Preview: Ravens Look to Spoil Christmas for 49ers

The Baltimore Ravens will travel to San Francisco to take on the 49ers on Monday night in what many experts predict to be a Super Bowl Preview. This will be the third time in Ravens history they will play on Christmas day with the last coming in 2016 against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Both the Ravens and 49ers enter Monday a top their respective conferences both with 11-3 records. The Ravens are coming off a 23-7 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars. While the 49ers have won six in a row including a 45-29 victory over the Arizona Cardinals last Sunday. Both teams are eyeing for the number one seed in their conference and a win by either team will put them in prime position to secure the number one overall seed with just a few weeks remaining in the regular season.

The Ravens for a majority of the season have remained fairly healthy. Although the loss of Keaton Mitchell last Sunday night to a season ending knee injury is a blow to the Ravens offense, running backs Gus Edwards and Justice Hill have provided enough offense to pick up some of what will be lost by Mitchell. Running back Melvin Gordon who has played in three games this season was signed to the active roster from the practice squad this week to take Mitchell’s place. As for Monday the Ravens have ruled out corner back Jayln Armour Davis (concussion) and Arthur Maulet (knee). Outside linebacker Malik Hamm (ankle) has has been working his way back after spending most of the year on injured reserve and is listed as questionable. Wide receiver Zay Flowers (foot) is also listed as questionable and after being limited in practice on Thursday did practice in full on Friday and Saturday.

For the 49ers running back Elijah Mitchell (knee) and defensive tackle Javon Hargrave (hamstring) were both limited Friday and Saturday and are both listed as questionable for Monday. Linebacker Oren Burks (knee) and tight end Ross Dwelley (ankle) have both been ruled out after not practicing all week. The biggest injury news for the 49ers however is defensive tackle Arik Armstead. Armstead has been dealing with a foot/ankle injury that will now cause him to miss his third straight game.

Players to Watch:

Justice Hill

With the injury to Keaton Mitchell, Justice Hill will see an increased roll in the offense similar to what he had at the start of the year while Mitchell was on injured reserve. Hill’s speed and outside running ability is important to this Ravens offense moving forward as it is something that is lost with the injury to Mitchell.

Hill came out of the gate strong in 2023 scoring two touchdowns in the Ravens week one win over the Texans. Hill would score three touchdowns through the first four weeks of the season, before seeing his production begin to slip. Issues with fumbling and the emergence of Mitchell led to Hill returning to his main role as a special teamer. Moving forward now into the last few weeks of the regular season, and into the playoffs Hill’s success running the ball and receiving out of the backfield will be key for this Ravens overall offensive success moving forward.

Nick Bosa

The Ravens and the 49ers both have two of the top defenses in the NFL and a lot of that comes from their ability to rush the passer and shut down the run. Very few have been as good at that over the last few seasons than 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa. Bosa has the rare treat to completely disrupt a game from the defensive end position and offenses tend to make him a focus to avoid him doing just that.

Through 14 games Bosa has recorded 46 total tackles and two forced fumbles while adding 10.5 sacks on the year. Bosa has recorded double digit sack total now for the third straight year. The Ravens tackles will have their hands full all day trying to keep quarterback Lamar Jackson upright, as they look to slow down one of the NFL’s premier pass rushers.

Prediction

Monday will be one for the record books as the two best teams from the AFC and NFC will face off in the regular season. This is tied for the latest into a season that two teams leading their conference have played each other with the last time being in 2005 when the 12-2 Seattle Seahawks defeated Indianapolis who was 13-1 at the time.

The key for the Ravens will be slowing down 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy and MVP candidate Christian Mccaffrey. The 49ers rank inside the top three in nearly every major statistical category and when they are firing on all cylinders make them nearly unbeatable. The Ravens will need to get off the field on third downs and will likely need to force some turnovers to slow this 49ers offense down.

Offensively the Ravens will need to make plays in the passing game as the 49ers rank 15th in total passing defense, while ranking third in total rush defense. Yards on the ground will be hard to come by, with quarterback Lamar Jackson likely needing to be the difference maker on the ground. Monday night will be a tough ask of the Ravens as an even bigger game looms next Sunday against the Miami Dolphins. With the way the 49ers are currently playing and the travel out to the west coast I think the 49ers get the slight edge in this win defeating the Ravens in a close one 26-24.

Line: San Francisco -6

Over/Under: 46.5

All-Time Record: Baltimore leads series 4-2

Last Meeting: 12/1/19 Baltimore 20-17