THE AFC CHAMPIONSHIP RUNS THROUGH BALTIMORE FOR THE FIRST TIME IN RAVENS HISTORY

Patrick Smith. Getty Images.

Boy. Was that the doctor ordered or what?????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!??????????

The Ravens are going to the AFC Championship. Nay…. THE BALTIMORE RAVENS ARE HOSTING THE AFC CHAMPIONSHIP.

Admittedly, we were all kinds of nervousness at the Bank today. There was a ton of confidence coming in against a team we very well knew we were better than…….. but that did us no good 4 years against Tennessee either.

That first half fed so much into the dark cloud hanging over the clouds going into the game….it was a first half that clearly showed that the Ravens were the better team on the field….. but also did not yield a lead or anything that suggested that the game as a whole wasn't going to be a weird game that ultimately ended in some sort of weird unexplainable heartbreak.

The 2nd half was SO. DOMINANT.

What a narrative changer. Lamar was brilliant. Total control of the game in the 2nd half. He was brilliant from the pocket and took the easy shit in front of him too where the defense was left with no answers. The first two drives of the 2nd half were so methodical and perfect where the Texans were left with no answers.

The weather was admittedly tough they ultimately flexed their muscle from there. That's complementary football. They let up 3 actual points today, and I'm hoping that we look back and laugh at the idea that a silly punt return TD will get get weirdly counted against their legacy the way that the Ron Dixon TD does from the Giants does the 2000 defense. Just a blip on the radar for a defense that is incredibly dominant.

I'm blabbering but if you read between the lines, the defense was stupid good tonight. 213 total yards allowed and suffocated the heck out of CJ Stround. Mike Macdonald pitched a goddang near perfect game against a rookie QB. Tons of pressure, stuffed the run, made his life hell. 

The Lamar show in the 2nd half is the story of the game, but perhaps it should be the consistent dominance of Mikey Mac's defense in both halves that dictated the rest of the game. I'd contend that that will be overlooked in hindsight of this game.

All in all… it was a great win in some seriously brutal winter conditions. Big credit to Lamar, big credit to Mike Macdonald, and big credit to everybody else in the locker room.

I bought season tickets for situations like these. I'm so freakin excited to go call my old man and tell him he's going to an AFC Championship in Baltimore.

It's a GREAT time to be a Baltimore football fan. Let's sit back and see who comes to the Bank tomorrow.