The Monday Night Football game in Week 3 includes two of the top teams in the NFL. The defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs will face the Baltimore Ravens.
The matchup already looks like it could be the best of the season so far, with two of the most exciting quarterbacks in football, Lamar Jackson and Patrick Mahomes. The two will provide some entertainment on Monday night.
Kickoff is scheduled at 8:15 PM Eastern, with Baltimore listed as three-and-a-half point favorites. The over/under is set at 54.5.
Ravens Regular Season Success
The Ravens have had no problems in the regular season. Last year, this team went 14-2 (winning 14 straight) and rolling into the playoffs. However, they were stunned by the Tennessee Titans 28-12 in their first game of the postseason.
In the regular season, Jackson has only lost three games, two of those coming at the hands of the Mahomes-led Chiefs. Plenty of fans are making it about these two, but Jackson is trying to stay focused on himself.
“I don’t have to focus on Mahomes,” Jackson said. “I’ve got to focus on their defense, I’ve got to focus on scoring, I’ve got to focus on my job. My defense has to worry about him.”
Baltimore picked up where they left off last season and are 2-0 on the young season. Their opening week saw a dominating win over the Cleveland Browns; then, the Ravens beat the Houston Texans in Week 2. The Kansas City game is going to be their biggest test yet.
In close games, the Ravens are going to have an edge with Justin Tucker. He is currently the most accurate kicker in NFL history.
Chiefs Going for Repeat
The Kansas City Chiefs hope to repeat as Super Bowl Champions this season after beating the 49ers in the Super Bowl in February. Head coach Andy Reid was able to capture his first Super Bowl ring.
The Chiefs have also started with two wins but needed overtime last week against the Chargers to get it done. In a bizarre sequence, Harrison Butker hit a 53-yard field goal, only to have it negated by a penalty. After backing up five yards, Butker kicked a 58-yard field goal, which was wiped out by the Chargers’ attempt to ice the kicker.
Butker then attempted a third field goal, again from 58 yards out, which sailed through the uprights to give the Chiefs the 23-20 win over Los Angeles.
In Week 1, the Chiefs beat the Texans 34-20 on Thursday Night Football. Kansas City won’t back down from the pressure of playing in primetime.
So far this season, Mahomes has thrown for 513 yards and five touchdowns. Neither Mahomes nor Jackson has thrown an interception this year.
Kansas City will need to improve their defense in this game after allowing an average of 432.5 yards of offense in their first two games. They can’t make life too easy on Jackson and the Ravens.
Prediction
Even though the Chiefs are the defending champs, the Ravens are the favorite. The spread is -3.5 for Baltimore.
Judging by the games played this year, Baltimore has been the more dominant team. The Baltimore defense also has much better numbers than Kansas City.
I’m taking the Ravens to cover the spread on Monday night. Jackson gets the Ravens a convincing Monday night win in Week 3.