WJZ's panel of sports experts pick the winner of the Ravens-49ers game
BALTIMORE -- The 49ers are the favorite. The odds-makers have the Ravens as a 5.5-point or 6-point underdog, and the vast majority of national analysts are picking San Francisco. WJZ's panel of experts says otherwise.
Steve Huber, the host of Huber in the Morning, which airs on 100.7 The Bay, said Santa is putting one of the best NFL matchups of the season together for a Christmas primetime showdown.
"Levi's Stadium will be rocking harder than the acid-wash jeans cousin Donnie wore at Hammerjacks to see Whitesnake in 1986," he said.
Huber predicted that the Ravens would win the game 30-27.
"This is a heavyweight fight here, with two of the best teams in the league going at it," WJZ analyst Torrey Smith said.
Smith said that the Ravens would likely win what is projected to be "a fun battle" in part due to "the gift that keeps on giving," quarterback Lamar Jackson.
For the Monday game to end in a Ravens victory a few things have to happen, and most of them hinge on "explosive plays," former wide receiver Qadry Ismail said.
Ismail predicted that the Ravens would beat the 49ers 23-20.
WJZ anchor Rick Ritter and WJZ reporter Alex Glaze concur with the assessments of the panel, WJZ sports director Mark Viviano said.
Viviano said he disagreed.
"I'll go ahead and be the Grinch here," Viviano said. "These teams are evenly matched. I'll just give the 49ers the nod because they get the home field."
But also, the Ravens will win a rematch game when the two teams go up against one another in the Super Bowl, he said.