Steelers knock off Ravens!!

PITTSBURGH - Tough and mean, like the original Steel Curtain. delivered too many hard hits and their quarterback was steady enough to outplay the kid and the rest of the Baltimore Ravens.

The franchise, for all of the success it has enjoyed while playing in a record-tying 14 AFC title games, had lost an unprecedented four of its five most recent conference championship games in Pittsburgh. The run of losses almost made the Steelers glad to go on the road for the entire Super Bowl run-up to their last title. The Ravens and Steelers own the NFL's nastiest ongoing rivalry. This game was expected to be low-scoring, physical and tense and it was, especially after Baltimore came back from an early 13-0 deficit to get to within 16-14 on McGahee's second short touchdown run of the game, a 1-yarder with 9:32 remaining.
"We were up 13-0 and then we're up 13-7 then we're up 13-whatever, it was like, 'Man, this game is going slow,Deshea Townsend said. "But then Troy steps up and makes a huge play and kind of seals the game for us."















Another such play - Roethlisberger's 45-yard completion to Hines Ward on third-and-12 - led to the first of field goals, a 34-yarder, in the first quarter. On the Ravens' second possession, Flacco made the kind of mistake he didn't make in playoff wins over the Dolphins and top-seeded Titans, throwing the ball into the hands of nickel back Townsend for the rookie's first interception in 98 passes. Ward kept the ensuing Steelers drive going with an 11-yard catch on third-and-10, leading to Reed's 42-yard field goal, but hurt his knee while landing.


Now, the Steelers can't wait to see some old friends."We got our old coaches. We all won a Super Bowl here with the Steelers together," linebacker James Farrior said. "I'm sure they're going to be coming after us to get this one."

Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press