Ravens Open as 9.5-Point Favorites vs Titans in Divisional Round; Line Quickly Moves to Ravens -10
- Top-seeded Baltimore Ravens are 10-point favorites over the #6 Tennessee Titans in Saturday’s AFC Divsional Round playoff game
- Number one seeds have won eight straight NFL playoff games when facing six seeds
- The visiting team has won all three previous playoff games between Baltimore and Tennessee
The Baltimore Ravens haven’t lost a game since September, and the odds suggest that isn’t changing next weekend.
The Ravens are 10-point favorites over the Tennessee Titans in their AFC Divisional Round playoff game, slated for Saturday (8:15 pm ET, Jan. 11) in Baltimore.
The sixth-seeded Titans upset the #3 New England Patriots 20-13 in the AFC Wild Card playoffs.
Tennessee Titans vs Baltimore Ravens Odds
| Team | Moneyline | Spread | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tennessee Titans | +405 | +10 (-110) | Over 48.5 (-110) |
| Baltimore Ravens | -525 | -10 (-110) | Under 48.5 (-110) |
Odds taken Jan. 4.
Tennessee hasn’t won a Divisional round playoff game since 2002. The Ravens were 10-6 against the spread this season.
King Henry Rules
Titans running back Derrick Henry led the NFL with 1,540 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns on the ground during the regular season. He carried on carrying the ball that effectively in Tennessee’s 20-13 AFC Wild Card win over the New England Patriots.
Henry rambled for 182 yards and a TD on the ground and collected 204 total yards from scrimmage as the Titans eliminated the defending Super Bowl champions.
The KING with his fans! ? @KingHenry_2 | #TENvsNE pic.twitter.com/ES5ekgwTwm
— Tennessee Titans (@Titans) January 5, 2020
New England was the NFL’s #1 defense during the regular season, and sixth overall against the run, allowing just 95.5 yards per game on the ground. Baltimore is the league’s #5 rush defense (93.4 ypg).
Can Henry light up a top rushing defense in consecutive weeks? He’ll need to if Tennessee entertains any hopes of victory.
Curious Playoff Trends
This will be the fourth postseason game between the Ravens and Titans. Baltimore has won two of the three previous meetings, including both AFC Divisional Round playoff games against Tennessee.
However, home cooking has meant little in these affairs. The visting team has gained the win on all three occasions.
The @Titans' 71 pass yards are the fewest by any team in a playoff win since the 2009 Ravens (34) vs the Patriots in the Wild Card Round
2009 was the last time the #Patriots played in the Wild Card Round#TENvsNE | #Titans
— NFL Research (@NFLResearch) January 5, 2020
The favorite is 1-2 both straight up and against the spread. In the 2000 AFC Divisional playoffs, the Ravens won 24-10 at Tennessee as six-point underdogs. The win came en route to Baltimore’s first Super Bowl triumph.
The Titans won a 2003 AFC Wild Card game 20-17 at Baltimore as the one-point chalk. And in 2008, Baltimore won 13-10 at Tennessee in the Divisional Round as three-point underdogs.
One Gets It Done
This will be the eighth time since 2013 that there’s been an NFL playoff matchup of the #1 seed against the six seed. Based on the outcomes, there’s no sense betting the sixth seed on the moneyline.
The Titans are one of the hottest teams in football, but I like that they were also the only AFC playoff team that hadn't faced the Ravens this year. This Baltimore offense is hard to get ready for in a week.
— Ryan Mink (@ryanmink) January 5, 2020
Straight up, top-seeded clubs own a perfect 8-0 slate in those games. However, #1 seeds are just 3-4-1 ATS.
You have to go back to 2010, when the New York Jets beat the Patriots 28-21 and the Green Bay Packers took out the Atlanta Falcons 48-21, to find outright victories by #6 over #1 in the NFL playoffs.
Ravens Will Roll Past Titans
Last season, the sixth-seeded Indianapolis Colts looked solid in beating the #3 Houston Texans in the AFC Wild Card round. The Colts headed to Kansas City a confident bunch, and were whipped 31-13 by the #1 Chiefs.
Baltimore won a franchise-record 14 games, this season, including the last 12 in a row. The last time the Ravens were given a week off via their regular-season bye, they returned to action and spanked the 8-0 Patriots 37-20.
Early thoughts …
Two blowouts next weekend in the AFC
Titans aren’t winning w/14 points and Tannehill going 8/15. Ravens D is ?
Andy Reid off a bye is marvelous. I just don’t think the Texans are that good.— Geoff Schwartz (@geoffschwartz) January 5, 2020
The Ravens are the NFL’s #2 offense (407.6 ypg) and #1 scoring offense (33.2 points per game). The Titans are the NFL’s #21 defense (359.5 ypg) and #12 scoring defense (20.7 ppg).
At 10 points, this line probably won’t move much more but if there is movement, it will only cause the spread to grow larger in Baltimore’s favor.
An industry veteran, Bob literally taught the course on the history of sports at Elder College. He has worked as a Sports Columnist for Postmedia, appeared as a guest on several radio stations, was the Vice President of the Society For International Hockey Research in Ontario, and written 25 books.
