It has been a while since Baltimore has had a game where they have utterly dominated their opponent the way The Ravens dominated Buffalo. Now, to be fair to Buffalo, the Ravens do have an absurd amount of depth on the defensive side of the ball and the offense has had massive upgrades. Truthfully, though, the Bills just never stood a chance. They might have the least talented roster in the NFL, made even worse by an uncertain quarterback situation, and that was never going to stack up to this Baltimore Ravens team. The Ravens were able to exact their perfect revenge on the Bills for sniping the final playoff spot away from Baltimore.
The Bills were just the first of two revenge games, though. The next one is a much tougher test against the division rival the Cincinnati Bengals.
Every fan of the Baltimore Ravens will remember the heartbreaking 49-yard touchdown pass to Tyler Boyd from Andy Dalton with just 0:44 seconds left on the clock. Going into the game, the Ravens had a 99%+ chance of making the playoffs and that percentage only climbed higher and higher as the game wore on. Sadly, the Bengals snatched the playoffs right from the beak of the Ravens. It is time to take revenge on the 2018 Cincinnati Bengals in their own house.
Taking revenge on the Bengals, sadly, will not be as much of a walk in the park as it was with the Buffalo Bills. The Bengals are an incredibly talented unit that the rest of the NFL seems to be sleeping on. The Ravens should be all too familiar with all of the talent on that roster. Sporting plus talent on the defensive line and at wide receiver, the Bengals are dangerous on both sides of the ball. The good news, though, is that for all the talent the Bengals possess, their team does have a lot of holes. So let us break down the most important matchups of Thursday night.
The Ravens Offensive Line vs. The Bengals Front Seven
The Bengals have a very talented front seven, with three very threatening pass rushers and a few quality run defenders. The Ravens offensive line does have a lot talent, but the problem here is that they do have two massive liabilities in the starting lineup. James Hurst is a horrid run blocker and is best suited to be a guard rather than a tackle. Matt Skura, while he played decently against an untalented Bills team, is giving Ravens fans nightmares of a Gino Gradkowski situation, again.
The Bengals are not a pushover, and I do have concerns. Even with the talent the Ravens have on the offensive line, the starting unit has not had much playing time together. Yanda in particular did not play in the preseason and could have been rusty. James Hurst did not even take a single snap at tackle in a preseason game. The Ravens best running back, Alex Collins, is very dependent on outside runs and he needs good tackles in front of him. The Ravens certainly have two, but Ronnie Stanley is coming off of an injury and Orlando Brown Jr is inexplicably not playing.
The pass blocking looked good against the Bills, but that is not where my concern is. The Ravens have always been a run first team, and with three good running backs on this roster, I expect that trend to continue. If the offensive line cannot get going, it is not going to make life easier for Flacco. The more the Ravens have to pass, the more Gino Atkins, Carlos Dunlap, and Carl Lawson are going to thrive.
Let me make this clear: if the Ravens can run the ball effectively against the Bengals and can protect Joe (which they should be able to given the personnel), the Ravens are going to win this game. The Bengals have a weakness in the linebacker corps that should allow the Ravens to get some good rushing plays going.
For me, I personally cannot decide which match-up I fear more- the Ravens secondary vs AJ Green or the Ravens offensive line vs the Bengals defensive line.
The Bengals depth along their front four is equivalent to the depth that the Ravens have in their secondary- it is SCARY. The Bengals already had a fairly strong offensive line with Carlos Dunlap, Michael Johnson, and Gino Atkins in 2016, but they decided that was not good enough, so they went out and added in Carl Lawson and Jordan Wilkins. However, even that was not enough, so in came Sam Hubbard. Basically, the Bengals have pass rushers for days.
James Hurst proved to be a pleasant surprise against the Bills in pass protection, and the offensive line as a whole played fairly well, allowing only two sacks in torrential downpour, but the Bills defensive line comes nowhere close to that of the Bengals. Ronnie Stanley has flashed brilliance in his career, but has yet to fully put it together. Alex Lewis is still knocking off the rust after missing all of 2017. However, the greatest fear that I have is for Matt Skura and James Hurst.
If the Bengals are smart, they should aim to align Gino Atkins in a way that he can exploit Matt Skura and elect to rush Carl Lawson and Carlos Dunlap off the left side of the defense. I am not expecting a big pass catching day for the running backs or tight ends because the Ravens will want to have plenty of blockers available for the powerhouse that the Bengals are packing in their pass rush.
The Ravens Front Seven vs. The Bengals Offensive Line
The reason I have a lot of confidence in saying the Ravens win this game if we can run the ball effectively is because the Bengals have a worse offensive line than the Ravens across the board.
Even though the Bengals acquired Cordy Glenn from the Buffalo Bills and Billy Price in the first round of the draft, the right side of their offensive line possess two players that are likely worse than Hurst and Skura in right guard Alex Redmond and right tackle Bobby Hart. Glenn, Price, and Clint Boling should be able to hold the fort, especially in pass protection, but the Ravens front seven has too much depth to not take advantage of a weak right side of the offensive line.
Don Martindale displayed a willingness to run a heavy rotation in game one, which kept the defense fresh and allowed them to feast. If the front seven can take advantage of a below average offensive line in the same way they did against the Bills, the Ravens should be able to limit Joe Mixon. The Ravens hope that Tony Jefferson, CJ Mosley, and Kenny Young on the backend of the front seven could potentially have the answers to Tyler Eifert and Joe Mixon/Gio Bernard in the passing game. If the front seven has a repeat performance, it might not matter too much if the Ravens offense struggles; if the Ravens limit the Bengals rushing attack, I trust the pass rushers and secondary enough to stop Dalton.
There is definitely something to be said for Terrell Suggs, the ageless wonder. Somehow, year after year, the wily veteran keeps going. It sure is a pleasure to know that a position is locked down for 15 or more years in today’s NFL. However, whenever this magical journey comes to an end, the Ravens appear to be in good hands. The young Ravens behind Suggs were chomping at the bit to make their mark against the Bills and now they will look to make an even bigger impact against the Bengals.
Perhaps the biggest unknown coming into the 2018 season of any of the young pass rushers was Tim Williams. After an extremely disappointing rookie season, Williams has seemingly turned the corner (to the quarterback, of course) and appears primed for a breakout season, flashing the speed and pass rushing moves that made him a top 15 talent in the 2017 draft. He only recorded a single sack against the Bills, but he lived in the backfield. When other young players, like Brent Urban and Chris Wormley, are also factored in, the future becomes a lot less scary, but the game becomes much scarier for the Bengals.
Bobby Hart and Alex Redmond currently occupy right traffic cone and right inside traffic cone, respectively, and should prove no match for the Ravens pass rush. At center, young Billy Price will have his welcome to the NFL moment with Brandon Williams and Michael Pierce.
Andy Dalton is going to have a long day.
The Ravens Secondary vs. The Bengals Wide Receiving Corps
The Ravens secondary has a test here. AJ Green is an elite wide receiver, Tyler Eifert is one of the best tight ends in the game (when healthy), and Joe Mixon, a quality pass catcher out of the backfield, looks to be a future Pro Bowler. This does not even account for John Ross who has the potential to be one of the better deep threats in the league, Tyler Boyd who is a skilled route runner out of the slot, and Giovanni Bernard who is one of the better third down running backs in the league.
The Ravens secondary played very well against the abysmal Bills wide receiving corps. That was not a test; this is a test. The Ravens are down Jimmy Smith against arguably one of the top three receivers they would most like to have Jimmy against- AJ Green. The good news for Ravens fans is that the secondary has amazing depth. Eric Weddle and Tony Jefferson are one of the best safety tandems in the league, Tavon Young and Marlon Humphrey look like two of the best young corners in the game, and Brandon Carr provides a steady veteran presence. I feel like we match up well against the Bengals group of receivers. Marlon Humphrey matches up well against AJ Green, Tavon Young matches up well with Ross, and Carr with Boyd. The wild card is Tyler Eifert. If he is healthy, he is a top tight end in the league. Tony Jefferson, in his time with the Cardinals, proved effective against tight ends, but Eifert provides a game breaking mismatch.
The truth is, of all of the important matchups, this is likely the one that most certainly goes the Ravens way, especially if they can consistently rush the passer and make things difficult for Dalton.
Nothing about the Cincinnati Bengals roster scares me more than AJ “Ravens Killer” Green. With a propensity for the big plays (2015 Hail Mary?) or massive games (week 1 of 2014?), Green should be on the forefront of Wink Martindale’s mind all week.
However, do not sleep on the rest of the Bengals receivers. John Ross definitely failed to live up to expectations in his rookie season when he played only 8 snaps, but he still has the potential to take the top off the defense on every single play. Boasting 4.22 speed (that could have won him a private island at the combine), Ross can outrun every single player in the NFL, literally. No one is faster than Ross. In the slot, everyone will so fondly remember Tyler Boyd for scoring the game winner that halted the Ravens 2017 playoff hopes. But this does not even mention Tyler Eifert. If anyone ever deserved a nickname like “Baby Gronk,” Eifert would have it. He cannot seem to stay consistently healthy, but in his last (nearly) full season of 2015, he scored 13 touchdowns in 13 games.
I fully expect Marlon Humphrey, Brandon Carr, Tavon Young, and Tony Jefferson to be up to the tall task of trying to put a lid on these four talented players, but as Ravens fans remember all too well, anything can happen at any time for these Bengals receivers.
Final Score Prediction
Overall, the Ravens track record after impressive first week wins is poor. Week 2, the Ravens have lost to teams they should have beaten (Week 2 of 2012 against the Eagles, anyone?). Make no mistakes, the Ravens are a better team than the Bengals from head to toe, but I just do not see this as a victory. Flacco has always played poorly in Cincinnati, it is a short week, Thursday night, on the road, against a team that always plays the Ravens tough. I still think Ravens have a chance to win the division, but it would be a massive mistake to underestimate this Bengals squad. The Ravens have had a reputation over the past few seasons of playing down to our competitions and I think that plays a bigger part in the “X-factor” than anyone is realizing.
Baltimore Ravens: 17, Cincinnati Bengals, 24
@29BmoreBird22 what is your take?
I am much more optimistic about this game than my counterpart. It was not simply that the Ravens beat the Bills; it was that the Bills were made to look like a scout team in college. That was enough for me to change my pre-season prediction of a loss into a win. The Ravens WILL get their revenge this Thursday night.
Baltimore Ravens: 27, Cincinnati Bengals, 20
The Bills were just the first of two revenge games, though. The next one is a much tougher test against the division rival the Cincinnati Bengals.
Every fan of the Baltimore Ravens will remember the heartbreaking 49-yard touchdown pass to Tyler Boyd from Andy Dalton with just 0:44 seconds left on the clock. Going into the game, the Ravens had a 99%+ chance of making the playoffs and that percentage only climbed higher and higher as the game wore on. Sadly, the Bengals snatched the playoffs right from the beak of the Ravens. It is time to take revenge on the 2018 Cincinnati Bengals in their own house.
Taking revenge on the Bengals, sadly, will not be as much of a walk in the park as it was with the Buffalo Bills. The Bengals are an incredibly talented unit that the rest of the NFL seems to be sleeping on. The Ravens should be all too familiar with all of the talent on that roster. Sporting plus talent on the defensive line and at wide receiver, the Bengals are dangerous on both sides of the ball. The good news, though, is that for all the talent the Bengals possess, their team does have a lot of holes. So let us break down the most important matchups of Thursday night.
The Ravens Offensive Line vs. The Bengals Front Seven
The Bengals have a very talented front seven, with three very threatening pass rushers and a few quality run defenders. The Ravens offensive line does have a lot talent, but the problem here is that they do have two massive liabilities in the starting lineup. James Hurst is a horrid run blocker and is best suited to be a guard rather than a tackle. Matt Skura, while he played decently against an untalented Bills team, is giving Ravens fans nightmares of a Gino Gradkowski situation, again.
The Bengals are not a pushover, and I do have concerns. Even with the talent the Ravens have on the offensive line, the starting unit has not had much playing time together. Yanda in particular did not play in the preseason and could have been rusty. James Hurst did not even take a single snap at tackle in a preseason game. The Ravens best running back, Alex Collins, is very dependent on outside runs and he needs good tackles in front of him. The Ravens certainly have two, but Ronnie Stanley is coming off of an injury and Orlando Brown Jr is inexplicably not playing.
The pass blocking looked good against the Bills, but that is not where my concern is. The Ravens have always been a run first team, and with three good running backs on this roster, I expect that trend to continue. If the offensive line cannot get going, it is not going to make life easier for Flacco. The more the Ravens have to pass, the more Gino Atkins, Carlos Dunlap, and Carl Lawson are going to thrive.
Let me make this clear: if the Ravens can run the ball effectively against the Bengals and can protect Joe (which they should be able to given the personnel), the Ravens are going to win this game. The Bengals have a weakness in the linebacker corps that should allow the Ravens to get some good rushing plays going.
For me, I personally cannot decide which match-up I fear more- the Ravens secondary vs AJ Green or the Ravens offensive line vs the Bengals defensive line.
The Bengals depth along their front four is equivalent to the depth that the Ravens have in their secondary- it is SCARY. The Bengals already had a fairly strong offensive line with Carlos Dunlap, Michael Johnson, and Gino Atkins in 2016, but they decided that was not good enough, so they went out and added in Carl Lawson and Jordan Wilkins. However, even that was not enough, so in came Sam Hubbard. Basically, the Bengals have pass rushers for days.
James Hurst proved to be a pleasant surprise against the Bills in pass protection, and the offensive line as a whole played fairly well, allowing only two sacks in torrential downpour, but the Bills defensive line comes nowhere close to that of the Bengals. Ronnie Stanley has flashed brilliance in his career, but has yet to fully put it together. Alex Lewis is still knocking off the rust after missing all of 2017. However, the greatest fear that I have is for Matt Skura and James Hurst.
If the Bengals are smart, they should aim to align Gino Atkins in a way that he can exploit Matt Skura and elect to rush Carl Lawson and Carlos Dunlap off the left side of the defense. I am not expecting a big pass catching day for the running backs or tight ends because the Ravens will want to have plenty of blockers available for the powerhouse that the Bengals are packing in their pass rush.
The Ravens Front Seven vs. The Bengals Offensive Line
The reason I have a lot of confidence in saying the Ravens win this game if we can run the ball effectively is because the Bengals have a worse offensive line than the Ravens across the board.
Even though the Bengals acquired Cordy Glenn from the Buffalo Bills and Billy Price in the first round of the draft, the right side of their offensive line possess two players that are likely worse than Hurst and Skura in right guard Alex Redmond and right tackle Bobby Hart. Glenn, Price, and Clint Boling should be able to hold the fort, especially in pass protection, but the Ravens front seven has too much depth to not take advantage of a weak right side of the offensive line.
Don Martindale displayed a willingness to run a heavy rotation in game one, which kept the defense fresh and allowed them to feast. If the front seven can take advantage of a below average offensive line in the same way they did against the Bills, the Ravens should be able to limit Joe Mixon. The Ravens hope that Tony Jefferson, CJ Mosley, and Kenny Young on the backend of the front seven could potentially have the answers to Tyler Eifert and Joe Mixon/Gio Bernard in the passing game. If the front seven has a repeat performance, it might not matter too much if the Ravens offense struggles; if the Ravens limit the Bengals rushing attack, I trust the pass rushers and secondary enough to stop Dalton.
There is definitely something to be said for Terrell Suggs, the ageless wonder. Somehow, year after year, the wily veteran keeps going. It sure is a pleasure to know that a position is locked down for 15 or more years in today’s NFL. However, whenever this magical journey comes to an end, the Ravens appear to be in good hands. The young Ravens behind Suggs were chomping at the bit to make their mark against the Bills and now they will look to make an even bigger impact against the Bengals.
Perhaps the biggest unknown coming into the 2018 season of any of the young pass rushers was Tim Williams. After an extremely disappointing rookie season, Williams has seemingly turned the corner (to the quarterback, of course) and appears primed for a breakout season, flashing the speed and pass rushing moves that made him a top 15 talent in the 2017 draft. He only recorded a single sack against the Bills, but he lived in the backfield. When other young players, like Brent Urban and Chris Wormley, are also factored in, the future becomes a lot less scary, but the game becomes much scarier for the Bengals.
Bobby Hart and Alex Redmond currently occupy right traffic cone and right inside traffic cone, respectively, and should prove no match for the Ravens pass rush. At center, young Billy Price will have his welcome to the NFL moment with Brandon Williams and Michael Pierce.
Andy Dalton is going to have a long day.
The Ravens Secondary vs. The Bengals Wide Receiving Corps
The Ravens secondary has a test here. AJ Green is an elite wide receiver, Tyler Eifert is one of the best tight ends in the game (when healthy), and Joe Mixon, a quality pass catcher out of the backfield, looks to be a future Pro Bowler. This does not even account for John Ross who has the potential to be one of the better deep threats in the league, Tyler Boyd who is a skilled route runner out of the slot, and Giovanni Bernard who is one of the better third down running backs in the league.
The Ravens secondary played very well against the abysmal Bills wide receiving corps. That was not a test; this is a test. The Ravens are down Jimmy Smith against arguably one of the top three receivers they would most like to have Jimmy against- AJ Green. The good news for Ravens fans is that the secondary has amazing depth. Eric Weddle and Tony Jefferson are one of the best safety tandems in the league, Tavon Young and Marlon Humphrey look like two of the best young corners in the game, and Brandon Carr provides a steady veteran presence. I feel like we match up well against the Bengals group of receivers. Marlon Humphrey matches up well against AJ Green, Tavon Young matches up well with Ross, and Carr with Boyd. The wild card is Tyler Eifert. If he is healthy, he is a top tight end in the league. Tony Jefferson, in his time with the Cardinals, proved effective against tight ends, but Eifert provides a game breaking mismatch.
The truth is, of all of the important matchups, this is likely the one that most certainly goes the Ravens way, especially if they can consistently rush the passer and make things difficult for Dalton.
Nothing about the Cincinnati Bengals roster scares me more than AJ “Ravens Killer” Green. With a propensity for the big plays (2015 Hail Mary?) or massive games (week 1 of 2014?), Green should be on the forefront of Wink Martindale’s mind all week.
However, do not sleep on the rest of the Bengals receivers. John Ross definitely failed to live up to expectations in his rookie season when he played only 8 snaps, but he still has the potential to take the top off the defense on every single play. Boasting 4.22 speed (that could have won him a private island at the combine), Ross can outrun every single player in the NFL, literally. No one is faster than Ross. In the slot, everyone will so fondly remember Tyler Boyd for scoring the game winner that halted the Ravens 2017 playoff hopes. But this does not even mention Tyler Eifert. If anyone ever deserved a nickname like “Baby Gronk,” Eifert would have it. He cannot seem to stay consistently healthy, but in his last (nearly) full season of 2015, he scored 13 touchdowns in 13 games.
I fully expect Marlon Humphrey, Brandon Carr, Tavon Young, and Tony Jefferson to be up to the tall task of trying to put a lid on these four talented players, but as Ravens fans remember all too well, anything can happen at any time for these Bengals receivers.
Final Score Prediction
Overall, the Ravens track record after impressive first week wins is poor. Week 2, the Ravens have lost to teams they should have beaten (Week 2 of 2012 against the Eagles, anyone?). Make no mistakes, the Ravens are a better team than the Bengals from head to toe, but I just do not see this as a victory. Flacco has always played poorly in Cincinnati, it is a short week, Thursday night, on the road, against a team that always plays the Ravens tough. I still think Ravens have a chance to win the division, but it would be a massive mistake to underestimate this Bengals squad. The Ravens have had a reputation over the past few seasons of playing down to our competitions and I think that plays a bigger part in the “X-factor” than anyone is realizing.
Baltimore Ravens: 17, Cincinnati Bengals, 24
@29BmoreBird22 what is your take?
I am much more optimistic about this game than my counterpart. It was not simply that the Ravens beat the Bills; it was that the Bills were made to look like a scout team in college. That was enough for me to change my pre-season prediction of a loss into a win. The Ravens WILL get their revenge this Thursday night.
Baltimore Ravens: 27, Cincinnati Bengals, 20
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