about says it all.
Water covers 2/3 of the Earth's surface. Ed Reed covers the rest.
by Ampallang on Jun 8, 2009 2:45 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
To this day
I still laugh at the post game events of that night. Everything was supposed to go fine and dandy for Dallas when Jerry Jones hand picked us to play that game. I love the fact that even though Dallas lost, they were still the ONLY ones that did post game interviews at the podium.
We sat there and listened to Romo, Owens and Pussy Wade Phillips talk about how bad they played. Then they so ever nicely give LeRon McClain a 45 second time frame while still in his pads to answer 2 question by Adam Schefter, then we go right back to Wade Phillips picking his nose and crying.
What a great day that was!
You have to hate losing more than you love winning.
by Mr MaLoR on Jun 8, 2009 3:49 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
What a Great Pic
Wade should have known better than to join the Jerry Jones circus…
by vlad755 on Jun 9, 2009 11:08 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
2000 Super Bowl Run
Any of the great plays from their 2000 Super Bowl Run are in contention for the ‘All-Time Greatest Play in Raven History.’ From Shannon Sharpe’s juggled catch and run for a TD against Denver to Anthony Mitchell’s TD after a blocked Del Greco FG, the Ray Lewis pick-6, Sharpe’s 94 yard TD against Oakland, The Goose landing on Rich Gannon breaking his arm, or any of the great plays from the Super Bowl (Jermaine Lewis’ return, the Duane Starks INT for a TD, etc.)
BK
by BKsportstake on Jun 8, 2009 6:08 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
The Jamie Sharper hit on...Hillard?
Bruce Raffel
by Bruce Raffel on Jun 8, 2009 8:42 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
My bro-in-law and I
scalped tix to the SB in 2001. Flew down and scalped ticket just before gametime. A vendor snuck him in for $600. We switched seats each quarter (his vendor didn’t get him a seat just in the stadium. By the time the 4th quarter rolled around, he sat right next to me as the Giants fans were leaving in droves. We saw the vendor later. He snuck in 6 guys for $600 each ($3600) then quit. Not a bad take for one day for him, eh?
Bruce Raffel
by Bruce Raffel on Jun 8, 2009 8:44 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
great idea!!! remember the dude in the early 80’s who snuck into big pro games and wrote a book about it….was that you Rexxxxx.
by raven on Jun 8, 2009 11:17 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
the eddie george pacifier mouth guard always cracked me up
by raven on Jun 9, 2009 10:44 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
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