Baltimore Ravens waste big game against Kansas City Chiefs

The Baltimore Ravens had a chance to prove something. They didn’t:

After Monday Night Football the Baltimore Ravens are in second place in the AFC and doubts about their 2020 season ceiling are pouring in from the back of our minds to an idea itching our foreheads. Can the Ravens beat the Chiefs in the playoffs? Can they live up to a big moment on a hyped stage? Is this a sign of something more problematic than a week three defeat?

This was the Tennessee game all over again. It was against a better team, the score was different yet the result was exactly the same thing. In a big game at home, Baltimore shrunk. They didn’t play their part in the game of the year. If it weren’t for the build up this would just be a forgetful end of the week of NFL football.

Jackson may have had his worse first half of football since the 2018 season ended against the Los Angeles Chargers. In a game that was built up as a battle between the MVP’s of back to back seasons, Patrick Mahomes stole the show. Mahomes vs Jackson wasn’t a debate on Monday night; I’ve argued they are equals but Mahomes was unmatched in this game.

The Ravens are supposed to have the best balance in terms of offensive and defensive talent. Their defense could not get the stops in this game. They couldn’t finish in the pass rushing department and they couldn’t cover anyone. DeShon Elliott kind of got exposed as an inexperienced safety. Marcus Peters and Marlon Humphrey had an unusual amount of humble pie. Mahomes and the Chiefs won. They’re great. We already knew that. The Ravens didn’t prove anything tonight.

How come Mark Andrews can’t catch in a big game? It feels that way. It may be a knee jerk reaction but he didn’t do great against the Titans, so the question stands. Tyre Phillips may not be the answer at right guard. That’s something we have to think about as the interior offensive line play has been uneven and sometimes awful this season.

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It would be an overreaction to say that the season is over and that Jackson and company can’t win the Super Bowl. There is no finality here. What is clear, is that it’s hard to have confidence in the Baltimore Ravens in a big spot. The Ravens have failed to beat the Chiefs three times in a row. They have two early playoff exits in a row. It’s too early to say that the Ravens are pretenders. It does however look like the Chiefs are going to run away with the number one seed. Who stops this team? They are the unquestioned cream of the crop.

The Bottom Line:

The Ravens had a chance to be 3-0 and to look like world beaters. Instead they fell behind the Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC North and they had an embarrassing showing. The score looked better than it was. The Chiefs ran away with this one, had a couple of hiccups and ran back away with it.

Jackson had 97 passing yards. The Ravens got away from the run again, and the offense broke down. The Ravens are right back where they were against the Titans. The only difference is that the season isn’t over. That’s it. That’s the only difference. The Ravens played poorly for much of the game, the Chiefs didn’t.

That’s the story in a nutshell. It’s not complicated. The Ravens wasted their big chance to prove something. The impact of this loss is going to be felt the next time the Ravens are in a big spot, and remember Baltimore plays in Pittsburgh on Thanksgiving night.