When Ray Lewis was firing up his teammates before the game he told them the only thing that mattered tonight was “ending up three-and-oh.”

Unfortunately for Lewis and his teammates, the coaching staff did not give Baltimore their best chance to achieve that undefeated record. I know there’s a saying about playing for the win at home and overtime on the road, or vice versa. But in this game, the coaching staff really didn’t play for the win at any point late in the game.

John Harbaugh to this point has the Ravens playing well. The trio of Willis McGahee, Ray Rice and especially Le’Ron McClain are running the ball well and rookie starting quarterback Joe Flacco, at least on Monday, looked as though the game was slowing down for him. That makes it all the more disappointing in my eyes that they didn’t give the youngster a chance to win the game in regulation.

Steve Young and the usually English-challenged Emmitt Smith noted on ESPN after the game noted this same sentiment. Smith said “they didn’t give Flacco a chance to make plays when they needed him to make plays” while Young later noted that “You have got to let your quarterback win or lose the football game. If you don’t you most often will lose the game.”

I couldn’t agree more. The Ravens marched under Flacco’s leadership down the field to tie the game then stopped Pittsburgh with more than 1:40 left. Sure, they were in their own territory, but heading into the drive Flacco had completed just over half his passes for 192 yards. He’d thrown a touchdown without tossing a pick. And on the game-tying drive he looked fantastic.

So why, all of a sudden, did Harbaugh and the staff pull in the reins and muzzle the supposed future star? With 1:40 left, McClain took two handoffs then Rice took another. After a penalty, Flacco downed the ball and sent the game to overtime.

Then, after winning the overtime coin toss, the Ravens had McClain take a handoff for a yard. The team committed a penalty. Then McClain took another handoff. By the time Flacco finally got a chance to drop back and pass it was third-and-10 from the Ravens’ own 15 yard line. The Steelers predictably uncorked the blitz for a sack and the Ravens then had to punt.

Even a nice punt left the Steelers starting at their own 43 yard line. That’s one big play away from field goal range. And yes, Ben Roethlisberger and Mewelde Moore connected on a 24 yard completion and four plays later Jeff Reed nailed a field goal for the win.

Again, Harbaugh has an aging defense playing with spirit and the team is halfway to the win total I thought they would achieve all season long. So far I am thoroughly impressed. But when you are playing in a hostile environment like Pittsburgh with a 2-0 team and momentum from marching down for the game-tying touchdown, why would you choose going to overtime over trying to maintain the advantage?

Go for the throat. Why let the game come down to a coin toss, a penalty and a blitz? Especially in a hostile environment I’d rather take take the bull by the horns and try to win it in regulation. Flacco hadn’t made many dumb mistakes all night. He looked confident and calm. Put the game in his hands and try to win the game.

Unfortunately tonight Harbaugh and his staff did just the opposite. And they got the result they deserved.