Week 17 is here at last and as far as everything is concerned, the record of this Baltimore Ravens team is 0-0 going into this Sunday afternoon tilt with the Cincinnati Bengals. It truly is simple if you are the Baltimore Ravens- go in and win at home against a hated division rival and you will be in the playoffs. Lose and you will have to rely on one of the Tennessee Titans or Buffalo Bills to lose. Simply put, it is far easier to just win and get in rather than hoping and praying for another team to lose. Control your own destiny, Baltimore Ravens. There really is not much more to be said because as far as I am concerned, the rest of the season went out the window and this is a new one game season for the Baltimore Ravens.
With all of that said, let us take a look at the key match-ups that will determine whether or not the Ravens can clinch a playoff spot for the first time since 2014.
Key Match-Ups
Can the Ravens Contain AJ Green?: Aptly named the Ravens Killer, AJ Green will be one of the biggest concerns for defensive coordinator Dean Pees and Marlon Humphrey. No longer with star cornerback Jimmy Smith to match up on Green, the Ravens will have their hands full with the Bengals super star receiver.
Since 2013, in six match ups with the Ravens, Green has averaged a state line of 6/112/1. Ravens fans and defensive backs alike will fondly remember Green’s Hail Mary catch for a touchdown as time expired in 2013 (fortunately, the Bengals lost in OT) or Green’s 10/227/2 performance to open the 2015 season.
AJ Green is having a big of a down year with “only” 73 catches for just over 1,000 yards and eight touchdowns, but Ravens fans and coaches alike know better than anyone that sleeping on Green and expecting this to mean anything on Sunday would be naïve at best.
Will the Bengals Play Harder for Marvin Lewis Last Game?: After fifteen long seasons as the Bengals head coach, compiling a 123-112-3 record, Marvin Lewis will no longer be the head coach in the Charm City. No, it is not because he is being shown the door for his mediocre records recently and 0-7 record. Lewis is simply deciding to step down as the coach of the Bengals because he believes his assistants are not paid enough. What a caring guy, right?
The Bengals, who sit at 6-9, really had nothing to play for personally other than the satisfaction of knocking the Ravens out of the playoffs, before Lewis’s announcement. Now, the Bengals can kill two birds with one stone by sending their coach out on top AND knocking the Ravens out of the playoffs (if both the Bills and Titans win). Will that extra bit of motivation mean anything when game time rolls around on Sunday?
Can the Ravens Overcome Their Bengals Struggles?: For a period of time, from the second match up of 2010 to the first match up of 2013, the Ravens were playing the Bengals incredibly well and controlling their division foe. Since those days, the Bengals have won six of the last eight meetings between the two teams and have routinely given Joe Flacco fits.
Since that second 2013 match up, Joe Flacco has six touchdowns to 10 interceptions and has averaged just 5.77 yards per pass attempt. It does not matter if Leon Hall and Jonathan Joseph are still back in the secondary for the Bengals (that four interception performance in 2010 was fun), the Bengals secondary knows how to give Flacco problems.
If the Ravens are to win this division tilt on Sunday, they will need the consistently improving Joe Flacco to show up and help the Ravens buck their trend of struggling against the Bengals in recent years.
Final Score Prediction:
It all comes down to this game and who wants it more. Do the Bengals want it more to knock the Ravens potentially out of playoff contention and to send their coach out on a high note? Do the Ravens want it more to finally make the playoffs for the first time since 2014. Right now, I am more than happy to bet on a Ravens team that has won six of their last seven over a Bengals team that has lost three of its last four. Make no mistake- it will be a close game; just one the Ravens win.
Final Score: Cincinnati Bengals: 20, Baltimore Ravens: 24
With all of that said, let us take a look at the key match-ups that will determine whether or not the Ravens can clinch a playoff spot for the first time since 2014.
Key Match-Ups
Can the Ravens Contain AJ Green?: Aptly named the Ravens Killer, AJ Green will be one of the biggest concerns for defensive coordinator Dean Pees and Marlon Humphrey. No longer with star cornerback Jimmy Smith to match up on Green, the Ravens will have their hands full with the Bengals super star receiver.
Since 2013, in six match ups with the Ravens, Green has averaged a state line of 6/112/1. Ravens fans and defensive backs alike will fondly remember Green’s Hail Mary catch for a touchdown as time expired in 2013 (fortunately, the Bengals lost in OT) or Green’s 10/227/2 performance to open the 2015 season.
AJ Green is having a big of a down year with “only” 73 catches for just over 1,000 yards and eight touchdowns, but Ravens fans and coaches alike know better than anyone that sleeping on Green and expecting this to mean anything on Sunday would be naïve at best.
Will the Bengals Play Harder for Marvin Lewis Last Game?: After fifteen long seasons as the Bengals head coach, compiling a 123-112-3 record, Marvin Lewis will no longer be the head coach in the Charm City. No, it is not because he is being shown the door for his mediocre records recently and 0-7 record. Lewis is simply deciding to step down as the coach of the Bengals because he believes his assistants are not paid enough. What a caring guy, right?
The Bengals, who sit at 6-9, really had nothing to play for personally other than the satisfaction of knocking the Ravens out of the playoffs, before Lewis’s announcement. Now, the Bengals can kill two birds with one stone by sending their coach out on top AND knocking the Ravens out of the playoffs (if both the Bills and Titans win). Will that extra bit of motivation mean anything when game time rolls around on Sunday?
Can the Ravens Overcome Their Bengals Struggles?: For a period of time, from the second match up of 2010 to the first match up of 2013, the Ravens were playing the Bengals incredibly well and controlling their division foe. Since those days, the Bengals have won six of the last eight meetings between the two teams and have routinely given Joe Flacco fits.
Since that second 2013 match up, Joe Flacco has six touchdowns to 10 interceptions and has averaged just 5.77 yards per pass attempt. It does not matter if Leon Hall and Jonathan Joseph are still back in the secondary for the Bengals (that four interception performance in 2010 was fun), the Bengals secondary knows how to give Flacco problems.
If the Ravens are to win this division tilt on Sunday, they will need the consistently improving Joe Flacco to show up and help the Ravens buck their trend of struggling against the Bengals in recent years.
Final Score Prediction:
It all comes down to this game and who wants it more. Do the Bengals want it more to knock the Ravens potentially out of playoff contention and to send their coach out on a high note? Do the Ravens want it more to finally make the playoffs for the first time since 2014. Right now, I am more than happy to bet on a Ravens team that has won six of their last seven over a Bengals team that has lost three of its last four. Make no mistake- it will be a close game; just one the Ravens win.
Final Score: Cincinnati Bengals: 20, Baltimore Ravens: 24
