Super Bowl XLVII is finally upon us! The Super Bowl is the greatest championship game in all of sports and it is finally here. There’s the Baltimore Ravens from the AFC verse the San Francisco 49ers of the NFC battling for the title World Champions. This year is extra special. Not only is Ravens future Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Lewis playing the last game of his NFL career, but it is also the first time two brothers are the head coaches of an opposing team in a championship game. John Harbaugh is the head coach for the Ravens, while his younger brother Jim Harbaugh is the head coach for the 49ers. On my radio show Sports Talk with DJ and Patty O in Springfield, Massachusetts I predicted the Ravens to take on the Philadelphia Eagles in the Super Bowl with Baltimore coming out on top. Now if you’ve been following along since the beginning of the playoffs that was not the case. I started with a Atlanta v. Denver Super Bowl, which changed to a Atlanta v. Baltimore Super Bowl after Denver lost. Now that the Super Bowl is Baltimore v. San Francisco I will be going with Baltimore in a ight game. AND HERE’S WHY:
NO ONE is stopping Ray Lewis! Since Ray Ray came back in the Wild Card Round of the playoffs the Ravens defense looks re-energized. Lewis’ reappearance on the defense was the first time Lewis, safety Ed Reed, outside linebacker Terrell Suggs, and defensive linemen Haloti Ngata played on the same field together all season. Those four men are the cornerstones of the defensive and having them on the field all together at once is HUGE! At the same time Lewis is having a historic postseason. He leads the league in tackles, almost doubling second place. Once you saw Lewis step on the field almost a month ago with his robot-brace arm and intimidating face mask and tinted shield, you knew one thing… He was going to get his second ring.
Ray Rice is a better running back than Frank Gore. This game is all about match-ups and when it comes to running backs you have to tip the scale in favor of Baltimore. Don’t get me wrong San Francisco’s Frank Gore is a great running back but he’s no Ray Rice. Could Gore take a 4th and 29 dump pass for the full 29 yards and a first down when his season depended on it? Probably not. Not many could. Ray Rice is a multi-facet running back that can do it all. Rice can run up the middle, bounce it outside, and catch the ball in space, while Gore is mainly a pound and ground running back.
Joe Flacco is ELITE. When you beat future Hall of Fame quarterbacks New England Patriot Tom Brady and Denver Bronco Peyton Manning in consecutive weeks (IN THE PLAYOFFS), you can’t help but say Flacco is elite. However, Flacco is missing one crucial aspect that truly makes him elite. A Ring. Not only did Flacco beat Brady and Manning but he is also having the best postseason in the NFL this year, leading the league in Pass Rating, yards, and touchdowns. If Flacco and Co. can pick apart a future Hall of Fame corner Champ Bailey like they did a few weeks ago, they can certainly pick apart 49ers’ courner Carlos Rogers.
FINAL SCORE: 27-30 Baltimore Ravens
