NFL playoffs: Panthers beat Cards, Ravens top Steelers

Never count out the Baltimore Ravens in the playoffs.

Of their sixth trip in seven seasons with John Harbaugh as coach and Joe Flacco at quarterback, the Ravens beat archrival Pittsburgh 30-17 Saturday night in a AFC wild-cards. That sends Baltimore to New England, a spot the Ravens twice have won in the postseason, including from the 2012 season whenever they won the Super Bowl.

"We're definitely informed about playing available online for, but which doesn't really mean anything," Flacco said of Gillette Stadium. "They're a good eleven, and we are going to have to be along with everything to go in there and have a victory."

From the NFC game, the Carolina Panthers, the 2nd division winner having a losing record in NFL history, also became the second such team to win a postseason game.

Emulating this years Seattle Seahawks, Carolina (8-8-1) got its first playoff victory in nine years by holding Arizona to 78 yards within a 27-16 win. Which was the minimum yield in a postseason game.

"We all know who we have been — menacing, stifling so we are going to get after you," cornerback Josh Norman said. "Could if you find blood in water then when there is, our sharks are likely to eat."

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Ravens 30, Steelers 15

At Pittsburgh, Flacco tossed two second-half touchdowns within the bitter AFC North rivalry. Flacco hit Torrey Smith to have an 11-yard score in the third quarter and Crockett Gillmore that has a 21-yard TD pass inside the fourth period one play after Terrell Suggs picked off Ben Roethlisberger. The Ravens won in Pittsburgh the very first time in the postseason; Pittsburgh was 9-0 in third games of your season from the same opponent.

Baltimore (11-6) sacked Roethlisberger half a dozen times and kept the NFL's second-ranked offense off-balance. Roethlisberger passed for 334 yards, even so the Steelers (11-6) settled for a lot of field goals.

"The fundamental thing is we have a fantastic team so we didn't hurt ourselves tonight," Flacco said. "We didn't have a lot of possessions early. We made one of the most of these by benefiting from rather points.

"We played a clean football and kept at it."

Flacco's seven road playoff wins would be the most by way of quarterback because the 1970 merger.

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