Ravens Step Up To Take Responsibility

by Bruce Raffel on Jan 23, 2012 9:52 AM EST

As placekicker Billy Cundiff's 32-yard field goal flew wide left of the uprights, the Baltimore Ravens players all simultaneously knew that their season was a few seconds away from being over. Cundiff walked off the field with his head down as the rest of the team stood with their collective mouths open in shock as the reality of the moment set in.

Once the game was over and the players showered (or not) and dressed, a few of them were interviewed and when Cundiff stepped to the podium, he faced the inevitable questions that he knew he couldn't avoid. According to a story at BaltimoreRavens.com, Cundiff said about his miss:

"There's really no excuse for it."

However, one by one, his Ravens teammates came to his defense, sharing responsibility for the 23-20 loss to the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship Game. Ray Lewis said:

"As a man, not one play won or lost this game."

Wide receiver Lee Evans, who seemed to catch what could have been the game-winner, only to see the ball stripped out of his arms before securing the perfect throw from Flacco, joined in taking responsibility for the loss in another story on the team's website:

"I felt like I had it but it came out....I don't even know how to really put it in words."

These two players were involved in huge plays that could easily be looked at as why the Ravens lost the game, but there were 68 other offensive plays in the game as well as 68 defensive plays, all of which played a role in the team loss.

As Ray Lewis was quoted as saying,

"We win as a team, we lose as a team."

Tweet Comment 35 comments | 0 recs |

Do you like this story?

Comments

Lee Evans

All this Money for Evans; drops big Pass…..when are we going to “pin” these Guys down like Evans….getting tired of “Team this” Team that". Call him out !!

by buggsddp1 on Jan 23, 2012 10:27 AM EST reply actions

This is why we're not the Jets. We don't call out our guys.

by fedfan64 on Jan 23, 2012 10:52 AM EST up reply actions

+1

It’s stupid to throw blame around the locker room, especially after a loss like this. I, looking desperately for a silver lining, take a lot of solace in that we “lost as a team”. Nothing but class in that locker room, and in our organization from the top-down, and that’s a major reason why love this fucking team so much.

Go Giants.

by nattybroh on Jan 23, 2012 11:52 AM EST up reply actions

ceterum censeo

cundiff must be cut. all year a liability.
evans, i dont know, yet.

by captain dobey on Jan 23, 2012 11:54 AM EST up reply actions

don't get me wrong

I think we’ll be shopping for a new kicker real soon.

P.S. I miss Matt Stover.

by nattybroh on Jan 23, 2012 12:07 PM EST up reply actions

What money?

You come at the king, you best not miss.

by organizedchaos52 on Jan 23, 2012 1:44 PM EST up reply actions

I guess Ray is coming back for next season...

I’d imagine that he’s not happy with how the season ended. Raven’s should’ve won that game. That pass to Evans was a touchdown in my mind. He maintained possession for a couple of seconds before it was knocked out.

What befuddles me is that Harbaugh didn’t call his last time out before Cundiff went up to take that last kick. With 16 seconds left, there’s no reason not to. Call it and allow the kicker to calm his nerves a bit. I hate that the Patriots are in the Super Bowl. Really wanted to see Baltimore take it all since my Texans were knocked out.

Ravens will be strong again next year. Good luck in the future for the Ravens and their fans.

I've got nothin'...

by Bennyscrap on Jan 23, 2012 10:36 AM EST reply actions

Devastated for your team

Colts fan here… still in complete disbelief that the better team top to bottom lost yesterday. Flacco played well, the defensive gameplan was brilliant, and it was simply a good back-and-forth game.

I really wish we had seen the deep purple in Indy this year, but trust your team will continue to be top notch for a while. Congrats to have gotten as far as you did and now… Go Giants!

How can you not love a team who does this?
Read great Colts analysis on Colts Authority and follow me on Twitter

by LovinBlue on Jan 23, 2012 10:51 AM EST reply actions

And if the Giants win Eli > Payton

How was Baltimore the better team top to bottom? If that was the case, they would not have been playing from behind in the 4th. The Patriots turned the ball over 3 times as well and the Ravens came away with only 6 points from them. What exactly were they better at? Missing kicks? The two biggest playmakers on the team were controlled the entire game – that would be Rice and Suggs. How many times has that happened?

The Patriots got lucky with the kick and maybe the dropped TD, but there were many plays the other way too – like Brady missing Gronkowski for an easy TD early. It was a 10 point swing since the Ravens went the other way for 3.

The better team is the team headed to the superbowl – every year.

by iLikeStuff on Jan 23, 2012 11:22 AM EST up reply actions 1 recs

Sorry but your statement is a

bunch of bullshit. The Pats aren’t even close to being the better team. They get a lot of calls and special treatment from the refs. Brady’s line got away with murder all day long on holding. We all know that Brady is the posterboy for the League and it’s no secret he gets special treatment from the refs. Suggs said it best in this interview: http://search.espn.go.com/suggs-vs-skip-bayless/

by deywalka on Jan 23, 2012 12:38 PM EST up reply actions

Hey there, Colts fan!

Go crawl back into the depths of your two-win season while the Patriots take a nice, steaming pile on Lucas Oil with your posterboy in attendance.

Can I Scream?

Follow @FoxMcCloud86

by Adam Fox on Jan 23, 2012 12:55 PM EST up reply actions

I don't agree with this at all:

The better team is the team headed to the superbowl – every year.

I generally think the hottest team goes to the SB. That’s not always the best team (For example, I don’t think the ’08 Cardinals were the best team in the NFC that year.)

You come at the king, you best not miss.

by organizedchaos52 on Jan 23, 2012 1:51 PM EST up reply actions

Lee Evans Catch

Any of you watch some replays of the Eavns “catch”? Evans had 2 feet down with possession. That could have been called a TD easily. I don’t think you have to make a “football move” in the EZ.

Any of you guys look at this closely?

by KLECKOtoCANTON on Jan 23, 2012 11:38 AM EST reply actions

Looked at it very closely, seemed like the right call to me. How about he just hold onto it instead of letting this shit to happen. Agreed?

Flacco has to trust his receivers to make catches, but shouldn’t throw towards coverage. He needs to attack deep more often, but shouldn’t hold onto the ball so long. He needs to show more awareness in the pocket and move to extend plays, but nothing good comes of him leaving the pocket. He should run with the ball if nobody’s open, but he definitely can’t run with the ball.

Flacco should have the awareness of Roethlisberger, the elusiveness of Vick, the control of the offense of Manning, the leadership of Brady, the accuracy of Brees, and the arm strength of … Flacco? - Ampallang

by Mr MaLoR on Jan 23, 2012 11:42 AM EST up reply actions 1 recs

The NFL ENDZONE RULE

All you need is both feet down with possession. That instant, it’s a TD. I think that was a TD.

by KLECKOtoCANTON on Jan 23, 2012 12:11 PM EST up reply actions

To me, the ball was coming out right as the left foot touched. Like I said, just hold onto the ball. Inexcusable.

by Mr MaLoR on Jan 23, 2012 12:14 PM EST up reply actions

Lee Evans has been hurt

all year and to put him in that position with the game on the line when he hasn’t had chemistry with the 1st unit all year was dumb to begin with. Boldin should have been in that position. At any rate it was a TD because he caught the ball and had 2 feet down. The rule is as soon as the ball crosses the plain and a player has possession it’s a TD AT THAT SECOND. The rule should be enforced. But as usual the Pats always get the breaks from the officials because Brady is the posterboy for the league. All the rule changes put in place to protect the QB were in truth made just for him as evidenced by the number of times they are enforced when he’s on the field vs the majority of other QBs in the league.

by deywalka on Jan 23, 2012 12:48 PM EST up reply actions

After rewatching it a bunch of times it wasn’t a TD. The ball was coming out before the 2nd foot hit. I do think it was worth a review, but it wasn’t a TD. That’s all on Lee.

On Ed Reed:
"I’ve told him to his face many times, ‘You’re the greatest safety ever to play the game,’"
"We all learn from each other, but we all learn most from him."
- Troy Polamalu

by AV23 on Jan 23, 2012 12:52 PM EST up reply actions

Yea, I agree. It wasn’t a TD. Had Lee held on to the ball for a few more seconds before the ball gets knocked out….who knows? Based on what I saw it was the right call.
That’s not on the officials but it is on Lee. He absolutely just has to secure the ball. The league also needs to do a better job this off season with making the EZ rules as to what does and does not constitute a TD clearer.
On the whole, Lee had a decent game at WR3. I think it’d be wise to see how he progresses with Joe before letting him go. I know we’re all fuming and rightfully so, but we have to do our best to deal and look ahead.

"Don't throw it, don't throw it, don't throw it. I know y'all going to throw it, they going to throw it anyway. I wouldn't throw it. Don't do it." - Ed Reed

You say tomato, I say tomahto. You say Six, I say Sweep.

by WestminsterRaven on Jan 23, 2012 1:13 PM EST up reply actions

Yeah I think the draft will be telling of what happens to Lee. If we go get another WR I think he could be gone, but if not we will probably stick with him. We got some big decisions to make this off season. With Flacco, Rice and Grubbs needing to be re-signed we have guys like Redding, Gurode, Cary I believe and JJ who also will be FA’s then guys like Carr and Foxworth who have just been getting outplayed. We could see another couple vets not with us like we saw last year. It will be interesting to see when we get a better picture of what the cap looks like.

On Ed Reed:
"I’ve told him to his face many times, ‘You’re the greatest safety ever to play the game,’"
"We all learn from each other, but we all learn most from him."
- Troy Polamalu

by AV23 on Jan 23, 2012 1:21 PM EST up reply actions

despite the non-catch

I think I’d like to see Lee come back (esp if the coaching staff sees continued improvement o. his chemistry with Joe). However I believe he’s due a $1 mil roster bonus in March as well as his $5 mil (or whatever salary) so we might not be able to afford him even if we wanted to bring him back.

by GayleG on Jan 23, 2012 1:29 PM EST via Android app up reply actions

Yeah he definitely will be one of the big decisions to make going forward and really will depend on how much cap room we have.

On Ed Reed:
"I’ve told him to his face many times, ‘You’re the greatest safety ever to play the game,’"
"We all learn from each other, but we all learn most from him."
- Troy Polamalu

by AV23 on Jan 23, 2012 1:35 PM EST up reply actions

I think he’s already signed for another year. I don’t think we’ll cut him. Despite the drop of his life, he’s a playmaker with speed and great body control. With another year under Torrey’s belt, I like our top 3 WRs going into next year.

daytime commentator. night time ninja.

by El.Dude on Jan 23, 2012 5:28 PM EST up reply actions

Yes.

1 more year, with a $1m roster bonus in March (as detailed above) and ~ $3m in salary. Not sure about his signing bonus money.

You come at the king, you best not miss.

by organizedchaos52 on Jan 23, 2012 7:43 PM EST up reply actions

The replay assistant looked at it and confirmed no catch.

No need to go to the hood.

You come at the king, you best not miss.

by organizedchaos52 on Jan 23, 2012 1:47 PM EST up reply actions

What does chemistry have to do with catching the ball?

He’s a veteran receiver, and he’s probably played the position for 15 years. You’re going to sit here and tell me that he forgot how to catch and hold onto the ball because he sat out for most of the season? My point is, chemistry didn’t cause an incompletion, Evans simply didn’t hold on.

You come at the king, you best not miss.

by organizedchaos52 on Jan 23, 2012 1:47 PM EST up reply actions

nothing in that instance

but when deciding to bring him back or not, you look at the whole body of work, don’t you? he and joe were certainly off right when he came back from his injury, but improved the last few games.

by GayleG on Jan 23, 2012 1:55 PM EST via Android app up reply actions

He really didn’t improve significantly though. He also had that huge drop in the cincy game.

On Ed Reed:
"I’ve told him to his face many times, ‘You’re the greatest safety ever to play the game,’"
"We all learn from each other, but we all learn most from him."
- Troy Polamalu

by AV23 on Jan 23, 2012 2:02 PM EST up reply actions

What I gathered from Deywalka's statement

was that we couldn’t blame Evans for the drop because he should never have been put in that position. An idea with which I strongly disagree.

You come at the king, you best not miss.

by organizedchaos52 on Jan 23, 2012 2:11 PM EST up reply actions

You are an idiot.

by Revenge of the Fallen on Jan 24, 2012 5:40 PM EST up reply actions

2nd guessing

I’m a Jet fan so I know about 2nd guessing. I really think the Ravens played a phenomenal game. If I was nitpicky, I’d 2nd guess not going for it on 4th & inches near the EZ in the 1st half. Def should NOT have gone on 4th & 6(I’d have punted). But really Harbaugh called a great game overall in Foxborough. Ravens deserved to win, but these games come down to tiny executions. SUX SO BAD TO LOSE on a 30yd FG, but you guys should still be proud.

by KLECKOtoCANTON on Jan 23, 2012 11:48 AM EST reply actions

+1

Jets fan with logic…who knew

"In a battle between patience and power, patience always wins"

by ticalcaldwell on Jan 23, 2012 12:28 PM EST up reply actions

i know g-men will make a pudding of those lucky guys

by captain dobey on Jan 23, 2012 11:53 AM EST reply actions

Sorry, but Ray is wrong

One play did lose the game and one play failed to extend the game.

Evans catch, had it been made, at the time in the game that it was, would have won the game at that moment. Since it wasn’t successful, it did in fact lose the game. I don’t blame Evans though. He made the catch. Having it punched out doesn’t reflect at all on his ability to actually make the catch, and so I do not blame him.

Cundiff’s kick, had it been made would have extended, but not won the game. In that sense, it didn’t lose the game, only the chance to continue to try for the win. But I do blame him. No one interfered with his leg. No one jumped in front of him and yelled boo. He shanked the kick the same way that he did those two (3?) in the rain earlier in the season.

No matter how much Ray would like to make it a team game, often it comes down to the efforts of one person on one play. And if they succeed, we glorify them. If they screw it up, we crucify. And that’s the way it should be. That, Ray, is being a man and taking responsibilities for your actions.

Cam Cameron - the creator of the Prevent Offense™, and best-selling author of "150 Short Runs Into the Line on 3rd and 10"

re: Big Ben - "God can have his soul. His ass is mine." - Terrell Suggs

by GrumpyOldBird on Jan 23, 2012 2:03 PM EST reply actions 1 recs

“No one jumped in front of him and yelled boo.” Thanks for that. I needed a laugh.
That should be a new rule in the NFL though since the league insists on tinkering and making rules as difficult to understand as possible. You get one chance to “psyche out” the kicker per game a la “Basketball”.

"Don't throw it, don't throw it, don't throw it. I know y'all going to throw it, they going to throw it anyway. I wouldn't throw it. Don't do it." - Ed Reed

You say tomato, I say tomahto. You say Six, I say Sweep.

by WestminsterRaven on Jan 23, 2012 2:12 PM EST up reply actions