Why the Kansas City Chiefs win over the Baltimore Ravens was so important
The Chiefs refused to be bullied
The Chiefs started the game looking good on offense but an intentional grounding call where two Chiefs ran into each other and a sack of Patrick Mahomes killed the drive. The Ravens then responded by driving all the way down the field and scoring a touchdown. In the process they went for it on fourth down in the red zone and then went for a two-point conversion as well. While K.C. did allow the touchdown, the stop on the two-point conversion was a partial win.
The Chiefs would then answer with a score of their own. During the drive, Mahomes took several shots and it was clear that the Ravens were making it a point to go after K.C.’s star quarterback. When the Ravens got the ball back, they decided to go for it on fourth down again, but this time on their own side of the field. They were clearly trying to send a message that they felt they could push the Chiefs around. After converting on their first two fourth down attempts of the game they pressed their luck one too many times and the Chiefs took over on a short field.
Mahomes would make the Ravens pay for their aggressive play calling as the Chiefs took a 14-6 lead on beautiful touchdown pass from Mahomes to Demarcus Robinson. The next drive the Ravens would not dare to go for it on fourth down again and instead pinned the Chiefs back deep in their own territory after a punt. The Chiefs would then extend their lead to 20-6 on an 83-yard bomb to rookie Mecole Hardman. At that point it was official, the Chiefs had withstood the Ravens’ early attempt to come in and push them around and completely turned the tables around on them.
When you are a team, even a very good team, known as more of a speed/big play offense team with a suspect defense, the league’s physical teams are going to try and take you out of that offensive rhythm and turn it into a slug fest. You can argue that all three of K.C.’s early opponents—the Jacksonville Jaguars, Oakland Raiders, and the Ravens—have tried to do that. The Chiefs have now sent a statement out to the NFL that they aren’t having it. That’s huge for the Chiefs going forward.
While the Chiefs have several more challenging games remaining on their schedule, I don’t know if any of those teams are viewed as physical as the Jaguars and the Ravens. If those teams couldn’t figure out a way to bully the Chiefs, then I’m not sure there is a team out there that can do it. It looks like if you want to beat the Chiefs this season, you are going to have to find a way to outscore them.
There was also some encouraging signs for the defense when it comes to not being outscored.