But on to the serious business. Ravens and Patriots in New England. It's a playoff game we've seen time and time again. First, the 2009 Wildcard round, won in convincing fashion by the Ravens, with the help of Ray Rice and and a secondary that forced Tom Brady into throwing 3 interceptions. Then, there was the now infamous 2011 AFC Championship Game, which would have been won by the Ravens, but for a great play by Sterling Moore. The game could also have gone to Overtime, were it not for the Ravens kicker-who-shall-not-be-named, who missed a 33 yard field goal by the widest of margins. Finally, the 2012 AFC Championship Game, one year on from the previous game, and the Ravens rolled in to Foxborough and took sweet sweet revenge on the Patriots, with a 28-13 victory on their way to their second Super Bowl title.
Of course, none of those games mean anything any more. This week's game sees an almost full strength New England side go up against a Baltimore team dealing with multiple serious injuries on both sides of the ball, and that could well be the decisive factor here. Tom Brady's LT, Sebastian Vollmer, picked up an injury in Week 17, and seems unlikely to play, putting extra pressure on the pass-rush duo of Elvis Dumervil and Terrell Suggs to perform. A plus for the Patriots will be the numerous injuries that the Ravens have suffered all season long, including linchpins Dennis Pitta and Jimmy Smith.
Battles to Watch:
Patriots O-Line vs Ravens Pass Rush
The Ravens racked up 49 sacks in the regular season, good for second-most. Led by All-Pro OLB Elvis Dumervil and former Defensive Player of the Year Terrell Suggs, the Ravens have been menacing up front all year, and they will have to rely on that again as a banged up secondary goes up against arguably the greatest quarterback in NFL history. Haloti Ngata, Chris Canty and Pernell McPhee all chip in as well, along with CJ Mosley from the ILB position.
Ravens LBs vs Rob Gronkowski
The only concensus 2014 All-Pro, Tight End Rob Gronkowski, has been a pain for opposing defenses all season, racking up 1,124 yards and 12TDs during the regular season. Linebackers CJ Mosley and Daryl Smith have been imperious all season, leading arguably the best linebacking corps in the entire NFL, and are a large part of the Ravens defensive gameplan for stopping one of the best weapons in the game. Dean Pees managed to more or less freeze out Antonio Brown last week, and Ravens fans will be hoping for a repeat performance this week.
Patriots D-Line vs Ravens Run Game
Justin Forsett has been the basis of all good things in the Ravens offense this season. Building off Gary Kubiak's scheme, the veteran runner has averaged 5.4 yards per carry, which leads the league this season. If the Ravens can establish the run early on, then it puts pressure on cornerbacks Brandon Browner and Darrelle Revis to truly lock down each side of the field. If the Ravens can get to the point where the play-action game becomes effective, then Crockett "The Rocket" Gillmore and Owen Daniels become increasingly powerful.
Game Prediction: Patriots 23-24 Ravens. With purple and black flowing alongside the claret and blue in my veins, I cannot physically bring myself to tell you all that the Pats are going to win.
