Don't Blame Lamar Jackson For The Ravens Not Reaching The Super Bowl
It's more than normal for fans to blame the starting quarterback of any team when they lose in a critical game. Not only was this a chance for the Ravens to go to a Super Bowl for the first time since 2012, this was also Baltimore's first ever home AFC Championship game. It was a classic AFC North effort: strong defense with an offense that simply couldn't score points.
The Ravens came into the game as sizable favorites. While they were much better on paper, the Chiefs had been playing great football in the playoffs and they had the ultimate weapon, Patrick Mahomes.
While Mahomes quarterbacked an extremely efficient game, they failed to register a single point in the second half. The Ravens defense consistently forced the Chiefs to punt and gave Lamar Jackson countless possessions in the second half.
Kansas City led by no more than 10 points in this game, meaning it was always in reach for Baltimore. On a promising drive in the third quarter rookie Zay Flowers fumbled at the goal line, taking a potential seven points off the board, and destroying the momentum of the Ravens. Jackson also threw an interception in the end zone that stalled another late drive, but neither were at most fault for this loss.
The Ravens Problem: Offensive Coordinator Todd Monken
Todd Monken was a great play-caller for the Georgia Bulldogs the past few seasons and overall did a great job with the Ravens offense this year. This game was one to forget, though.
As aforementioned, the game was never out of reach with the Chiefs holding only a 10-point lead at halftime. Despite that, Monken called six handoffs to running backs all game. SIX! The Ravens led the league in rushing yards per game this season (156.4), yet Jackson threw the ball 37 times, many of which against great coverage.
The Chiefs boasted one of the better secondaries in all of football this season allowing 181.5 passing yards per game, good for fourth best in the league. They were 17th in rushing yards per game allowed (113.2).
It's understandable to throw the ball against a Patrick Mahomes led team, as they usually light up the scoreboard. They didn't this time, and the Ravens completely abandoned their bread and butter. The Ravens were at home, playing in rainy conditions, playing great defense, and completely abandoned the run game. Think about that.
Lamar Jackson will certainly receive a lot of blame in the media for this loss, but it's unjustified. The play-calling was bad and it basically cost them the game. The turnovers certainly didn't help, but they never had a fighter's chance in this game thanks to Todd Monken.
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