Ebony Bird
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3 Reasons The Baltimore Ravens Can Beat The New England Patriots

By Joe Schiller

Jan 10, 2015; Foxborough, MA, USA; Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh (L) shakes hand with New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick (R) after their 2014 AFC Divisional playoff football game at Gillette Stadium. The Patriots won 35-31. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 10, 2015; Foxborough, MA, USA; Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh (L) shakes hand with New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick (R) after their 2014 AFC Divisional playoff football game at Gillette Stadium. The Patriots won 35-31. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports /
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Nov 6, 2016; Baltimore, MD, USA; Baltimore Ravens linebacker Terrell Suggs (55) gets introduced prior to the game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Evan Habeeb-USA TODAY Sports
Mandatory Credit: Evan Habeeb-USA TODAY Sports /

A Record Setting Defense

Defense wins championships right? The Ravens are certainly firm believers in that.

Compared to last season, the defense has vastly improved. The Ravens are on pace to produce record setting numbers on the defensive side of the ball. They currently rank 1st in run defense, only giving up 73.8 yards per game. The defense also ranks 1st in total yards allowed and 2nd in points per game allowed.

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This defense is also battle tested. Ezekiel Elliot, Le’Veon Bell, and Jay Ajayi were all held under 100 yards against the Ravens. There are not some scrub running backs. Keep in mind, these 3 rank in the top 10 in rushing yards this season. The front seven has the ability to get to both stop the run frustrate the top running backs in the NFL. Legarrette Blount is more than a handful, but I trust that the defense will be able to slow him down.

With the absence of Rob Gronkowski, the Ravens have caught a huge break. The All-Pro tight end is the best in the game and is impossible to guard. With Jimmy Smith back, I think the Ravens secondary matches up well with the Patriot’s receivers. Rookie corner-back Tavon Young can cover the elusive Julian Edelman or Chris Hogan and Jimmy Smith can match-up with Malcolm Mitchell. C.J. Mosely has show his ability to cover in the passing game and will provide much needed help on the massive Martellus Bennett.

Plus, who doesn’t love to watch the match-up between Terrell Suggs and Tom Brady. It is clear that there is bad blood between the two and it is always a show when the two teams play.

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