For weeks, quarterback Joe Flacco said the Baltimore Ravens are going to be hard to beat if they don't turn the ball over. Tight end Owen Daniels took it one step further.

"I think if we protect the football and protect Joe -- keep him upright and take the hits off of him -- we’ll be really, really tough to beat," he said.

"Protect" has certainly been the buzz word lately for the Ravens -- and for good reason. It's no secret that turnovers are a major factor in outcomes of games. Under coach John Harbaugh, the Ravens are 63-28 (.692) when they turn the ball over two or fewer time. They are 5-10 (.333) when they give the ball away three or more times.

The Ravens have similar success when they're able to protect Flacco. Since 2008, the Ravens allow an average of 1.9 sacks in wins and 2.9 sacks in losses.

When you combine pass protection and turnovers -- just like Daniels suggested -- the Ravens are very tough to beat. In fact, they're nearly unbeatable. Over the past three seasons, the Ravens are 15-1 (.937) when they allow two or fewer sacks and don't turn the ball over more than once. The Ravens were able to do that in five victories this season: home against Pittsburgh, at Cleveland, home against Carolina, at Tampa Bay and home against Tennessee.

The Ravens' pass protection hasn't been as strong as earlier in the season, but it's certainly a significant improvement from last season. Flacco is on pace to be sacked 22 times; he was sacked 48 times last season.

This would mark only the second time in Ravens history that they've allowed less than 30 sacks in a season. In 2006, Steve McNair and Kyle Boller were sacked a total of 17 times.