That was a brutal loss to watch last night. Quite simply, the Niners' offense couldn't get on track while the defense (and special teams) failed to keep them in the game. By the time the 49ers began to put together some consistent scoring drives, they had already dug themselves into a 22-point hole. And yet, they nearly pulled it off.
On the other side of the field, Baltimore could do no wrong, as evidenced by the many times Flacco was rushed out of the pocket under tremendous pressure, only to somehow find a receiver open downfield.
When the final gun sounded (can anybody explain why the decision was made for Ginn to attempt a return instead of a fair catch to set up a final Hail Mary pass?), I was done. There was no way I was going to watch the sickening Ray Lewis retirement ball-licking that the media (and the league itself) seemed to be salivating over during the past two weeks.
A common sentiment throughout the week was that there was something special about this Ravens team and destiny was on their side. This was going to be their day, while Colin Kaepernick and the 49ers will enjoy several trips (and victories) to the big game in the years ahead. But I don't buy that. There is no sentiment in the Super Bowl. And assuming you will be back year after year is foolish. Ask Dan Marino, who never returned after his first appearance. Or Brett Favre and Tom Brady, who unsuccessfully chased additional Super Bowl victories after initial successes in the early portion of their careers.
You need to take advantage of your opportunity, because you may never get another chance. And the 49ers didn't do that yesterday. They made things exciting with a valiant comeback attempt, but they came up short. And now it's wait til next year. Again.
Random observations:
- Obviously, Jim Harbaugh wasn't paying attention during the pre-game meeting with the officials when it was determined that the Ravens could repeatedly throw punches after the whistle.
- Jim must've missed that part about offensive pass interference being disallowed as a special "one game only" experiment yesterday, too.
- Yeah, that was PI (or at least holding) on the final pass to Crabtree. And during a season filled with ticky-tack personal foul penalties (see: Goldson, Dashon), I can't believe
the officials missed this on the prior play. Or
Anthony Dixon getting manhandled (also known as "holding") during the Ravens' clock-killing safety.
- In case you haven't figured it out yet, I thought the officiating was a disaster and embarrassment. If I were a conspiracy theorist, it wouldn't be difficult to see that the "Ray Lewis goes out a winner" storyline was predetermined by the league.
- One more thing about Lewis: he's a me-first, phony-assed thug who plea-bargained his way out of jail, stemming from an incident where two people were murdered and now he hides behind a facade of piety. Shame on the media and the league for gleefully accepting this charade.
- On the two goal line plays where the Niners absolutely had to get the ball in the end zone (the two-point conversion attempt and the final fourth-down), they faced a Ravens blitz they had no answer for. Those two failures were the difference in the final quarter of the game.
- Last season's top strengths, defense and special teams, experienced noticeable declines during the 2012 season, which was clearly evidenced during the first 30:15 of the game.
- Pack your bags, Culliver. Thanks for the bad karma, you ignorant jackass.
- You too, Moss.
- Next year's Super Bowl is already shaping up to be a joke as it will be played in the league's own back yard in New York, where Roger Goodell and his league cronies will try to dictate the storyline in shitty weather. Well done, NFL.
- Then again, nothing can be as bad or embarrassing as the power outage and subsequent game delay the "Super" Dome experienced yesterday. You lose, New Orleans. If that town gets to host another Super Bowl before San Diego, Los Angeles or San Francisco all get multiple turns, we can just assume that the league is as crooked as the International Olympic Committee.
- Last year, when the fuses blew at Candlestick during the Monday night contest against the Steelers, San Francisco was hammered by the league and media, to the point where the city had to make guarantees that a similar event wouldn't happen when hosting the playoffs. I'd expect nothing more than ten times the scrutiny for New Orleans after falling on their faces during the biggest televised event of the year. All of the Bourbon Street hoopla, hurricanes, po' boys and zydeco music won't be enough to make league officials turn a blind eye to that debacle.
- Already dreading the special-interest segment with Harry Connick Jr. and Drew Brees as they revisit the tragic consequences of yesterday's power outage and how it made New Orleans stronger. Connick's already written the first two verses of "The Night The Lights Went Out In New Orleans" and he's got the Neville Brothers on speed dial.
- Pitchers and catchers report in eight days. GO GIANTS!!!
