Ravens Suddenly Flying Dangerously Close to Edge of Playoff Contention

Filed under: Ravens, AFC North

Viewing a game in cold weather can be pleasant, especially if the team you are rooting for is winning. But when the team you are pulling for loses, the once-pleasant feeling that was experienced earlier goes away and the reality of 25 degree hits your body like truck.

That was, and still is, the chill Baltimore fans feel after losing to their hated rival, the Pittsburgh Steelers (9-3), 13-10 on Sunday night. This can be costly because the Ravens lost control of the AFC North division. It's still not completely over for Baltimore (8-4), but the security they once had is gone. With four games left for Charm City's own, is there a legitimate chance that the Ravens could miss the playoffs, despite the expectations of winning the Super Bowl?

Let's dig deep, shall we.

The Ravens are not totally out of the playoff picture; in fact they are still in good shape. They are currently hold the six seed for the AFC playoffs and the Ravens are two games ahead of the following team teams that are 6-6: the Colts, Dolphins, Chargers and Raiders. The Ravens own the head-to-head against the Dolphins, so they are no factor.

Technically, the Ravens can afford to lose one game and be in stable condition. If Baltimore would have defeated the Steelers, they would have had at least two games to screw up because they would have swept Pittsburgh, owning the tiebreaker. But since they lost, the cushion in the pillow has deflated a bit.

"It was a hard-nosed football game. It was a hard-fought football game," said Ravens head coach John Harbaugh in his Monday afternoon press conference. "I give the Steelers credit for finding a way to win the football game. It's disappointing for us because it was such an opportunity that we've probably lost in terms of putting ourselves in a position to control our destiny for that seed.

"But those goals are still out there for us. We still have an opportunity to achieve those things -- everything from a division championship to the Wild Card and whatever."

 

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