The Ravens are going to have to hold off the Bengals over the final five weeks of the season.
The teams are tied for first place in the AFC North at 8-4. The Ravens own the tiebreaker after beating Cincinnati 19-17 in Week 5.
The division title could be decided during the season finale at Cincinnati in Week 18.
That game could harken back memories of 2017 when the Bengals knocked the Ravens out of the playoffs in the final regular-season game with a last minute-touchdown.
The Ravens struggled to beat the lowly Broncos in Week 13 after quarterback Lamar Jackson suffered a knee injury. Tyler Huntley entered the game and provided the 10-9 victory with a 2-yard touchdown with 28 seconds left.
It was the second time in three weeks the Ravens’ offense has scuffled and failed to put up significant points.
Coach John Harbaugh was proud of the win and is not looking for style points this late in the season.
“[It was] a character win without question – finding the way to get the job done when it needed to get done in different areas was the key,” he said. “I thought guys came up with some plays when we had to have plays made. Defensively, throughout the game, offensively, especially on the last drive, special teams – kickoff coverage was tremendous and made a big difference. And of course, the kicks with the field goal team.”
Meanwhile, the Bengals might be playing the best football of any team right now outside the Philadelphia Eagles. Cincinnati picked up a huge 27-24 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs last week and are playing with confidence. The Bengals have an explosive offense with Ja’Marr Chase back in the lineup and the defense is making plays all over the field.
Quarterback Joe Burrow is playing at an elite level. He has thrown for 3,446 with 25 touchdowns and eight interceptions for a 103.7 rating.
“He’s the best quarterback in the league because we beat everybody they say is the best,” wide receiver Tyler Boyd told the media after the victory over Kansas City. “Just look at his numbers. He’s super productive. He’s poised. He always makes the right reads. He’s always getting us in the right play. I’ve never seen anybody like him.”
RSReplay is back with another Russell Street Recap of the Ravens' Week 13 victory over the Denver Broncos. @nmehtaUR2022 and @_QuoththeRavens have all the awards and reactions ready to go, so tune in at 5pm ET!https://t.co/HxxKKrdN7K
— Russell Street Replay (@RSReplaypod) December 6, 2022
The Ravens do have an advantage the rest of the way because they have an easier remaining schedule than Cincinnati. Baltimore plays just one team with a winning record the rest of the way, but the Ravens have rivalry games with Pittsburgh and Cleveland before ending the season in Cincinnati.
Here is Baltimore’s remaining schedule:
Week 14 at Pittsburgh Steelers (5-7)
Week 15 at Cleveland Browns (5-7)
Week 16 vs. Atlanta Falcons (5-8)
Week 17 vs. Pittsburgh Steelers (5-7)
Week 18 at Cincinnati Bengals (8-4)
The Bengals play two teams with winning records — the Bills and the Ravens. That matchup against Buffalo in Week 17 could decide home-field advantage for the playoffs.
Here is the Bengals remaining schedule:
Week 14 vs. Cleveland Browns (5-7)
Week 15 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (5-6)
Week 16 at New England Patriots (6-6)
Week 17 vs. Buffalo Bills (9-3)
Week 18 vs. Baltimore Ravens (8-4)
It’s going to be a dogfight the rest of the way. The Ravens have to find a way to get back some of that momentum like when they were riding a four-game winning streak.
And it has to start this week in Pittsburgh.
“We just have to be more efficient,” tight end Mark Andrews said. “[We have to] just keep on plugging along. We have a ton of confidence, a ton of playmakers, guys stepping up, making plays. Just looking at Isaiah Likely going down, but then making a big play on those two-minute drives.
“We have a bunch of guys like that. So, we’re just going to get better and better. We’re not going to get too down because we know we have a dangerous offense.”
