Baltimore Ravens @ Kansas City Chiefs - 30 - 7

It would be very easy to look at the score line of a game like this and think – walkover. For large parts of the game Baltimore maintained a steady offence and managed to eat up clock with great running from Willis McGahee and Ray Rice, who each bagged themselves touchdowns. But the score line does not necessarily reflect what a hard fought game this was, particularly in the first half. Matt Cassel and Jamaal Charles, who finished 2 nd in the NFL behind Arian Foster in total rushing yards put together a good scoring drive early and looked good on defence, with Tamba Hali doing what he has done all season. It was in the second half that things really started to get ugly, both in terms of Baltimore’s man-handling of the Chief’s defence and the tempers that were to flare as a result.

Joe Flacco began to get great protection and the running game for Baltimore was so consistent that they really began to control the game with long drives that resulted in points, mostly field-goals to give credit to the Kansas City defence. Yet, when these field-goals began to turn into touchdowns, we were left with a score line such as this one.

> Find Baltimore Ravens hats & Merchandise online through Pro Football Fans for all your team gear!

The player that I feel most stood out in this one was Todd Heap, the tight-end for Baltimore. He is such a utility player and is a great weapon for Flacco, particularly on third down. The key word for the Ravens in this game was consistency and that is exactly what Heap adds to this team. Flacco found himself getting to short yardage third downs on the back of scampering runs by Ray Rice. He would just look over the middle to Todd Heap. Because the Ravens have such a dynamic receiving core, similar to that of Green Bay, a defence has difficulty dealing with all of the threats at once.

This, coupled with the height and strength of the quarterback Joe Flacco, means that when you take away Derrick Mason, Todd Heap will catch a slant underneath or Anquan Boldin will slip in behind the safeties for a touchdown. This team has impressed me all season and this has continued this into the post season. They have a tough game against Pittsburgh next week, but the Ravens have already beaten them this season. We all know how physical those AFC North** rivalries can be and in this one there is more than just pride on the line. Pro Bowl linebacker Terrell Suggs has described the contest as World War 3 for the Ravens. I think he means business. Don’t you?

By: Tom Greenhalgh
ProFootball-fans.com Staff Writer