Laddie Morse
The Kansas City Chiefs and the Baltimore Ravens AFC Championship game in Baltimore could come down to: the mental vs the physical. With Mahomes enjoying an edge in the mental make-up department, several aspects of this game lean in his, and the Chiefs, favor. When it comes to considering the Head Coaches and the QBs, it’s all about the mental. The combination of Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes should have a huge advantage over John Harbaugh and Lamar Jackson. Let’s take a look:
.
“The Magic is Back.” If the Chiefs get out to an early lead, it will be much more difficult for the Lamar-led Ravens to recover than if the Ravens get out to a lead. Why, because of the mental advantage that Patrick has over Lamar and for that matter, all of the Ravens, including John Harbaugh, the head coach. Mahomes has done it — more than once – and his experience will serve as a great reminder for all Mahomes team mates as well as a reminder for all Ravens players and coaches. Here’s James Palmer on the Chiefs and Sherree Burruss on the Ravens (5:56):
.
.
“The Chiefs are the Gold Standard.” The Ravens have a hill to overcome and it is the “Championship” pedigree the Chiefs will be carrying into this game. When you already have done this before, repeatedly, it’s much easier to see how you could do it again. That vision will serve the Chiefs well… but it will also haunt the ravens until they can get over the hump called the Champion Chiefs.
.
.
“A Heavyweight Fight.” Lamar Jackson has already said he doesn’t like competing with Patrick Mahomes at all. Mahomes is already in Lamar Jacksons head and until #1 is dealt with, he’ll always feel that way. If the Chiefs win this game, the future will be shaky for Lamar and the rest of the Ravens… until their careers end.
.
.
“A Chess Match.” The Chess Match is won before it’s begun. HC Andy Reid and his cohort Patrick Mahomes like to shake things up in the playoffs. IOW, Reid, mainly, likes to change plays and make they appear to go one way when they go the other. Reid has become noted for this kind of behavior and his late season playbook is notorious for changing scripts in the middle of the post season. Reid is not going down without a fight and his “fight” is based upon treating each post season game like a 3-D Chess Match. If you’ve never played 3-D Chess, check it out.
.
.
“Preparation is Crucial.” The fact that the Chief played the Bills — and a running QB — just one week ago, bodes well for them. Sure Lamar Jackson runs a 4.34 40 yard dash while Josh Allen runs a 4.76, and that difference is significant… however, as David Ferguson has pointed out, Josh Allen is harder to bring down. Allen’s much bigger, closer to Ben Roethlisberger’s size… only with wheels.
What is a greater possibility? That the Ravens can stop the Chiefs run game or that the Chiefs can stop the Ravens run game? If both happens, the Ravens will be dependent upon Lamar Jackson to be accurate and build their adapted game around their wide receivers. The same would be true for the Chiefs but in that case, I would like the Chiefs chances leaning on Mahomes 100% more than the Ravens chances leaning on Lamar Jackson 100%. It’s also as David Ferguson has said:
.
.
“Experience is Everything.” I understand completely, one team has been 13-and-4 while the other is 11-and-6 during the regular season. So, why give the team with the lesser record the benefit of the doubt? You can thrown those regular season records out the window… mostly, when it come to the post season. The Chiefs have the been-there-done-that advantage of experience in the playoffs before, so that’s critically more important. Right? Of course right! We’ll see tomorrow at 2:00 PM CST on CBS!
.
.
.
.
Go Chiefs!
.
Laddie Morse — ArrowheadOne
.