Yesterday the Seattle Seahawks provided the seemingly weekly reminder that on ‘Any Given Sunday,’ an inferior team is capable of victory. After all these are all professionals, and the margin of difference from the best to the worst is somewhat limited.
Ok, we get that. It is understood.
The Ravens have no business losing today in Kansas City. This is not me disrespecting the Chiefs. They have good talent on both sides of the ball, and Arrowhead will be rocking as KC hosts their first home-playoff game since 2003. Clearly a Coaching staff of Haley, Weis, and Crennel deserves respect as well.
I do not think I am overselling the Ravens to point out that Baltimore has 16 Pro Bowl players on their roster. We all know that Baltimore has won 3 road playoff games the previous two years. Nobody is going to be intimidated by having to win in Kansas City.
Perhaps the biggest reason for my optimism today is that the Chiefs are built to run the football. (Lead the league with 164.2 rushing yards per game) While the Ravens run defense has not been as dominant as in years past, Baltimore still finished 5th overall against the run. Taking away the opposing running game is still the starting point every week for the Ravens. Charles is a home-run hitter, Jones can run through the tackles. KC uses a FB (Tim Castille), and two TE’s (Moeaki, and Pope). Albert and Waters are good run blockers on the left-side.
For everything KC achieved with their running game this year, we have seen this same story many times. In basically a decade + you can count on one hand the times the Ravens run defense has been handled by a team that they knew going into the game was going to commit to the run.
5 Things to Watch:
1) Tamba Hali had 15 sacks this year at ROLB. The Ravens can not allow him to be a disruptive force today.
2) If you see Ngata overwhelming the KC Offensive-line early, this game will over quickly.
2a) It has been an up and down year for Rookie DT Terrence Cody. His bulk and athleticism could really help limit KC’s ground-attack today.
3) The Chiefs are starting Barry Richardson at RT, and he sounds like a journeyman’s journeyman. I expect Suggs to be moved around, but if he spends most of his time against LT Branden Albert, than the pass-rushers on the other-side need to regularly beat Richardson (and the extra helping blockers he figures to have).
4) CB Brandon Flowers is supposed to have good cover-skills but he is only 5’9, 187 lbs. Anquan Boldin has been quiet for weeks, but he should be able to exploit Flowers.
5) KC finished 14th against the run. While I do believe the Ravens can attack KC through the air, it will be a disappointment if Baltimore’s offense is not committed to ‘ground and pound’ today.
* I am not including it in my things to watch today, but if the Ravens were to lose in KC today it is hard to imagine the Coaching staff returning as currently constructed. If Baltimore loses in Pittsburgh next week, you can make a case for the return of everyone (i.e. a 12-4 regular season, another playoff road victory, a tough loss to a divisional rival). If the Ravens lose today though, there will be no sugar-coating the disappointment and there will be extreme calls locally for change with Coaching leadership, and even the complexion of the roster.
Prediction: 20-10 Ravens
If you did not see it previously, here was my Chiefs Q&A with Kent Babb from the Kansas City Star earlier this week:
https://baltimoresportsandlife.com/?p=1817
Owner
Chris Stoner founded Baltimore Sports and Life in 2009. He has appeared as a radio guest with 1090 WBAL, 105.7 The Fan, CBS 1300, Q1370, WOYK 1350, WKAV 1400, and WNST 1570. He has also been interviewed by The Baltimore Sun, Baltimore Business Journal, and PressBox (TV). As Owner, his responsibilities include serving as the Managing Editor, Publicist, & Sales Director.