Championship weekend lived up to the hype, as both games came down to the wire to decide who would be going to the Super Bowl.  Not a lot of people gave the Ravens much of a chance, even though they were the #2 seed and had the type of hard-nosed defense and just enough offense to give the Patriots fits.  The Ravens were able to go blow for blow with the Pats; tying the game twice in the second quarter, and then taking a four point lead into the fourth quarter.  Joe Flacco (333 total yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT) actually looked like a pretty darn good quarterback, several times standing in and taking a tough hit to get the ball down the field, completing difficult passes, and giving the Ravens a chance to win at the end.  Unfortunately, Billy Cundiff shanked a 32 yard field goal at the end of the game that could have forced overtime, and who knows what could have happened then.

Tom Brady (241 total yards, 1 TD, 2 INTs) was less than masterful in this game; luckily for him, he gets one more game to try to end his 2011 season on a high note.  Brady couldn’t even pass for 240 yards, plus threw two uncharacteristic interceptions; but of course with the game on the line, Brady was able to force his way into the endzone on a quarterback sneak to atone for a less than stellar playoff outing.

On the big stage, Anquan Boldin (6-101) showed that he’s still a #1 WR in this league, going up over 100 yards receiving in what was ultimately a losing effort.  Boldin may be getting older, but he seems to be getting wilier and will continue to have value in fantasy circles.  Of course, as soon as next year the Ravens could have a new #1 WR, as Torrey Smith (3-82, 1 TD) flashed his big play ability and barely missed on a second half bomb that would have put the Ravens up by two scores.  His best years are yet to come, so look for him earlier in the drafts next year.  Dennis Pitta (5-41, 1 TD) may have surpassed Ed Dickson (2-23) on the TE depth chart, simply because he can hang on to the ball; Dickson had a few bad drops, and just doesn’t look as much like the complete package as Pitta.

Rob Gronkowski (5-87) had to leave the game with an ankle injury in the second half, but still did plenty of damage as Brady’s top target while he was in there.  During the time he missed, Aaron Hernandez (7-66) stepped in and performed just fine, and actually led the team in targets.  Wes Welker (6-53) also did a great job of moving the chains with some key 3^rddown catches, settling more into his role as the dangerous slot receiver that he is.  This team is moving more toward a dual TE primary target offense, but Welker still has a ton of value for next season.

Ray Rice (21 car., 67 yards; 1 rec., 11 yards) found his regular running lanes clogged with the likes of Vince Wilfork, who was literally all over the field.  Rice’s numbers have to be a disappointment this year in the playoffs, culminating with only 78 total yards against a Patriots defense that ranked near the bottom in most defensive categories.  Rice was also known for his prolific pass catching out of the backfield, yet he only caught one pass in the game.

Right when the Patriots needed the running game for a spark with Brady misfiring, BenJarvus Green-Ellis (15 car., 68 yards, 1 TD) came up with just enough tough running to keep the Ravens honest and keep the Patriots driving.  Green-Ellis got the first TD of the game, and when the Patriots needed to pick up short yardage, he was up for the task.

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