The Baltimore Ravens needed help to squeak into the playoffs, but they aren't going to apologize for getting into the dance despite not playing their best football.
"You put a stop to the season now in a sense of, 'OK, our record is what it was. It was good enough to get us in the playoffs, which is the most important thing,'" Ravens coach John Harbaugh said Monday, per The Baltimore Sun. "It's a great accomplishment, but it's all equal now. It's a new season. It's a tournament, and we're all equal now."
Baltimore might be on proverbial equal footing with rival Pittsburgh Steelers for Saturday's wild-card round matchup, but the Ravens' play the past few weeks has left much to be desired.
Joe Flacco's offense has slumped miserably the past few weeks -- horribly hindered by injuries to the offensive line -- and the defensive secondary has been a season-long problem.
However, the last time the Ravens won the Super Bowl they also limped into the postseason tournament -- losing four of their last five games.
When Baltimore last saw the Steelers in Pittsburgh in Week 9 they got walloped 43-23 as Ben Roethlisberger threw for 340 yards.
Getting Haloti Ngata back from suspension will help the defense, but the offense must click like it did during the last postseason run. If it doesn't, that equal footing will slip away quickly.
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