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The Ravens brought out all the stops in preparation for this game. The Ray Lewis pregame routine, the Terrel Suggs mid-game TV timeout appearance, and the packed house at M&T Bank Stadium. They did forget one thing: their offense. It’s a disappointing end to a successful season for Baltimore, but that’s life in the AFC when Patrick Mahomes has a say in it.
The Chiefs once again proved they are on a different playing level than the rest of the conference with their victory in Baltimore yesterday. For the first time, Mahomes went on the road in the AFC Championship. Without the crowd at Arrowhead screaming at an ungodly decibel, could Mahomes and the Chiefs bring their own juice? They did, and they brought it early. Mahomes went 10/10 in the first quarter, and the Chiefs jumped out to an early lead.
The Ravens hung on early, entering quarter #2 tied 7-7, but that would be it for Baltimore in the points department until a late 4th quarter Justin Tucker field goal. From that point on, the Ravens struggled to move the ball down the field and gift-wrapped the Chiefs two turnovers. It was a very uncharacteristic day for a John Harbaugh-led team, penalties in big moments, turnovers, and inconsistency led to the ultimate demise of Baltimore.
The Ravens' defense made halftime adjustments and kept Kansas City from adding to their lead in the second half. Frankly, the Ravens' defense was extremely stout all day after weathering the early storm from Mahomes. Critical mistakes like the Zay Flowers taunting call and his fumble into the endzone were backbreakers for a team already struggling to find paydirt. Coming into the day with a heralded run game, the Ravens lost the battle at the line of scrimmage. Baltimore was limited to only 81 yards on the ground, most coming from their QB Lamar Jackson.
Let’s talk about Lamar for a minute. He is this season’s MVP, and he deserves it. He was the most dangerous player all season long. He took a massive step in the right direction, he threw the ball better than ever before, was efficient, and was a dangerous playmaker. He just didn’t show up when it mattered yesterday. Lamar needed to beat a champion to become one, and he couldn’t. Yesterday was a moment of learning for Lamar.
In a year where everyone questioned, doubted, and cheered for the Chiefs ‘down year’, they proved an old-age NFL adage to be correct, it only matters how you play in January and February. The chatter of Mahomes not having enough weapons or a strong enough passing attack was also quieted. In the end, Mahomes only needed Kelce.
In a historic day for Travis Kelce, which included 11 receptions, 116 yards, and an opening drive touchdown, Kelce proved what a lot of us thought all along: he is the lifeblood of this Chiefs dynasty. Hate him or love him, he is the heartbeat of their offensive success, he is the every-down option for Mahomes, and he is the tone-setter. He led the underdog mindset for this team, coming out with an ice-cold chip on their shoulder. The Chiefs are used to playing with a ‘us vs. everybody’ mindset, as the NFL world not-so-patiently waits for their downfall, but they’ll have to keep waiting.
This Chiefs team is different than years past, they lean on their #1 defense in the NFL. It is no longer the defense that just makes enough plays to push Mahomes over the top, the tables have turned. The defense leads the way, suffocating offenses, causing chaos, and sticking to receivers like glue. They give Mahomes the ball, and the offense serves a death-by-a-million paper-cuts mentality. The Chiefs held the ball for nearly 16 more minutes than the Ravens, more than a whole quarter of play.
Guys like perennial All-Pro Chris Jones, Defensive Backs L’Jarius Sneed and Trent McDuffie, and Linebacker Nick Bolton lead a young, but talented, high-flying Chiefs defense. Coordinated by NFL coaching veteran Steve Spagnuolo, the Chiefs bring the heat, and trust their guys on the outside to win. Their defense cleared the way to the Super Bowl and will need to bring it one last time against the star-studded 49ers offense.
The Chiefs advanced to the Super Bowl in a year where everyone thought they were frauds. Only more fuel to their fire. Get ready world, we’re in for a few more weeks of Chiefs media, only the 49ers stand in their way of back-to-back Lombardi trophies.
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