Is there a rivalry brewing in the AFC?
The Baltimore Ravens had the last laugh Sunday.
The No. 5 seed Ravens eliminated the fourth-seeded Tennessee Titans from the NFL playoffs with a 20-13 AFC Wild Card win. Baltimore will advance to play the top-seeded Chiefs or No. 2 Bills depending on the result of Sunday night’s Pittsburgh Steelers-Cleveland Browns game.
The contest at Nissan Stadium was made extra entertaining with some in-game pettiness. The Ravens celebrated a Marcus Peters’ crunch-time interception by stomping on the Titans’ midfield logo, which prompted a taunting penalty.
For reference, the display likely was in response to Tennessee players gathering on the Ravens’ logo earlier this season. At the time, that incident sparked a pregame altercation involving both Baltimore head coach John Harbaugh and Tennessee head coach Mike Vrabel.
Anyway, Vrabel was asked about the Ravens’ celebration after his team’s season-ending loss. He offered a pretty simple response.
“I coach the Titans, not the Ravens,” Vrabel told reporters, per ESPN’s Dianna Russini.
It seems there’s a rivalry brewing between two of the up-and-coming teams in the AFC, and we’re here for it.