Given the grinding, defensive nature of Ravens’ football throughout the years, one would not expect a highlight video of one of their games to be labeled “The Craziest Final 2 Minutes in NFL History.” That is the only appropriate way, however, to describe the ending of Baltimore’s game vs. the Vikings in week 14 of the 2013 season, a snowy day at M&T Bank Stadium (the first home snow game in franchise history).
The defending Super Bowl Champions came into the game fighting to stay alive in the playoff race. The Ravens’ 22-20 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers (their most points scored in almost two months) on Thanksgiving night had pulled them back to .500 with a 6-6 record. A win over the Vikings was vital to their playoff hopes.
(You can discuss this on the BSL Board here. Also, here is a link to the Game Thread at BSL that day.)
They sure didn’t play like it for well over 50 minutes of the game.
The Ravens got on the board first after Matt Elam recovered a Toby Gerhart fumble at the Viking 25. QB Joe Flacco ran for 22 yards, Baltimore’s longest run of the day, and they scored three plays later on a 1-yard pass from Flacco to TE Ed Dickson.
That pretty much did it for the Ravens’ offense until very late in the game. Their next six possessions ended with five Sam Koch punts and a sack that ended the first half.
Baltimore’s offense picked back up where it left off in the 3rd quarter with another Koch punt, then began showing glimmers of life, but still not resulting in any points.
First, Flacco threw an incompletion on 4th and 2 from the Minnesota 36. On the next possession, Flacco was intercepted, setting the Vikings up for a touchdown that put them ahead 12-7 on the second play of the fourth quarter. Vonta Leach got stuffed on 4th and 1 at Minnesota’s 21-yard line on the Ravens’ next possession, then Flacco was intercepted deep in Viking territory to end their next drive.
Although this game was beyond tedious, the defense kept it close. and it was important enough to keep fans like me from completely turning away. Finally, with 6:32 remaining in the game, that persistence, both from the defense and the fans, was rewarded when Baltimore mounted its first sustained drive of the game.
A 37-yard pass interference penalty on Minnesota bailed the Ravens out of a 1st-and-20, and they concluded an 11-play drive on a 1-yard touchdown pass from Flacco to Dennis Pitta, who was playing his first game after his major hip injury in the Super Bowl. With just over two minutes to play, and the way the defense had stifled the Vikings offense, it looked like that could be the game winner.
Actually, that only began the craziness.
Minnesota took only two plays and 22 seconds to answer. They caught the Ravens blitzing and called a draw play to Tony Gerhart, was had replaced the injured Adrian Peterson. Gerhart busted through the middle and broke arm tackles for a 41-yard touchdown run to put the Vikings back up 19-15. It looked like this could be the proverbial nail in the coffin for Baltimore’s playoff hopes.
Not so fast my friend. The Ravens dialed up big-play Jacoby Jones, who had been largely quiet in 2013 until Steelers’ coach Mike Tomlin had tried a hip check to stop Jones’ long kickoff return in the Thanksgiving game. Jones took the kickoff, wisely stayed along the Ravens’ sideline where no one was likely to wander out onto the field, and outran the last defender to score a 77-yard return touchdown. Baltimore was back ahead 22-19 with only 1:16 left. Okay Ravens fans, take a deep breath, they’re still alive.
Then again…after a short kickoff return and two incomplete passes, the Vikings reclaimed the lead when QB Matt Cassell dumped off a short pass to WR Cordarrelle Patterson, who weaved through the defense and turned it into a 79-yard touchdown. The Ravens’ defense has apparently snatched defeat from the jaws of victory by breaking down again.
Baltimore took over on their 20 with :45 left and two timeouts, trailing 26-22. Despair set in-expecting another Mile High-type Miracle seemed even more unrealistic that it had the prior January.
On the first play from scrimmage, Flacco connected with rookie WR Marlon Brown for a 35-yard pass, moving the Ravens into Minnesota territory. Unable to call on Justin Tucker for a game winner (that would come the following week in Detroit), Flacco had to keep throwing.
Two plays later, it seemed all was lost when his pass intended for Pitta was intercepted, but the Vikings were called for interfering. That would have been more appropriately called illegal contact, but the Ravens caught a break-now could they cash it in?
After Flacco successfully connected with Pitta, Baltimore called their final timeout with nine seconds to play and the ball at Minnesota’s nine-yard line. Form there, Brown capped his career day by catching the game-winning touchdown pass from Flacco with a terrific tippy-toe job in the back of the endzone. This from an offense that finished next-to-last in the NFL in Red Zone touchdown percentage in 2013. Once the play was confirmed after a video review, Ravens fans serenaded their teams with the familiar chant from Seven Nation Army.
The Vikings had one last gasp on the ensuing short kickoff, but after some brief drama reminiscent of the end of the Ravens’ Super Bowl win, the return was safely stopped, and Baltimore had a win for the ages. After gaining 163 yards through three quarters, they had gained 162 in the fourth quarter alone.
Emotion poured out from the Ravens’ players in the locker room. Flacco said he thought this game was even crazier than the Mile High Miracle. Terrell Suggs said, “This is the best win I’ve ever been a part of besides the Super Bowl.” CB Jimmy Smith added, “I’ve never even played a video game like that.”
Mike Preston’s column in the following day’s Baltimore Sun proclaimed, “Call it luck or fate, it’s back.” Indeed, it seemed to be the following Monday night, when Justin Tucker’s sixth field goal of the game, from 63 yards, gave Baltimore an 18-16 win. The 2013 Ravens’ fate, however, was to miss the playoffs with an 8-8. Four turnovers contributed to a 41-7 drubbing in New England the following week, and a fourth-quarter collapse in Cincinnati sealed the Ravens’ fate in week 17.
I encourage you to go back and watch the highlight video I linked at the top-seeing the reactions from fans, coaches, and players alone is well worth it.
Fascinating Factoid of the Week
The fourth quarter of this Ravens-Vikings game produced two NFL records that will be tough to beat. It was the first time there had ever been a game with six lead changes in the fourth quarter, and with five go-ahead touchdowns in the last 2:30 of the game. Like I said at the start, not the kind of game you would have expected the Ravens to have been involved in.
Bonus Factoid: Since I brought up Seven Nation Army, here’s a video about the original song and how it became a stadium anthem, and another video with The Simpsons performing it.
The Ravens have yet another prime-time game coming up, and that prompts me to take a look back at some of the highlights (and heartbreak) of previous action after dark next week.
Until then, you can follow me on Twitter @jimjfootball and remember, it’s okay to look back as long as you live forward!
Jim Johnson spent most of his life in Maryland, growing up with the Orioles, the Colts, Terps, and later Ravens. He started his sports writing career as “The Courtmaster,” covering the Terps and ACC hoops and was a frequent guest on Bob Haynie’s old WNST show and other sports talk across the region. He is currently in his second run at BSL. After previously covering Maryland and Big Ten Football, he now writes about the NFL, primarily the action in the AFC North. Jim covers both current and historic stories, seeking perspective and having fun in the process.