Woooo-hooooo!

I’ve always said that God won’t let the Baltimore Ravens win a playoff game at Heinz Field. And although He seemed to be toying with me Saturday night, He came through in the end with a miraculous victory!

I had hoped to write a well thought-out piece, something worthy of posting on ESPN.com. But that’s just not going to happen. Instead, this post will just say things like “HELL YEAH!” and “Wooo-hoooo!!”.

Yes, the Ravens jumped out a big lead thanks to two Steeler turnovers (and, by the way, WHY did 11 Steelers and 10 Ravens just stand around after Suggs knocked the ball out of Ben’s hand? Whatever happened to playing to the whistle?) But, in true Baltimore fashion, the Ravens self-destructed in the second half, having only 94 yards of total offense through three quarters. Most painful for them was the (lack of) performance from the big-time receivers the Ravens (apparently) paid far too much for. Anquan Boldin dropped a sure touchdown pass from Flacco on the Ravens’ next to last possession, and ended up with 1 catch for -2 yards. TJ Houshmandzadeh fared better coming up with 3 catches for 38 yards, but dropped an easy one on 4th and 18 to end the game for Baltimore. See what happens when you disrespect the Terrible Towel, Housh?

The Terrible Curse lives! The game marked Roethlisberger’s seventh consecutive win against Baltimore, and (as I mentioned on Twitter earlier in the week) the Ravens have never beaten the Steelers when both Big Ben and Troy play. And so it was on Saturday. I just can’t say enough about the Steeler defense… it was truly an amazing performance, and one for the ages.

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The Steelers also caught a huge break on Sunday, as the Jets defeated the hated New England Patriots by a score of 28-21. But the game was never as close as the score would suggest, and nearly everyone in Steeler Nation gave a big sigh of relief as the game ended. The Steelers never play well against the Patriots (as this year’s 39-26 loss would indicate). The Steelers lost to the Jets, too, but in a much closer game (22-17). And, more importantly, the Steelers get to play the Jets at home. I’m excited about the game, and can’t wait until next Sunday!

Here we go Steelers, here we go!