The Ravens Broke Our Hearts… Again

Fourth and twelve.

Those three words will be embedded into the heads of players and fans alike for the next nine months. This feels so reminiscent of last years last second loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers in which the Ravens were in the exact same scenario as they were yesterday. They controlled their own destiny and could not finish the job.

The defense faltered on the final drive in both games after the offense gave them the lead. That makes this loss even more painful because all off-season and all throughout the regular season this team talked about finishing, specifically on the defensive side. The Ravens put over sixty million dollars into the defense this past off-season so they would not have to feel the same letdown as they did on Christmas 2016. Now I am not going to say that was all for not because the defense had a spectacular season, but when it came down to crunch time, during the biggest play of the season for this unit they ultimately dropped the ball just as if it was already midnight in New York City.

For me personally, yesterdays loss hurt more than last years “immaculate extension” by Antonio Brown. The Ravens simply needed to make one final stand and they secured their spot in the post season. The early deficit, the halftime spark, fighting their way back, taking the lead, and then the ultimate heartbreaker. All of Baltimore collectively felt their hearts drop into their stomachs when Dalton climbed the pocket and delivered a strike to a wide open Tyler Boyd. You all know what happened next. That one game described this entire Ravens season. An emotional roller coaster that had all of the flock disappointed early on, intrigued halfway through, and cheering their hearts out while also biting their nails in hope of a strong finish. Unfortunately that one, lone play destroyed all of that.

Now understanding how we feel, you can only imagine how the players and the coaching staff are holding up. They let an entire city down and they have to live with that for the next nine or so months before they get the chance to erase what happened and right their wrongs. During yesterdays post-game interviews, safety Tony Jefferson was holding back tears as he talked about the painstaking loss, the defense finishing, and the relationships that he has built in his first year as a Raven;

“I really don’t have the words for it, its just tough, we fought all year, the adversity, cut out the noise, and we kept battling and I couldn’t be more proud, this is the favorite team I’ve ever been on and as we know in this profession the teams are different every year.”

“It’ll take me a while to get over it, but like coach said the sun will come up in the morning. You never know who’s gonna be here, you know it’s a new team next year so that’s the worst part for me cause like I said, everybody really took me in and let me show my personality. That really means something to me. Its football they made a play at the end, we talked about finishing all year and we didn’t finish today.”

Veteran linebacker and the heart and soul of this Ravens Team, Terrell Suggs also discussed the devastating ending to his fifteenth season and touched on his future in the NFL;

“I don’t know, I don’t know, I don’t know. We went from having all our dreams come true then gone in a matter of seconds. You always got to execute through, until there is no more time left on the clock. It’s like a bad dream, it’s like you can’t believe this happened like this. I still ain’t processed it. Fifteen years with the Ravens and I would have to say this one is definitely the most devastating. I’ll remember this one forever.”

“I plan on playing football a few more years. My body ain’t what’s hurting right now. I plan on playing football next year and years to come.”

This one is going to sting for a long, long time. This is a game I will be telling my children about, the heartbreak it brought to me and this city. There are only a handful of games that will stick in your memory forever and unfortunately this will be one of them for me personally and I would expect for many others as well. It is not going to go away next week or the week after that and maybe not even the week after that. It will always be there, but what can happen is the Baltimore Ravens come back next season and fulfill what they could not this year. Not just a playoff birth, but something more.

I love this team and will stick with them through thick and thin. I will forever and always be a part of the Ravens Flock and I hope you guys will too.

 

 

 

 

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Isaiah Stumpf

Hi my name is Isaiah Stumpf. I am currently attending Anne Arundel Community College. I write and cover Maryland Terrapins sports and the Baltimore Ravens for Maryland Sports Blog. I intend to transfer to Towson University and major in Sports Management. I am a true diehard fan of the Ravens and Orioles. I am excited to help this network grow and become something huge!

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