Chargers-Ravens in AFC Wild Card is rematch of late-season game

BALTIMORE – It’s been six years since the Baltimore Ravens hosted a playoff game, so forgive Pro Bowl guard Marshal Yanda for forgetting protocol regarding the distribution of tickets.

“Somebody was asking me if we got tickets during the playoff games, and I couldn’t really remember,” he said this week. “I was like, ‘Uh, it’s been a little while.’ ”

The last time Baltimore was at home in the postseason was in 2012, when linebacker Ray Lewis and quarterback Joe Flacco engineered a 24-8 victory over Indianapolis to launch a surprising Super Bowl run.

Lewis is now in the Hall of Fame, and Flacco will be on the bench when rookie Lamar Jackson and the Ravens (10-6) face the Los Angeles Chargers (12-4) in a wild-card game Sunday .

It’s a rematch of a pivotal contest two weeks ago, when Baltimore took control of the AFC North with a 22-10 victory that dropped the Chargers to the No. 6 seed. The Ravens’ top-ranked defense limited Los Angeles quarterback Philip Rivers to 181 yards passing with two interceptions.

“You know they’re going to come back with changes, with wrinkles, and they’re going to play that much harder, because they know what happened the first game,” said Ravens safety Eric Weddle, who played nine years with the Chargers before signing as a free agent with the Ravens in 2016.

The game plan is important, but minimizing errors is what really counts.

“I don’t think it’s going to be a big secret as to what everyone is doing,” Los Angeles coach Anthony Lynn said. “It’s just whoever executes the best is going to win this game.”

If experience means anything at quarterback, the Chargers have the edge. The 37-year-old Rivers has been flinging the football in the NFL since 2004 and has started nine playoff games.

Jackson, a junior at Louisville just a year ago, has been a starter for less than two months. The 21-year-old will be the youngest quarterback to start in the postseason.

But the Ravens are 6-1 with Jackson as a starter, and his ability to run has turned Baltimore’s offense into an efficient unit.

“There’s no substitute for experience,” Ravens offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg said. “Now sometimes, it’s the quality of experience as well. Man alive, look at all the things (Jackson has) done – a very mature young man for that age in many, many ways. And, he’s a very confident guy.”