The Baltimore Ravens and Indianapolis Colts both come into this week sitting at 5-2 and second place in their respective divisions. In a contest that could have serious playoff implications down the road, the star players on each side will have to bring their ‘A’ game if they hope to secure a victory. The key matchup for this week will be Ravens defensive tackle Calais Campbell vs. Colts quarterback Philip Rivers.
Both players shared a unique narrative coming into this season — the seasoned veteran looking to help take a contending team to prominence.
The Ravens acquired Campbell this offseason in a trade with the Jacksonville Jaguars. The 34-year-old has recorded 4 sacks in the first 7 games as the Baltimore defense has lived up to its preseason standards allowing just 18.9 points per game.
Rivers is in his first season with the Colts after spending 16 seasons with the San Diego/Los Angeles Chargers, 14 of them as the full-time starter. So far for Rivers, he has 1,860 passing yards with 10 touchdowns to 6 interceptions on the season with a 97.3 passer rating. While these numbers may not jump off of the page, the savvy veteran has the Colts in a position to play their way into the postseason. Indianapolis had hoped to make a championship leap a season ago, but with the unexpected retirement of Andrew Luck, they were unable to make it back to the playoffs.
In order for the Ravens to secure a victory this Sunday, there is no doubt a focal point will be to get after Rivers and not allow him time to make easy decisions. With cornerback Marlon Humphrey out after testing positive for COVID-19 and the secondary at less than full strength, it will put more pressure on Campbell, Yannick Ngakoue, and Matthew Judon to make their presence felt.
Campbell has found some success this season getting after the quarterback. In addition to leading the team in sacks, Campbell’s is tied for the top spot with five tackles for a loss and sits in second with 10 quarterback hits. On the flip side, Rivers hasn’t been pressured very often this year (14.6%) but has found plenty of success under duress throughout his career, leading the NFL in passing yards when pressured last season. Both Campbell and Rivers will need to strike a balance between being aggressive enough without committing any major errors.
These two teams currently sit in the top-two wild card spots in the AFC playoff picture. That amplifies this matchup for the current standing as well as a potential tiebreaker if necessary come January. Both Campbell and Rivers know all too well the importance of every game and building momentum toward a playoff run.
While Campbell and Rivers have had potential Hall of Fame careers up to this point, a Super Bowl ring has eluded them both. With so much at stake in this game, you can bet both teams are primed and ready to take the field this Sunday for a tightly contested contest.
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