He’s no longer in the playoffs because of the Buffalo Bills, but Marlon Humphrey is counting on them to do what the Baltimore Ravens couldn’t do last season, and stop the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game.
Ravens All-Pro cornerback Humphrey is pleading with the Bills to beat the Chiefs at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on Sunday, January 26. Humphrey will even settle for “whatever NFC team” makes it to do a job on the Chiefs in the Super Bowl.
The 28-year-old made his plea to the Bills with the following post on X: “I have no reason of saying this other than being a hater. The Bills or whatever NFC team gotta beat the Chiefs. We can’t let them keep getting away with this.”
Admitting to “being a hater” is frank from Humphrey, but his focus on the Chiefs only underlines the opportunity the Ravens missed when teammate Mark Andrews couldn’t make a critical catch in Buffalo.
Marlon Humphrey Comments Reveal Frustration With Record vs. Chiefs
These comments aren’t even a thinly veiled disguise for Humphrey’s frustration about the Ravens’ mediocre record against the Chiefs in recent years. The Chiefs and quarterback Patrick Mahomes have had the Ravens’ number, establishing a 4-1 record in the regular season, including a win in Week 1, as well as also emerging victorious from last season’s conference title game.
Humphrey’s reference to not letting them “keep getting away with this” is about more than perceptions the winners of the last two Super Bowls are favoured by referees. Favoritism is supposedly directed toward Mahomes. This narrative gained momentum when Mahomes got two fortunate roughing the passer calls against the Houston Texans in the Divisional Round.
As betting expert Steve Fezzik told the Ross Tucker Football podcast, “Well, it’s hard to win when you’re playing 11 against 18 with the refereeing crew that gives Mahomes every call, seemingly, but that’s got to be part of your handicap, and frankly, he’s earned it. It’s like Michael Jordan had earned it. The league knows to protect their superstars.”
Debate about the two calls in question has become so intense the “NFL replay assist is expected to expand this offseason into plays that could include the quarterback slide,” according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
The latter highlighted the controversial calls involving Mahomes and the Texans as examples of what the league plans to put under further scrutiny during future seasons.
Those plans will provide scant consolation for those teams that feel they’ve been on the wrong end of too many calls. Yet, that shouldn’t include the Ravens, who’ve been their own worst enemy in the biggest games.
Ravens Self Destruction vs. Bills Part of a Pattern
Although they’ve had their issues with officials this season, the Ravens only have themselves to blame for not contesting another AFC Championship Game. Committing three turnovers, two by star QB Lamar Jackson, along with other costly mistakes against the Bills, sent a team talented enough to win a Super Bowl home early.
It’s becoming a worrying theme for the Ravens to fall short when it matters most. Like in last season’s title game when the Chiefs went into M&T Bank Stadium and won by seven points.
The officiating didn’t let the Ravens down. Instead, lopsided play calling that ignored the NFL’s best running game, as well as a devastating fumble by wide receiver Zay Flowers, wasted home-field advantage.
No member of this Ravens roster should have to ask another team to do them a favor in the playoffs. They should be handling the postseason pressure with more efficiency and competing for the Lombardi Trophy.
