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Sunday, Dec. 5 1:00pm ET
Ravens deal Titans rare divisional loss | |||||||||||||||||||||
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BALTIMORE (AP) -- The passing game was sharp, the running game was solid and the defense stepped up in the fourth quarter. It sure didn't look like the Baltimore Ravens. And Jeff Fisher is absolutely certain the team they beat in no way resembled the Tennessee Titans.
Tennessee (9-3) had won three straight and six of seven, but on this day the Titans were no match for the Ravens, who defeated a team with a winning record for the first time this season. "It's a great feeling and it's been a long time coming," said Baltimore defensive end Michael McCrary, who had 3½ sacks. "It proves to us we can turn the corner. This isn't a slouch team; this is a really good team that we played." The Titans had won 13 straight AFC Central games, but that streak ended with a thud. "This is not the football team I'm used to seeing," said Fisher, the Titans' coach. "We didn't play well and we didn't make any plays." Baltimore (5-7) had lost five games by seven points or less this season and the Titans were 6-1 in games of that nature. So when the Ravens built a 24-14 lead in the third quarter, they kept pressing to add to the advantage. Up by 13 points midway in the fourth quarter, Baltimore didn't opt to run out the clock. Banks threw four straight passes, the last one a 39-yarder to Jermaine Lewis that made it 34-14 with 6:02 left. Rod Woodson then returned an interception 47 yards for a touchdown with 4:12 remaining to complete a rare Baltimore rout. It was his ninth career interception return for a score, tying Ken Houston's NFL record. Last week, the Ravens allowed 23 fourth-quarter points in a loss to Jacksonville. This time, Baltimore outscored the Titans 17-0 in the final 15 minutes. "We've been asking for a lead the whole year and the last couple of games we've had it and didn't play well as a defense," Woodson said. "I think we're starting to realize that if we want to be good ... we've got to play well in the fourth quarter." Steve McNair was 28-for-48 for 288 yards with two interceptions as Tennessee (9-3) lost for only the second time in eight games. "We just have to do a better job than what we're doing," linebacker Barron Wortham said. Banks went 18-for-31 for 332 yards, his fourth career 300-yard game and first this season. Lewis caught two touchdown passes, his first two of the season, and Quadry Ismail had 113 yards receiving. "To be able to beat them in the way we did, in every phase of the game, we're all going to be able to celebrate," Banks said.
Holmes, subbing for an injured Errict Rhett, had a franchise-record 72-yard run. Rhett hurt his ribs in the second quarter and although X-rays were negative, he did not return. Holmes, who entered the game with 94 yards on 23 carries, needed only nine carries to become the first player to run for 100 yards against the Titans in 16 games. Baltimore went up 24-14 on its first drive of the third quarter. After Lewis returned a punt 28 yards, a 40-yard pass interference call against Blaine Bishop (who was covering Lewis) led to a 1-yard touchdown pass to Justin Armour. The Titans then had a promising drive ruined when rookie Chris McAlister picked off a pass in the end zone. After that, the Ravens continued their quest to pour it on. Baltimore took a 7-3 lead late in the first quarter when Patrick Johnson snared an underthrown pass and limped the final 40 yards with a strained calf for a 76-yard touchdown. The Ravens' next drive was much more methodical, but the result was the same. Banks went 6-for-7 for 60 yards in a nine-play march that ended with a 6-yard catch by Lewis. Tennessee closed to 14-11 on a 3-yard TD run by Eddie George. Holmes followed with his 72-yarder, the longest against the Titans this season, and Matt Stover kicked a field goal for a 17-11 lead. Tennessee guard Bruce Matthews played in his 260th game, the most by an offensive lineman in NFL history. It was his 193rd consecutive start, a streak that began in November 1987.
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