In sports, second chances are almost unheard of. But this Sunday, a second chance is exactly what we will be witnessing.
Last year, the Baltimore Ravens were a Lee Evans catch and/or a Billy Cundiff kick away from defeating the New England Patriots in the 2012 AFC Championship to reach the Super Bowl.
This year, they will go back to Foxborough and take another shot at it. But what are their chances this time around? Will the Ravens once again watch as the Patriots go into America's biggest sporting event, or will they come through with a win this time around?
It won't be easy. For starters, Tom Brady is at the helm for New England. Anybody who knows anything about the NFL knows that Brady, with his dynamic receivers, has the ability to light up the stat sheet on any given Sunday.
He has been given tons of time in the pocket this year, with the Patriots offensive line surrendering just over 1.5 sacks per game.That is an outstanding number, considering that New England had the fourth most passing plays in the NFL.
To make matters worse, Baltimore's secondary was ranked just 17th in the regular season. They have also looked a bit shaky in the playoffs, surrendering 578 combined yards in passing to the Indianapolis Colts and Denver Broncos.
On the plus-side for Baltimore, the Patriots will be without star tight end Rob Gronkowski for this game. Gronk re-injured his arm last week against the Houston Texans, and has been declared out for the playoffs. He missed 10 games this season, and in those 10 games, the Patriots offensive production decreased noticeably.
Brady's completion percentage was about 66-percent with Gronk, but just 58-percent without him. However, in the Patriots' Week 3 loss to the Ravens, Brady was able to utilize his wide recievers as Brandon Lloyd and Wes Welker combined for 250 yards and 17 receptions. Production like that would be huge for the Patriots in this game.
Running the ball may be tough for New England in this one. Running back Stevan Ridley has had a tremendous breakout seasona as big part of the No. 1-ranked offense in the NFL. However, Ridley will face a Ravens defense that has been stout this year, allowing just four yards per carry, tied at seventh in the
league.
Ridley was absolutely shut out on the ground in the Week 3 meeting of these two teams. He ran for just 37 yards on 13 carries, while his counterpart -- the now-injured Danny Woodhead -- had 34 yards on 17 carries. The Patriots will hope to run the ball effectively in this one, but if not, Brady can be more than relied upon.
For the Ravens, quarterback Joe Flacco has done a great job, with an outstanding 613 combined yards in Baltimore's two post-season games. He torched New England's secondary in Week 3 with 383 yards. Still, the Patriots have come back stronger.
Cornerback Aqib Talib was added to solidify coverage, and Devin McCourty was moved to safety. This has worked out really well so far for New England. In this contest, Talib's physicality is important when it comes to matching up against Anquan Boldin, who has caught some big passes for the Ravens in these playoffs, most notably a 150-yard performance against the Colts two weeks ago.
With Talib on Boldin, New England will be able to double team Torrey Smith. Smith went wild in Week 3 with 127 yards and two touchdowns, even just after learning of the death of his brother. So, with these changes, the Patriots look to have an edge on the red-hot Baltimore passing-unit.
Usually, the Ravens have been big on running the ball. Ray Rice, at just 25 years old, has had four straight 1,140 yard seasons on the ground. He eclipsed the 100-yard mark in the Week 3 meeting between these two teams.
Nonetheless I do think that New England will do a better job against him this time around. Despite the early struggles, New England -- much like Baltimore -- has had a solid year against the run, ranking sixth with 3.9 yards per carry allowed.
This makes sense because their two rookies, defensive end Chandler Jones and outside linebacker Dont'a Hightower, have been improving throughout the year. Plus, Talib's aforementioned presence hurts the Ravens passing ability, which will no doubt have an effect on their running game.
A weaker passing-attack always makes it harder to open up a running game. With all of this, it will be very interesting so see what Rice is able to do this Sunday.
Prediction: 27-23, Patriots.
It is hard to count Baltimore out with their performances of late, but New England just has too much going for them. I do expect a close game, like we have grown accustomed to seeing of these two teams. It should be a fun day of football this Sunday.
Written by Jared Goodman
