Pundit Looks at Whether Ravens and Bills Can Win Super Bowl in Next Four Years
The Ravens and Buffalo Bills have been perennial Super Bowl contenders with Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen under center, but neither has been able to get past Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs, who are making their fifth Super Bowl appearance in six years.
In Sports Illustrated’s Gilberto Manzano’s “Fact or Fiction” column, he said the notion that the Ravens and Bills won't win a Super Bowl in the next four years is fiction.
"It's fair to wonder whether Josh Allen or Jackson will ever win a Super Bowl because Mahomes and the Chiefs continue to get in their way," Manzano wrote. "But I'll say Allen or Jackson will break through in the next four years. I'm not sure if both Jackson and Allen will eventually win it all because the Chiefs aren't going away any time soon and there are always a few surprise teams ready to ascend."
Regarding Jackson specifically, history is on his side. Last season, he became the ninth quarterback to win multiple league MVP awards in the Super Bowl era; the previous eight won at least one Super Bowl.
Steelers Writer Praises Ravens for Hiring Chuck Pagano While Pittsburgh 'Stands Pat'
The Ravens made a big addition to their coaching staff this week by hiring Chuck Pagano as senior secondary coach. Steelers Now’s Alan Saunders praised the Ravens for strengthening their staff while the team he covers stood pat.
Pagano, a former defensive coordinator for the Ravens and Chicago Bears who spent six seasons as head coach of the Indianapolis Colts, came out of retirement to join a defensive staff that is larger and more experienced than Pittsburgh's.
"Bigger might not always be better. But the Baltimore coaching staff appears to be bigger and better, and that's a tough uphill climb for Pittsburgh," Saunders wrote.
Saunders noted that in the week leading up to the Ravens-Steelers meeting in Week 16, Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin cited the hiring of veteran former defensive coordinator Dean Pees – who also came out of retirement – as a senior advisor on first-year Defensive Coordinator Zach Orr's staff as one of the main reasons for the Ravens' improved pass defense.
"Which, of course, begs the question, why did Pees go work for Baltimore and improve the Ravens defense while the Pittsburgh unit foundered down the stretch run?" Saunders wrote.
On a side note, Simon Chan of the Stanford Center on Longevity, said the Ravens bringing in Pagano, 64, and Pees, 75, "offers a compelling story of the power of intergenerational collaboration and its lessons for modern workplaces."
"The collaboration between Orr, Pees, and now Pagano shows how blending different leadership styles — innovative, hands-on, and seasoned — can unlock new ways to solve challenges," Chan wrote.
Bucky Brooks Mocks Offensive Tackle to Ravens
NFL.com analyst Bucky Brooks has the Ravens selecting Oregon offensive tackle Josh Conerly Jr. in his first mock draft.
"With Ronnie Stanley's injury history and impending free agency, the Ravens could add an athletic edge blocker to protect Lamar Jackson within the pocket," Brooks wrote.
