Baltimore Ravens Stuns Critics With This Statement As They…
This week’s matchup between the Baltimore Ravens and San Francisco 49ers is already being touted as “the game of the year” and a “potential Super Bowl preview.”
However, the dueling dichotomy in which its being predicted by in the national media is stark.
Both teams come into this Monday Night Football showdown on Christmas night with identical records at 11-3, sitting atop their respective divisions and conferences.
Despite this, some pundits are counting the Ravens out before they even get on the plane to travel to the West Coast.
During a press conference on Wednesday, Ravens star second-year defensive back Kyle Hamilton was asked if the team embraces the role of being looked at as the underdogs for just the second time this year.
“I think internally we don’t feel that way,” Hamilton said. “Externally, I don’t know what it is. Whether it’s-I don’t know what it is. Whether it’s the lack of prime time games we’ve got or whatever.
But I think the 11-3’s are not created equal right now in terms of the 49ers vs. us. We feel a little disrespected by that. I feel like we’re the best team in the league and we got an opportunity in front of the country to show it.
The 49ers are currently favored to win by 5.5 according to DraftKings Sportsbook but in the eyes of Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio, it won’t even be that close.
The hot-take sports talk show host predicted that San Francisco will win convincingly and them being crowned Super Bowl champions is all but guaranteed assuming they stay healthy the rest of the way.
As long as their key players are healthy, the 49ers are gonna kick the shit out of everybody they face. The quest is for second place,” Florio said.
“The 49ers kick the shit out of the Ravens on Monday night. I’m sorry. I know that’s disrespectful to the Ravens, but let’s be realistic.
They’ve gotta fly across the country, on Christmas night, and the 49ers are waiting. And the 49ers are going to dismantle the Ravens. If it’s a Super Bowl preview, the Super Bowl is gonna suck.”
The 31-second clip of him completely dismissing the Ravens and any chance they have of winning is a prime example of the disrespect Hamilton eluded to with his comments earlier in the week.
Florio wasn’t the only media figure that slighted the Ravens on Friday. During a segment talking about his reluctance in trusting the Miami Dolphins to contend for a championship this year, Fox Sports’ Colin Cowherd took jabs at the other teams that have been at the top of the conference over the past few years.
The Ravens have a top-five offense and an elite defense, one of the deepest rosters in the league, and not only leads their division but has the best record in the conference.
For a team with all of this, and one that hasn’t lost a game since since early November, they’re far from falling apart. In fact, they appear to be peaking at the right time heading into what many believed would be the toughest part of their schedule.
Despite injuries suffered by key players on both sides of the ball and a rise in the level of competition during their four-game win streak, the Ravens have continued to find ways to weather any storm.
Three-time Pro Bowl tight end Mark Andrews suffered a serious ankle injury that put him out of commission indefinitely.
Since then, they’ve had several of their wide receivers and second-year tight end Isaiah Likely step up to fill the void more than admirably.
Undrafted rookie running back Keaton Mitchell was an electrifying spark for the offense over the last two months before suffering a season-ending torn ACL in last week’s win.
They still have a talented backfield, though, with plenty of veteran experience and the best dual-threat quarterback in league history. Lamar Jackson can carry the load for the NFL’s top-ranked rushing attack