Reading some haters on the net trying to spin this as the Pats weren't good enough to win, and had to resort to trickery and deception.
Based on that theory I guess teams that employ play action passes, zone blitzes, overloading the defense on one side, bunch formations, onside kicks and fake punts don't deserve to win either.
As
@BelichickFan noted, the Matt Chatham column is a must-read. Bottom line is that the Baltimore defense did not react in the manner that they should have to something unfamiliar.
http://www.footballbyfootball.com/column/hot-mess-nfl-rulebook-strikes-again
The real problem here was the way the Ravens handled this surprise situation. They focused on the amount of time the officials gave them to figure out who the eligible receivers, but after clocking the multiple plays the Patriots used the concept, the times ranged from 6-8 seconds between the time the ineligibles were announced and the snap of the ball. That's more than enough time...not even close to hurry-up or an unfair advantage of any kind.
What the Ravens should have done is not focus on who they have, but instead check out of any defensive call that requires them to matchup presnap. In other words, when the formation is confusing, check out of man coverage calls immediately into a zone one where it doesn't matter if you fully understand who's eligible.
Every team in the NFL has what we referred to as a "safe" call...a presnap zone check that makes sure there are no mistakes if something bizarre happens because the defense just guards areas and not specific people. Who's eligible at that point doesn't really matter. The Ravens have a rookie middle linebacker, I'm not sure if that contributed to them not checking into a better call. But the players on the field have to put the defense in the best position possible. The NFL isn't college, there's plenty of onfield autonomy to make the necessary changes when the other team is trying to screw with you.
What makes the Ravens reaction so egregious, is the gimmick was used several times on the same drive and they never adjusted or figured it out (below). Once is understandable. Not checking into a safe call cost them that entire series. There are plenty of veteran defensive players on the field for the Ravens. Somebody has to get them into a better call.
If the players on defense weren't smart enough (or well enough coached) to check to a zone as Chatham outlined above, then it is incumbent on Harbaugh to call a timeout and instruct his team on how to handle the situation. His inflexibility and inability to adapt places the loss on his shoulders. Harbaugh is one of the better coaches in the NFL, but he got taken to the woodshed in this game.
