Tag: AFC Divisional round

Bills scouting report: Scouting the Ravens’ divisional-round opponent

A look at the offensive and defensive statistics of the Buffalo Bills ahead of the AFC divisional-round clash with the Baltimore Ravens

The Buffalo Bills are the only thing between the Baltimore Ravens and the AFC Championship Game. That makes this AFC divisional-round matchup between the two sides possibly the best game in a star-studded weekend of action.

The Bills finished the regular season with a 13-3 record, their best season since they went 13-3 in back to back in 1990 and 1991. Sean McDermott, the Bills head coach, has led the team to the playoffs in three of his four seasons at the helm. The only other coaches in team history with three postseason berths are Marv Levy and Lou Saban.

Buffalo is one of the best teams in the NFL, ranked No. 4 in total DVOA, according to Football Outsiders. The Bills finished as the No. 2 seed in the AFC behind only the Kansas City Chiefs, and their first-place finish in the AFC East marked their first division title since 1995.

The Bills overcame a spirited showing from the Indianapolis Colts in the wild-card round to advance to meet the Ravens. The Colts outgained the Bills 472 -397, but Buffalo made just enough plays to pull off a 27-24 victory — the first since 1995.

Let’s take a closer look at what the Ravens can expect to see from the Bills this week:

Ravens vs. Bills: 6 keys to victory in the NFL playoffs

The Baltimore Ravens need to ensure they do these six things against the Buffalo Bills and they’ll head to the AFC Championship Game.

For the Baltimore Ravens, facing the Buffalo Bills this weekend may be the toughest challenge of the season. Rightfully so given that the winner of this matchup advances to the AFC Championship Game.

Both teams feature explosive offenses, suffocating defenses, and quarterbacks who can beat you with their arms and their legs. If the snow starts falling, the Ravens may have the upper hand, relying mainly on their ground game while the Bills do their damage mostly through the air. However, Buffalo quarterback Josh Allen seems to be immune to cold weather, while Lamar Jackson has never played football in the snow.

We could analyze the similarities and differences of these teams all day, but for now, let’s take a look at what the Ravens can do to ensure they continue their path to Super Bowl LV.

Chiefs open as double-digit favorites over Browns

The Kansas City Chiefs are hosting the Cleveland Browns in the AFC’s divisional round.

[jwplayer EpZxUOlq-ThvAeFxT]

The Kansas City Chiefs (14-2) are double-digit favorites against the Cleveland Browns (11-5) at Arrowhead Stadium in the AFC’s divisional round of the playoffs.

Betting lines from BetMGM for the divisional round have been revealed and the Chiefs are 10-point favorites over the Browns. Kansas City, of course, is the AFC’s No. 1 seed, while Cleveland is the No. 6 seed. That likely plays a role in why K.C. is favored so heavily right out of the gate.

The current money line is at -500 for Chiefs and +300 for the Browns. The over/under point total is set at 55.5 points. Kansas City has an implied win probability of 83.3% in this matchup.

It’s hard to imagine that Kansas City is double-digit favorites over a team that jumped out to a 28-0 lead in the first quarter against their last opponent. The Chiefs scored their lowest point total of the season in the last game that their starters played back in Week 16.

These two teams didn’t play each other during the regular season and haven’t played since 2018. There’s a lack of familiarity going both ways, which should make for an interesting week of preparation for both teams.

This actually will mark the first time the two teams have ever met in the postseason. Part of that has to do with the playoff drought for Cleveland. The last time the Browns made it to the postseason was back in 2002 and they saw an exit in the wild-card round. You have to go back to 1994 to find the last time Cleveland played in the divisional round. That lack of postseason experience could really hurt them when they play the reigning Super Bowl champions on Sunday.

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

[lawrence-related id=85143]

2020 NFL playoffs schedule: Baltimore Ravens vs. Buffalo Bills in divisional round

Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens are set to face Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills in the divisional round of the NFL playoffs.

One down and two more to go for the Baltimore Ravens, who will take on the Buffalo Bills in the AFC divisional playoffs next weekend.

After the Cleveland Browns beat the Pittsburgh Steelers Sunday night, they’re the lowest-remaining seed and will take on the top-seeded Kansas City Chiefs. That means the No. 2 seed Bills will host the No. 5 seed Ravens at 8:15 p.m. ET on Saturday, Jan. 16.

Buffalo is red hot right now. They’re fresh from a 27-24 win over the Indianapolis Colts on Saturday to advance to the divisional round themselves. The Bills were dominant down the stretch in the regular season too, blowing opponents out of the water by a combined 229-110 over the last six games (just shy of 20 points-per-game on average).

Quarterback Josh Allen is having an MVP-caliber season, completing 69.2% of his passes for 4,544 yards, 37 touchdown passes, and 10 interceptions during the regular season. But much like Lamar Jackson, Allen is also a threat on the ground, adding another 421 rushing yards and eight rushing touchdowns.

It’s going to be a tough matchup but if the Ravens are the Super Bowl squad they think they are, the Bills should prove no match. We’ll see in a little less than a week.

[vertical-gallery id=59347]

Bills defeat Colts, Chiefs will learn divisional playoff opponent tomorrow

The Chiefs will have to wait another day to find out their divisional round opponent.

The Kansas City Chiefs will have to wait another day to find out their opponent for the divisional round of the playoffs.

The Buffalo Bills have defeated the Indianapolis Colts 27-24 in the first AFC game of wild-card weekend. It’s the first time that the Bills have won a playoff game since the 1995 wild-card round. The Colts were the No. 7 seed in the AFC and had they won the game, they would have been the team that Kansas City would have faced in the divisional round. That means former Los Angeles Chargers QB Philip Rivers won’t be coming to Kansas City for the playoffs, at least not this year.

The Chiefs will play the lowest remaining seed of either the Cleveland Browns (No. 6), Baltimore Ravens (No. 5) or Tennessee Titans (No. 4). The Ravens are the only team out of this group to be favored to win their game. They’re listed as three-point favorites over the Titans according to BetMGM. That’d make them the likeliest opponents for the K.C. in the divisional round.

Baltimore is also the only possible opponent that the Chiefs have played during the course of the regular season this year. Their last game against Cleveland came in Week 9 of the 2018 season. Kansas City won that game 37-21 on the road with a big performance by Travis Kelce. Then, their last game against Tennessee came in last year’s AFC Championship Game. That rematch would make for some drama in the early goings of the playoffs for the Chiefs.

[listicle id=84974]

Chiefs score so often Arrowhead Stadium runs out of fireworks

Arrowhead Stadium posted a PSA saying it ran out of fireworks due to the Chiefs’ offensive explosion.

The Kansas City Chiefs’ offensive explosion didn’t only catch the Houston Texans off-guard Sunday. The staff at Arrowhead Stadium was forced to post an announcement on the scoreboard during the 51-31 rout explaining the Chiefs had scored so many times, the stadium ran out of … fireworks.

Yes, that’s quite the problem stadium brass never thought it would experience. However, when Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce & Co. went off so much in the final three quarters that fans at Arrowhead had to simpley enjoy rejoicing without the usual accompaniment.

It sure looks like someone had a backup plan, made a quick pickup, or made sure to save some for the postgame celebration!

Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

WATCH: Derrick Henry throws jump-pass to Corey Davis for touchdown

Derrick Henry had a 66-yard run and a TD pass one one drive for the Tennessee Titans against the Baltimore Ravens.

Derrick Henry has turned into a one-man wrecking crew for the Tennessee Titans against the Baltimore Ravens on Saturday in the AFC Divisional round game.

The Titans led 14-6 in the third quarter when they handed the ball off to one of the two Heisman winners from Alabama in the game — the Ravens’ Mark Ingram is the other.

Henry slithered through a tiny opening and burst into the clear, turning on his 4.5 speed. Before he was tackled, it was 66 yards later.

Henry eventually got a blow on second down before returning and taking a Wildcat snap and appeared to begin another run. He pulled up and jumped and threw a pass to Corey Davis, who beat Earl Thomas in the back of the end zone for the score. Oh, and it was on Davis’ 25th birthday.

The PAT made it 21-6 and the Ravens’ fans were in stunned silence.

It was the first TD pass in a playoff game by a running back since Allen Rice of the Vikings in 1987. That was a 10-yard pass to Anthony Carter in a 44-10 Minnesota romp over New Orleans.

The Ravens turned the ball over on their next drive and Ryan Tannehill took it into the end zone for a 28-6 lead.

 

WATCH: Jonnu Smith makes spectacular TD grab for Titans

Jonnu Smith made a great catch off a pass from Ryan Tannehill to give the Titans and early lead in an AFC Divisional round game.

The Tennessee Titans moved to a 7-0 lead on the Baltimore Ravens when Ryan Tannehill found tight end Jonnu Smith, who made a spectacular catch for the touchdown.

Check this out:

The first quarter was favorable to the underdogs as Marcus Peters made an interception of Lamar Jackson off a deflected pass.

6 bold predictions for Ravens vs. Titans divisional playoff game

The Baltimore Ravens and Tennessee Titans clash in the AFC divisional round. We do our best to predict what crazy things could happen.

It’s nearly time for the Baltimore Ravens to get back on the field and prove their worth this season. They’ll take on the hot Tennessee Titans in the divisional round of the NFL playoffs as both teams vie for a spot in the AFC Championship Game.

The Titans are fresh off their win over the New England Patriots, while the Ravens got a relaxing week of vacation as the No. 1 seed. Baltimore is a heavy favorite in this game and for good reason. They had the best record in the league and have toppled many of the best teams behind them this season.

With the playoffs being a win-or-go-home endeavor, the writers here at Ravens Wire put together our bold predictions for this week. We all picked things that we think could actually happen but would be the talking point of the weekend if they come true. So take a look at our six bold predictions for the Ravens vs. Titans playoff matchup.

Matthew Stevens:

David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports

Ravens win by 14-plus points

Baltimore has been dominant during their 12-game winning streak, and Tennessee simply isn’t better than those teams. The Ravens will outmuscle and outrace them to a quick 14-point lead before coasting the rest of the way, as they’ve done so often this season.

Pages: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4, Page 5, Page 6

8 reasons the Ravens will whoop the Titans in the NFL playoffs

The Baltimore Ravens are the favorites over the Tennessee Titans for good reason. Here are eight reasons why they’ll win in the NFL playoffs

The Baltimore Ravens finally get their chance to taste the 2019 NFL playoffs this week. After sitting out of the first round thanks to holding the top seed in the AFC, the Ravens will go up against the Tennessee Titans in the divisional round.

While there are some reasons to be concerned about the Titans — or any playoff team for that matter –, Baltimore is in good shape for this game. In fact, they have eight great reasons why they’ll not only beat Tennessee but put a whoopin’ on them.

We’ll start off with the biggest reason the Ravens have been so successful this season . . .

Lamar Jackson is unstoppable this year

Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images

There’s a reason why Jackson is the presumptive MVP this season and that’s because no defense has really figured out how to stop him. More importantly, Jackson has turned the game back into 11-on-11 football, which favors the offense and forces opposing defenses to match them talent-wise.

Whether it’s been through the air or on the ground, Jackson has been efficient and explosive. He’s created big plays with his arm this season, posting a 66.1% completion rate, along with a league-leading 36 touchdown passes and 9.0% TD-to-attempt rate. He’s done it with his legs, breaking Michael Vicks’ rushing record while posting a 6.9 yards-per-carry rate to lead the entire NFL.

Jackson has been shattering both franchise and NFL records all season long. No offense to the Titans, but they don’t have anything special that the likes of the Buffalo Bills, Pittsburgh Steelers, Los Angeles Rams, New England Patriots, Seattle Seahawks and San Francisco 49er don’t have. If those teams couldn’t stop Jackson from destroying them, I can’t see Tennessee suddenly having the recipe or the secret sauce to get it done.

Pages: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4, Page 5, Page 6, Page 7, Page 8