For the Baltimore Ravens, the playoffs is here: Win and move on

For the Ravens, this is the week to show their playoff mettle

The Baltimore Ravens rallied behind talented quarterback Lamar Jackson — and a big-play, bend-don’t-break defense — to earn playoff spots after both the 2018 and 2019 seasons.

Then they laid a humiliating egg both times.

Though they have yet to lock down a spot in this year’s tournament heading into a Week 17 matchup with the Cincinnati Bengals, the team is basically in playoff mode right now. Sure, they could lose this game and back in with some help from other teams, but, honestly, what would that tell us? For me, it would say that they are still woefully unequipped to win a big game with their season on the line.

Look, the Bengals are not a good team. They’ve pulled off back-to-back wins against the Steelers and Texans, but that does not make them good. They caught the Steelers during an offensive malaise for that team, and they caught the Texans during, well… the Texans stink. Out loud. If the Ravens do win their way into the playoffs, they will be playing a team far superior to the Bengals — on paper, in the standings, and on the moon, if we’re being honest.

The last time these two teams played was in Week 5, and it was a 27-3 win for the Ravens that included seven sacks against top-pick Joe Burrow. Now, Burrow is out for the year and they are facing Brandon Allen. Yes, Allen had a nice performance last week against the Texans, but that was the Texans. You know… of the stink-out-loud-variety.

This is a game the Ravens should win. And they should win it convincingly. In fact, they NEED to win this convincingly.

Lose this game and back into the playoffs, or win it by a nail-biter, and it’s fair to doubt this team’s legitimacy. And, if the fans are doubting them, and social media and the airwaves are being filled with that very loud doubt, you can bet the players and coaches will be feeling it, too.

The Ravens need to enter this year’s playoffs with a chip on their collective shoulder and confidence pouring through their veins. They have a good enough defense to win it all. They have a quarterback who can single-handedly win a game, and they have enough pieces around him where he shouldn’t have to.

For the Ravens, the playoffs start this Sunday. They need to put that extra lineman upfront, get Pat Ricard a running start into that line, and pound the ball at will at an overmatched defensive front. The first time these two teams played, the Ravens were messing around with their offense. Jackson threw the ball 37 times for 180 yards on that day, and they ran the ball 24 times, including a kneel-down.

The Bottom Line:

That needs to flip. They need to ride Gus Edwards, J.K. Dobbins, and the legs of Jackson to the tune of 37 carries, and mix in 20 throws for 180 yards. They need Brandon Williams, Calais Campbell, and Patrick Queen to show how far they’ve come with their run defense, and make the Bengals one-dimensional on offense by stuffing any plans to run the ball. And they need to take the ball away on defense.

The Ravens need to win this game, and they need to do so in a manner of a team looking to make noise in this year’s playoffs, instead of turning into a pretender when the lights get bright.

The time is now.