I imagine the fans will be particularly wild when the defending Super Bowl champions take on the Jets Sunday in a game which is a must win for both teams. The Ravens and Jets are both competing for that final wild card slot, and the Ravens are only one game behind the Jets at 4-6. A win in this game will give either team an important tiebreaker at the end of the season.
The Ravens have lost 4 of their last 5 games and are coming off of an overtime loss to the Bears last weekend. Despite this trend the Ravens have not exactly been dormant. All four of those losses have been by three points or less.
Both teams have struggled on the road this season, and that doesn’t bode well for the Jets. In fact, the Jets have lost 15 of their last 21 road contests. This season they’ve been blown out in three of their five road games.You can usually tell when the Jets are going to have one of their stinkers. They tend to be outscored big time in the first quarter. They can’t afford to let things get out of hand early again this week.
When: Sunday, November 24, 2013, 1:00 pm (TV-CBS Radio-ESPN)
Where: M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore, MD
Injury Report (as of Thursday)
Jets – DNP: LB Garrett McIntyre (knee), WR David Nelson (illness), TE Kellen Winslow (knee) LMT: WR Santonio Holmes (foot, hamstring), WR Jeremy Kerley (elbow)
Ravens – DNP: DT Haloti Ngata (knee) LMT: LB Daryl Smith (thigh), CB Lardarius Webb (abdomen)
Game Keys:
Beware of the deep pass- The Jets have given up 33 pass plays of 20 yards are more. AKA, the secondary is struggling. WR Jacoby Jones and Torrey Smith are two of the best deep threats in the league, and Joe Flacco throws one of the better deep balls. The secondary can’t afford to give up easy scores to the Ravens. The Jets are only averaging 13.2 points on the road.
Protection- The Bills were able to attack the Jets offensive line last week, and Brian Winters might have had his worst game so far. The Ravens might have a better front seven than the Bills. They are 11th in the league in run defense and tied for 3rd in sacks. Needless to say the line is going to need to have a better performance if they plan to leave with a win.
Geno- Over the last five games, Geno has thrown eight interceptions and one touchdown. He threw three last week and has been replaced by Simms in the last two losses. Getting that turnover number down is truly key.
X-Factor: Ed Reed will be facing his former team for the second time this season in Baltimore. The coaching staff showed a lot of faith in him, giving him the majority of snaps last week against Buffalo. They plan to play him a lot as that center field safety, and they’ll need him this week against those speedy receivers. If there’s anyone who will know how to defend against the Ravens offense it’ll be this guy who faced it in practice everyday for a decade.
The Pick: Bold Statement: The trend is breaking this week. The Jets are going to lose. Baltimore is too hard of a place to win, especially against the Ravens, who technically need this win more. The Jets will have their first losing record of the season.
Ravens win 24-10
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