In sports, heroics and infamy can be separated by just a few minutes. Just ask Ravens safety James Ihedigbo.
Around 4 p.m. Sunday, Ihedigbo was the toast of the city, with the first two interceptions of his career. The second of those appeared to clinch a desperately needed win over the Cincinnati Bengals.
Fifteen minutes later, Ihedigbo was on his way to becoming the biggest pariah seen in these parts since kicker Billy Cundiff missed a chip shot field goal that would have sent the AFC Championship to overtime two years ago. Luckily for Ihedigbo, Justin Tucker, the guy who replaced Cundiff, was available to bail him out with 46-yard field goal to beat the Bengals in overtime.
Tucker’s kick not only saved Ihedigbo’s bacon, but gave the Ravens some measure of hope that they can defend their Super Bowl championship from last season.
Make no mistake: James Ihedigbo’s boneheaded decision to tip a Hail Mary pass at the end of regulation that fluttered into the hands of A.J. Green near the back of the end zone wasn’t the sole piece of faulty play Sunday, only the most visible.
Baltimore frittered away a 17-point halftime lead to the division leading Bengals, turning their season-long problem of slow starts on its ear, as they were nearly unable to close the game.
The Ravens’ offense was putrid. Quarterback Joe Flacco threw for only 140 yards and was intercepted twice, to go along with two touchdown passes, but that really wasn’t the story.
No, the continued failure of the running game nearly doomed the Ravens Sunday. The inability of proven performers like Ray Rice and Bernard Pierce to carry the ball for positive yardage has been mystifying all season.
Pierce and Rice combined for only 61 yards on 26 carries Sunday. It is virtually impossible to envision a scenario by which Baltimore can make the playoffs, much less return to the Super Bowl without being able to sustain a running game.
Simply put, teams that can only do one offensive thing, run or pass, become predictable and easy to defend. Wide receivers and tight ends find themselves surrounded by extra defenders, who have nothing to fear from the running attack.
Rice’s disappearance as a vital part of the offense is especially troubling. He has labored at times from the effects of a hip pointer, which has, understandably limited his effectiveness from time to time. But that means that coach John Harbaugh and offensive coordinator Jim Caldwell have to devise some other weapon or hope that Rice returns to form.
And speaking of returning to form, the Baltimore defense, which was humiliated in the season opening loss to Denver, seems to be recapturing a piece of what they have been known for. The defense held a fairly potent Bengals offense mostly in check as quarterback Andy Dalton was unable to move the team much, especially in the first half.
The Ravens don’t need the current defense to imitate the defense of 2000, when they won their first Super Bowl. They just need consistency and improvement.
Oh, yeah - and they need to remember that knocking the ball down is almost always better than batting it up.
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