You know by now the Ravens need a win on Sunday and then some help to get into their sixth consecutive postseason.
Baltimore is 7-10 all-time when playing in Cincinnati. Six of the last seven games between these two teams have been decided by one score. Vegas’ current spread favors the Bengals by six points.
All signs point to this one being a close game that’s decided in the final minutes. But if the Ravens don’t know how to win close games by now, they’ll never know.
The frustrating thing is that there are plenty of key contributors to last year’s Super Bowl team that still remain, so you’d think the team’s record in games decided by one score would be better than 6-5.
Here are five keys to the game for Baltimore to beat Cincinnati on Sunday.
1. Fire off the ball
The Ravens did a poor job of this in the Patriots game. They got blown off the ball time and time again. Games aren’t solely won or lost based on the play of a team’s offensive or defensive line, but that’s where it starts.
The Bengals have good line play themselves, so the Ravens are going to have to ratchet up the intensity at the point of attack.
2. Contain Green
Before A.J. Green’s game against the Ravens in Week 10, he had only nine receptions for 122 yards and zero touchdowns in three prior games against Baltimore. But in that Week 10 matchup, Green snagged eight passes for 151 yards and the game-tying touchdown at the end of regulation.
The Ravens have proven they can stifle Green, whether in Cincinnati or in Baltimore. But if they let him get going it’s going to be extremely difficult to win. Throughout his young (but stellar) career, Green has caught 28 touchdowns in 36 games.
Don’t mess around when defending him.
3. Contain Bernard
Giovani Bernard is a spitting image of Ray Rice. Bernard (5’9”, 208 pounds) is averaging 4.3 yards per carry in his rookie year. Rice (5’8”, 212 pounds) averaged 4.2 yards per carry in his rookie year. They run similarly and have comparable elusiveness in the open field.
The Bengals haven’t given Bernard more than 15 carries all year, keeping him fresh. So it’s incumbent upon Ravens defenders to stay disciplined and make sure they get Bernard on the ground, instead of letting him break tackle after tackle on his way to the end zone (like he did at Miami in Week 9).
4. Throw 50 times
At this point, Baltimore ought to play to its strengths. Utilize your playmakers (Torrey Smith, Marlon Brown, Jacoby Jones and Dennis Pitta) and throw the ball early and often. It doesn’t have to be 50 times, but Jim Caldwell should call a lot more passes than runs on Sunday.
The Ravens have no more time to wait for the run game to get going. As is it, they’re passing on 58.2 percent of their offensive plays for a total of 4.0 yards more than their average rush attempt.
Then there’s the fact that from 2013-2016, Steve Bisciotti is paying Joe Flacco 216 percent more than he’s paying Ray Rice, so he might as well get his money’s worth.
5. Finish
Don’t worry (or even think) about the playoff scenarios. Do your job. Do everything you can to win. The only thing worse than missing out on the playoffs is missing out on the playoffs knowing you could’ve done something more.
