No other 4-5 team has ever had more confidence in making NFL playoffs than Ravens

It’s not a “homer” vibe to think that the one-time 1-5 Baltimore Ravens are now the favorites to win the AFC North. Most of the NFL sees the remaining schedule and starts penciling in wins for Lamar Jackson and the Ravens. Luke Jones and Nestor discuss that it won’t be easy but it’s all certainly sitting right there in a carousel NFL season.

Nestor Aparicio and Luke Jones discussed the Baltimore Ravens’ recent performance and playoff prospects. Despite a 4-5 start, the Ravens showed improvement with the addition of defensive end Draymond Jones, who played 39 snaps and showed promise. Jones, a versatile edge rusher, could help address the team’s pass rush issues. The conversation also touched on the unpredictability of the NFL, with no clear “super teams” emerging. The Ravens’ schedule includes key games against the Browns, Jets, and Bengals, with a potential playoff run if they can maintain health and consistency.

Ravens’ Recent Performance and Offensive Line Concerns

• Nestor Aparicio discusses the Ravens’ current record of 4-5 and the general struggles in the AFC, suggesting that the Ravens’ recent performance has been better than many other teams.
• Nestor highlights the importance of the Ravens’ offensive line, mentioning the absence of key players like Ronnie Stanley and the need for improvement.
• Luke Jones talks about the Ravens’ recent addition of Draymond Jones, who played 39 snaps and showed promise on third down.
• Luke explains Draymond Jones’ versatility, his history, and the potential impact he could have on the Ravens’ pass rush.

Draymond Jones’ Impact and Defensive Line Strategy

• Luke Jones elaborates on Draymond Jones’ role, noting his ability to play both inside and outside, which adds versatility to the Ravens’ defensive line.
• Luke mentions the lack of three-technique players in the Ravens’ defensive line and how Draymond Jones could help address this issue.
• Luke discusses the conditional fifth-round pick that was sent to acquire Draymond Jones, noting that it could turn into a fourth-round pick if certain conditions are met.
• Luke emphasizes the importance of Draymond Jones’ quick integration into the Ravens’ system, given his limited time with the team.

NFL League Wide Observations and Playoff Scenarios

• Nestor Aparicio shifts the conversation to the NFL as a whole, noting the transition year and the unpredictability of many teams.
• Nestor mentions the emergence of the NFC West teams like the Rams and 49ers, and the potential of Brock Purdy in the 49ers’ system.
• Nestor and Luke discuss the lack of clear “super teams” in the NFL, with no dominant players or teams that stand out above others.
• Nestor highlights the competitiveness of the league, mentioning the unexpected performances of teams like the Dolphins and the challenges faced by the Bills and Chiefs.

AFC Playoff Possibilities and Team Strengths

• Nestor and Luke discuss the playoff possibilities for various AFC teams, including the Ravens, Colts, Broncos, and Chargers.
• Nestor expresses confidence in the Ravens’ talent and potential to be a formidable playoff team, despite their current record.
• Luke acknowledges the Ravens’ strengths but also points out the importance of staying healthy and winning key games.
• Luke mentions the challenges faced by other AFC teams, such as the Bills’ issues at wide receiver and the Chiefs’ need to rebound from a slow start.

NFC Teams and Quarterback Performances

• Nestor and Luke discuss the NFC teams, including the Rams, 49ers, and Packers, noting their performances and potential playoff runs.
• Nestor highlights the importance of quarterback performances, mentioning Matthew Stafford’s impressive season and the potential for a running back like Jonathan Taylor to win MVP.
• Luke acknowledges Jonathan Taylor’s contributions to the Colts’ success and the challenges faced by other NFC teams.
• Nestor and Luke discuss the unpredictability of the NFL and the importance of staying focused on the current season rather than looking too far ahead.

Ravens’ Schedule and Playoff Hopes

• Nestor and Luke analyze the Ravens’ remaining schedule, noting key games against the Browns, Jets, and Bengals.
• Nestor expresses confidence in the Ravens’ ability to win out and secure a playoff spot, despite their current record.
• Luke emphasizes the importance of winning games against weaker opponents and staying healthy.
• Nestor and Luke discuss the potential for the Ravens to be a formidable playoff team, given their talent and recent performances.

NFL Dynamics and Team Evaluations

• Nestor and Luke discuss the dynamics of the NFL, noting the unpredictability of the league and the challenges faced by various teams.
• Luke mentions the importance of staying healthy and avoiding key injuries, which could derail a team’s playoff hopes.
• Nestor highlights the importance of limiting mistakes and penalties, which can often decide the outcome of games.
• Luke and Nestor discuss the potential for the Ravens to be a surprise team in the playoffs, given their recent performances and the challenges faced by other AFC teams.

Ravens’ Special Teams and Unsung Heroes

• Nestor and Luke discuss the contributions of special teams players like DeAndre Jackson, who has made a significant impact despite being an undrafted rookie.
• Luke highlights the importance of special teams in winning games and the contributions of players like Jackson.
• Nestor and Luke discuss the overall performance of the Ravens’ special teams and the potential for continued success.
• Luke emphasizes the importance of special teams in creating momentum and winning close games.

Ravens’ Health and Injury Concerns

• Nestor and Luke discuss the importance of health and avoiding key injuries, which could derail the Ravens’ playoff hopes.
• Luke mentions the challenges faced by other teams, such as the Bills and Chiefs, and the importance of staying healthy.
• Nestor highlights the Ravens’ history of overcoming injuries and the potential for a strong playoff run.
• Luke and Nestor discuss the importance of maintaining a positive attitude and staying focused on the current season.

Final Thoughts and Future Outlook

• Nestor and Luke wrap up the conversation, expressing optimism about the Ravens’ playoff chances and the potential for a strong finish to the season.
• Luke emphasizes the importance of staying healthy, winning key games, and avoiding mistakes.
• Nestor highlights the Ravens’ talent and potential to be a formidable playoff team, despite their current record.
• Luke and Nestor discuss the unpredictability of the NFL and the importance of staying focused on the current season.

SUMMARY KEYWORDS

Ravens strengths, playoff pathway, offensive line, pass rush, Draymond Jones, defensive line, AFC standings, NFC teams, Jonathan Taylor, Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, health improvement, schedule analysis, division winners.

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SPEAKERS

Nestor Aparicio, Luke Jones

Nestor Aparicio  00:01

Welcome home. We are W, N, S, T, AM, 1570 Towson, Baltimore. We are Baltimore, positive positively. Get the Maryland crab cake Tour presented by our friends at the Maryland lottery in conjunction with G, B, M, C, and I have my special occasion coming up two weeks from now. But special occasion when I come out and have crab cakes and give away these Raven scratch offs from the Maryland lottery. Had a lucky, lucky batch at Cocos. Paul by scanned a few winners for two lovely ladies, a retired school teacher who won $20 and proceeded to dance throughout Coco’s after winning $20 and hey man, crab cakes and coconut shrimp for free. That’s what I’m talking about. Friday we were at Pizza John’s and Luke Jones joined me, along with rasig and Todd Schuler and Bill Cole. So my usual suspects to sit in, John Hoey from the y also stopped by to talk about Turkey drive and Ron Cassie from Baltimore magazine and a story about the Piscataway Indians of Maryland, as well as they wanted to talk Mets. You know how that goes. Luke was there. Luke and I and rasig, we did this long segment on fixing the Orioles, and at least for now, Luke the ravens are not broken even at four and five this week, because, quite frankly, and I think you alluded to this, most of the rest of the AFC is broken at this point, and that sort of opens the doors. I would say this the thing that stood out for me over the weekend, it’s something that you said in one of our earlier segments was, what did the Chiefs do to get better? What did buffalo do to get better? Well, I don’t know what the ravens are going to do on their offensive line. We talked about no boom being a scratch, and Ronnie Stanley and the importance of the offensive line and how that’s going to power this thing and where the defense is. But for sure, this team had no pass rush, no semblance of a pass rush. They traded away probably their best pass rusher in OA five weeks ago, and still had no answer. But they went out, they made an addition, and I tell you what that did. Ran around out there for three or four days, and he was noticeable on third down.

Luke Jones  01:58

Yeah, that was good to see. I mean, Draymond Jones got the start. He ended up playing, I think it was in the neighborhood of 30, right around 40 snaps, 39 snaps, as I look at the official game book after the win on Sunday. And to your point, he flashed right and I think he’s, he’s a really interesting individual, as you know, as I’ve had more time to process the trade, and certainly read what others have had to say, and kind of looked at his history. I mean, he was drafted out of Ohio State. I mean, he was a defensive tackle, right? I mean, he had a bigger frame. Now, he did point out in the post game in Minnesota on Sunday that the listed 281 pounds, that he still is, that he’s not that he’s he certainly has gotten lighter, and that reflects in the fact that he’s become much more of an edge player the last couple years, rather than a guy that’s kicking inside as often. But Zach Gore talked about it. John Harbaugh talked about it. Those guys absolutely like the idea that Draymond Jones has some inside outside versatility. And I think you saw that show up. There were some obvious passing situations on Sunday where they kicked him inside to more of a three technique. I mean, you kind of look at the Ravens defensive line right now and they have nose tackles. I mean, Travis Jones, you know, John Jenkins, even Taven Bryan, who they’ve elevated from the practice squad a couple of weeks now. I mean, they have, you know, CJ Akoya, the former practice squad guy. Nice story there. They have no shortage of one tech technique options. But where they miss Matt abigay So much is they just don’t have a lot of three technique guys, you know, guys that can rush off the shoulder of the guard and with with success. So if you can have Draymond Jones do that a little bit, he’s not going to do that a whole lot. He’s still primarily going to be an edge rusher for them. But if you can have that element that just allows you to, you know, run some more games with your defensive line, some stunts, some twists, different things like that, that you’re hoping you can create more of a pass rush. Draymond Jones isn’t Terrell Suggs, right? He’s not, you know, he’s not TJ watt. He’s not a miracle worker, not not someone who’s going to move the needle dramatically, I wouldn’t think, but he can help, and it’s why the Ravens sent a fifth round pick. And if you look at the condition, that was a conditional fifth round pick, you know, Albert Breer put this out that if he collects at least two more sacks, and the Ravens make the playoffs, that turns into a fourth round pick. So I think the ravens, Eric Decosta made that trade with the assumption that that’s probably going to be a fourth round pick, you know, if things go the way they want it to, so that that’s not nothing in terms of a rental piece, you know, that that’s, that’s an actual asset, not that a fourth round pick should be, you know, a non, a non starter, as it pertains to trade for a rental. But. Uh, it’s something that you’d rather not give up. A seventh round pick, six round pick, the end of the day, it’s not that big of a deal. Fourth round pick can be something that can turn into something so you’re hoping that Draymond Jones can make an impact. He the fact that he played in Tennessee under Dennard Wilson, and he was with Mike McDonald last year in Seattle, speaks to how quickly he was able to pick up the system. How? What his comfortable language, right? Yeah, exactly. I mean, he was able, that’s why he’s able to deal, when you deal for a guy in week nine, right? Sure. Well, not just, but also like he arrives on Tuesday practice for the first time on Wednesday, and then he’s playing 39 snaps on Sunday. I mean, I’m guessing his workload could go up a little bit more, but probably not too much more than that. I mean, for the most part, you don’t want your edge rushers playing more than, I don’t know, 50 snaps, 55 if you’re talking about someone that is really, really good. I mean, they don’t have anyone that you that really profiles as, oh, that every snap kind of guy lining up at the edge. They just don’t have that player so but I think he can help, and he showed up on Sunday, and that was good to see again. It’s not going to fix all their pass rush woes. It’s still a major concern of mine. Moving forward, one of my biggest concerns about this football team is its ability to pressure the quarterback with any level of consistency. But they did have a better pressure rate on Sunday, and they were able to get after McCarthy, and that was good to see. So we’ll see how that carries over these next couple of weeks, as you’re going to presumably face Dylan Gabriel, who has not been very good for the Cleveland Browns. Not a big surprise there. And then whatever. You know, whoever’s going to play, whether it’s fields or Tyrod Taylor for the Jets in a couple of weeks, presumably fields. But you’ve got a chance now. You’re not going to be going up against quarterbacks that have a high aptitude, so to speak, for playing the position at a high level in the NFL. So you know, you’ve got a chance to to continue to work out that defensive front, try some things and hope you can continue to get after the quarterback after taking a nice step on Sunday and like him, what I saw from Draymond Jones, well,

Nestor Aparicio  07:06

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we talked a lot of AFC, you know, about playoff possibilities, and we’ll do more of that, but I want to talk about the league in general, because when the one o’clock game wrapped up, I was stuck into three NFC games and a felon con that should be in prison Hanging out with Kenny Albert on my television screen, saying a bunch of gibberish. But it was all NFC teams, and I’m watching that thing, and we talked a little bit about Seattle and McDonald and how that thing’s turned around as well. Just the picture of the whole NFL. This feels like a very transition oriented year in a lot of ways, in that Kansas City, Baltimore, Buffalo taking a step backwards early in the year, they might be three of the Final Four teams in January. That wouldn’t shock anybody. The NFC emerging team, certainly in the West, where we don’t know what those teams are. And you said the Rams impressed you, the 40 Niners and the comeback and this and that I and the fact that they’ve ever done it with Brock Purdy’s kind of a crazy thing. The Shanahan system really is. And I know Mike silver, I’ve been trying to catch up with him to promote his book for Christmas time. So I’m hoping to get him on to talk to him, because we don’t play the 40 Niners this year, but around the league there, there are no super teams. Let’s start with that. I don’t know that there’s any super player. I don’t know that anybody thinks like Lamar Josh Allen mahomes, that if you have a player like maybe in the NBA or not, that the Dodgers were about Otani, but that you would have Tom Brady, or that mahomes would give you that kind of an advantage, maybe at a one on one basis, in a January game, I would take my homes over fo Nix or Justin Herbert, or any of these guys. But that being said, the perception of the league right now and where it is, and the competitiveness of it, you know, the fact that we made fun of the dolphins last week, they’re not making fun of the dolphins in Buffalo this week,

Luke Jones  08:59

yeah, and it speaks to as much as we try to do, this transitive property of this team, Team A beats Team B, and that means that Team A is better than Team C, because Team C or lost, you know, you know, got that wrong with the Vikings in the line. We do that constantly, and it’s proven wrong on a weekly basis. So, yeah, I mean, I think I put it this way, I do think the NFC, I think is a better conference at this point in time. It feels like the NF, the top of the top teams in the NFC feel more formidable than the top teams in the AFC that said, you know, put to push back a little bit on what you just said. I don’t care what the record is, right now you’re playing Patrick mahomes in January. No one’s feeling good about that. Josh Allen, other than when the bills play Patrick mahomes, if you’re facing Josh Allen, you’re not feeling great.

Nestor Aparicio  09:56

I think the records don’t mean anything if you know, if there’s a playoff game in the ray. Are playing the Colts or the Broncos, yeah, like, I look at those teams and say, I don’t care. I don’t care if they win 13 games. You know that that’s great, you know, I’d rather play, you know, Daniel Jones or Mac Jones or Luke Jones. Then I want to play, you know, that’s it, you know,

Luke Jones  10:18

sure, and that’s fine. And I don’t disagree with that general notion, but at the same time, and this is going to come from a guy who typically won’t give running backs too much credit in situations where I don’t think it’s warranted, see what Jonathan Taylor is doing for the Colts this year. I mean, if they’re, if it’s ever going to happen again because of what you just said, you don’t have, you know, I would say, I think Matthew Stafford go look at his numbers in LA right now he’s putting up. He’s had a great season, especially, I think, back to August with all the questions about his back and whether he’s gonna be healthy. And it kind of feels like, in hindsight, that was more well, they’re taking care of an old guy,

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Nestor Aparicio  10:58

really underappreciated cat all this year’s really good player,

Luke Jones  11:02

really, really, really good player. You know, lost for a long time in Detroit. And you know, when you’re a quarterback that losing is attached to you, right? I mean,

Nestor Aparicio  11:11

dude, Matt Ryan’s gonna have a hard time getting in the Hall of Fame because he blew one lead in one game, right? Like, you get into that game and you do well or don’t do well. In the case of Stafford, he won a Super Bowl. But it’s like Flacco. You want to take it away from him

Luke Jones  11:24

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in some way, you know what I mean, well, and that’s, and that’s where you kind of look at Stafford, you know, if, if he wins MVP and the Rams can win another Super Bowl with him. I mean, he’s a Hall of Famer, then,

Nestor Aparicio  11:33

right? I mean, it feels that way. John Harbaugh feels that way. Gets him there, right? But, but to go back to, you know,

Luke Jones  11:39

to not, because I don’t want to spend 20 minutes talking about MVP. I had my fill of MVP talk late last year with the lavar versus Josh Allen debate that some people on social media still won’t let go one way or the other. There hasn’t been any super player thus far this year. I mean, Stafford’s had a really good year, Jonathan. But that’s why I said, if there’s a year, if a running back is ever to win the MVP ever again, and we know MVP has has become most valuable quarterback, and we know the quarterbacks are the most valuable right. I’m not necessarily even saying that that’s wrong. The quarterback is overwhelmingly the most valuable position. But if there is ever a year remaining that a running back potentially wins the MVP. I mean, Jonathan Taylor is having an incredible year, you know, especially, look at how many touchdowns he has already. So you look at that game, which I didn’t get a chance to see all of that game, as I was, you know, saw the beginning of it, went to church, came back, watched the end of it. But you look at that, uh, yeah, that long touchdown, that, what, 83 yards was six minutes to go. I mean, takes it to the house and, I mean, he carried the ball, what, 32 times on Sunday. I mean, you just don’t see much of that anymore. I mean, here in Baltimore, we think of Derek Henry. Is this workhorse, right? How many times does Derek Henry carried the ball 30 plus times in his year and a half now with the Ravens. I mean, you don’t see that, so it does speak to what he’s done, and it’s why the Colts are eight and two, right? I mean, Daniel Jones, it’s been a nice story. To your point is anyone fearing the Colts quarterback play come January? No, you might, you might be uneasy about other elements of that team, beginning with Taylor, but, I mean, it just speaks to what Jonathan Taylor is. Doesn’t feel like beating the Chiefs two years ago, right? To me. No, none of these teams feel that way. No, well, we’re beating the Patriots in their day, or beating the Ravens when they were great, or but, but at the same time. I mean, there’s always the beginning, right? I mean, in 2018 the the chief scored all these points. And okay, I’ll fully acknowledge New England got them in the in the AFC title game. But we also know what kind of game that was, and look at what kind of dynasty started there. So, you know, there these teams always start out at one point in time. Josh Allen, it was up in the air whether he was truly going to be a franchise quarterback, right his first year or two in the league. There was plenty of questions about his consistency and whether he’d be accurate enough. Lamar Jackson, I mean, my goodness, teams wanted them to work out as a wide receiver. I mean, you never really know, but yeah, you look at this thing in the AFC, it’s it feels as wide open in October and November, then it’s felt in a long time that said, Come to

Nestor Aparicio  14:33

win nine games in a row and go to Green Bay and freight train them and look the part of that team. Somehow the offensive line can round in just the offensive line, not the pass rush, not defensively, giving up 2024 points a game. I’m just talking about their capabilities as an offense from a skill position. They are still the team. And I saw Bill coward digging the snow out of buffalo two weeks ago. They’re still the team. Team that you don’t want to see in January, and you’d say that out loud, if they round into that, I don’t think Pittsburgh can round into that. I don’t think Kansas City, even from a skill position point of view, can round into that. Buffalo has real problems at wide receiver and real problems on the defensive line right with Oliver, so that there are deficiencies throughout the powerhouse teams. Now, if you want to make a case for Denver or the Chargers or I mean, look, if the Ravens lose to one of those teams in January, shame on you. John Harbaugh, no no Canton for you. John Harbaugh, I mean, getting bounced by one of the real quarterbacks is one thing getting bounced by Bo Nix or getting bounced by Daniel Jones in January, if you’re Lamar Jackson and you’re Marlon Humphrey and you’re roquant that I don’t know, man, that would feel inferior to me if they get to that point. But then again, I’m I’m wearing a purple shirt, purple curio shirt, by the way, foreign daughter, and I’m not seeing this through purple colored eyes. If nothing else, I get accused of being too hard on the team or unfair, because they’ve been unfair to me. I still think they’re the most talented team on paper, if you got to come in and play on paper, if you got to play them off the bus, healthy, healthy. I don’t know the the Ravens could be that team that is nine and one the last nine weeks, 10 weeks of the season, and the team that, yeah, they only got 10 wins, but you don’t want to see them. I mean, I think way more about that. I don’t think the Colts can do, can be that. I don’t think the Broncos, or even New England can be that can be thought of as, even if they win 14 games, that they’re the big bad wolf. I don’t, I don’t think that’s possible. Those three teams,

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Luke Jones  16:43

yeah, I mean, I don’t know. I’m just, it’s a lot of looking ahead right now, and because we don’t know what these teams are going to look like, we don’t know what the how these teams are going to finish. I mean, they’re trying

Nestor Aparicio  16:53

to make the playoffs in New England. I mean, they’re just trying to hold on and say, well, we saw an eight and two. We go, if we go four and four. You know, you got three and three.

Luke Jones  17:01

You know, I don’t know. Have you seen New England? Have you seen the rest of their schedule, though? I mean, I’m looking at it right now. Go home against home, against the Jets at Cincinnati, home against the Giants, bye week. So they have a late season by we’ve talked about that being advantageous, about the Ravens here in recent years, before this year, and then, I mean, these are the two games for them. These are the two games that they’re going to be able to prove whether, like, Okay, you you’ve taken care of a really easy schedule. Hats off to you, but you’re not for real. They play against buffalo December 14, and then they go to Baltimore, December 21 you know, they win those two games, you know, and then they finish up at the Jets home against Miami. I mean, they win those two games, there’s a path for them to be, like 15 and two maybe. I mean, look, I’m guessing they probably

Nestor Aparicio  17:56

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they beat the Ravens a week before Christmas. Then they beat the Ravens. And you’d say the ravens are going to get to measure themselves as is New England. You know, all these are going to measure themselves, because they have to go and continue to win, including the Ravens who didn’t measure up against the lions and the Rams a month and a half ago, but now they’re going to be the ones beating up on the jets and beating up on the Browns the next and the gimpy Bengals on short rest here to wow the world on Thanksgiving night, because we’re going to wake up on Black Friday being seven and four after starting season one and five, or seven to five after starting season one and five, right? But

Luke Jones  18:33

to your point, I mean, wherever the standings ultimately shake out, right? I mean, we still have such a long time. I mean, we’re 10 games, you know, 10 weeks into the season. At this point in time, we have eight weeks ago. You know, Kansas City and buffalo are still the you know that they played last week. And let’s call a spade a spade. That’s what everyone still views as being the two Kansas City up here, but then buffalo just below them, and then you have the ravens, and then everyone else. That was the perception. That’s been the perception over the last few years. And whether Kansas City rebounds to win that division, or whatever seed they are, same with buffalo, with their division, those are still the two teams that no one wants to play. I mean, that’s just the truth at the Ravens well,

Nestor Aparicio  19:23

and they’re both in risk of not making the playoffs, much more so than the Ravens in regard to,

Luke Jones  19:28

I mean, they’ll have to win buffalo is still six and three. I mean, let I know we’re killing them for losing to Miami, but they’re still six and three. I mean, that’s giving themselves enough. They’re still in good position and and I still, I will continue to say, I still think Kansas City, from a true talent level standpoint, and you look at the wide receiver position for them, I still think they have the potential to be a better team than they’ve been the last couple of years. Are they

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Nestor Aparicio  19:58

both going to win their division? In your mind as we that’s probably the real question here, yeah, because if they win their division by a hair in the way that the Ravens could win their division by a hair over Pittsburgh, you win the division. It’s a whole different gig, thinking about New England, Indianapolis and Denver on the road than at home, and where they’ve been the first eight weeks, and what kind of collapse that would take for those franchises, that New England starts getting scuffed up by Miami and comes to Baltimore and and takes a 12 point loss here. You know that you think about them differently. They’re just a part of the pack at that point, that that would mean that Buffalo and Kansas City have emerged. I mean, that is the worst nightmare for the Ravens. The worst nightmare is an awakening for them, as as it is for their worst nightmares that the Ravens win the division by hair and you lose your division by hair, if you’re Buffalo, and you got to come here week one, you don’t want to

Luke Jones  20:51

do that, yeah. I mean, sure, they don’t want to do that, but you also don’t want, you don’t want to play those teams in the first round, even if you are at home, right? I mean, the that’s why I kind of said the the irony of how buffalo

Nestor Aparicio  21:01

coming here in week one of the playoffs won’t feel it we did anything

Luke Jones  21:04

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right, unless, unless you win, and then, then it feels all right. It’s, it’s on, right So, but it

Nestor Aparicio  21:12

won’t feel like a prize. You know, division winning prize, if Kansas City or Buffalo trot in here because Denver, New England went out,

Luke Jones  21:20

I will say this, and I’m almost going to sound contradictory here, because I just said, well, they are still six and three. You look at Buffalo, they, you know, they’ve already had their bye week. They are home against Tampa Bay. You know, bucks. Bucks are really banged up. They’re really banged up, but they’re still a team that good, quarterback, certainly dangerous. But then after that, they have four of their next five on the road after that, at Houston, at Pittsburgh, home against Cincinnati, at New England at Cleveland. Now I’m not saying that those are five unbelievable opponents that they’re facing, but they’re gonna have to go win going to Pittsburgh. Hey, we haven’t. We haven’t even mentioned the Houston Texans winning with Davis mills and and they’re crazy come back against Jacksonville on Sunday and another result where you say this league makes no sense, right? Anyone who fancies themselves on being an NFL expert, you know you’re you’re made to look a fool every single week,

Nestor Aparicio  22:17

every time I talk about Trevor Lawrence as though he’s still playing

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Luke Jones  22:21

at Clemson. I just don’t think Trevor Lawrence is very good, quite frankly. But, yeah, you look at that stretch, and then they finish up with, you know, they have Philadelphia in week 17, and then the Jets, you know, to close the regular season, Kansas City. You look at their schedule as they’re coming out of their buy. I mean, at Denver, that’s a huge game for the AFC West, right home against Indianapolis at Dallas on Thanksgiving, home against Houston, home against the Chargers at Tennessee, home against Denver at Las Vegas. So there, I mean, you, you, you heard me mention Denver and the Chargers. I mean, there you go, as far as trying to figure out what that AFC West is going to look like. I mean, I think all three of those teams feel like playoff teams to me, but only one’s going to win the division, and is there going to be, you know, do they cannibalize each other a little bit where you do have one of those teams that’s in danger of being on the on the outside looking in, which, you know, Kansas City mathematically and week 10. And who cares? Because it’s week 10.

Nestor Aparicio  23:26

But one o’clock this week, so I can watch the Chiefs game. What’s that? Can we move the Ravens game to one? Yeah, I mean, the chiefs Bronco is a four o’clock game this week.

Luke Jones  23:36

There’s Simon. Odd is the Ravens Browns game being at 425

Nestor Aparicio  23:41

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Well, I think it’s a television issue with all the one o’clock games they need to that’s all I know. But, but, but

Luke Jones  23:48

the 425 that, that’s the double header window, right? I mean, you can have a game at 405, and that, and that tells you, Well, that’s just kind of the, you know, it’s a late game for regional purposes. But, yeah, so, but my point is, with this, I mean, you laid out the scenario, if the Ravens go 11 and six, right, they win all but one game from the time they were one in five until the end of the regular season. You know, what’s not to say Kansas City is not going to do that? What’s not to say buffalo is not going to do that? I’m guessing none of them are going to actually do that where they basically run the table. But we’re going to talk divisions online this week. This Kansas City going to Denver if they lose that game, that’s a big game, you know. But at the same time, we’re talking about a Broncos team that won 110, to seven.

Nestor Aparicio  24:34

The Chiefs are favored in Denver. So there’s no thought that anybody thinks much of Denver or into any of these teams on the betting line. On a betting line, the ravens are, you know, the ravens are still very well thought of, and that’s why Vegas loves the Ravens. That’s why their records Kansas City Buffalo and the Ravens being second shelf right now, all of them across the board makes the A, F, C, such. A jigsaw puzzle.

Luke Jones  25:00

Yeah, yeah. I mean, it’s a fun season in that way. No, it’s, it’s very fun. I mean, because you have we, I mean, we were talking about this when the Ravens were one in five, right? I mean, the idea that the Ravens when you’re one and five, the idea that you could go seven and four, the rest of the way, seven and four and 11 games, that’s that’s a quality record. It’s not like, Oh, you’re going to win the Super Bowl, but that’s a playoff caliber kind of run. I’m going to put

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Nestor Aparicio  25:26

you in the tournament to win the Super Bowl. That’s all you really need to be anyway. No, but, but, I’m just saying, but, when

Luke Jones  25:31

you’re one in five, or if you’re in Kansas City’s case, where they’re five and four, like, you drop a couple more tough division games, then, boy, it’s getting hairy in terms of even making it as a wild card, then, right? Same, same thing for the Ravens. Like, if the Ravens had stubbed their toe against Minnesota on Sunday, or, let’s say, heaven forbid they they do it again against the browns, right? But because they’ve done it once a season against the Browns four straight years, like, if something like that happens then, boy, you look at that last three or four week stretch of the season and say, Man, you better not this can go south, you know? And that’s where the Ravens still are, as much as it feels really good right now. You still are only four and five, and you’re still a couple key injuries away from suddenly being in a tailspin again, right? I mean, you know, I don’t need to state the obvious as far as the individuals I’m talking about here, but you know, they’ve got to stay healthy, they’ve got to win the games they’re supposed to win. And keep just keep your head down, right? But because you keep your head down, you just keep winning games. You compartmentalize the league, the League, the AFC, is on its head right now, right? I mean, yeah, I think New England’s good, know, if they’re great, yeah, I give new Indianapolis credit, and I think Jonathan Taylor’s amazing at the running back position. But so what they did against Pittsburgh last week and Denver, I think Denver’s defense is really good. You know, I like their defense a lot, but they also scored 10 points against the Raiders on Thursday night, right? So I don’t know just how real any of these teams really are. So that’s where, if you’re the Ravens at four and five, just keep winning. Just keep winning. And we’re going to see how this thing shakes out. I think the NFC is, you know, you have Philadelphia, you have the Rams, you have the Seahawks. I still think Detroit’s really good Green Bay. I Green Bay two weeks into the season. I thought maybe they were the best, and I’ve been quite underwhelmed by the Packers since then. But there’s still five, you know, going into a Monday night tilt, you know, the their first place in their division. So you never really know, but you know, that’s what makes it so fun. We as funny as it sounds to say this, because we’re talking about an AFC, where Kansas City has represented the conference in the Super Bowl. What five of the last six years, it feels really, really, really wide open, as as wide open as it can feel, acknowledging the chiefs are still there. So, you know, we’re going to see how this plays out in the Ravens. They’re going to have their they’re going to have their say in this. You know, they there are enough games on that schedule for the for the ravens to not just win the division, but get to a record that will force teams to take notice of them, and force teams to say, hmm, I really don’t want to play Baltimore in the first round. I’d rather not see Baltimore come here for the divisional round. But long way to go between now and then, right? I mean, it’s such a long way to go. So the fact that

Nestor Aparicio  28:43

the ravens are in that conversation again, they really weren’t three weeks ago at all, and now, not only in the conversation, but you and I don’t have to pull any punches or pull any quarter on whether they could be successful in in the in the coming weeks to say, don’t make plans in January, I mean. And I told folks that when they were one in five, I I did not start making international plans on January 10, thinking like the season is going to be over. And I certainly there’s no part of me that believes that at this point, given the pedigree of all this and really just seeing Pittsburgh spit it up, you know what? I mean, Pittsburgh’s the only team sort of in the way to win the division, and I think Cincinnati could beat the Ravens twice with Flacco. Maybe. I don’t. I mean, I don’t think Cincinnati stinks, and they’re not. Their defense stinks their defense. I’ll agree with all of that, and that was true last year. So think you got to go play 60 Minutes against them, sure, and because I’ve seen that

Luke Jones  29:35

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against anyone, I mean, again, it shame on anyone if they’re just going to assume that the Ravens can just roll the ball out and win on Sunday, do

Nestor Aparicio  29:44

what I did when the cold schedule came out, to get www, just put it, put them in there. You know, that’s what we’re doing, right? I mean,

Luke Jones  29:50

we, I mean, we can do it. But if you’re John Harbaugh and the Ravens, you you’re reminding people. You’re reminding your people all week about. What happened to Buffalo against that Miami team that had just fired their general manager, we saw how, how bad that team looked in the second half. And by the way, I’ll also toss the Raven a nod here, the fact that buffalo lost to Miami in the way they did, and it’s a division game. We know how that all works, but makes that ravens win in Miami last Thursday night look a little bit better, right? I mean, makes that look a little more short rest too. Yeah, sure. And it was lamar’s first game back, and they hadn’t went on the road

Nestor Aparicio  30:28

on Thursday night. I don’t care who you play up at all,

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Luke Jones  30:31

but my point is, I mean, like the dolphins like credit them for man and up, I mean, for, and I’ve been as critical of McDaniel as anyone, as far as well, he’s already survived the storm, right? I mean, but, but I think the way they played that that’s that’s evident that, that they haven’t quit on him, right? And look, Buffalo was bad in that game, you know. I mean, Josh Allen, bad game for Josh Allen, turning the ball over and kind of doing the things that he’s been so good at not doing the last couple years, which is, you know, I mean, he’s been very good taking care of the football when he wasn’t as good at that early in his career. But, you know, it, it really, it’s such a cliche to fall back on. But it doesn’t make it untrue. It’s such a week to week League. It’s a reminder that even whoever you think is the best team in the league compared to the absolute worst team in the league, the difference in talent isn’t typically as dramatic as we think. There’s a difference, certainly, but you’ve got to play good football and you’ve got to take care of it. Can’t commit penalties. I mean, look at the Vikings on Sunday if they don’t commit eight false starts, and JJ McCarthy doesn’t lose his mind on a couple deep, you know, I’ll hold Kevin O’Connell as responsible for that, you know, calling a deep ball on third and one, you know, at midfield. You know, you do things like that. I mean, that’s how you get beat, right? I mean, that’s so many games in the NFL are lost, more so than they’re one, you know. And again, this goes back to the Ravens. They didn’t play a phenomenal football game on Sunday, but they really limited their mistakes in contrast to what the Vikings did. And now they played well in certain areas and did just enough offensively, play well defensively, special teams. I mean, we’ve gotten through this whole three segments now, I think in I haven’t mentioned DeAndre Jackson, you know, the unknown, undrafted rookie safety who’s made his way on the 53 man roster and continues to show up on special teams. I mean, I don’t know if that means that he’s got a future as a starter or anything like that, but, man, that kid can play on teams. I mean, that forced fumble was a really big play in that football game on Sunday. So, you know, do things like that and limit the mistakes, limit the penalties, don’t commit turnovers. You generally will have a chance most weeks in the NFL. And you know, something buffalo didn’t do something the Vikings didn’t do against the ravens, and that’s why the Ravens were able to win a third straight game and are looking better and better in the overall outlook of this AFC that feels pretty confounding in terms of really trying to figure out exactly what’s heads and tails. Well,

Nestor Aparicio  33:16

you know, last year, I made a living when the commanders played one extra week that the Ravens didn’t play last week last year, calling them Maryland’s team now that they stake again, and they and they got, you know, the con man in their place, banish back to the DMV, moved to Virginia build and D, I don’t care where you build it. I’ve never had any use for the commanders. Is that better? Is it? Am I taking on my persona a little better for AI,

Luke Jones  33:43

that’s fine. Yeah, that’s fine. I mean, the only thing, one thing, I’ll say on them, it’s been a bummer that Jaden Daniels is having these injuries mount, because I think he’s a really talented quarterback,

Nestor Aparicio  33:54

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but he’s the RG three thing all over again, the Joe burrow thing. You hope not, but, man, it’s so tough in that way that if you can’t play the seasons, just Joe burrow, just, you know, it’s one more. It’s just like these great players that can’t get the post and,

Luke Jones  34:08

yeah, availability. I mean, look, we’ve, people have talked about Lamar Jackson’s health for how many years now, and, you know, but you see, it can be something simple. It can Joe burrows gotten hurt in the pocket multiple times, right? I mean, it’s you never know. So it really is a case of when you are healthy. And this is this will go back to my frustration with last year with the ravens, how incredibly healthy they stayed over the course of 2024 that felt like the year that not that they won’t have chances with Lamar, because they will, but man, that felt like one of those top tier chances to be that healthy. And of course, the year before, when you number one seed, just the frustration of those two years. But hey, this year one in five, they’re now four and five, the schedule looks favored. People, they’ve gotten really healthy, other than that of BK, like, you know, the guys have come back. Who knows? You know what look no further than the history of this franchise. In 2012 all they went through that year and how unimpressive they look for stretches of that season. And then what happened in January, 2000 they went five straight games without scoring a touchdown, and how unimpressive their offense was, and Billick finally giving into the dark side and all you know, all that that we don’t need to recount. We all lived it, but those weren’t teams that were like, look like juggernauts for the bulk of the regular season. Just get in and see what happens, and just keep getting better. Keep winning games, win the division, win a division that doesn’t look like it’s going to be very good. So what? Right? So just keep, keep stacking wins, as Kyle Hamilton said, on top of that scar tissue from early in the season, and continue to see what happens.

Nestor Aparicio  35:57

He is Luke Jones. I am Nestor. Together, we bring you w NST and Baltimore positive. We appreciate everybody out there following along on radio at am 1570 I know we get a little dark early in the afternoons. That’s why we’re here 24 hours a day at Baltimore positive and out on the web and our social media. I know we picked up a lot of new people in the recent weeks. Appreciate all of you, our friends at curio wellness and foreign daughter give me this fantastic purple shirt to wear. They also sponsor our 27th anniversary and our tastiness treats that are all out on the internet as well. GBMC also coming in to support us for all that we’re doing here locally. That’s a great conversations about hip replacement, knee replacement, all sorts of medical issues and, of course, colonoscopy and PSA number and all the important things that I am learning about this month, two weeks away from my special appointment, and my special pre night milkshake, and all the things that I’ve never done that I’m a little embarrassed at 57 so just a medical report for everybody out there. Take care of yourself, stay safe. That’s part of our charm here at Baltimore positive talking about that on behalf of our GBMC healthcare partners. Also the Maryland lottery puts us out on the Maryland crab cake tour, and we have the Raven scratch offs while they last. This has been a lucky batch. I am moving forward to pick up the candy cane because they smell. They smell. I like sniffy scented tickets. And also like rubbing off the schmutz here and picking winners like I did last week at Cocos, where I had a $20 winner on the Raven scratch off Maryland lotteries out there, reminding everybody do this responsibly, especially with all this crap in the news with Class A and what’s going on with Ortiz and baseball and the NBA and all that stuff. Slow your roll. Know your limits, but try to have some fun out there as well. Little briefer for me and the Maryland lottery. He’s Luke. I’m Nestor. Any breaking news that happens happens first on the wnst tech service that is all brought to you by our friends at cole roofing and Gordian energy. Bill Cole joined me on Friday, had a long conversation about AI and youth sports and coaching, and of course, Cole roofing could take care of any commercial roofing job, as well as Gordian energy talking solar. And Bill talked all about solar and all that’s going on that powers us here. He’s Luke. I’m Nestor. We’re W, N, S, T, am 1570 Towson of Baltimore. Big week ahead. Beat the browns, four o’clock the one o’clock games. You.