There was a collective sigh of relief heard and felt around Baltimore Sunday night after the Ravens beat the Kansas City Chiefs in an AFC wild-card game.
The Ravens played a complete game on offense, defense and special teams.
Finally.
And with the resounding victory, there came an increase in optimism that the Ravens can upset the Pittsburgh Steelers Saturday in the divisional playoffs at Heinz Field.
Whenever the Ravens play Pittsburgh, anything can happen and games are usually decided in the closing minutes. The Ravens have better personnel than the Steelers this season, but their play has been inconsistent, not only from game to game, but half to half.
To really believe the Ravens were capable of an upset of the No. 1 seed New England Patriots or No. 2 Pittsburgh, we all needed a sign.
It came Sunday against Kansas City.
For the first time this season, the Ravens trashed a lesser talented team and treated the Chiefs like the dogs they have become in the past two weeks.
Maybe the Ravens are beginning to peak. Or maybe they played the best game they are capable of, which won't be good enough to beat the Steelers Saturday. But at least now there is greater optimism.
Admit it. Not all of us believed.
If the Ravens had barely beaten Kansas City like they have won a lot of games in 2010, there would be even more doubters. Even now, the odds are against Baltimore.
They are operating on a short week compared to the Steelers, who are coming off a bye. Pittsburgh is at home, and has an outstanding pass rush, which goes against a major Ravens weakness. Pittsburgh also has quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, who hasn't lost a game to the Ravens since George Bush was president.
Not Bush XLIII, but Bush XLI.
Before the bye on Sunday, Pittsburgh looked like a team that was rounding into peak shape, and the Ravens were staying status quo.
Then came Sunday.
We're not going overboard with this because it's only the Chiefs. They stink. But so did the Buffalo Bills, Carolina Panthers and Cleveland Browns, and the Ravens barely won.
But the Ravens destroyed Kansas City, the AFC West champion, and there were some encouraging signs.
As usual, kicker Billy Cundiff and punter Sam Koch were excellent and cornerback Chris Carr took out one of the league's top receivers in Dwayne Bowe.
After a sluggish start, the Ravens played good defense and they closed out the Chiefs by bringing constant pressure on quarterback Matt Cassel. The Ravens' defense was on the field for only 18 minutes and 16 seconds, which is almost as good as having a bye.
On offense, the Ravens sprayed the ball around among running backs Ray Rice, Willis McGahee and receivers Todd Heap and Anquan Boldin. In the fourth quarter when the Ravens wanted to cement the victory, they ran off a 15-play, 80-yard drive that consumed 10 minutes and 26 seconds.
That, my friend, is killer instinct.
And above all, quarterback Joe Flacco finally came up big in a postseason game. He made plays with his arm and his legs and carried the offense when the running game struggled in the first half.
We're all aware it happened against the Chiefs, but finally the Ravens showed some characteristics of a championship team.
The Ravens won't dominate Pittsburgh Saturday. Offensively, they'll struggle running the ball like most teams do against the Steelers. Flacco won't be running around and throwing passes across the middle to a consistently wide open Heap, and the Ravens will have problems in pass protection.
Defensively, the Ravens will shut down Pittsburgh's running game, but the Ravens will struggle containing speedy receiver Mike Wallace.
And then there is the Roethlisberger factor. He gives the Steelers the edge. No offense to Flacco, but he isn't at that level yet. Roethlisberger is a tight end playing quarterback, and he can hurt you in so many ways. With two minutes left in the game, there is no quarterback in the league I want guiding my offense more than Roethlisberger
Nope, not Peyton Manning, Drew Brees or Tom Brady.
But even with Roethlisberger, the Steelers aren't unbeatable. Not even with a bye or playing at home. The Ravens still face an uphill battle Saturday, but after Sunday we're all feeling a lot better.
The optimism is much greater now. The Ravens gave us a sign.