Madden 20 Predicts: Baltimore Ravens @ Kansas City Chiefs Week 3 - Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, Travis Kelce


Part of the fun of sports gaming is recreating the amazing moments that we get from the live versions of the games we love. The twists and turns, the dominance and the upsets. But what if the games were so realistic they could predict the future?

In this series, we will be using Madden 20 to predict the best game of the week and see how close it can get to the real outcome.

We start with an explosive matchup with the reigning MVP Patrick Mahomes and his Kansas City Chiefs heading to Baltimore to battle the exciting Lamar Jackson and the rest of the Ravens.

Both teams are 2-0 in the NFL this season, and the last time they played was December 2018 when the game went to overtime with the Chiefs winning a 27-24 thriller. The Chiefs have a high-powered offense, but will need to be switched on to stop the emerging talent of Ravens QB, Lamar Jackson. The Ravens are flourishing this year, but there's no doubting that the Chiefs are their first proper test.

Sunday, 1 p.m. ET (CBS) Point spread: Chiefs -6.5

This means the Vegas bookmakers think the Chiefs can give the Ravens a 6.5 point lead for the game to be fair.

The Teams

click to enlarge
+ 4

Two weeks into the season the Chiefs are the 3rd best offense in the league. They are 1st passing the ball, and only 26th rushing it. So you know what to expect. Their superstar players are focused around passing game with the superstar QB Patrick Mahomes, who is also the Madden 20 cover star. His main outlet is the rock at TE - Travis Kelce.

READ MORE: Best playbooks in Madden 20

The Chiefs are not as good on defense, ranked 19th over 2 games and are average against both the rush and the pass. That said, over last year they were 2nd against the pass - so you can't rule out that it could just be a poor start. 

click to enlarge
+ 4

The Ravens have started strong on both sides of the ball. They lead the league in total offense with 4th in passing and 1st in rushing. Their QB, Lamar Jackson, is adept at both and has Superstar qualities. On defense, they are 2nd in the league - but this is driven from their ability to hold teams to only 20 rushing yards per game. They are 18th against the pass and facing their first real challenge in the Chiefs. Watchout though, Earl Thomas made his name in Seattle and a probably future Hall of Famer is all over the field making defensive plays.

Results - Offense

In the sim, the offenses were evenly matched - Chiefs 349 yards to the Ravens 371. 

Both the rushing and passing had a similar profile, with the only real difference being the 1 turnover the Chiefs gave up. The ball being spread around meant there wasn't really a standout player apart from Lamar Jackson's incredible 94% completion success rate;

Passing

Team
Player
Rating
Comp
Att
Comp  %
Yards
TDs
INTs
Ravens
Lamar Jackson
155.7
17
18
94
246
2
0
Chiefs
Patrick Mahomes
88.2
21
35
60
244
2
1

Rushing 

Team
Player
Att
Yards
Avg
TD
Ravens
Mark Ingram II
26
105
4.0
1
Chiefs
LeSean McCoy
16
69
4.3
1
Ravens
Lamar Jackson
7
18
2.5
1
Chiefs
Patrick Mahomes
5
30
6.0
0

Recievers

Team
Player
Rec
Yards
Avg
TD
Chiefs
Tyreek Hill
4
93
23.2
1
Ravens
Mark Ingram II
4
85
21.2
1
Ravens
Nick Boyle
5
68
11.3
0
Chiefs
Travis Kelce
6
45
9.0
1
Chiefs
Demarcus Robinson
4
40
10.0
0

READ MORE: 7 tips to improve your offense

Results - Defense and Special Teams

With the offenses being so evenly matched - the defenses made a real difference. Holding the Chiefs to only 2 of 9 3rd down conversions (22%) and 1 of 5 4th down attempts (20%) the Ravens pulled away. Their 3 FGs also helped keep the pressure on the scorelines.

Interceptions

Team
Player
INTs
Ravens
Anthony Levine Sr
1

Sacks 

Team
Player
Sacks
Chiefs
Alex Okafor
2.5
Chiefs
Frank Clark
2.0
Ravens
Matt Judon
1.5
Ravens
Pernell McPhee
1.0
Chiefs
Derrick Nnandi
0.5
Ravens
Jimmy Smith
0.5
Team
Player
FGM
FGA
FG%
LONG
Ravens
Justin Tucker
3
3
100.0
47

Final Result

READ MORE: How to dominate with RPO plays

click to enlarge
+ 4

Chiefs 21 - 37 Ravens

Jacksons laser arm with the Ravens ability to be successful on both sides of the ball was the difference in this clash of the titans. They went toe-to-toe throughout the battle but Baltimore pulled away in the 4th quarter with a Jackson rushing TD and multiple FGs.

It seems Madden disagrees with the moneymen in Vegas but agree with the experts - who do you think will win the matchup?

click to enlarge
+ 4

For more articles like this, take a look at our Madden page.