Ravens Win Thriller in Cincy, 41-38

The Baltimore Ravens improved to 3-2 with a 41-38 win over the Cincinnati Bengals. It was one of the wilder NFL games in recent memory. RSR staff attempt to react to it here.

Darin McCann

I want to start by saying, that in one small way, the Ravens won this one because Justin Tucker delivered a clutch 50-plus yard field goal while the opponent’s kicker missed his own opportunity. Obviously, there was much more to this one than that, but let’s give Tucker that today. It had to feel good for him to nail that kick.

Lamar Jackson was electric, Derrick Henry delivered when needed, Mark Andrews re-appeared to make huge plays and Zay Flowers and Rashod Bateman looked like the receiving tandem Ravens fans have longed for, season after season.

There were a ton of problems on the defensive side, largely with an inability to produce enough with the four-man rush, and an inability to close big holes in the pass game, but there were also some huge, clutch plays. Marlon Humphrey’s pick? Nnamdi Madubuike’s sack in overtime? Nate Wiggins getting a little redemption on a pass break-up late in the fourth quarter?

This was a great game, and I’m still not quite ready to count out the Bengals at 1-4. Their pass offense is good enough to win a lot of games, still.

Derek Arnold

That wasn’t a game that lends itself to knee-jerk reactions. That was a game that needs to be studied extensively by top scientists for decades.

It had absolutely everything. Perhaps the most insane regular-season Ravens game in history. Up there with Seattle in 2003 and Indianapolis in 2021. I’m sure we’ll have some more comparisons pop up in the coming days.

The Ravens appeared to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory several times, and in the end snatched victory from the jaws of defeat.

Justin Tucker nailed a clutch 56-yard field goal near the end of regulation, showing the doubters that rumors of his demise have been greatly exaggerated. He then kicked the chip-shot winner after Derrick Henry broke off the run of the day after being invisible for most of the afternoon after the opening drive.

The Ravens secondary should be made to hitchhike home – but on the flip side, Marlon Humphrey’s clutch interception late in the fourth is the reason Tucker got to try that long one to tie it up.

An instant classic. Lamar Jackson put the team on his back, but then had a terrible mistake in muffing the snap on the first drive in overtime. He didn’t have to do much to redeem himself as it turned out – just turn and hand it to King Henry. Other than that mistake though, he was superb. Yeah, he missed a few throws here and there, but he did amazing things as a runner, and went over 300 yards with three scores.

3-2 beats the hell out of 2-3.

I’m still not sure what just happened…

Nikhil Mehta

The Ravens just beat the Bengals in one of the best games of the year, with two offenses going blow for blow in the second half on their way to a wild overtime finish.

Joe Burrow and the Bengals offense put the Ravens defense in 2021 for much of the game, hitting deep shots and picking up yards after the catch with ease. But Lamar Jackson put together one of the best passing performances of his career in Cincinnati, protecting the ball and making a half-dozen signature plays behind the line of scrimmage before finding a receiver downfield.

The playmakers were everywhere for the Ravens: Rashod Bateman here, Charlie Kolar there, Isaiah Likely in the end zone, twice. Marlon Humphrey notched his second interception of the season in the game’s biggest moment, giving Jackson a chance for a game-winning drive. He was only able to get the Ravens into field goal range, though, and Justin Tucker finally delivered from 56 yards.

Overtime only got more intense. It seemed like Lamar Jackson fumbled the game away before conservative playcall and a missed Evan McPherson FG gave Baltimore new life. They wisely leaned on Derrick Henry, who had little work during regulation but battered Cincy in overtime to bring Baltimore down to the 1 and Tucker onto the field for the win.

Nick Polinsky

Wow, this was without a doubt one of the most memorable, and intense wins in recent Ravens history. The win probability chart probably looks like a rollercoaster straight out of hell, but fortunately the Ravens came out on the right side of this historic game. Boy is it nice to have Tucker’s clutch gene return to play a major factor.

The secondary played very poorly, and the tackling was very subpar, but when it mattered most the defense clamped down and kept the Bengals scoreless on their last three drives of the game. Marlon Humphrey came up with a huge interception and rookie Nate Wiggins came up with a big PBU on the Bengals’ final drive of regulation.

Lamar looked great after a few early misses, and at the end of the day the reason you signed him in Baltimore for five years was because he will go win you games like this. Mark Andrews had some solid involvement in the pass game, as did many others. Five different pass catchers recorded 30 yards, and one of the guys who didn’t, Isaiah Likely, caught two goal line touchdown passes.

There is a lot of cleaning up to do on the defensive side of the ball, but at least they can fix things with a smile on their face after escaping Cincinnati with a win.

Oh, Cincy is now 1-4 too ;).

Brennan Stewart

We may have just witnessed the game of the year.

Aside from the late fumble, Lamar Jackson put the team on his back and kept Baltimore in this game while the secondary completely crumbled under the pressure of Joe Burrow & Co. Is it safe to say this defense is now on fraud alert? Maybe, but just be careful who you go pointing the finger at. Lots of defensive backs were simply outplayed, but Zach Orr also failed to make the right adjustments when needed. Overall, this defense looked far from being Super Bowl caliber.

There’s plenty to be unsatisfied about (including some suspicious refereeing), but the Ravens have finally reached a winning record. Give Todd Monken and Derrick Henry their flowers, too. And how about those tight ends finally getting involved again? Seemed to really pay off.

By the way, can someone take away John Harbaugh’s challenge flag? What was he doing gripping it so hard after that catch that was clearly in bounds? You could see the veins popping out of his arms. Timeout management was questionable, too, but when hasn’t it been this year?

Chris Schisler

Was that a top 10 moment in regular season ravens history? It might be. First of all, its good to have Justin Tucker back. He was clutch to tie the game and eventually win it in overtime. Secondly, there is so much to be upset about. The defense got gashed and put the Ravens in impossible situations. Guess what? I believe in the impossible today. That was simply impossible.

Lamar Jackson was amazing. He came up with some downright magic. The offense kept the Ravens in the game and thankfully the defense figured it out with just enough help at the end. Thank goodness for bad Cincinnati snaps. Thank goodness for King Henry. There’s a lot to say but it’s wrapped up by one word. Wow.

Jared Pinder

Let’s be honest: the only reason the Ravens were in this game was because of the offense. The defense was a embarrassment today, and they nearly fumbled the game away had it not been for a terrible hold by the holder.

Lamar completely carried the team today, but they did get a huge run by Henry to close out the game. Shoutout to Tucker for overcoming his demons and drilling from 56 as well.

I don’t have much to say about the defense. They were completely outmatched today and the safeties and Stephens need to answer for how bad they have been.

It still doesn’t feel real that we won that game.

Tanner George

NO. WAY.

That was possibly the wildest football game I have ever watched. There were so many times that it looked like Cincinatti was going to get out with the W, but somehow the Ravens just kept sticking around and picked up their third consecutive victory. Justin Tucker is officially back, hitting a pair of clutch field goals to tie and finally win the game This was just an insane game, and there’s so much to unpack.

The offense was electric all game long; nothing short of an A+ performance from them. Lamar Jackson, aside from the late fumble, was absolutely dialed in all game and refused to just accept defeat. The Ravens kept finding themselves down 10 in the 4th quarter, but Lamar just willed his guys right back into things. That right there, ladies and gentlemen, is why he’s a two-time MVP. My jaw is still on the floor from a couple of plays he made. Zay Flowers clearly heard the Davante Adams rumors on Friday and responded with a monster game, reeling in 7 passes for 111 yards. All three tight ends got involved, and it was nice to see Mark Andrews making plays again. And how can we forget about Derrick Henry? After a mostly quiet game, his big run in overtime showed the Bengals who the real King of the Jungle is.

The defense was bad, and the outcome of this game masks the nosebleed they suffered at the hands of Joe Burrow & Co. Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins completely gashed the secondary, who seemed to have little interest in tackling or guarding them. Brandon Stephens had a tough game, as did Marcus Williams, but that was overcome by a clutch pick by Marlon Humphrey, who’s enjoying a great start to 2024. Whenever Cincy was on offense, the things felt eerily similar to the 41-17 loss the Ravens suffered to their division rivals back in 2021. Harbs again had some questionable clock management decisions at the end of the second half, which allowed the Bengals to march right down the field and score.

There’s a lot to clean up on the defensive side of the ball, but major props go to Lamar Jackson and the offense. An absolutely unreal performance from the MVP this afternoon single-handedly powered the Ravens to their third consecutive win and handed the Bengals their fourth loss of the young season. Even early in the season, I can’t overstate just how massive this win was.

That 0-2 start feels very, very far away.

Kevin McNelis

What. A. Game.

I hope Lamar Jackson is a better man than I am, because if I were in his shoes, I know the kind of language I’d be throwing around in the locker room. The ONLY thing saving everyone would be the OT fumble still weighing on my shoulders.

The game got off to a solid start. Baltimore went run-heavy on a 12-play scoring drive, and it looked like they were setting the pace. The trouble started, as it so often does, with bad situational awareness. Following a bad call to not field a punt toward the end of the half, Baltimore surrendered a safety. The ensuing debacle was a 10-point swing at end of the half to give the Bengals the lead, and from that point on, Baltimore played away from their strengths because they had to in order to keep the game alive.

The second half of the game looked further and further out of reach, but it turned into a shootout from the QBs. I’ll hand it to Cincy, they had the secondary looking like the JV team for the better part of the second half, but it was a string of heroics from Marlon Humphrey, Justin Tucker, Derrick Henry, and then Justin Tucker again that sealed the deal.

As that game dwindled, it felt like one that they HAD to have. They got it, and man, did they need it. No rest for the weary, though; they’re gonna have to bring it next week against a Washington offense that’s come alive.

Rob Shields

The Ravens escaped the Queen City with a huge win today. They reversed the trend and came back in the 4th. Down 10 after the Chase 70-yard TD, the Ravens  came back to get a TD and after a Burrow INT, Tucker made a huge 56-yard FG.  The Ravens also managed to out-gain their opponent on the ground by 100 or more yards again.

In OT, Lamar made a huge mistake and dropped a snap that should have cost the Ravens the game but Cinci got too conservative and opted to take a 53-yard FG and a dropped hold cost them the win.

Lamar had a very shaky first half but rebounded to play great, outside of that fumbled snap.

The Ravens almost lost in large part because of the same stuff that has hampered them all year, most of which came in a 12-minute span at the end of the first half and early in the second half. Complete clock mismanagement by Harbaugh, a terrible decision by Wallace not to field a punt, miscommunication on the back end of a bad decision by Lamar to snap it right before the two-minute warning led to 10 points for Cincinnati. These mistakes can not continue to happen.

The third down defense was also terrible and Orr kept bringing the blitz and Burrow was carving him up. He didn’t adjust away from it. Should have made it harder for Burrow to fit passes into the throwing lanes by dropping 7 or 8 into coverage. Orr has to get a better feel for games, and I think he will.

Luckily today they escaped them because they had Lamar and great Lamar showed up in the second half and dominated the Bengals.

Dropping Cinci to 1-4 was huge and it was a back breaking loss for them. The Ravens committed fewer penalties today, which was great to see but still too many mistakes and if the pass defense doesn’t clean things up, Jayden Daniels will carve them up next week.

For today, you win and that’s all that matters. Get in the film room and fix these issues and someone please take all clock management decisions away from Harbaugh.  He has no idea what he’s doing.

John Hughey

Check your heart rate after that one folks. In one of the craziest finishes we’ve seen in a long time, the Ravens walk out victorious following a shootout in a 41-38 win over the Bengals. Jackson and the passing game thrived, tossing for 348 and 4 TDs to put the Ravens over .500 for the first time this season. The run game struggled a bit leading to another large role for Justice Hill. When needed, Henry put the game to rest setting up the Ravens for a game sealing field goal. This defense was an issue today as new DC Zach Orr continues to struggle in his new role. They turned it up in the fourth quarter, but this offense needs help if the Ravens plan on making a serious run this season. Henry looks ready to make a case for OPOY and following today’s final, i believe the Lamar Jackson MVP campaign has officially begun, despite the miscue on the snap.