Check out the No. 15 regular-season moment in Ravens history HERE.
Some of the best moments are more manic than meaningful.
In 2013, the Ravens were a .500 team still hoping for a wild-card spot while Minnesota was on its way to a 5-10-1 finish when they met at a snowy M&T Bank Stadium in Week 14. The wintry conditions made it nearly impossible to see from the press box early in the first half, and the teams combined for just 13 points over the first three quarters of the game on the slippery turf.
The outcome appeared bleak for Baltimore when a Matt Cassel touchdown pass to Jerome Simpson gave the Vikings a 12-7 lead early in the fourth quarter and Joe Flacco threw his third interception of the game with just over eight minutes to play. The Ravens hadn’t scored since late in the first quarter in what was shaping up to be their worst offensive output of the year.
Getting the ball back at their own 36 with 6:32 remaining, the Ravens moved into the red zone thanks to a 37-yard pass interference penalty and plodded their way to the Minnesota 1 before being stopped on back-to-back plays. On fourth-and-goal Flacco jammed a short throw into the arms of Dennis Pitta for the touchdown, putting them ahead 15-12 with 2:05 to play.
Making his improbable return that day from a horrific hip injury suffered in late July, Pitta catching the game-winning touchdown would make a terrific story.
Or so we thought.
Coming out of the two-minute warning, the Vikings moved into Baltimore territory on a 27-yard pass to Simpson before running back Toby Gerhart — replacing the injured Adrian Peterson — took an inside hand-off and broke multiple tackles from a slipping-and-sliding Ravens defense on his way to a 41-yard touchdown. Just two plays turned euphoria into despair for the thousands of fans still braving the elements in Baltimore.
But it wasn’t over.
Preparing all week for the Vikings to use a “sky” kick to neutralize Pro Bowl returner Jacoby Jones, special teams coordinator Jerry Rosburg positioned his unit for a pooch return. Admittedly caught up in the moment awaiting the kickoff, Jones had to sprint up from the end zone to catch the short kick and then streaked down the left sideline for the 77-yard touchdown and a 22-19 lead with 1:16 to go.
Now, the Ravens could exhale, right?
After two straight incompletions to begin the ensuing drive, the Vikings were seemingly on their last legs with a third-and-10 from their own 21-yard line with just over a minute to go. Cassel threw a short screen pass to the shifty Cordarrelle Patterson and the Ravens defense again showed little ability to tackle on the icy field, leading to a 79-yard touchdown.
Are you kidding?
This time, Minnesota kicker Blair Walsh wisely booted the ball to the end zone, prompting Jones to take a knee for the touchback. But the Ravens were again in business when Flacco delivered a pretty 35-yard throw down the middle to Marlon Brown, the undrafted rookie wide receiver who had been one of the better stories of the 2013 season.
Two plays later, Flacco threw what would have been the game-ending interception if not for a questionable pass interference call on Vikings linebacker Chad Greenway, adding controversy to an already wild finish. The ball went back to the Ravens at the Minnesota 27, and an 18-yard completion to Pitta put them on the 9-yard line with 10 seconds to play.
Knowing he was down to his final play or two, Flacco delivered a strike to the 6-foot-5 Brown in the back of the end zone for the acrobatic touchdown. A review confirmed the rookie had kept both feet inbounds, giving the Ravens the 29-26 lead in a defensive struggle that had become a wild shootout in minutes.
The final kick return to the Baltimore 48 was a relative bore as time expired.
Five touchdowns in the final 125 seconds of play.
What else needed to be said other than it being an unbelievable win for the Ravens?
“I’ve never played in a game like that. I’ve never even played a video game like that,” cornerback Jimmy Smith said after one of the wildest finishes in NFL history. “That’s probably the craziest thing I’ve ever been a part of.”
