2024 AFC Championship: Ranking five most impactful players in Chiefs-Ravens; QBs, Baltimore defenders lead way

Just two teams are left standing in the AFC as the Kansas City Chiefs will head to Baltimore to face the Ravens with the winner punching their ticket to Super Bowl LVIII. 

For the Chiefs, they find themselves knocking on the door of the Super Bowl and in the AFC title game for the sixth straight season after outlasting the Buffalo Bills. Unlike previous versions of the Chiefs, this club has leaned heavily on its defense throughout the year but has started to find a rhythm on offense after averaging 7.7 yards per attempt in the divisional round. While the arrow may be pointing up for the Chiefs offense, the unit faces its toughest challenge of the season with the Ravens also having their calling card come on the defensive side of the ball. 

John Harbaugh’s team held rookie phenom C.J. Stroud and the Texans to just 10 points in a 34-10 divisional win last week. In that game, they held Houston to 4.5 yards per play and didn’t let the offense sniff the red zone as the only touchdown came on a punt return. On top of boasting arguably the top defense in the league, Baltimore also has Lamar Jackson under center, who is the presumptive league MVP this year. He is coming off a playoff victory where he rushed for 100 yards and two touchdowns, while also throwing for 152 yards and two scores. 

That combination has the Ravens sitting as a 3.5-point favorite as they are set to host Kansas City in the AFC Championship Game. As we get closer to kickoff, let’s highlight the top five players that will likely have the biggest impact on the final score of Sunday’s showdown. 

As noted above, the Chiefs offense has started to click over these last few weeks and part of that has been the success they’ve been able to have on the ground with second-year back Isiah Pacheco. He’s averaging nearly 5 yards per carry in the playoffs and has a rushing touchdown in each of the past two games, along with at…


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Author : Tyler Sullivan

Publish date : 2024-01-24 15:13:31

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