What a difference one week makes in the life of a football team. Right after the Baltimore Ravens defeated the Detroit Lions 18-16 on Monday, December 16th on a last minute dramatic 61-yard field goal by Ravens placekicker, Justin Tucker, the Ravens controlled their own season-ending destiny. All that remained for them to realize their goal of making the playoffs and ideally winning their division were two more victories in their final two regular season games against the New England Patriots and the Cincinati Bengals. Things didn’t exactly go according to plan, as the Ravens suffered an embarrassing 41-7 defeat at the hands of the Patriots. The loss puts the Ravens in a precarious position, as they seek to make the playoffs for a sixth consecutive season. The Ravens must defeat the Bengals on Sunday, December 29th in Cincinati, and both the Miami Dolphins and San Diego Chargers must lose in their respective Sunday games. If the Ravens win, and Miami wins, then the Dolphins, by virtue of a better conference record, would secure the sixth and final playoff seed that the Ravens covet. That would effectively end the Ravens 2013 season.
