OTL: Ravens Dance Into AFC Championship Game

Happy Playoff Victory Monday, Flock! We made a deal to meet back here for exactly such a celebration, and everyone held up their respective ends of the bargain, none more so than you, the Flock!

The Ravens Flock is the secret weapon 😈 pic.twitter.com/42k4SVOuwX

— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) January 21, 2024

The crowd at M&T Bank Stadium was nothing short of electric on Saturday evening, causing all sorts of problems for C.J. Stroud and the Houston Texans offensive line. We’ll have to be at an even more ridiculous fever pitch on Sunday at 3 when Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs come to town with a trip to the Super Bowl on the line.

But more on that in a minute. For now, let’s look back.

Here are some film guys breaking down what the Ravens did against Houston for your viewing enjoyment:

Here’s a 2nd @CoachToddMonken play on a 3rd & Short where I loved the the design & nuance to create just enough hesitation (even with @HoustonTexans D playing it almost flawlessly) to move the chains… #StudyBall pic.twitter.com/0XJN4FztbL

— Kurt Warner (@kurt13warner) January 21, 2024

.@Ravens pounded the @HoustonTexans on the ground. A relentless use of all 3 backs behind an offensive line that opened gaping holes. #BaldysBreakdowns pic.twitter.com/F7Xo3AtcZ2

— Brian Baldinger (@BaldyNFL) January 21, 2024

.@Ravens defense is a conundrum to opposing QB’s. Never know what they are playing until the ball is snapped. #BaldysBreakdowns pic.twitter.com/DM8GilIcv2

— Brian Baldinger (@BaldyNFL) January 21, 2024

.@Ravens @Lj_era8 defending the MVP looks like Mission Impossible. #BaldysBreakdowns pic.twitter.com/rXxI1EbgoF

— Brian Baldinger (@BaldyNFL) January 21, 2024

Justin Madubuike was so disruptive yesterday vs Texans OGs… Really taken the next step with his game this season.

The NFL has a rich pool of problematic iDL these days. pic.twitter.com/1ZfuE8aEEO

— Ben Fennell (@BenFennell_NFL) January 21, 2024

It was a total team effort to reach the AFC Championship, as the defense allowed only three points (special teams gave up seven) despite generating no sacks or turnovers, a testament to just how much pressure they were putting on Stroud, even without the counting stats piling up.

That helped keep things knotted or better while the offense found their legs. They were perhaps a bit rusty, and apparently surprised by Houston’s blitz pressure, but word is that QB1 fired up his side of the ball in the locker room.

Now I really wanna know what Lamar told his teammates at halftime. "A lot of cursing," he said later. "I was (edgy)."

Good look from @jeffzrebiec on how the Ravens QB took over. "His personality — he is the Baltimore Ravens," Nelson Agholor said.https://t.co/hOEHMlHFVx

— Zak Keefer (@zkeefer) January 21, 2024

Lamar Jackson was likely seriously pissed off, as the Ravens’ final “drive” to end the first half following a missed Houston field goal went absolutely nowhere. LJ was sacked on the first two plays, as the Ravens blew a chance to break the 10-10 tie before the half. He’d been under immense pressure for the entire second quarter following his touchdown pass to Nelson Agholor.

Over the final two quarters though, “locked in” was again the name of the game. Baltimore put together three long & impressive touchdown drives, adding a game-sealing series and a field goal cherry on top of the 34-10 victory.

So once again, just like in the AFC top seed-clinching win over Miami, the team faced some adversity early on. And once again, they responded overwhelmingly to beat the doors off their opponent when all was said and done.

It’s great that these guys know they can do that, as Mahomes and the Chiefs are quite likely to provide plenty of adversity of their own.

KC reaches the title game for a ridiculous sixth straight year, though it’s the first time they’ll be on the road for it. They do so on the back of a gritty win in Buffalo, where “wide right” again crushed the dreams of those poor Bills fans.

KICK IS NO GOOD.

📺: #KCvsBUF on CBS
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/FR6a2VkD33 pic.twitter.com/MbKo21IDlg

— NFL (@NFL) January 22, 2024

Just absolutely brutal for the Mafia, man. On the bright side, while Chiefs Kingdom will certainly travel plenty well for their part, I think it will be a bit easier for Baltimore to hold a decisive home field advantage than it would have been if the Mafia was invading.

The Baltimore Ravens are hosting the AFC Championship for the first time in their history. The city of Baltimore is hosting the game for the first time in over 50 years.

Let’s have ourselves a week, Flock! See you at the Bank on Sunday!