Baltimore Ravens cry foul about kicking in New England
With the Patriots under investigation for using deflated balls in a blowout win over the Colts, another vague — and far more confusing — accusation of ball deflation has emerged.
Perhaps most importantly, the Ravens have shown no reluctance to articulate possible violations of the rules, as evidenced by coach John Harbaugh’s complaints about New England’s ineligible-eligible receiver trick from the same game. If the Ravens believed that the Patriots sabotaged kicking balls and then ensured that lower-pressure balls from the same allotment of kicking balls were used by the Ravens and not by the Patriots, the Ravens surely would have said something at the time.
NFL:
"The ball is like a shotput in this weather."With the wind chill, the temperature is 8 degrees. If the complaints were from Ravens' QB Joe Flacco, they would carry some clout. The Baltimore attack is predicated on the ability of the star QB to throw the long ball. Joe had no problem throwing the long pass into the left corner of the end zone with two minutes remaining in the second round matchup with New England. The overthrown ball, intended for WR Torrey Smith, was intercepted by Patriots' S Duron Harmon. Smith had given up on the throw, and Harmon sealed the game with the easy interception.
The anonymous leak to a reporter from the Baltimore Ravens 10 days after their loss to New England is pretty weak. If we hear something directly from QB Joe Flacco or K Justin Tucker, that would cause for concern. If not, just have head referee, Bill Vinovich throw a 15 yard flag for piling on.
Jaimal Yogis, ESPN:
IT WAS A CHIP SHOT. With just 15 seconds left in the AFC championship game against the Patriots in January, the Ravens' Billy Cundiff faced a 32-yarder to send the game into overtime. Like all NFL kickers, Cundiff uses the scoreboard to keep track of downs and where he should be in his prekick routine. As the Ravens stalled at the Pats' 14-yard line, the Gillette Stadium scoreboard showed third down. Problem was, it was wrong, the Ravens say. Unprepared and probably a bit confused, Cundiff was rushed onto the field by screaming coaches. He hadn't missed a fourth-quarter kick all season. But he got a mediocre snap; the laces weren't quite out. His kick came low off of his foot and hooked left. With his teammates looking on in horror and disbelief, Cundiff had just choked -- badly.
There was no mention of inflation or deflation. The only mention was WIDE LEFT.
Paul Murphy is a freelance writer from New Hampshire.
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