Brash Ravens crash Big Ben, and look to do same to Tom Brady and Patriots

PITTSBURGH – They sacked Ben Roethlisberger five times, knocked him down three others, slammed him violently on his neck once (knocking him out of the game for a bit), picked off two of his passes (one courtesy of Terrell Suggs' meaty legs) and most importantly, romped through Heinz Field to the tune of a 30-17 victory in a AFC wild-card game.

This was a night for the Baltimore Ravens, everything the franchise is about, aggressive, attacking, relentless.

Baltimore is back, as brutish and brilliant as ever.

The sixth seed in the AFC, just sneaking in with a 10-6 record, facing all road games, isn't that the Ravens way? John Harbaugh has taken this team to the playoffs in six of the last seven years, never winning more than 12 in the regular season, never going winless in the postseason, when the defense tends to find a way to grow even more ferocious.

"We execute when it's time in January," linebacker Pernell McPhee said.

"It feels good," defensive end Chris Canty said, "to get a win in the first round of the [2015] Hunger Games."

Big Ben and archrival Pittsburgh were toppled first. Next up: a visit to New England, where the Patriots are a despised, yet curiously welcome sight, considering Baltimore has had success in Foxborough with playoff victories in 2010 and 2013. (The Pats won in 2012).

"Bring it on," McPhee said.

What about the idea that Bill Belichick was at home Saturday, breaking down the Ravens' new rush schemes and stunts that blew up the Steelers?

"He can figure it out," McPhee said. "We're still going to come with it."

Oh, was this a Baltimore night. The hard way is their favorite way and nothing is better than facing their two chief rivals (one a divisional bully, the other the conference glory franchise), both on the road. Baltimore lives on the road this time of year. Saturday in New England will be the Ravens' 15th playoff game under Harbaugh. Just two have been at home.

And who better than the Patriots?

"We all know who we [are] dealing with now," linebacker Terrell Suggs said.

So what do you think of facing them?

"Oh man," Suggs said, starting to laugh, "that was too easy … hold on … oh man, I almost said some [expletive]."

He went on to promise to say (expletive) during the week, lest anyone think the Ravens were losing their trash-talking edge. Suggs was, after all, the guy who after Baltimore beat New England in the 2013 AFC championship game declared:

"These are the most arrogant [expletives] in the world, starting with Belichick on down … [It's] funny, ever since Spygate, they haven't been able to win."

That quote might get rerun 1,000 times between now and Saturday.

These are the Ravens, completely fearless, especially this time of year. They talk. They tackle. They do things like suck the life out of Pittsburgh, turning a Le'Veon Bell-less Steelers into a one-dimensional team and then taking turns teeing off on Big Ben as he tried to win it through the air.

Suggs had the highlight-reel interception, a critical, fourth quarter, game-sealer that he wedged between his legs while lying on the ground – "it was scripted," he deadpanned. It was just his eight pick in 12 seasons. Harbaugh called it, "the greatest catch in the history of football" and gave him the game ball because of it.

You'd think it would be something to crow about but Suggs was dissatisfied. He wished it had been a sack and strip because that would have meant hitting Roethlisberger hard. He was jealous that he never got to Ben himself; that all his teammates got to have the fun.

"They [did] a good job with their protection to make sure that I [didn't] get to [Roethlisberger] too much," he noted. "But come next [season], I'm definitely going to have confrontations with him a little more often."

Who knows what to make of these guys? They struggled at times this season. They dealt with the Ray Rice case and all the fallout. They don't have much of a run game. They lost here just two months ago by 20.

Yet no one should want to play them. It's the same story every year. If nothing else, they walk into Foxborough next Saturday convinced that if they just play their game, they win.

"It's not about the Patriots," McPhee said. "It's about Baltimore, baby."

It's about Joe Flacco throwing for 259 yards and two touchdowns. It's about Steve Smith getting 101 yards on five catches. It's about that rough-and-tumble front four that allows seven to drop back in coverage and make everything confusing.

"Scheming 'em up, sending blitzes, four-man rushes," McPhee said. "We got Brandon [Williams] rushing and Suggs and me and Haloti [Ngata] up the middle, then we got DeAngelo [Tyson], Chris [Canty], [Courtney] Upshaw. There's so much depth in our front seven like, we wear guys out."

It's about a team wearing T-shirts that read: "Faith and Guts", the team's new motto.

"Keep fighting for one another," Harbaugh said. "Our guys stand on a rock solid foundation of character. We really do. We have a lot of good people. They love one another. They believe in one another. They're just very determined when things go the wrong way."

The rest of the nation, focused on Ray Rice and Ray Lewis, will roll their eyes. Inside the Ravens, this is the credo though.

Now they crank it up again in Hunger Games season. Pittsburgh is gone. No one can wait for their next crack against New England. It's Ravens against the world, ugly old Baltimore against glittering Tom Brady and the Patriots.

Or that's how they see it.

"This is the NFL," Suggs said. "We all know the matchup the NFL wants to see [Denver vs. New England]. We're just something for the TV, for the sponsors."

He made some hand quotes around "sponsors" and then broke into a laugh.

"Let's see if we can disrupt some people's plans."

Here come the (expletive) Ravens, the same old (expletive) Ravens, like it or not.