When the voice of the Ravens, Gerry Sandusky, kicked off Monday night’s debut of the Baltimore Ravens Super Bowl XLVII documentary, he said he could begin by saying the hay is in the barn.
We all knew the happy ending already.
But NFL Films, the producers of the DVD set to hit stores today, still had my wife eagle-squeezing my hand at the Patricia and Arthur Modell Performing Arts Center at the Lyric erupting in applause throughout.
What this movie does so well is show the game in an up-close-and-personal way that makes you appreciate the magnificence of the game. And thus, you feel the sheer difficulty of what the Ravens accomplished in claiming their second Lombardi Trophy.
Even though you’re sitting in a comfy seat, you can almost feel the pain when quarterback 
It also serves simply as a good historical piece of content. By featuring every single game, fans will for years be left saying sentences like, “Oh, right, I remember that 9-6 win in Kansas City. Man, what an ugly win that was.”
NFL Films, through its extensive mic’ing, also captures some good behind-the-scenes moments (many of which have been featured on the fantastic show Sound FX).
Here are some of those highlights:
· Before the famous fourth-and-29 play in San Diego, linebacker
· When Rice extended on the fourth -and-29 play, San Diego Head Coach Norv Turner said out of disbelief, “Did he get it?”
· During the Ravens’ 34-17 regular-season loss to Denver, center
· Lewis and Suggs talked about how New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning would get “rattled” if they kept pressuring him.
· Lewis even got hugs from the referees before his final game at M&T Bank Stadium.
· Before the 70-yard bomb to
· Cornerback
· Suggs taunted the Denver crowd, saying, “Don’t ya’ll wish you had Tim Tebow?”
· New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady apologized to
· Reed was particularly complimentary of the Ravens’ offensive line in the AFC title game, saying, “That line is all universe. That’s the line we’ve been talking about all year.”
· A Patriots player gave Flacco props during the game, saying, “He was about to get smoked and he just launched it.”
· Flacco agreed with Head Coach John Harbaugh’s unsuccessful fake field goal in the Super Bowl, saying, “It was worth the risk.”
Baltimore native and actor Josh Charles narrated the film and did an excellent job. Two lines in the film stuck out to me.
One was during the AFC championship, when Charles spoke of Brady: “What magic he once possessed was lost in a fury of purple and black.” The other was about the start of Super Bowl XLVII: “San Francisco aimed to rattle Joe Flacco. They picked the wrong guy.”
In the end, it wasn’t perfect as no film is.
As somebody that watched every play and wrote every story of the season, there were big-time plays (such as Flacco’s field-flipping pass to tight end
The film is driven by the basic timeline of the season, going week-by-week from Week 1 through the Super Bowl as if in a glorified highlights package. It doesn’t have a central theme to it. I thought the Ravens’ battle against the odds and numerous obstacles could have been played up more.
It is a DVD that I would highly recommend to any fan, however. If you want to cherish the season forever, this is an excellent way to do it and you can buy it at the team online store.
