The tables haven't just turned for the Baltimore Ravens in the eyes of betters and oddsmakers, the entire dining room has been rearranged on the heels of seeing them dismantle the undefeated New England Patriots. Lamar Jackson was impressive yet again in Week 9, leading to All-Pro safety Earl Thomas proclaiming him the NFL MVP to start the second half of the season.
It's a justifiable wave of optimism washing over the City of Baltimore, with the team staying locked in on whatever the weekly task at hand may be, and carrying a determination to not simply make it to the playoffs -- but to also run through teams en route to Super Bowl 54. They currently have a firm grip atop the AFC North, and their odds of winning on Feb. 2 in Miami have now seen a hefty jump over where they stood heading into the 2019 regular season.
With a record of 6-2 that includes sending the Patriots reeling, the Ravens now have the third-best odds of winning the Super Bowl, per Westgate Las Vegas Superbook. Here are the top five teams, odd-wise, as of after Week 9, along with where each team's odds stood ahead of September (in parentheses):
- New England Patriots - 5/2 (10/1)
- New Orleans Saints - 9/2 (8/1)
- Baltimore Ravens - 6/1 (20/1)
- San Francisco 49ers - 7/1 (40/1)
- Kansas City Chiefs - 8/1 (7/1)
The Ravens' odds have seen the second-biggest jump in the NFL, outside of the undefeated 49ers, who no one saw coming. To a lesser, but still very prominent degree, it's clear not many saw the Ravens coming either, despite their success on the back end of the 2018 season.
The play of Jackson in his sophomore year has been the most potent catalyst for what the Ravens are achieving this season. His tandem with a rejuvenated Mark Ingram has created a dynamic ground attack, while his chemistry with tight end Mark Andrews and rookie speedster Marquise "Hollywood" Brown balances it out by providing a potentially lethal aerial assault -- on an offense that tops the league with 31.4 points per game. Defensively, Thomas and cornerback Marlon Humphrey in the secondary, along with linebackers Matt Judon and Pernell McPhee battling in the trenches and at the second level, make for an opportunistic unit that gets the job done far more often than they don't.
Sitting at second in the AFC and owning the tiebreaker against the Patriots, there's still a chance the Ravens could find a way to take ownership of the entire conference before the regular season concludes.
Even if they don't, they remain on a collision course to again meet the Patriots in the postseason. That's where their mettle will be tested to the highest degree, tasked with defeating legendary head coach Bill Belichick and future first ballot Hall of Fame quarterback Tom Brady twice in the same season, and with the second one being in January. If they continue dominating as they have been, the odds of them pulling off such a coup will be increasingly in their favor.
Welcome to the annual Hunger Games.