From the archives: Super Bowl XXXV, Ravens 34 Giants 7

This story was originally published in Newsday on January 29, 2001

The train derailed. The horse pulled up lame. Jim Fassel finally rolled snake eyes.

There was only one guarantee last night, and it was delivered early and emphatically by the Baltimore Ravens' defense: The Giants would not be champions this season.

Nearly 10 weeks after their coach guaranteed his team would make the playoffs and said he would drive the train, ride the horse and raise the ante, the Giants' dream season ended with a devastating 34-7 loss in Super Bowl XXXV at Raymond James Stadium.

It was a thorough rout led by one of the best defenses in NFL history, which backed up a week's worth of trash talk with one of the most dominating performances ever in a Super Bowl. The only thing that kept the Ravens from recording the first Super Bowl shutout-a goal they set publicly during the week-was a 97-yard kickoff return by rookie Ron Dixon in the third quarter.

"I can state the obvious: I'm disappointed," Fassel said, his expression grim and his eyes rimmed in red. "We just had so much go wrong for us."

The Giants (14-5) had won seven in a row since Fassel's Nov. 22 guarantee. But two weeks after beating the Vikings, 41-0, in the NFC title game, in which they totaled 518 yards, the Giants managed a paltry 149 yards and 11 first downs, and were 2-for-14 on third-down conversions.

Quarterback Kerry Collins tied a Super Bowl record with four interceptions, and the Giants had five turnovers against a team that led the NFL with 49 takeaways in the regular season. Collins was 15-for-39 for 112 yards and was sacked four times.

"It's the most disappointing loss I've ever been involved with, not because of the loss, but because of the way I played," Collins said. "Obviously, on a world stage, in the biggest game of my career, I didn't play well, but I'll come back from this like I've come back from a lot of other things."

The Ravens (16-4) won their first Super Bowl, including their previous incarnation as the Cleveland Browns, with their 11th consecutive victory.

Linebacker Ray Lewis, one year removed from being charged with double homicide the morning after Super Bowl XXXIV, was named MVP for his efforts as leader of the defense.

"Once we got to 7-0, it was over," Ravens tight end Shannon Sharpe said.
The defeat was a bitter end to what was an otherwise successful season for the Giants. They qualified for their third Super Bowl and first in 10 years, and lost one for the first time. The players entered their locker room single file after the final gun, and no one spoke. Many sat silently and stared into their lockers.

Co-owner Wellington Mara addressed the team after the game and later said he was proud but disappointed.

General manager Ernie Accorsi said, "I still love this team, but these things happen. You can't make it go away and you can't make it feel better."

Jamal Lewis ran 27 times for 102 yards for the Ravens, and Trent Dilfer was 12-for-25 for 153 yards and a touchdown. The teams punted a Super Bowl-record 21 times, and the Giants' Brad Maynard set a record with 11.

"Right now it just hurts," said tackle Lomas Brown, who played in his first Super Bowl after 16 NFL seasons. "My partner Glenn Parker [who is 0-5 in Super Bowls] warned me, and he was right. It's a hurtful feeling."

The Ravens struck first, with 6:50 left in the first quarter. On second-and-7 from the Giants' 38, Dilfer found Brandon Stokley with a perfectly thrown pass over Jason Sehorn that Stokley caught at about the 10 and ran in to make it 7-0. Sehorn expected inside help from safety Shaun Williams, who accepted blame for the miscue.

The Giants suffered a horrendous break early in the second quarter. It appeared Jessie Armstead returned an interception about 50 yards for a touchdown to tie the score. But the play came back because of a questionable holding call against tackle Keith Hamilton, who was whistled apparently for grabbing Jamal Lewis.

"That was a big play," Armstead said. "It was a play that probably changed the game. It got called back and you have to live with it."

The Ravens made it 10-0 on Matt Stover's 47-yard field goal 1:41 before halftime, but it looked as if the Giants would score before intermission when Tiki Barber ran it 27 yards to the Baltimore 29. But on the next play, Collins forced a pass into double coverage that was intended for Ike Hilliard at the goal line but was intercepted by cornerback Chris McAlister.

The coup de grace for the Ravens came late in the third quarter. Collins threw his fourth interception, an awful throw on which Duane Starks stepped in front of Amani Toomer and returned the ball 49 yards for a touchdown that made it 17-0 with 3:49 left in the quarter.

"I knew what coverage I had," Collins said. "The guy stepped in front of it. I've got to see his position, where he's playing and what he's going to do. I think he led me the whole way."

The Giants stunned the Ravens on the ensuing kickoff, though, when rookie Ron Dixon returned it 97 yards for a touchdown that averted what would have been the first shutout in Super Bowl history. That was not the end of the fireworks, though.

The Ravens struck back with a dagger to the Giants' hearts when Jermaine Lewis ran back the next kickoff 84 yards behind a wall of blockers down the right sideline. The touchdown made it 24-7 with 3:13 left in the third. It was the first time in Super Bowl history back-to-back kickoffs were returned for TDs. It was the third touchdown in 36 seconds, none by the offenses.

Jamal Lewis added a short TD run to make it 31-7 with 8:45 left.

"We'll get back here," said Fassel, who told the team after the game that despite the bitter finish, he was proud of the Giants' season.

"It didn't work out as planned," Sehorn said. "There's not much more to say."