Purple Ravens Majesty: Game-Worn Playoff Jerseys Arrive at Panini America (Gallery)
The Baltimore Ravens’ exhilarating march to Super Bowl XLVII began in earnest three weeks ago with a playoff-opening 24-9 home victory over Panini Authentic exclusive Andrew Luck and the Indianapolis Colts. In that game, played January 6, Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco passed for 282 yards and two touchdowns while Torrey Smith contributed 31 yards on two catches.
On Wednesday, the same jerseys those two stars wore that day arrived safely, soundly and rather pungently at Panini America HQ; and in the case of Flacco’s, there was a little history mixed in with the sweat.
In beating the Colts, Flacco became the first player in the Super Bowl era to win at least one playoff game in each of his first five seasons. If he can win one more next Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers, Flacco will etch his name into a considerably more prominent place in NFL annals. To do that, Flacco he’ll likely need continued assistance from Smith, a big-play personified who’s contributed nine catches for 198 yards and two touchdowns during the 2012 postseason.
But for this particular post, let’s focus not on Super Bowl XLVII (there’s still plenty of time for that over the next 10 days), but on two splendid pieces of history that were pivotal in setting the tone for the Ravens’ thrilling-so-far playoff run. Where will these jerseys end up next? Good question. We’ll have plenty more on that right here on The Knight’s Lance down the road.
But for now, let’s simply appreciate the purple majesty of these beauties . . .