BALTIMORE — The Baltimore Ravens and Kansas City Chiefs are facing off Sunday for a chance to go to the Super Bowl. Football fans in Baltimore are excited to see their team host its first AFC title game since 1971. That includes Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott.
"This is going to be the biggest sporting event in Baltimore history," Scott told WUSA9. "What better way to do it than the Baltimore Ravens taking on the champs, Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs?"
Mahomes has never met Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson in the playoffs before. Jackson is going for his second MVP award this season.
“He’s going to be the MVP for a reason," Mahomes said. “He leads his team. He scores, he runs, he throws, he does whatever it takes to win, and that’s what the greats do. It’s a challenge for our defense, but also a great challenge for our offense to keep up.”
Mahomes and the Chiefs face that difficult task Sunday at Baltimore in the AFC title game. It's their sixth consecutive year reaching this stage of the playoffs, but the first time in that span they'll have to play it on the road.
Scott said the home crowd will make a difference. During the divisional round against Houston, the Texans were penalized five times for false starts.
"We're going to be loud on Sunday. There will be false starts, there will be delay of games, Taylor Swift will be disrupted," Scott said.
The Chiefs are the defending Super Bowl champions. The Ravens have the NFL's best record this season. It's a fascinating matchup made even more so by the presence of Mahomes and Jackson.
"The immortal Ric Flair said, 'To be the man you gotta beat the man.' Patrick Mahomes is the man, but Lamar is our man and he's ready," Scott said of the matchup.
Off the field, Scott and Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas have a friendly bet on the game's outcome. Scott said the bet hasn't been accepted yet.
"My good friend Mayor Lucas, whose coming to the game with me, has been ducking me," Scott said. "I told him if the Chiefs win, I'll send him two dozen crabs, some Old Bay, take a picture in a Chiefs jersey and paint City Hall red. But will he return the favor and send some barbecue? He hasn't answered yet. Maybe he's not as confident in his Chiefs as we think he is."
Kickoff for the game is 3 p.m. on WUSA9.
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