BALTIMORE -- Maurice Canady's breakup of a fourth-down pass intended for T.Y. Hilton sealed the Baltimore Ravens' 23-16 win over the Indianapolis Colts, allowed the Ravens to maintain control of their playoff fate and helped Baltimore shake its ghost of Christmas past.

Last Christmas night, the Ravens were unable to stop the Pittsburgh Steelers on a last-minute drive, which was capped by Antonio Brown's "Immaculate Extension" touchdown. It eliminated Baltimore from the postseason.

Almost exactly a year later, Baltimore stopped Indianapolis in the red zone to underscore a point of emphasis.

"We’ve talked about it since the first day of offseason workouts," safety Eric Weddle said. "We need to finish. We need to be a defense that when the games on the line, we need to be out there and be a team to win the game. It’s been on our minds for an entire season. We’ve been on the right side of most of those situations, other times maybe not. All those situations of good plays and bad plays are molding us to where we are now."

A sixth-round pick in the 2016 draft, Canady has stabilized Baltimore's nickelback spot. But it wasn't until Saturday that he truly stepped up.

Knocking the throw away from the Colts' No. 1 receiver was Canady's first pass breakup of his two-year career. He had an idea of where the pass was coming when Hilton lined up across from him on fourth-and-10 from the Indianapolis 17-yard line.

"It would be dumb for them to throw it anywhere else," Canady said. "He is a great player; everybody knows he is a great player. I kind of knew the ball was coming, and I was able to make a play on it."

Canady got an indication that the ball was coming when he felt Hilton nudge him as he started making his break back to the ball. That's when Canady found the ball and caused the incompletion.

Was Canady concerned that an official would throw a flag for pass interference?

"Not at all," he said. "You saw my reaction when I just got up and started running? Yeah, not at all."

Before that last drive, it was an uncharacteristic game for the NFL's No. 10 defense. The Ravens struggled to get pressure on quarterback Jacoby Brissett for most of the game, dropped a couple of interceptions and failed to contain Hilton at times.

Hilton caught six passes for 100 yards against the Ravens, but Canady and the Ravens came through against him in the end.

"It was a bend-but-don’t-break mentality," linebacker C.J. Mosley said. "We know what kind of defense we are. When we do our job, all 11 of us, it’s hard for a team to score."