Ravens at Titans odds, expert picks: Point spread, total, player props, trends, how to watch wild-card game
Lamar Jackson and Ryan Tannehill will duke it out once again in Nashville
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4 min read
Who doesn't love a playoff rematch? Last season, Derrick Henry and the Titans were able to knock off the Ravens in the divisional round as a six-point underdog. Now, Baltimore will have the opportunity to hand out some playoff revenge as these two will square up in Nashville during Super Wild-Card Weekend. What adds even more spice to this head-to-head is that an overtime thriller that featured a pre-game jawing match between Titans corner Malcolm Butler and Ravens head coach John Harbaugh from earlier this season is sandwiched in-between the two postseason showdowns. These two clubs have a lot of heated history over the past two seasons, which sets up a fascinating playoff game for us to begin Sunday.
Here, we're going to cover all the betting aspects of this matchup. On top of the spread and total, we're going to jump into the weeds and detail how the lines have shifted throughout the week to see what the public is thinking of this matchup. Of course, we'll also give you some of our favorite player props for this matchup.
All NFL odds via William Hill Sportsbook.
How to watch
Date: Sunday, Jan. 10 | Time: 1:05 p.m. ET
Location: Nissan Stadium (Nashville, TN)
TV: ESPN | Stream: fuboTV (try for free)
Follow: CBS Sports App
Ravens (11-5) at Titans (11-5)
The Ravens opened up as a 3.5-point road favorite in this matchup, which is a bit interesting seeing as they are 0-2 against this club over their previous two matchups. Tennessee's recent success against Baltimore may have been what drove the public to lean toward the Titans enough to drive this number down a half-point to Ravens -3, where it sits on Friday.
Maybe only outdone by the Buffalo Bills, the Ravens come into the playoffs extremely hot. Since Lamar Jackson returned from the COVID list, he's looked like the MVP we saw a season ago and Baltimore is 5-5 SU and ATS over that stretch. With Jackson under center over those five contests, the offense is averaging 37.2 points per game. Jackson has also been particularly strong on the deep ball, completing 64% of his passes 20 or more yards down the field. The Ravens have also covered in six-straight games coming into the playoffs.
While Baltimore has looked great on paper, there are a couple of caveats that may be a bit concerning for bettors. Only one of their final five opponents as they've gone on this tear went on to make the playoffs, so they were beating up on inferior competition. Meanwhile, Lamar Jackson will be looking to get the monkey off his back and earn his first postseason win. In his playoff career, Jackson is 0-2 SU and ATS while completing just 51% of his passes and committing five total turnovers. That'll need to do a 180 for the Ravens to advance.
As for the Titans, the story on offense has been Derrick Henry, who rushed for 2,027 yards this season. Back in the divisional round a year ago, Henry was a dominant force against this Ravens front-seven, totaling 195 yards in the win. While Henry is enough to crash this game, Tennessee pass defense could end up being their undoing. They ranked 31st in passing touchdowns allowed this season, 29th in passing yards per game, and 30th in sacks.
Dating back to 1980, home underdogs in the playoffs have covered 65% of the time and are 23-18 SU. That said, Baltimore feels like they have the momentum coming into this game and Jackson has shown the ability as of late to win games with his arm.
Projected score: Ravens 30, Titans 24
Over/Under
This number has mostly held firm at 54.5. After opening there, it did jump up a half-point to 55 but has since come back down to its original number. For what it's worth, these two teams have an average total of 47 between their matchup earlier this season in Week 11 and their divisional round contest last playoffs. Between them this season, the Over is 19-12-1.
Tennessee overs went 12-3-1 during the regular season, which was tied with Las Vegas for the best in the NFL. The Titans' contests averaged 58.1 points per game (30.7 PPG, 27.4 PPG allowed), which was the highest in the NFL. Over their last eight contests, the over is 7-1. With Ryan Tannehill as their starter, Tennessee Overs are 22-6-1. That said, with both of these teams being more than happy to run the football, there is an avenue where this game turns into a low-scoring ground attack so Over bettors should be a bit cautious.
Projected total: 54
Player props
First touchdown scorer: Marquise Brown (+1200). According to CBS Sports research analyst Stephen Oh's simulations, Brown getting in the end zone first has some solid value. Tennessee's secondary has struggled this season and Lamar Jackson has been really strong throwing the deep ball as of late. Brown also comes into this game scoring six touchdowns in his previous six contests. Even if you don't love the odds on him scoring first, his anytime touchdown sits at +163.
Lamar Jackson total passing touchdowns: Over 1.5 (+120). Jackson has thrown for multiple touchdowns in all but one of his previous five games. Meanwhile, Tennessee's secondary gave up the second-most passing touchdowns this season.
Ryan Tannehill total passing yards: Under 234.5 (-115). Tannehill has gone over this number in just one of his previous four games. He did throw for 259 yards against this secondary back in Week 11, but Oh's simulations have him coming in under this current total with around 206 yards passing.
Derrick Henry total rushing yards: Over 120.5 (-115). This is an absolutely huge number but it's hard to bet against King Henry. In his last two games against the Ravens, the star Titans back is averaging 164 yards on the ground.
