Should Ravens sit starters in Week 18 What John Harbaugh said about similarities between this team and 2019

The locked up the No. 1 seed in the AFC with their victory over the on Sunday, clinching home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs. The road to the goes through Baltimore, so the Ravens have nothing to play for when they face the in Week 18.There's plenty of incentive for Ravens head coach John Harbaugh Richaun Holmes Jersey to rest his starters. He's not going to hide it when he makes that decision, but as of Tuesday, it's still up in the air."We have to work through the injury part of it first. That'll take us probably 24-48 hours to get a real handle on that, and then we'll make those decisions on that," Harbaugh said to reporters Monday, via a team transcript. "We're not going to keep it a secret. We'll let you know what we're going to do once we start practicing."The last time the Ravens had the No. 1 seed was in the 2019 season, when Baltimore finished 14-2 and won 12 straight heading into the postseason. won the MVP and the Ravens clinched home-field advantage before the final week of the season, as Harbaugh did rest his starters. The Ravens lost in the divisional round of the playoffs to the , despite having home-field advantage. That was also when the had two teams earning a bye and Cory Joseph Jersey the 12-team playoff format. There's a 14-team format now and the Ravens are the only team with a bye -- the perk of being the No. 1 seed in the conference. Pick Six Newsletter Crafted By The Best NFL Experts Get the day's big stories + fun stuff you love like mock drafts, picks and power rankings. I agree to receive the "Pick Six Newsletter" and marketing communications, updates, special offers (including partner offers), and other information from CBS Sports and the Paramount family of companies. By pre sing sign up, I confirm that I have read and agree to the and acknowledge Paramount's . Please check the opt-in box to acknowledge that you would like to subscribe. Thanks for signing up! Keep an eye on your inbox. Sorry! There was an error proce sing your subscription. Corey Brewer Jersey Harbaugh was adamant this team's circumstances are different. This is the 2023 Ravens, not the 2019 Ravens, even if the scenario is the same."That was a disappointment. It was just a disappointment. We did our best. It was a certain kind of a season. It's different from this season; it's a different team; it's different circumstances; it's a different, everything except the record is about the same and earning the first-round bye," Harbaugh said. "I remember the experience and the choices we made, but the decisions we made, we made for certain reasons, and we thought they were the right decision. What impacted what and how in terms of us not playing our best football that day, it's really hard to say what the cause and Nate Archibald Jersey effect was. We just didn't. We didn't go out there, and we didn't do it. "That's the thing I kind of take from it the most. Of course, you want to be better. We have to play way better than that next game if we want to win, and we do want to win. But you have to look at everything from the framework or through the lens of today this team and the challenges that we're facing and that's what we'll try to do."For context, the Pittsburgh Steelers are 4-point favorites for Saturday's game in Baltimore (per SportsLine consensus odds). That implies oddmakers think the Ravens won't start Jackson and and will go with this week."I don't really have Jason Williams Jersey a philosophy," Harbaugh said on resting his starters. "And the good thing is that I feel like the depth we have, like we're doing at offensive tackle, we can share time with guys, and that's a very valuable thing. So, that comes into play as well. "And we just look at all that, but the team we put out there which is going to be the team we have, it's our team is going to out there and do everything they can to win the game and play our best football game of the season and win the game against a real tough opponent."