FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- A few thoughts on the Baltimore Ravens' 35-31 divisional playoff loss Saturday to the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium:
What it means: The Ravens' overachieving season ended in frustration. The Ravens were unable to hold two 14-point leads as they fell short of another upset in New England. This stopped the Ravens' postseason winning streak at five games. The sixth-seeded Ravens watched the top-seeded Patriots score 21 of the game's final 24 points. This was an impressive season for the Ravens (11-7), who had overcome the Ray Rice scandal, several injuries and a suspension to defensive tackle Haloti Ngata.
Flacco untimely interceptions: Joe Flacco had the second-longest streak of not throwing an interception end in miserable fashion. He was picked off twice, including an interception in the end zone with 1 minute, 39 seconds left in the game. Flacco's aggressiveness got the better of him when he forced the throw into double coverage. Flacco didn't complete a Hail Mary as time expired.
Defense unravels: The Ravens' patchwork secondary was exposed by Tom Brady, who completed 33 of 50 passes for 367 yards and three touchdowns. It was the most points allowed by the Ravens since Nov. 2 in Pittsburgh. The Ravens, the No. 6 scoring defense during the regular season, had only given up two touchdowns in their previous 19 quarters before this game.
Melvin stumbles: Rashaan Melvin's admirable effort this season ended badly as he gave up two critical touchdowns in the second half. His blown coverage allowed the Patriots to tie game in the third quarter on a trick play. Wide receiver Julian Edelman took a lateral from Brady and found a wide-open Danny Amendola for a 51-yard touchdown. Melvin reacted to Edelman catching the ball and let Amendola run free behind him. In the fourth quarter, Melvin was beaten by Brandon LaFell for a 23-yard touchdown, giving the Patriots their first lead of the game.
Trouble holding on: Matt Elam's tackling problems continued into the postseason. The 2013 first-round pick missed two tackles in the first half, including one that allowed Amendola to tie the game at 14 in the second half. Elam led the Ravens with 18 missed tackles this season.
Stock watch: Rising -- Running back Justin Forsett. He ran for 129 yards and scored on a 16-yard touchdown. Forsett had averaged 55.5 yards rushing in his last four games.
Game ball: Flacco. Even though it wasn't another storybook finish, Flacco carried the Ravens for a majority of the game. He was 28-of-45 for 292 yards and four touchdowns. He set a league record for most consecutive postseason games with multiple touchdown passes with his eighth in a row.
What's next: The Ravens head into the offseason with some big decisions ahead. Wide receiver Torrey Smith and Forsett are both unrestricted free agents, and Ngata and cornerback Lardarius Webb count a combined $28 million against the salary cap.
