After taking a 17-16 lead late in the third quarter, the Ravens appeared primed to stretch that advantage to eight points after LaQuan Williams stripped the New England Patriots' Danny Woodhead of the football on a kick return and Emanuel Cook recovered the loose ball at New England's 28-yard line.
But the offense failed to get into the end zone as safety James Ihedigbo sacked quarterback Joe Flacco on third down-and-8 from the Patriots' 9. Flacco also appeared to miss a wide-open Vonta Leach two plays earlier, opting instead to aim for tight end Kris Wilson, who was well-covered in the end zone.
The Ravens were forced to settle for a 39-yard field goal by kicker Billy Cundiff.
Running back Ray Rice acknowledged the disappointment of coming away only with a field goal instead of a touchdown at that point.
"That's football," he said. "It's hard to score on a short field. They did a great job, and we didn't execute."