Ravens Prepare For Crunch Time

The Baltimore Ravens will be quite busy over the holiday season.

Nov 25, 2024; Inglewood, California, USA; Baltimore Ravens coach John Harbaugh reacts against the Los Angeles Chargers in the second half at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

For most people, the holiday season is a chance to relax, spend time with family and get away from work. That's not necessarily the case in the NFL, and especially not for the Baltimore Ravens.

After a much-needed bye, the Ravens' next three games will come in a 11-day span. That stretch features games against the New York Giants on Sunday, the Pittsburgh Steelers on Dec. 21 and finally against the Houston Texans on Christmas Day. It's the first time in franchise history the Ravens will play three games that close together, and all of them are crucial this late in the season.

This stretch will be a challenge for the Ravens in not just a physical sense, but a mental one as well.

"I just kind of put myself in a basketball perspective," safety Kyle Hamilton said Wednesday. "Those guys play back to back, so I guess there's a little merit behind us quote-unquote complaining about it, but they are playing 82 games, MLB players are playing 162 games, and we have 17, and we're trying to fight them to go to 18 right now.

"I think it's good in a sense that we'll see who is most prepared down the stretch, and it's really challenging for teams – everybody that's involved. I know there are a few more teams that are doing the same thing as us. It all comes down to culture and putting everything in boxes, putting the Giants in one box and winning that game, then moving on to whatever it may be. We could play the next day; we don't really care. Just, we're going to show up and do well."

There are additional challenges along the way too. For instance, the game against the Giants is at MetLife Stadium, a venue notorious for players suffering major injuries on its turf field. There is new turf in place since the last time the Ravens played there in 2022, but many players still do not like playing there.

"I'm not a fan of it," said outside linebacker Kyle Van Noy, who played at MetLife frequently as a longtime member of the New England Patriots. "The turf sucks. I'll be the one to say it. I've played there many times playing with the Jets. You better get massages on your feet and your knees and your hips after this one. That turf is brutal."

If there's any solace, the Ravens aren't in this alone as the Steelers, Texans and Kansas City Chiefs are all playing three games in the same 11-day span. Other teams have also done the same earlier this season, usually playing on Monday Night Football, then Sunday, and finally on Thursday Night Football.

Still, it will be a tall order for the Ravens, and how they get through it will be critical in the final stretch of the season.

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