With the Steelers loss over Cincinnati, and the Ravens’ win against the Browns, we are set up for a very interesting first round of the playoffs this weekend; the Steelers will travel to Baltimore to play the Ravens at home during Wildcard Weekend only three weeks after the Ravens beat them 34-17. As a Ravens fan, just looking at the Steelers over their past five games, I would say the Ravens should easily get the win and move calmly to the divisional round where they would likely go against the Bills, but also, as a Ravens fan, I know that anything is possible whenever these two teams meet.
The elephant in the room is of course Lamar’s record during the playoffs. In Lamar’s six playoff starts he has a 2-4 record, managing to only throw six touchdowns to six interceptions and have a passer rating of 75.7. While his playoff record has been getting called into question all season, Lamar just so happened to put together his most impressive regular season yet. Throwing over 40 touchdowns and having a passer rating this season of 121.6 (the fourth highest of all time during the regular season). Lamar has shown the entire league just how talented of a passer he can be at the top of his game. What’s more, Lamar and Todd Monken have both gotten another year of experience in this offense and it seems like this could be the year for Lamar to truly silence all the doubters. Despite all of this the fact remains: the Ravens’ playoff chances start and end with Lamar Jackson.
Assuming the Ravens take care of business and beat the Steelers, they have a legitimately hard road ahead of them since the Bills look as strong as ever and the Chiefs always seem to find a way to win. Despite who they’re playing, I think it’s obvious to anyone that’s watched the Ravens this season that the key to success is sticking with what’s worked all season; pounding the rock with King Henry and Lamar. My biggest fear is to re-experience the horror that was the AFC championship last year where the Ravens only ran the ball 6 times in a rainy game and ended up turning the ball over three times, ultimately losing to the Chiefs 17-10. This was all despite the Ravens having a top rushing offense in the league that year. And in nearly every win for the Ravens this year, Derrick Henry has over 100 yards rushing. Especially with Zay Flowers being questionable to return during the playoffs, the Ravens need to commit to the run.
Assuming everything does go the Ravens way, and we do make it to the big game, Lamar’s Record of 24-4 against NFC teams bodes well for their chances to win. He’s hard to game plan against and I think whichever team faces them in the Super Bowl will have a difficult time winning, again, assuming they can get there in the first place. The blueprint is right in front of them, the Ravens just need to actually stick to it.
