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EVENTS
CNNSI.com GROUP
COMMERCE
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Closer Look Oakland blew its biggest -- maybe only -- chance
Updated: Monday January 15, 2001 12:10 AM
By John Donovan, CNNSI.com OAKLAND, Calif. -- Early in the third quarter of Sunday's AFC Championship Game, the Oakland Raiders finally had their chance. Their chance to crack the vaunted defense of the Baltimore Ravens. Their chance to get back in the game. Their chance to really make a run for the Super Bowl. So much for Oakland's chances. So much for the Super Bowl. "The closer we get to our goal line," said Rob Burnett, the Baltimore defensive end, recalling the series Sunday that did in the Raiders for good, "the tougher we get. We just pick up the tempo. It's hard to do anything on us." The Ravens were up 10-0 just after the half, but it was a comfortable enough lead because Oakland's offense was looking as inept as -- well, looking as inept as Baltimore's offense. Other than Shannon Sharpe's 96-yard catch-and-run in the second quarter, neither team had done much of anything offensively.
But the Raiders suddenly, finally, found themselves in awesome field position when Oakland safety Johnnie Harris picked off a Trent Dilfer pass. Four plays later, the Raiders had a first down at the Oakland 2. It turned out to be just where the Ravens wanted them. On the first play from the 2, the Raiders did what they tried to do all day -- pound the running game right at the Ravens, who led the league in defense against the run. The call: 235-pound running back Tyrone Wheatley up the middle. The result: the loss of 1 yard. "I thought we would crack through there at some point," Oakland head coach Jon Gruden said. "But, unfortunately, that did not happen." So, on second down, the Raiders tried a little play-action, with quarterback Rich Gannon rolling out to his right. The Ravens were in a man-to-man defense, which brought linebacker Jamie Sharper up to the left side of the line. He chased down Gannon near the sideline and sacked him for a 3-yard loss. Finally, it came down to a third-and-goal from the 6. Gannon dropped back, surveyed the routes, saw running back Randy Jordan at the goal line and fired a pass to him. The ball was slightly behind Jordan, but it hit him in the arms. And fell incomplete. The Raiders had to settle for a field goal in what turned out to be their most successful drive in the 16-3 loss. "When we get down there," Sharper said, "we get hyped and ready to play 'cause we're not down there too often." The Raiders, who averaged 154.4 yards rushing a game this season, were held to 24 on Sunday. They had been averaging 361 yards a game. Sunday, they were held to 191. In three playoff games, Baltimore has allowed 16 points and one touchdown. Which means on Jan. 28, the New York Giants better not waste their chances in Super Bowl XXXV. The Baltimore defense just don't give out that many. "I think," Baltimore linebacker Ray Lewis said of the defense, "it speaks for itself."
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