The Baltimore Ravens came into the NFL playoffs as one of, if not the best team in the entire league. At 13-4, their record definitely says they were the best team. But we all know that records can be deceiving and that once the postseason begins, all records are reset to zero and one mistake is the last mistake.

This year's Ravens team does feel different, though. For starters, they're mostly healthy for this year's playoffs, which wasn't the case last year, particularly for starting quarterback Lamar Jackson. And as is evident, it's clear that Jackson is the centerpiece of this team. That's what earned him his record deal during the offseason that initially caused strife between him and the organization.

But as crucial as a centerpiece is to a set, it's the other pieces around it that make the whole, including one of the league's best defenses. All together, it makes for one dangerous team, the likes that maybe not even the Kansas City Chiefs are ready for in the AFC Championship Game.

The Chiefs come in as the most dangerous team due to their wealth of playoff experience over the last decade-plus, where head coach Andy Reid and quarterback Patrick Mahomes have helped lead the team to three Super Bowls in the last four years, winning two of those, by way of six straight AFC title games. That means that even though the Ravens are currently favored by 3.5, deep down, they're still an underdog of sorts to the Chiefs. The Buffalo Bills and Josh Allen are all too familiar with that.

But this year's Ravens feels like the team to beat. They have all year, and there are a few reasons for that.

They've beaten the most winning teams this season

Lamar Jackson, running and throwing

With their win over the Houston Texans on Saturday, the Ravens have beaten 11 teams with winning records this season, which is the most in the Super Bowl era, according to SB Nation's Baltimore Beatdown. Six of those teams have 10-plus wins, with the Texans they played twice. Three teams who have 10-plus wins over winning teams have all won the Super Bowl.

This is, of course, thanks to their offense, which ranks sixth in total offense, first in rushing offense, fourth in scoring offense (28.4 points per game), seventh in red zone offense, and eighth in third-down offense. But it's also because of a defense that ranks sixth in total defense and passing defense, first in scoring defense (16.5 points allowed per game), second in red zone defense, and seventh in third-down defense. They're also first in defensive sacks (60) and were tied for the most takeaways this season (31), per Fox Sports Stats.

The Ravens get to host the AFC Championship Game

The Ravens get to host the AFC Championship Game for the first time in team history on Sunday against the Chiefs. For those who have watched enough football, you would have thought that the game was permanently set at the Chiefs' Arrowhead Stadium, where it has resided for the past six seasons. But that's not the case this season.

This is a big deal not just for the Ravens but also for the city of Baltimore, which has been holding on for decades, not getting in during their last two Super Bowl seasons. The road to the Super Bowl in the AFC is going through Baltimore this season. Granted, it seemed to not matter for Mahomes and the Chiefs last weekend when they had to take on their first road playoff game in Buffalo. Then again, the Ravens are a much more formidable, not to mention healthier team than the Bills.

The Chiefs don't have the mental edge over the Ravens like they did the Bills

Going into last week's Divisional Round game, all the talk was about if Allen and the Bills could finally overtake Mahomes and the Chiefs in the postseason. Well, we see how that ended up. Even on the road in the midst of Bills Mafia, Buffalo just couldn't overcome the Chiefs. At this point, the Chiefs just have a mental edge over the Bills that they have yet to overcome because of the familiarity with one another, facing off seven times since 2018.

Jackson and Mahomes have faced off against one another only four times with none being in the postseason. Mahomes leads the series 3-1, but Jackson owns the last victory that took place back in September 2021. So, relatively speaking, there isn't any recent history to dwell on. The biggest mental hurdle is — and it's not light by any means — overcoming the fact that this is a Chiefs team that has dominated the postseason the past six seasons, behind arguably the greatest quarterback of this generation.