NFL

Flacco opened the game 6-of-9 for 77 yards and a 130.3 passer rating in the first quarter, including a 13-yard scoring strike to Anquan Boldin. His initial second-quarter drive ended on a rocket-ball touchdown to Dennis Pitta from a yard out. Flacco's biggest pass was actually underthrown late in the first half, as Jacoby Jones came back to secure the 56-yard bomb and danced his way into the end zone for 21-3 first-half lead. Although Flacco's second half wasn't nearly as impressive, Baltimore's offense did just enough to stave off a monster San Francisco point-scoring rally. We believe Jones deserved game MVP, but Flacco is difficult to strongly argue with after a historic preseason, completing 73-of-126 passes for 1,140 yards (9.05 YPA), 11 TDs, and 0 INTs. He's now 9-4 lifetime in playoff games. Expect plenty of Flacco blurbs in the coming weeks as Ravens GM Ozzie Newsome attempts to sign him long term.