Hall Of Famer Ed Reed asks Ravens to keep Josh Allen's legs in check

Former Baltimore Ravens safety and Pro Football Hall of Famer Ed Reed shared a defensive blueprint to contain Josh Allen's explosive running ability. The Bills quarterback has punished defenses that blitz him in the 2024 playoffs.

Allen enters this divisional-round matchup having shown his dual-threat capabilities with 531 rushing yards and 12 ground touchdowns in the regular season.

Speaking on the "Up & Adams" show with Kay Adams on Thursday, Reed asked his former team to not allow Allen to gain through running in order to get the better of him.

"Yeah. You can stop Josh from running. Just you can stop any quarterback from running, if you know what to do on defense, if you got the players that can stop it," Reed said.

"Baltimore has a decent advantage, you know, Lamar is in Baltimore, and they practice against him all the time. So they know what they about to face on both sides."

Josh Allen carved up the Broncos' defense, completing 20 of 26 passes for 272 yards and two touchdowns. The 33rd Team's analytics revealed Allen's remarkable 75% success rate against blitzes - among the best playoff performances under pressure since 2000.

Ravens' secret weapon against Josh Allen

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The Ravens have a built-in advantage as they regularly face MVP candidate Lamar Jackson in practice. Jackson outpaced Allen with 915 rushing yards at 6.6 yards per carry compared to Allen's 5.2 average.

Former Bills running back LeSean McCoy highlighted Allen's physical running style on "Throwbacks".

"Tough as nails, I'll run you over, jump over you, throw the ball 80 yards in the air, he's a beast!" McCoy said Tuesday. "If he doesn't play well in the game, they can't win."

The Ravens already proved they can execute. In Week 4, Baltimore's defense stifled Josh Allen, limiting him to 201 combined yards and zero touchdowns in a decisive 35-10 victory. Meanwhile, Jackson showcased his dual-threat ability with 156 passing yards, 54 rushing yards and four total touchdowns.

Allen's rushing prowess helped Buffalo finish 13-4 and win the AFC East title. Baltimore's defense, honed by practice against Jackson's NFL-leading 8.8 yards per pass attempt and 66.7% completion rate, will pose a stiff challenge to Allen's running attack.

With Baltimore's defense having faced seven playoff teams during their 12-5 regular season run, they bring playoff-tested experience to this matchup.