When Michael Pierce joined the Baltimore Ravens as an undrafted rookie in 2016, he was initiated into a football culture that he now helps carry on.

“I got to play with Terrell Suggs and great vets like Eric Weddle, C.J. Mosley — the list can go on,” Pierce said. “Albert McClellan was one of my favorites — an unsung-hero type of guy. When you come here, that is stressed. By now, most people know the brand that’s synonymous with the Ravens. Anytime you have that decal on your helmet, you know what’s expected of you. …

“When you put on our decal, that brand is synonymous with being physical. That brand is synonymous with giving all your effort, making sure you play with your brother’s back in mind. It doesn’t matter who talks or whatever the case may be. At the end of the day, we have a standard to live up to whether somebody pokes their chest out or not. Ravens football needs to be Ravens football each and every Sunday. I don’t mind when they talk because at the end of the day, I have to play and we have to play the way we know how to play. We handle the business where business is being done.”

Pierce spent his first four seasons with the Ravens before leaving for the Minnesota Vikings in free agency. But the former Daphne High School and Samford standout was back with Baltimore in 2022. After a torn biceps limited Pierce to three games that season, he has started every game in 2023 at nose tackle and signed a two-year contract extension earlier this month.

The 2023 Ravens have advanced farther than any other of Pierce’s Baltimore teams. The Ravens will play the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game at 2 p.m. CST Sunday at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore. CBS will televise the game.

That means the Ravens will have to get past quarterback Patrick Mahomes. The Chiefs QB has a 3-1 record against Baltimore and has thrown for 1,479 yards with 12 touchdowns and two interceptions in the four games.

“I happened to be on the field when he threw that no-look pass, and that ball went right by my face,” Pierce said, “so I get reminded of it every time they show a commercial. But no, man, he’s obviously a special guy, won Super Bowls. He can just, literally, throw the ball from any angle. We’ve seen him just make a whole bunch of just unbelievable plays. …

“This guy is everything that the media says he is, and, obviously, we vote for him Top 100, all that kind of stuff, so respect is due. But at the end of the day, like I said, we’ve got a Ravens decal. We expect to play one way, and that’s what it has to be to be able to beat him.”

Mahomes is in his sixth season as Kansas City’s No. 1 QB, and the Chiefs have reached the AFC Championship Game in each. They’ve won three of the previous five.

“If you want to make it to the NFL championship, if you will, you have to take it from him,” Pierce said. “I mean, that’s just what it is, so it’s pretty self-explanatory. We know what we have to do. We know who he is. We know who all their big-time players are. We know who (coach) Andy Reid is. It’s just about executing and playing our brand of defense, our brand of football on both sides, special teams included, executing and let the chips fall where they may. …

“If we want to be the best in the world and have an opportunity to win it all, we have to go through those guys. It has always gone through those guys, and I’m glad we got this shot at home. We know what we’re in for.”

Baltimore yielded the fewest points in the NFL this season and opened the playoffs with a 34-10 victory over the Houston Texans last week.

“I think we were No. 1 in 2018, so right up there with that bunch,” Pierce said about this current team’s defense. “But we went further now, and that’s awesome. But at the end of the day, if we can close it, we will definitely be No. 1. This has been a special year, certainly, just like 2018. But it has been a fun one for sure.”

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.