The Kansas City Chiefs are set to face the Baltimore Ravens in a heavyweight bout for the AFC Championship on Sunday.
While Baltimore entered the playoffs as the conference’s best team, Kansas City has proven that it can hang with the best of the best in recent weeks after beating the Miami Dolphins and Buffalo Bills in the Wild Card and Divisional rounds respectively.
Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson knows what he is up against in facing the defending Super Bowl champions, and made it clear to reporters on Wednesday that he isn’t taking the matchup against the reigning MVP’s hot squad for granted.
“I don’t like competing against [Patrick Mahomes] at all,” Jackson said with a laugh. “But yes, he’s a great quarterback. [He’s] definitely a Hall of Famer. It’s a no-brainer; he’s definitely a Hall of Famer. But I believe [it’s] just two greats – up-and-coming greats – just going toe to toe, like a heavyweight fight [and] heavyweight matchup. That’s just what I see.”
Clearly, Jackson admires Mahomes, and his comments reflect that Baltimore has a deep respect for what the Chiefs can do on offense. Fans should expect the defensive game plans of both teams to reflect the high regard which which they hold their opponent’s quarterback.