THIRD TIME WILL BE THE CHARM FOR RAVENS

The Baltimore Ravens, a team no one expected to make it this far, face the Pittsburgh Steelers Sunday for the AFC Championship. With a stout defense and a rookie quarterback who has exceeded all expectations, the Ravens are now one win away from making it back to the Super Bowl. This team reminds me a lot of the 2000 Baltimore squad, except this one has a better offense! The Trent Dilfer Ravens didn't score a touchdown in five straight games during the season and still ended up winning a title! Joe Flacco has played about as well as a rookie can and his defense certainly takes the pressure off him. He is very poised and has made few mistakes this season.

Pittsburgh is favored to win this game, and they deserve that honor. The Steelers have beaten the Ravens twice this season, one on a controversial touchdown reversal in week 15. They have what many people argue as the best defense in the NFL, led by safety Troy Polamalu and defensive player of the year James Harrison. My colleague Pat Morgan told me recently that this is the most consistent franchise in the history of the NFL. He's absolutely right. The Steelers have a rich history and always seem to be at the top of the league. They dominated the 70s and have made numerous trips to conference championship games, including a their victory in Super Bowl XL.

These two teams are practically mirror images of each other and that will show this weekend. If you like defensive football, then this game is a must watch. It's always tough to beat a team three times in a season and the case will be no different come Sunday evening. The Ravens are on a magic carpet ride and it is not going to end this weekend. Expect a low scoring game with the Ravens pulling it out in the end on a Matt Stover field goal with less than a minute to play.

RAVENS 16 STEELERS 13

Shawn Marosek