Quarterbacks: Joe Flacco. What more can you really say? After a conservative first half, the Ravens opened things up in the third quarter and Flacco couldn't be stopped. He is showing the ability to put touch on passes that he used to struggle with, and he took down another elite quarterback to get the Ravens to the Super Bowl. Grade: A
Running backs: Ray Rice didn't do much on the ground, but he did pick up a huge first down on a screen pass and also scored the team's first touchdown. Bernard Pierce ran very well despite battling a knee injury and Vonta Leach had a couple of key first downs. Grade: B
Wide receivers: The receivers struggled early, but got going thanks to some injuries in the Patriots secondary and Jim Caldwell opening up the offense. Torrey Smith kept the safeties off the line of scrimmage because of his speed. Anquan Boldin is making a living over the middle of the field, as is Dennis Pitta. They are causing a lot of matchup problems. Ed Dickson needs to be tougher and catch the ball. Grade: B+
Offensive line: The Ravens struggled to open up running lanes, but the pass protection was fantastic yet again. Bryant McKinnie struggled a little bit, but you really can't complain. Grade: B+
Defensive line: This group had trouble getting pressure on the quarterback, but did just enough to make Tom Brady feel a little bit uncomfortable. They batted down a bunch of balls at the line of scrimmage, one of which resulted in an interception. Paul Kruger and Terrell Suggs were pretty quiet, but Haloti Ngata, Arthur Jones and Pernell McPhee played well. Grade: B-
Linebackers: Ray Lewis struggled after playing well in Denver, but still lead the team in tackles. Dannell Ellerbe had a tremendous game capped off by an interception that sealed the victory. Grade: C+
Secondary: All things considered, a job well done. Chykie Brown made some mistakes and needs to tackle better, but has done a nice job considering the circumstances. Cary Williams played really well, capping off his night by intercepting Tom Brady in the final minutes. Bernard Pollard was everywhere, and he changed the game with his huge hit that caused a fumble. Grade: B+
Special teams: It wasn't a great day for the special teams, which gave up too many yards on punt returns. The Ravens were unable to break anything in their return game, and the team was so efficient in the red zone that Justin Tucker did not have a field goal attempt. Grade: C-
Coaching: John Harbaugh had his team ready to make amends for last year's loss. Caldwell did a great job opening things up in the second half, and it's clear the players have responded to him. Dean Pees mixed up looks and continues to do a great job with a group that has been hit hard by injuries. Grade: A















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