Super Bowl XLVII Champions [Blu-ray]

I watched the entire game (and recorded the whole thing on a DVD-VR, except for Beyoncé Knowles' dreadful halftime show; later, I edited out the commercials and the power failure break). I kept the TV sound off and listened to Gerry Sandusky (no relation to the disgraced former Penn State assistant coach), former Raven Qadry Ismail, and former Baltimore Colt Stan White, on Baltimore's 98ROCK (WIYY), rather than the second-rate "See B.S." broadcasters.The Ravens jumped out to a 21-6 lead at halftime, and when Jacoby Jones' 108-yard kick return expanded the lead to 28-6 early in the third quarter, I thought things were well in hand, although I expected the Niners to maybe score a touchdown or two. But after the power failure, the 49ers made it a lot closer than it should have been, although it is standard operating procedure for the Ravens to jump out to a big lead, and then have the other team come back and make it close. Fortunately, the Ravens' defense held on with a tremendous goal-line stand, and won the game 34-31, giving Ray Lewis' career a proper send-off, allowing Gerry Sandusky to shout "The hay's in the barn!" for a final time this season, and giving the Ravens their second Super Bowl win (the first was in SB XXXV, 34-7 over the Giants), Baltimore's third Super Bowl win (counting the Colts' 16-13 win over Dallas in Super Bowl V), and the city's sixth NFL title (the Colts won back-to-back NFL titles over the Giants in the pre-Super Bowl era (1958-59), and won a third NFL title (ironically, defeating Art Modell's Cleveland Browns) in 1968, though they lost Super Bowl III to the AFL's New York Jets). And, if you count the College Park-based Baltimore Stars, who won the final USFL title in 1985, and the CFL's Baltimore Stallions, who, in 1995, became the first (and probably last) non-Canadian team to win the Grey Cup, that gives Baltimore eight football titles in all, in three different leagues.If Super Bowl MVP Joe Flacco - the best quarterback to wear a Baltimore uniform since the late Hall of Famer Johnny Unitas - isn't an elite quarterback by now, then I don't know what an elite quarterback is. UPDATE: With his new six-year contract - the largest ever given to an NFL player - Joe is definitely in the elite now, at least moneywise, though he did not have an elite season in 2013. However, thanks in part to Offensive Coordinator (now-retired Denver Broncos Head Coach) Gary Kubiak's new system, Joe had his best statistical year in 2014. Unfortunately, Joe's 2015 season ended early when he injured both his ACL and MCL in a "victory" over the St. Louis (now Los Angeles) Rams. Hopefully, he will be good as new in 2016 (he wasn't, unfortunately).Jacoby Jones finished third on "Dancing With The Stars," but returned to the Ravens, and completed the 2013 and 2014 seasons. The Ravens released him in 2015; he signed with the San Diego Chargers, and returned to Baltimore to play against the Ravens on November 1, 2015 (a 29-26 Ravens victory). After that game, Jacoby was waived again, and claimed by the Ravens' division rivals - the Pittsburgh Steelers, where he finished the season.Unfortunately, Buck Showalter's other Birds (the Orioles) did not match the Ravens' success in 2013. They did have their second straight winning season, finishing 85-77, but tied for third place in the American League East with the hated New York Yankees. They did take two out of three from the defending World Champion San Francisco Giants in a three-game interleague series at AT&T Park. The Giants also failed to make the postseason, as did the Birds' Beltway neighbors, the Washington Nationals.In 2014, both the O's and the Nats rebounded and won their respective divisions; the Birds won their first AL East title since 1997, while the Nats won their second NL East title in three years. The O's swept the Detroit Tigers in the American League Division Series, but were swept in the AL Championship Series by the upstart Kansas City Royals. The Nats lost the National League Division Series to the San Francisco Giants, who went on to defeat the Royals in the World Series - their third title in five years. Both the O's and the Nats lost a couple of key players in the offseason; the Nats let Adam LaRoche go; he signed with the White Sox, as Ryan Zimmerman prepares to move from third base to first base. The Orioles' Nelson Cruz, who led the majors in 2014 with 40 homers, signed a 4-year deal with the Seattle Mariners, which was not entirely unexpected, but the longest-tenured Oriole, Nick Markakis, opted for a 4-year deal with his hometown Atlanta Braves.In 2015, the O's fell to third place, finishing at an even .500 (81-81) for the first time since 1957, when they were 76-76. They re-signed catcher Matt Wieters, who accepted the club's one-year qualifying offer, and signed bullpen set-up man Darren O'Day to a four-year deal. They also acquired slugger Mark Trumbo from the Seattle Mariners, signed Korean OF Hyun Soo Kim, and just re-signed 1B Chris Davis, who led the majors in home runs and strikeouts, to a seven-year, $161 million contract. LHP Wei-Yen Chen signed a five-year deal with the Miami Marlins, OF Gerardo Parra signed a three-year deal with the Colorado Rockies, and IF-OF Steve Pearce signed a one-year deal with the Tampa Bay Rays (though he returned to the Orioles in midseason; he then was signed by the Blue Jays for 2017). To replace Wei-Yen Chen, the O's signed former Texas Rangers RHP Yovani Gallardo to a two-year deal, with a club option for 2018. However, OF Dexter Fowler rejected a tentative three-year deal with the Birds, opting to stay with the eventual World Champion Chicago Cubs. The Birds did sign 1B Pedro Alvarez, formerly with the Pittsburgh Pirates, to a one-year deal; with Chris Davis at 1B, Alvarez did some DHing and played in the field as well, and after initially deciding not to re-sign him for 2017, the O's brought him back on a minor league contract, but sent him to Class AAA Norfolk to learn to play the outfield. Alvarez returned to the Orioles in 2018, as a backup infielder/outfielder/DH.The Nats, who were picked to win the World Series in 2015, finished a distant second behind the eventual NL Champion New York Mets, who lost the World Series to the Royals (KC's first title in 30 years). High-priced starter Max Scherzer, despite two no-hitters, went only 14-12, and let the Nats down during the stretch. They were beset by injuries all year long, and NL MVP Bryce Harper got into a fight with closer Jonathan Papelbon (released in mid-2016) during the last series of the season. As a result, Manager Matt Williams was fired at season's end, and was replaced by veteran skipper Dusty Baker. The Nats also lost several free agents, including RHPs Doug Fister (who signed with the Houston Astros) and Jordan Zimmermann (who signed with the Detroit Tigers), OF Denard Span (who signed with the San Francisco Giants (he is now with the Tampa Bay Rays), and SS Ian Desmond (the last holdover from the Montreal Expos organization, who signed with the Texas Rangers - after a great 2016 with the Rangers as an outfielder, he signed a big free-agent contract with the Colorado Rockies).In 2016, both the O's and Nats made the postseason. The O's and Toronto Blue Jays met in the AL Wild Card game, but the Blue Jays won the game in 11 innings, 5-2 on a walk-off home run by Edwin Encarnacion (now with the Indians), off of reliever (and failed starter) Ubaldo Jimenez. The Blue Jays then defeated the Texas Rangers in the Division Series before losing to the Cleveland Indians (who ousted the Boston Red Sox in the other ALDS) in the AL Championship Series. Led by Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer, the Nats won their third division title in five years, but once again, could not make it out of the first round, losing the NLDS to the Los Angeles Dodgers, who in turn, lost to the Chicago Cubs, who claimed their first NL pennant since 1945. And in one of the most exciting World Series in many years, the Cubs came back from a 3-1 deficit in games to defeat the Indians and win their first World Series since 1908. The Indians have not won a Series since 1948, losing in 1954, 1995, 1997, and now 2016.For 2017, the O's traded for Welington Castillo from the Arizona Diamondbacks, who will replace free agent Matt Wieters as catcher until prospect Chance Sisco is ready in a couple of years (he left as a free agent at the end of 2017 and signed with the Chicago White Sox), re-signed slugger Mark Trumbo to a three-year contract, and acquired OF Seth Smith from the Seattle Mariners for P Yovani Gallardo, along with several lesser acquisitions. The Orioles' starting pitching was a disaster area throughout 2017, with Ubaldo Jimenez - the worst free-agent signing in Oriole history - Chris Tillman, and Wade Miley all having terrible years. RHP Jeremy Hellickson, acquired from the Phillies for seldom-used OF Hyun Soo Kim, didn't help much either, as the O's finished last in the AL East with a 75-87 record, their first losing season since 2011. 1B Chris Davis and OF/DH Mark Trumbo also had terrible years. Two bright spots were the unexpectedly good play of rookie 1B/LF Trey Mancini, and the acquisition of SS Tim Beckham from the Tampa Bay Rays for a low-minor league pitcher. Beckham is expected to replace long-time Oriole and free agent-to-be J.J. Hardy at shortstop for 2018, With Manager Buck Showalter and GM Dan Duquette in the last year of their contracts, and with 10 pending free agents - Chris Tillman, J.J. Hardy, Wade Miley, Jeremy Hellickson, Ubaldo Jimenez, Seth Smith, Welington Castillo, Pedro Alvarez, Ryan Flaherty, and Craig Gentry - none of whom were re-signed, except for Tillman, Alvarez, and Gentry - the Birds will have a new look for 2018, including impressive rookie C Chance Sisco and speedy rookie OF Austin Hays. They also face the challenge of re-signing 3B Manny Machado, P Zach Britton, and OF Adam Jones to new contracts before they declare free agency after 2018, as well as extending the contract of 2B Jonathan Schoop, who had his best season in 2017. Don't be surprised if Machado and Britton, and maybe Mr. Jones, aren't traded in the near future, if the right offers are made. The O's are already shopping Machado around, but for the rest of his time in Baltimore, he will be the shortstop - his natural position - with Tim Beckham moving to third base. The O's also signed two new pitchers for 2018 - former Texas Ranger Andrew Cashner to a 2-year contract, and former Tampa Bay Ray Alex Cobb to a four-year deal. Another new face is another former Ray (and Astro, Cardinal, and Blue Jay) OF Colby Rasmus (who inexplicably went home midseason). Another returnee is IF Danny Valencia, who played for the 2013 O's. Finally, at the 2018 All-Star break, with the O's more than 40 games out of first with the worst record in baseball, the rebuilding began in earnest - the club traded Manny Machado to the Dodgers, Zach Britton to the Yankees, Jonathan Schoop to the Brewers, released Chris Tillman (who signed a minor-league deal with the Rangers), and traded Brad Brach, Kevin Gausman, and Darren O'Day to the Braves (where they rejoined ex-O's Nick Markakis, Ryan Flaherty, and former coaches Dom Chiti and Dave Wallace). In return, the Birds received 15 prospects and several million dollars in international bonus signing money. We'll find out in a few years if the strategy works.The Nats lost C Wilson Ramos, first to a season-ending injury, and then to free agency (he signed with the Tampa Bay Rays, and is now with the Phillies). After initially acquiring former Nats prospect Derek Norris from the San Diego Padres to do the catching, in late February 2017 they finally signed Matt Wieters to a two-year contract (the second year is an option). They kept backup Jose Lobaton (now in the New York Mets' minor league system; he was replaced in 2018 by former Diamondback, Cub, and Blue Jay Miguel Montero, who was released after going 0-for-11 with two walks), sent prospect Pedro Severino back to the minors (he was recalled later in 2017 and again in 2018 to replace Montero), and released Derek Norris (who signed with the Rays). They also need a closer, as Mark Melancon, acquired from the Pirates in mid-season, signed with the Giants. At the end of spring training, they named in-house option Blake Treinen as the closer for 2017, but removed him from the role because of ineffectiveness (Dusty Baker tried different closers for a while, but nothing worked). In addition, the Nats traded three top prospects to the Chicago White Sox for OF Adam Eaton (who suffered a season-ending injury early in the year), and traded long-time 2B/SS mainstay Danny Espinosa to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Rookie sensation Trea Turner will move from center field to his natural shortstop position, but given his limited Major League experience, plus Daniel Murphy's less-than-stellar defense at second base, the Nats could face trouble in the middle of the infield in 2017 (Turner was also injured in midseason). In July 2017, the Nats upgraded their bullpen by trading Blake Treinen and a couple of prospects to the Oakland Athletics for relievers Ryan Madson and Scott Doolittle. They also acquired reliever Brandon Kintzler from the Minnesota Twins for a minor league pitcher and international bonus money (later traded to the Cubs). In the end, the Nats won the NL East again, with a 97-65 record, but lost the NL Division Series to the defending champion Cubs. As a result, Dusty Baker was fired as Nationals manager and was replaced by Chicago Cubs bench coach Dave Martinez. The Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Cubs in the NLCS, but lost the 2017 World Series to the Houston Astros, who earned their first title in franchise history. The Astros beat the Red Sox, Yankees, and Dodgers - three of baseball's marquee franchises - along the way. In 2018, the Nats are in third place, trailing the Braves and Phillies.As for the Ravens, they had a disappointing 2013 season, finishing with an 8-8 record, and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2007, when Brian Billick was fired as head coach. In 2014, they finished 11-7, making it to the playoffs as the sixth seed, then defeated their arch-rivals, the Pittsburgh Steelers, 30-17, in the Wild Card round, and had two 14-point leads against the New England Patriots in the Divisional semifinal, before losing a heartbreaker in Foxborough to the Super Bowl XLIX champions, 35-31. The Ravens' loss was not as much of a heartbreaker as the Seattle Seahawks suffered in Super Bowl XLIX, when they inexplicitly threw an interception close to the goal line instead of running the ball in for the likely game-winning touchdown. In 2015, the Ravens suffered their first losing season since 2007, finishing 5-11, although two of the victories were against the hated Pittsburgh Steelers. The loss of Ray Lewis and Ed Reed to retirement, and injuries to Terrell Suggs, Steve Smith, Sr. (who returned in 2016, but retired at the end of that season), and other key personnel, not to mention the season-ending injury to Joe Flacco, finally caught up with them. Matt Schaub, Jimmy Clausen, and Ryan Mallett finished the season at QB. in 2016, the Ravens "improved" to an 8-8 record; while Joe Flacco had his best statistical year, it was not enough. The reliable Justin Tucker made the Pro Bowl as a place kicker.That's not as bad though, as the Washington Deadskins, who finished 3-13 in 2013, and Mike Shanahan was given his walking papers by Danny Boy Snyder. At this point, RG III - formerly called "SuperBob" by sportswriter Thom Loverro - looks like a one-season wonder. Rosta ruck, Jay Gruden - you're going to need it. Gruden didn't fare much better in 2014, finishing with a 4-12 record, while going from RG III to Kirk Cousins to Colt McCoy, then back to RG III, then back to McCoy, and then finally back to RG III again. Believe it or not, the Redskins actually won the 2015 NFC (L)East title with a 9-7 record, their first since 2012, and it was Kirk Cousins all the way at QB. Prima donna RG III was nowhere to be seen, and was released in March 2016 (he signed with the Cleveland Browns, but was seriously injured early in the 2016 season, though he did return for the last few games - the Browns released him on March 10, 2017). In the NFC Wild Card Game, the Skins lost to Aaron "Discount Double-Check" Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers, 35-18. In 2016, the Deadskins finished 8-7-1, and did not make the playoffs. Danny Boy Snyder mysteriously gave Jay Gruden a 2-year contract extension, but then fired GM Scot McCloughan. Wanna bet it will be owner-coach Dan Snyder someday?Meanwhile, the New England Patriots, in the most exciting Super Bowl ever, rebounded from a 28-3 deficit to stun the Atlanta Falcons in OT, 34-28. Tom Brady won his fifth Super Bowl, and we can now safely say that he is the best QB ever, better than Baugh, Luckman, Tittle, Unitas, Starr, Staubach, Bradshaw, Montana, or anyone else. Although I did not watch it, the Patriots matched up in Super Bowl LII in Minneapolis against the Philadelphia Eagles, who defeated the Minnesota Vikings in the NFC Championship game, denying the Vikings a chance to become the first team to host the Super Bowl at their home field, USBank Stadium. The Eagles won the game in an offensive shootout, 41-33, giving them their first Super Bowl championship and their first NFL title since 1960, when they upset Vince Lombardi's Green Bay Packers (the only time that a Lombardi-coached team lost a championship game). The forgettable Justin Timberlake did the Super Bowl halftime show again - he was bad enough the first time (apparently, many critics agreed). No, Janet Jackson did not show up, and there was no wardrobe malfunction.I boycotted the NFL in 2017, including Super Bowl LII, because of the obnoxious behavior of some of the players. While I did not watch or listen to any of the Ravens' games after the fiasco in London, where most of the Ravens players stood up for the U.K. National Anthem, "God Save The Queen," but "took a knee" for "The Star-Spangled Banner," then got trounced, and deservedly so, by a score of 44-7 to the Jacksonville Jaguars, who also behaved atrociously - I was aware of the scores via media accounts. Having said that, there is really not much to say locally. The Deadskins finished 7-9, and didn't come close to the playoffs. Amazingly, Jay Gruden will be back as head coach - I assume he has become a yes-man for Danny Boy Snyder. Now that the Deadskins have traded CB Kendall Fuller to the Kansas City Chiefs for QB Alex Smith, and signed him to a four-year contract extension to boot, QB Kirk Cousins can now declare free agency, sign with another team, and follow the Nats' Bryce Harper (and, for that matter, the Orioles' Manny Machado) out of town. The Ravens, despite a winning record at 9-7, were eliminated from the playoffs on New Year's Eve, losing - at home, no less - to the hapless Cincinnati Bungles - er, Bengals, who shockingly extended Marvin Lewis' contract. Ravens Coach John Harbaugh isn't going anywhere, but QB Joe Flacco continues his descent from elite post-Super Bowl status to, arguably, the most overpaid athlete in Baltimore sports, this side of the Orioles' called-third-strike king, the $171-million-until-2023 man, Chris Davis. No wonder the O's are actively seeking offers for Manny Machado. UPDATE: I may boycott the Ravens and the NFL in 2018, too, after hearing the awful news that the Ravens signed prima donna Robert Griffin III - yes, that RG III - to a one-year contract as Joe Flacco's backup. Sure, he's not Colin Krapernick, but he's almost as bad. With the Ravens drafting QB Lamar Jackson, the Heisman Trophy winner and QB of the future, RG III won't make the team unless the Ravens carry three quarterbacks. If the team doesn't make the playoffs in 2018, this will likely be the last year for both John Harbaugh and Joe Flacco.The DVD of the game is excellent, in keeping with NFL Films' usually high standards. Narrated by actor, Baltimore native, and Orioles/Ravens fan Josh Charles, the film features plenty of game highlights, including a generous helping of Gerry Sandusky's play-by-play ("The hay's in the barn!"), plus some great music. Bonus features include highlights of Super Bowl Media Day and the Super Bowl post-game ceremony, interviews with Head Coach John Harbaugh (conducted by Fox Sports analyst Brian Billick, Harbaugh's predecessor as Ravens Head Coach, and the winner of Super Bowl XXXV) and proud parents Jack and Jackie Harbaugh, plus features on John and Jim Harbaugh's sibling rivalry, Ravens rookie linebacker Courtney Upshaw's journey to the Super Bowl, and a Harbaugh family update.  NFL: Baltimore Ravens: Road to XLVII , the four-DVD set of the four Ravens playoff games (just the unembellished CBS broadcasts, nothing more) is currently available, but this DVD should be more than enough for most Ravens fans.Okay, let's follow the bouncing football, and sing "The Baltimore Fight Song" (a.k.a. "Let's Go You [Baltimore] Colts," with new Ravens lyrics), which the team has used since the 2010 season:Original words and music by Jo Lombardi and Benjamin KlasmerAdapted and arranged by John Ziemann and Todd Clontz"Baltimore Ravens, let's go,And put that ball across the line,So fly on with talons spread wide,Go in and strike with Ravens pride,FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!Ravens' dark wings take to flight,Dive in and show them your might,For Baltimore and Maryland,You will fly on to victory!"GO RAVENS!!

I found myself in the unlikely position of a New Orleans Saints fan who plunked down a nice chunk of change to attend Super Bowl XLVII and rooting for both teams. On one hand, I was overjoyed beyond explanation that the 49ers had kept our arch rival Atlanta Falcons away from a Super Bowl on our own turf. I also have become a fan of the young superstar Colin Kaepernik, who played his 10th NFL start in the Super Bowl. On the other hand, I was also rooting for Ray Lewis, Michael Ohr, Jacoby Jones, and Ed Reed on the Ravens' side. I wound up sitting in the center of the Poydras Street end zone Loge (mid-level). From this vantage point, I could clearly see that Colin was an absolute nervous wreck for the entire first half, changing almost every play at the line and nearly running out the play clock each time. A 49er lady fan also noted the same thing. Half time did not solve his problem, and the Ravens were ahead 28-6 when the lights went out at 1:38 into the third quarter. This 34-minute power outage finally gave Colin time to relax, and his stats from this point on were actually better than MVP Flacco's! Colin is a future hall-of-famer in the making, but the Ravens were destined to win this year. Had Colin not overthrown Crabtree for a touchdown on that last fourth down, there would have still been enough time on the clock for Flacco to drive his team back for the winning field goal or better. Sitting amongst some of the most passionate fans in the NFL for this Super Bowl was a truly wonderful experience that I will never forget!Since I attended the game, I was hoping to see a good bit of it on this video, so I jumped to that part as soon as I got it. To my surprise, the final game is condensed into only 14 minutes, which does not do it justice. However, each of the regular season games as well as the three playoff games are also condensed in such a fashion to show the Ravens slow march to the Lombardi trophy. What is shown in each of the games that is not seen in regular broadcasts is the dialogue on the field between players, coaches, and referees. This is what makes this video a great viewing experience, getting quite emotional at times.For those wanting to see the entire game, a 4-DVD set will supposedly be released in June, showing all of the post season games for the Ravens in their entirety. Another angle is the 23-DVD set of 46 Super Bowls, billed as the Ultimate Collection.You don't have to be a Ravens' fan to appreciate this DVD, just a lover of pro football legends.

excellent service and product in excellent condition and at the right price

I'm a pretty solid Ravens fan. I'm sure everyone who purchases this is as well. I just have to let people know what this is before they buy it.If you are a casual fan you may enjoy this. It summarizes the season pretty well and gives the main events of the season. Almost like a 'cliff notes' of last season by someone who isn't particularly passionate about the Ravens.If you are a pretty solid fan, you may want to purchase this just for memory's sake, but the film itself is nothing new. If you've followed the season, watched all the post/pre-game interviews, followed all the story lines, read all the articles on the ravens website, you won't see anything exclusive in this film.In fact, I'm not sure but I feel that this was produced by the "NFL" not the Ravens organization and it really shows. It doesn't bleed purple and black like I thought it would. It failed to capture the high emotions of the playoffs, even the Broncos game which in my opinion was one of the best/emotionally back and forth games I've seen in a long time. They didn't even show the Ray Lewis dance after the Indy game which was a huge disappointment.

During one of the most dramatic seasons in recent NFL history the Ravens captured their second set of rings. This film based on that season has terrific narration from Josh Charles, incredible photography and slo-mo highlight shots. The moment where the lights go out right is surreal and actually feels and looks like a movie. The best news out of this set besides the nice batch of extras is the advertisement inside announcing the four disc set of the Ravens astounding playoff run coming in June on DVD and Blu Ray. I can't wait to relive every moment in glorious HD.