Four years ago, “The Queen’s Gambit” — a Netflix miniseries and coming-of-age drama about protagonist and orphan Beth Harmon’s obsession to become the best chess player in the world — shot to popularity for, among other things, its escapist entertainment that explored personal struggle and triumph.
It also ended up sparking what has become something of an obsession within the Ravens’ locker room.
Which is why, on any given day, left guard Patrick Mekari can be heard disseminating various strategies to left tackle Ronnie Stanley that have nothing to do with the practice they just finished or the next game on their schedule.
“Ronnie was definitely the worst for a while, but he’s gotten better,” said Mekari, whose looks are more bearded bouncer than Garry Kasparov. “The chess levels are insane, so I would not consider myself a good chess player, but I’m probably the best amongst the guys in here.”
Mekari’s lockermate, Pro Bowl center Tyler Linderbaum, overhearing the conversation, nods affirmatively, though he quickly points out that he beat Mekari the first time the two played.
“Once I saw the show, I downloaded the [Chess.com] app and I think I’ve played every day since,” Mekari continues. “I would watch shows on chess on YouTube religiously. I don’t do that as much anymore, but I find myself here and there watching a chess tutorial — how do you play this opening, how do you defend this opening, what’s the best move here.
“In the show, it was intriguing how much thought and how much work goes into a simple board game. Each move matters within the millions of moves there are, and there is one right move. There is a correct move, which is cool to try to find. Chess is different.”
It has also bonded — the games are a way to get away from The Game and they elicit plenty of conversation, too, with Mekari the ringleader.
In addition to the sixth-year veteran, Stanley and Linderbaum, tight end Charlie Kolar and linebacker Chris Board, along with a few staff members, have taken to playing against one another daily using the Chess.com app on their phones.
The games last anywhere from a few minutes — Mekari’s preference because it allows him to play more games which in turn allows him to become more familiar with formations and strategies — to all day, which allows more deliberate thinkers plenty of time to counter an opponent’s move.
“I’ve only been playing since training camp,” Stanley says. “I knew how the pieces moved, but I never looked at the different openings. I like just how far you can think ahead. There’s different ways of attacking, so many different variables and ways to go about it. Every game is different.”
Of course, he also could have been talking about football since the correlations between the two are obvious if not omnipresent.
There are patterns, offensive moves and defensive moves. The goal in both is to understand what the other is trying to do before they do it. And even some of chess’ strategies — absolute pin, X-ray, desperado, diagonal battery, interference, flagging — could be swapped in for footballs.
“It’s not just a game that rots your brain,” Linderbaum said. “There’s strategy to it, critical thinking, you’re trying to see one, two, three moves ahead. Just like sports.
“The other team’s defense is trying to find the best matchup and we’re trying to find the best match-up in terms of plays. You can find some similarities with the offensive coordinator vs. the defensive coordinator, too. Like football, you’re trying to figure out what they’re trying to accomplish.”
As a unit this season, the Ravens’ offensive line, which has three new starters, including Mekari playing left guard for the first time, rookie Roger Rosengarten at right tackle and tackle-turned-right-guard Daniel Faalele, has had their moments.
Though they struggled in a loss earlier this month to the Philadelphia Eagles, the group has made strides from its early-season struggles. In pass blocking, Pro Football Focus grades the Ravens’ offensive line the ninth-best in the NFL. In run blocking, they’ve slipped to 20th in recent weeks, but PFF rates them the eighth-best overall line in the league.
Linberbaum, coming off a Pro Bowl season in what was just his second year, has been perhaps the unit’s best and most consistent performer, with a 79.4 grade from PFF, fourth-best among all centers. Stanley, an All-Pro in 2019 who has battled injuries every year since until this one, is finally healthy and, in a contract year, has been a tour de force, not allowing a sack until recently giving up two after surrendering a career-high five last season.
Mekari had easily his worst game of the year against the Eagles’ talented defensive tackles with nine pressures allowed to draw a frightening 11.3 pass blocking grade from PFF, but has graded out at 64.5 or higher in 11 other contests (though his run blocking has rated slightly worse). Faalele, meanwhile, has graded similarly to Mekari, with Rosengarten slightly better, particularly in pass sets.
Behind them, Baltimore has produced the NFL’s top offense with 423.7 yards per game and is No. 3 in scoring at 30.1 points per game, which is perhaps why coach John Harbaugh is resolute about not shaking up the offensive line as he did earlier in the year.
“I think we’re pretty well set there,” he said. “I’m not down on anybody on the offensive line.”
Meanwhile, the chess games continue, during breaks, after practice and whenever there’s free time.
“I’m happy to say that after the show, millions of people bought chess sets,” actor Anya Taylor-Joy, who played Harmon in “The Queen’s Gambit,” cracked on “Saturday Night Live” a few years ago following the show’s enormous rise. “And dozens of them actually learned how to play.”
At least a few reside in Baltimore’s locker room.
“It gets you thinking,” Mekari said. “We compete so much physically; that’s what we’ve always known. But in chess, it’s, ‘Can I just understand the position and be better than you at something not physical,’ which is kind of cool.”
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