The Baltimore Ravens sent Ray Lewis out of Charm City on a winning note with a 24-9 victory over the Indianapolis Colts.
It's the first time the Ravens have beaten the Colts in the postseason, and the last time that Lewis will ever emerge from the tunnel at M&T Bank Stadium.
It was a near-perfect ending to his career in front of the home crowd. The fans went crazy when Lewis came out of the tunnel and continued to cheer loudly for him throughout the game.
There was a moment near the end of the game where Lewis and Ed Reed were seen on the jumbotron walking off the field to the sidelines together for the last time, as it seems highly unlikely that either will return next season.
A video montage was shown at the two-minute mark of the great plays of Lewis' career, and with the Ravens in the victory formation for the final play of the game, John Harbaugh sent his linebacker back out onto the field to play offense and dance for the crowd one final time. He also made several gestures to the crowd to thank them for their support as the game wound down, and then took a victory lap around the stadium before heading into the locker room.
Lewis seemed to turn back the clock to turn in a vintage performance, finishing with a team-high 13 tackles. He also dropped an easy interception, which would have been a magical moment.
The Ravens were able to overcome two lost fumbles by running back Ray Rice, something that is very uncharacteristic from him, and some questionable officiating to roll into the second round of the playoffs.
Joe Flacco once again had trouble keeping his throws from sailing on him but still finished 12 of 23 for 282 yards and two touchdowns. He made big plays when he needed to, including a great screen pass to Rice and a couple of deep throws to Anquan Boldin. It was a big day for Boldin, carrying the Ravens to the tune of 145 yards receiving and a touchdown.
While Rice struggled to hold onto the ball, Bernard Pierce continued to run hard and show impressive burst. The rookie finished with over 100 yards on just 13 carries, and there might be a controversy at the running back position in short time.
The Ravens will now travel to Denver to face off against the Broncos at 4:30 Saturday. It will be a rematch of a game from mid-December that saw the Ravens struggle mightily on offense, particularly Flacco, in a lopsided loss.
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