BALTIMORE (AP)—The Baltimore Ravens got the bounce-back victory they needed, in record-breaking fashion.

After rallying to defeat the Arizona Cardinals 30-27 on Sunday, Baltimore hopes to ride the momentum of its big second half into next week’s AFC North showdown against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Down by 21 points in the second quarter against Arizona, the Ravens (5-2) staged the biggest comeback in franchise history and won the game on Billy Cundiff’s 25-yard field goal as time expired.

The victory eased the sting of their 12-7 defeat at Jacksonville on Monday night and set up Baltimore for its duel on Sunday night in Pittsburgh.

“We still have the Steelers in front of us next week,” coach John Harbaugh said. “We have to get ready for that now. That’s the challenge.”

If the Ravens are to beat Pittsburgh on the road, they can’t afford to fall 21 points behind. Overcoming that kind of deficit at home against Arizona (1-6) is one thing; doing it at Heinz Field is quite another.

On Sunday, however, Baltimore found that one great half of football was good enough for an important win.

“I think we just turned our level up just a little bit,” said linebacker Ray Lewis(notes), who missed a few plays in the first quarter with a right shoulder injury but returned the next series.

Outscored 24-3 in the second half, the Cardinals (1-6) lost their sixth straight. Four of those defeats have been by four points or fewer.

“It’s hard right now,” coach Ken Whisenhunt said. “Our guys are very disappointed after today’s game because it was an opportunity to do something nobody thought we could do. But our guys believe in what we’re doing. If you look at what we did the first half, it shows that if we do it the right way, we can be a good football team.”

In the second half, the Cardinals made only six first downs and were penalized nine times for 87 yards.

The Ravens, on the other hand, played to form.

“Those guys came out in the second half with a different approach,” said Arizona’s Patrick Peterson(notes), who returned a punt 82 yards for a touchdown but was flagged for pass interference prior to the second of Ray Rice’s three touchdown runs.

“They just made more plays than we did in the second half,” Peterson said. “We definitely thought there was a couple of bad calls in the second half, but that’s how the game goes.”

Using a fumble by Joe Flacco and Peterson’s sensational punt return, Arizona scored three touchdowns during a five-minute span of the second quarter to take a 24-3 lead.

Baltimore answered with a 24-point run and moved in front 27-24 when Rice scored on the opening play of the fourth quarter.

Arizona pulled even with a 45-yard field goal by Jay Feely with 8:55 left, but the Ravens won it with a 37-yard, beat-the-clock drive in the final minute.

After the Cardinals were forced to punt from deep in their own territory, Baltimore took over at the Arizona 44 with 52 seconds left. A 36-yard completion from Flacco to rookie Torrey Smith moved the ball to the 5, setting the stage for Cundiff’s game-winner.

The Ravens’ previous biggest comeback was from 19 points down against Tennessee in 2006.

“We woke up, plain and simple,” said former Arizona star Anquan Boldin(notes), who caught seven passes for 145 yards and was a key contributor in the rally.

Flacco went 31 for 51 for 336 yards, and Rice ran for 63 yards on 18 carries. Against Jacksonville, Rice was limited to 28 yards on eight carries.

“We had to get over Monday,” Rice said.

Kevin Kolb threw for 153 yards and a touchdown, and Peterson became the eighth player in Cardinals history to have at least two punt returns for touchdowns in a single season. The last one to do it was Vai Sikahema in 1986.

Down 24-6, the Ravens began the second half with an 80-yard drive in which Flacco went 5 for 5, including a 37-yarder to Boldin that set up a 1-yard touchdown run by Rice to make it 24-13.

“I felt like the way we came out at halftime is what turned it around,” Baltimore linebacker Jameel McClain(notes).

Late in the third quarter, Boldin caught passes 21, 23, 27 and 9 yards during an 88-yard march that ended with another 1-yard TD run by Rice.

The momentum turned even further in Baltimore’s direction immediately after the ensuing kickoff. On first down, Kolb was hit by Terrell Suggs while throwing a pass that was intercepted by McClain and taken 8 yards to the Arizona 22. Three plays later, Rice ran in from the 3.

Two holding penalties against the Ravens extended the Cardinals’ drive that ended with a field goal that tied it at 27.

Mistakes by Baltimore also played a big part in Arizona’s big second quarter. But the Cardinals couldn’t hold on.

Asked to assess the mood at halftime, running back Beanie Wells said, “We just didn’t want to let up. We wanted to keep on fighting. We wanted to go out there and prove that we’re a good football team. We came up short, unfortunately.”

Notes: The Cardinals placed TE Todd Heap (hamstring) on the inactive list. Heap played 10 seasons in Baltimore before signing with Arizona as a free agent this year. … It was McClain’s first career INT. … The loss dropped Arizona into a last-place tie with St. Louis in the NFC West.

BALTIMORE (AP)—The Baltimore Ravens got the bounce-back victory they
needed, in record-breaking fashion.

After rallying to defeat the Arizona Cardinals 30-27 on Sunday, Baltimore
hopes to ride the momentum of its big second half into next week’s AFC North
showdown against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Down by 21 points in the second quarter against Arizona, the Ravens (5-2)
staged the biggest comeback in franchise history and won the game on Billy
Cundiff’s(notes) 25-yard field goal as time expired.

The victory eased the sting of their 12-7 defeat at Jacksonville on Monday
night and set up Baltimore for its duel on Sunday night in Pittsburgh.

“We still have the Steelers in front of us next week,” coach John Harbaugh
said. “We have to get ready for that now. That’s the challenge.”

If the Ravens are to beat Pittsburgh on the road, they can’t afford to fall
21 points behind. Overcoming that kind of deficit at home against Arizona (1-6)
is one thing; doing it at Heinz Field is quite another.

On Sunday, however, Baltimore found that one great half of football was good
enough for an important win.

“I think we just turned our level up just a little bit,” said linebacker
Ray Lewis(notes), who missed a few plays in the first quarter with a right shoulder
injury but returned the next series.

Outscored 24-3 in the second half, the Cardinals (1-6) lost their sixth
straight. Four of those defeats have been by four points or fewer.

“It’s hard right now,” coach Ken Whisenhunt said. “Our guys are very
disappointed after today’s game because it was an opportunity to do something
nobody thought we could do. But our guys believe in what we’re doing. If you
look at what we did the first half, it shows that if we do it the right way, we
can be a good football team.”

In the second half, the Cardinals made only six first downs and were
penalized nine times for 87 yards.

The Ravens, on the other hand, played to form.

“Those guys came out in the second half with a different approach,” said
Arizona’s Patrick Peterson(notes), who returned a punt 82 yards for a touchdown but was
flagged for pass interference prior to the second of Ray Rice’s(notes) three touchdown
runs.

“They just made more plays than we did in the second half,” Peterson said.
“We definitely thought there was a couple of bad calls in the second half, but
that’s how the game goes.”

Using a fumble by Joe Flacco(notes) and Peterson’s sensational punt return, Arizona
scored three touchdowns during a five-minute span of the second quarter to take
a 24-3 lead.

Baltimore answered with a 24-point run and moved in front 27-24 when Rice
scored on the opening play of the fourth quarter.

Arizona pulled even with a 45-yard field goal by Jay Feely(notes) with 8:55 left,
but the Ravens won it with a 37-yard, beat-the-clock drive in the final minute.

After the Cardinals were forced to punt from deep in their own territory,
Baltimore took over at the Arizona 44 with 52 seconds left. A 36-yard completion
from Flacco to rookie Torrey Smith(notes) moved the ball to the 5, setting the stage
for Cundiff’s game-winner.

The Ravens’ previous biggest comeback was from 19 points down against
Tennessee in 2006.

“We woke up, plain and simple,” said former Arizona star Anquan Boldin(notes),
who caught seven passes for 145 yards and was a key contributor in the rally.

Flacco went 31 for 51 for 336 yards, and Rice ran for 63 yards on 18
carries. Against Jacksonville, Rice was limited to 28 yards on eight carries.

“We had to get over Monday,” Rice said.

Kevin Kolb(notes) threw for 153 yards and a touchdown, and Peterson became the
eighth player in Cardinals history to have at least two punt returns for
touchdowns in a single season. The last one to do it was Vai Sikahema in 1986.

Down 24-6, the Ravens began the second half with an 80-yard drive in which
Flacco went 5 for 5, including a 37-yarder to Boldin that set up a 1-yard
touchdown run by Rice to make it 24-13.

“I felt like the way we came out at halftime is what turned it around,”
Baltimore linebacker Jameel McClain(notes).

Late in the third quarter, Boldin caught passes 21, 23, 27 and 9 yards
during an 88-yard march that ended with another 1-yard TD run by Rice.

The momentum turned even further in Baltimore’s direction immediately after
the ensuing kickoff. On first down, Kolb was hit by Terrell Suggs(notes) while throwing
a pass that was intercepted by McClain and taken 8 yards to the Arizona 22.
Three plays later, Rice ran in from the 3.

Two holding penalties against the Ravens extended the Cardinals’ drive that
ended with a field goal that tied it at 27.

Mistakes by Baltimore also played a big part in Arizona’s big second
quarter. But the Cardinals couldn’t hold on.

Asked to assess the mood at halftime, running back Beanie Wells(notes) said, “We
just didn’t want to let up. We wanted to keep on fighting. We wanted to go out
there and prove that we’re a good football team. We came up short,
unfortunately.”

Notes: The Cardinals placed TE Todd Heap(notes) (hamstring) on the inactive list.
Heap played 10 seasons in Baltimore before signing with Arizona as a free agent
this year. … It was McClain’s first career INT. … The loss dropped Arizona
into a last-place tie with St. Louis in the NFC West.

BALTIMORE – The word “finish” isn’t supposed to be an ugly “F” word, but the Cardinals have turned it into one this season. The only thing they’ve polished off is the season.

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Photos from the game | Cardinals fans | Box score | NFL scoreboard

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The latest fiasco came Sunday at M&T Bank Stadium. The Cardinals led the Ravens by 21 points in the second quarter, by 18 at halftime and were tied with possession of the ball late. But they couldn’t finish and went home with a 30-27 loss when kicker Billy Cundiff made a 25-yard field goal as time expired.

It was the sixth consecutive loss for the Cardinals (1-6) and the fourth in which they’ve blown a lead in the second half.

“A lot of us are in disbelief,” receiver Larry Fitzgerald said. “Coming up short like this is getting frustrating, and it’s getting old.”

It’s also become familiar, as much a part of the 2011 Cardinals as the birds on their helmets.

The Cardinals did so much right in the first half, and nearly everything wrong in the second.

Patrick Peterson returned a punt 82 yards for a touchdown. The defense forced two turnovers, and the offense, though hardly spectacular, did enough to help give the Cardinals a 24-6 lead at halftime.

“I thought we were in good shape,” quarterback Kevin Kolb said. “Things were going our way. We knew what was coming in the second half. You can’t let down in this league, especially against a team like this. It wasn’t a lack of focus; it was a lack of execution.”

All the Cardinals did in the first half, as it turns out, was get the Ravens’ attention.

“We woke up, plain and simple,” said receiver Anquan Boldin, a former Cardinals player.

The Ravens did anything they wanted in the second half. Quarterback Joe Flacco continually threw to Boldin, and the Cardinals went through three cornerbacks trying to shut him down.

Boldin finished with seven catches for 145 yards; five of them and 117 yards came in the third quarter. In addition, he drew three pass-interference calls against three cornerbacks: A.J. Jefferson, Richard Marshall and Peterson.

Boldin didn’t score, but his performance in the third quarter set up three short touchdown runs by Ray Rice, the last of which gave the Ravens a three-point lead early in the fourth quarter.

A handful of Cardinals implied afterward that Boldin initiated his share of the contact, too.

“There was a lot of pushing and shoving going on, on both sides of the ball,” coach Ken Whisenhunt said. “Unfortunately, we got called for some big plays. He (Boldin) made some good catches.”

The Cardinals offense never responded in kind. Kolb was sacked six times and completed just 10 of 21 passes. Fitzgerald had a 66-yard reception but just two other catches as he again went long periods without being targeted.

Not that Kolb had much time to look for him. The Ravens applied constant pressure, mostly because they had the wisdom to draft Terrell Suggs in 2003 and the Cardinals didn’t.

The Cardinals have been searching for an elite rusher ever since.

Suggs, who played at Arizona State, had 13 tackles, a sack, four tackles for a loss and two more hits on the quarterback. Left tackle Levi Brown and right tackle Brandon Keith did nothing to make Suggs look ordinary.

Not that Suggs was satisfied.

“I left some things on the field,” Suggs said.

It had to be a watch, or a wallet or a mouthpiece, because it’s hard to imagine Suggs having a bigger impact on a game than he did Sunday.

The Cardinals responded just once in the second half. After the Ravens went ahead by three, the Cardinals drove 53 yards to the 27. Jay Feely’s 45-yard field goal tied the score with 8:55 remaining.

The defense forced punts on the next two possessions, but the offense was overwhelmed and couldn’t respond.

Finally, the Ravens took over at the Arizona 44 with 52 seconds remaining. A 36-yard pass to Torrey Smith set up the winning field goal, which gave the Ravens the biggest comeback victory in franchise history.

The Cardinals left town muttering, again, about their inability to, well, you know.

“We just have to learn how to finish,” Cardinals safety Adrian Wilson said. “We don’t have a lights-out mentality to finish teams off.”

Cardinals report

Key player: Ravens outside linebacker Terrell Suggs spent the day in the Cardinals backfield. He had 13 tackles, including four for a loss. He had a sack and four quarterback hits.

Key moment: The Cardinals led 24-20 late in the third quarter when Kevin Kolb dropped back to pass on first down. He was hit by Suggs, and the ball was intercepted and returned to the Arizona 22. Baltimore scored to go ahead.

Injury report: Kolb (right foot), FB Anthony Sherman (left ankle), TE Rob Housler (groin). All we be evaluated Monday.

Quote: “I’m not stunned. It wasn’t like they made a miraculous Hail Mary catch. They adjusted their game plan, and they executed, and we have to get better at finishing.” – Cardinals linebacker Paris Lenon

Up next: Rams (1-6) at Cardinals (1-6), 2:15 p.m. Sunday, University of Phoenix Stadium.

View from the press box

After each loss, the Cardinals have reminded us that there is plenty of football left to be played. That has sounded more ominous each week. There are nine games left, and this team hasn’t given anyone reasons to plan their Sundays around watching it. Sure, the Cardinals still are playing hard, as if people should give them credit for that. Even amateurs should play hard every week. All Cardinals fans are asking at this point is for their team to show improvement. And they are still waiting.

Read More: Beanie Wells (RB – ARI), Baltimore Ravens, Arizona Cardinals

Arizona Cardinals starting running back Beanie Wells is likely to play with a knee injury, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, but how much action he gets remains to be seen.

The Cardinals are facing the Baltimore Ravens this week, who are allowing the third-fewest rushing yards in the league, so even if Wells were at full strength, this would be a tough matchup. The guy who will get the carries Wells can’t handle will likely be speedster LaRod Stephens-Howling. In other weeks, he’d be a starting option, but against the Ravens, you should really consider other options.

If Wells is a full go, he might get a touchdown. He’s been, shockingly, a very reliable fantasy performer when healthy, but his recent streak of game-time decision injuries has been frustrating for owners and fantasy writers alike. We feel your pain.

For more on Wells’ injury issues, visit Cardinals blog Revenge of the Birds. For his opponent, visit Ravens blog Baltimore Beat Down.

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Cardinals vs. Ravens: Injury report

Up next: CARDINALS (1-5) AT RAVENS (4-2)
When: Sunday @ 10 a.m. | Full 2011 schedule
Where: M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore, Md.
TV: Channel 10 (Sam Rosen, Brian Billick)
Radio KTAR 92.3 (Dave Pasch, Ron Wolfley)
Spanish: KBMB 710 AM (Gabriel Trujillo, Rolandu Cantu)
Noteworthy: The Ravens lost to the Jaguars on Monday night to snap a three-game winning streak, while the Cardinals have lost five consecutive games. … Todd Heap will play the first game against his former team, as will Anquan Boldin. … Arizona hosts the Rams next week and then plays three straight road games (at Eagles, at 49ers, at Rams). … the Cardinals are 1-1 against the Ravens in Baltimore.
» » Complete Ravens coverage from The Baltimore Sun

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2011: Cardinals fans | Cheerleaders | Practices