bjtheman1
Bench Warmer
PITTSBURGH—Joe Flacco(notes) delivered a convincing pump fake outside, freezing a defense unsure of his intentions.
And the Baltimore Ravens' quarterback spun the football off his fingertips in the other direction as he followed through artfully with a textbook strike to hit wide receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh(notes) in stride in the back of the end zone behind cornerback Bryant McFadden(notes) for the game-winning 18-yard touchdown.
With 32 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter of the Ravens' dramatic 17-14 comeback victory Sunday at Heinz Field, Flacco conquered the previously undefeated Pittsburgh Steelers on the road for the first time in his NFL career after going winless in his previous three games here.
"There's not too many better ways to win a game, especially when you're coming to Pittsburgh," Flacco said. "You blow somebody out and that's fun and all, but when the game is that close and you go and win it on the last drive, there's no other better way to a game. It was awesome. I couldn't be more proud of our guys."
The win ties the Ravens (3-1) with Pittsburgh (3-1) atop the AFC North and blocked the Steelers from nearly building a commanding two-game lead in the division with star quarterback Ben Roethlisberger(notes) coming off a four-game suspension today.
This represents the signature drive of Flacco's young career. For Flacco, it was a perfect half-minute as he connected on all four of his passes for 40 yards.
"I think there are going to be a lot of defining moments for Joe, but this is going to be one of them," coach John Harbaugh said. "This is going to be one that all the Ravens fans out there are going to remember for a long time."
Trailing by three points after a botched drive where Flacco misfired on a pass intended for wide receiver Anquan Boldin(notes), the defense had set the table for Flacco's heroics with a three-and-out as he got the ball back at the Steelers' 40-yard line with 1:08 remaining in regulation.
Flacco hustled the Ravens down the field in four plays with no timeouts left.
Flacco calmly shredded the Steelers' aggressive defense, standing firmly in the pocket and locating his targets.
"This was a great day for Joe Flacco, now can't nobody say nothing about him," running back Willis McGahee(notes) said. "The monkey's definitely off his back. He threw the winning touchdown against Pittsburgh. How about that?" Joe kept his poise. He came through under pressure. We had faith in him."
Flacco started the drive with a nine-yard completion to Boldin.
Operating out of the no-huddle offense, Flacco found Boldin from three yards on the sideline to stop the clock.
Then, he saw Houshmandzadeh on the opposite sideline for another 10 yards. That set up the decisive score.
Flacco completed 24 of 37 passes for 256 yards.
"He's a good quarterback," Steelers safety Ryan Clark(notes) said. "We have a lot of respect for that guy right there. He can make all the throws and he showed that at the end of the game.
“He's not one of those quarterbacks that's going to miss, and he didn't. We left a guy open and he found him for a touchdown."
Pro Bowl running back Ray Rice(notes), who was held to 20 yards on eight carries while dealing with a bruised knee, said that Flacco was his usual composed, low-key personality in the huddle.
"I didn't hear nothing from Joe, just, 'Let's go,' then a completion," Rice said. "He didn't talk too much. Joe encourages us. He's turning into a vocal leader. He's Joe Cool. I just saw him firing the ball.
"With every completion, we got closer and closer to the end zone. I wanted him to keep his voice. I didn't want to have to call the plays for him."
Flacco had lost four of five career games to Pittsburgh, including the AFC title game two years ago, since entering the NFL in 2008 as a first-round draft pick.
"We've played good games here, we just haven't won any," Flacco said "So to finally come out and win one in another tight game like they all have been, it feels really good."
Flacco responded with his trademark poise after he threw an interception to Ike Taylor, ultimately engineering a historic win for the Ravens heading into next week's home game against the Denver Broncos.
“We all have so much confidence in Joe,” offensive coordinator Cam Cameron said. “I can’t imagine a better fit for the city of Baltimore and for this division than Joe Flacco.”
All-Pro middle linebacker Ray Lewis sealed the game after Houshmandzadeh's touchdown by intercepting Charlie Batch with 28 seconds left.
It was Flacco's last-minute work that was marveled about afterward in the locker room.
"You go back and look at the Montana's and the Elway's, you can always remember those drives," Lewis said. "For Joe to do that on that defense, we're talking about one of the best defenses in the game, for Joe do that, the throws he made, the decisions he mad, that's what makes a great quarterback. That young kid is just starting to develop. To put that many weapons around him, it's just getting started."
And the Baltimore Ravens' quarterback spun the football off his fingertips in the other direction as he followed through artfully with a textbook strike to hit wide receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh(notes) in stride in the back of the end zone behind cornerback Bryant McFadden(notes) for the game-winning 18-yard touchdown.
With 32 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter of the Ravens' dramatic 17-14 comeback victory Sunday at Heinz Field, Flacco conquered the previously undefeated Pittsburgh Steelers on the road for the first time in his NFL career after going winless in his previous three games here.
"There's not too many better ways to win a game, especially when you're coming to Pittsburgh," Flacco said. "You blow somebody out and that's fun and all, but when the game is that close and you go and win it on the last drive, there's no other better way to a game. It was awesome. I couldn't be more proud of our guys."
The win ties the Ravens (3-1) with Pittsburgh (3-1) atop the AFC North and blocked the Steelers from nearly building a commanding two-game lead in the division with star quarterback Ben Roethlisberger(notes) coming off a four-game suspension today.
This represents the signature drive of Flacco's young career. For Flacco, it was a perfect half-minute as he connected on all four of his passes for 40 yards.
"I think there are going to be a lot of defining moments for Joe, but this is going to be one of them," coach John Harbaugh said. "This is going to be one that all the Ravens fans out there are going to remember for a long time."
Trailing by three points after a botched drive where Flacco misfired on a pass intended for wide receiver Anquan Boldin(notes), the defense had set the table for Flacco's heroics with a three-and-out as he got the ball back at the Steelers' 40-yard line with 1:08 remaining in regulation.
Flacco hustled the Ravens down the field in four plays with no timeouts left.
Flacco calmly shredded the Steelers' aggressive defense, standing firmly in the pocket and locating his targets.
"This was a great day for Joe Flacco, now can't nobody say nothing about him," running back Willis McGahee(notes) said. "The monkey's definitely off his back. He threw the winning touchdown against Pittsburgh. How about that?" Joe kept his poise. He came through under pressure. We had faith in him."
Flacco started the drive with a nine-yard completion to Boldin.
Operating out of the no-huddle offense, Flacco found Boldin from three yards on the sideline to stop the clock.
Then, he saw Houshmandzadeh on the opposite sideline for another 10 yards. That set up the decisive score.
Flacco completed 24 of 37 passes for 256 yards.
"He's a good quarterback," Steelers safety Ryan Clark(notes) said. "We have a lot of respect for that guy right there. He can make all the throws and he showed that at the end of the game.
“He's not one of those quarterbacks that's going to miss, and he didn't. We left a guy open and he found him for a touchdown."
Pro Bowl running back Ray Rice(notes), who was held to 20 yards on eight carries while dealing with a bruised knee, said that Flacco was his usual composed, low-key personality in the huddle.
"I didn't hear nothing from Joe, just, 'Let's go,' then a completion," Rice said. "He didn't talk too much. Joe encourages us. He's turning into a vocal leader. He's Joe Cool. I just saw him firing the ball.
"With every completion, we got closer and closer to the end zone. I wanted him to keep his voice. I didn't want to have to call the plays for him."
Flacco had lost four of five career games to Pittsburgh, including the AFC title game two years ago, since entering the NFL in 2008 as a first-round draft pick.
"We've played good games here, we just haven't won any," Flacco said "So to finally come out and win one in another tight game like they all have been, it feels really good."
Flacco responded with his trademark poise after he threw an interception to Ike Taylor, ultimately engineering a historic win for the Ravens heading into next week's home game against the Denver Broncos.
“We all have so much confidence in Joe,” offensive coordinator Cam Cameron said. “I can’t imagine a better fit for the city of Baltimore and for this division than Joe Flacco.”
All-Pro middle linebacker Ray Lewis sealed the game after Houshmandzadeh's touchdown by intercepting Charlie Batch with 28 seconds left.
It was Flacco's last-minute work that was marveled about afterward in the locker room.
"You go back and look at the Montana's and the Elway's, you can always remember those drives," Lewis said. "For Joe to do that on that defense, we're talking about one of the best defenses in the game, for Joe do that, the throws he made, the decisions he mad, that's what makes a great quarterback. That young kid is just starting to develop. To put that many weapons around him, it's just getting started."
