Oilers Keep Playoff Hopes Alive

The Tennessee Oilers' playoff hopes are alive for at least another week.

Al Del Greco kicked three field goals, including two 48-yarders, as the Oilers broke a two-game losing skid Sunday with a 16-14 victory over the Baltimore Ravens.

"There was a lot of pressure to win this ball game," Tennessee coach Jeff Fisher said. "Now to win the remaining three seems a lot easier than it did to win the remaining four."

But the Oilers (7-6), who lost on a last-second field goal a week ago at Seattle, had to hold off one last comeback bid by Baltimore's Jim Harbaugh. He moved the Ravens (5-8) 80 yards and hit Floyd Turner with a 20-yard touchdown pass, his second of the game, with 1:46 left to make it 16-14.

The Ravens forced Tennessee to punt, and Harbaugh got the ball back with 1:18 to go.

Two plays later, he tried to find

Eddie George scores a first quarter touchdown. (AP)

The tip capped Rolle's best game this season as he also had a game-high two sacks.

"He was the x-factor," linebacker Joe Bowden said.

The Oilers knew chances at their first playoff berth since 1993 would evaporate if they lost to Baltimore, which came in having won three of four. So they scored on their first three possessions and played keepaway by holding the ball for more than 38 minutes, a season-high.

Tennessee also turned in its best defensive performance this year with a season-high six sacks against a Baltimore team playing without two of its top receivers in Jermaine Lewis and Michael Jackson.

Harbaugh, who rallied the Ravens for a 38-31 victory over Indianapolis a week ago, only got untracked late in the game. The Ravens went three-and-out on the game's opening possession, and they had just one first down and 11 yards offense in the first quarter.

He finished 15-of-28 FOR 214 yards, with most of the yardage coming on a 66-yard TD toss to Turner in the third quarter and the final TD drive.

Baltimore coach Ted Marchibroda, whose job may have been decided by the loss, said part of the problem was a banged-up offensive line. Guard Jeff Blackshear went out, and tackle Jonathan Ogden injured ligaments in his ankle and missed the second half. Wally Williams also left with an injury, and Jeff Mitchell replaced him.

Harbaugh refused to blame the offensive line, and he said he wished he had faked the throw to Turner and gone to James Roe on the sideline.

"What hurts the most is that we had the ball at the last minute," Turner said. "We had the chance to put the nail in the coffin and come out with a victory, and we fell short."

The Oilers came into the game with the fewest sacks in the NFL with 19 this season and just four over the past six games. Their previous high of four sacks came in September against New England, but they were energized by the return of starting safety Blaine Bishop and tackle Josh Evans.

Bishop said he only felt about 80 percent recovered from a straineleft knee.

"But I couldn't stay on the sidelines and see our playoff hopes go down the drain," said Bishop, who had a team-high six tackles. "I feel I'm an emotional lift to the defense, and I feel like the guys rally around me."

Tennessee never trailed as Del Greco kicked the first of his field goals on its opening drive. Eddie George added a 2-yard TD run, and Del Greco's second 48-yarder gave the Oilers a 13-0 halftime lead.

The game nearly melted down into a slugfest in the second half as the teams were called for offsetting personal fouls twice.

Oilers tackle Brad Hopkins said the problems were due to the teams' history going back to when the Ravens called Cleveland home. Ravens tight end Brian Kinchen, flagged for one foul, said the Oilers should turn to wrestling if they didn't want to play football.

Notes