Tag: Cincinnati Bengals

Ravens reach top spot in USA TODAY Sports’ power rankings after Week 10

The Baltimore Ravens dismantled the Cincinnati Bengals 49-13, putting them into the top spot on USA TODAY Sports’ power rankings.

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The Baltimore Ravens are officially the best team in the league. At least if you’re to believe USA TODAY Sports’ latest power rankings, which place them in the No. 1 spot.

“NFL’s most explosive offense deserves its accolades. But ascending defense is first to record TDs of 65-plus yards in three straight games since 1970 merger.”

As I noted elsewhere, the offense has gotten a lot of credit for where Baltimore sits, but it has been the ascension of the defense in recent weeks that has put them over the edge. While the defense still sits near the middle of the pack after nine games in both yards and points allowed, they’re creating big plays from even the best quarterbacks and helping out an offense that was already on fire.

Considering how they took down the Seattle Seahawks, New England Patriots and now the Cincinnati Bengals; the Ravens might be the most complete team in the NFL right now. That’s a scary proposition considering this team is really built for the cold-weather football we’re just starting to get into.

Baltimore has a tough few more games on the schedule. In the next three weeks, the Ravens will play the Houston Texans, San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams. For as well as they’ve played, all three of those games will be tough sledding for Baltimore and will either prove them to be the best team in the league or muddy the waters a little bit. Regardless, it seems like the Ravens are destined to get their way into the postseason once again, where they can wreak havoc in the AFC.

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Bengals had Andy Dalton attempt to emulate Lamar Jackson with scout team

Let’s just say it didn’t work.

How bad are things for the winless Cincinnati Bengals?

Former starting quarterback Andy Dalton worked with the scout team last week in an effort to help the defense prep for Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson.

It didn’t exactly work.

“He’s been a pro. He’s been great. It’s a difficult personal situation for him,” offensive coordinator Brian Callahan said, per Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com. “It’s not how he saw this going. But neither did we. But it’s kind of where we’re at and he’s embraced the role and he’s done everything we’ve asked. He’s a true professional in that regard and we all appreciate that from him. I know Ryan appreciates that from him…”

The sentiment Dalton has been a huge help for rookie starter Ryan Finley is great — anyone who has tracked Dalton’s career knew he would step in and handle it with professionalism.

But the results on the field didn’t look good. The Bengals got dropped in 49-13 fashion while that defense Dalton helped prep surrendred 223 yards and three touchdowns to Jackson through the air, as well as 65 yards and a score (9.3 average) on the ground.

Dalton was known for running a good read offense in college and running when asked. But nobody is emulating Jackson.

Even despite Dalton’s best efforts as he likely suits up for his final games as a member of the team, this defense simply doesn’t seem to be moving the needle in the right direction. Some opponents like Jackson will merely highlight it more than others.

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Zac Taylor comments on injuries to A.J. Green, Drew Sample

Two injured Bengals remain under the spotlight after Week 10.

A day removed from taking one of the worst losses in franchise history, Cincinnati Bengals head coach Zac Taylor couldn’t offer much on two of the more notable injuries plaguing the roster.

One, A.J. Green, has been in limbo since the summer now and suffered a setback last week. The other, second-round rookie Drew Sample, went down with an injury during the team’s 49-13 loss to the Baltimore Ravens.

On Green — who did rehab work with trainers before the Ravens game — Taylor said he doesn’t want to offer much other than a “day to day” tag after last week’s gaffe, per ESPN’s Ben Baby:

Last week’s gaffe, meaning when Taylor announced Green would play against the Ravens before the veteran wideout apparently suffered a setback.

On Sample, who had a boot on at the stadium Monday, Taylor offered the following:

For now, no word on Tyler Boyd, who left the field late in the fourth quarter after getting looked at by trainers.

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Ravens Week 10 snap counts: Some interesting substitutions going on

The Baltimore Ravens made some interesting substitutions against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 10 according to the snap counts.

The Baltimore Ravens beat up on the Cincinnati Bengals so bad, we got the see the backups enter the game and play nearly a full quarter. In their 49-13 drubbing of the Bengals, the Ravens managed to score both on offense and defense, throwing some new wrinkles on the field for future teams to have to gameplan against. When looking at the snap counts for Week 10, we see some interesting changes occurring on both offense and defense.

Offensively, we’re beginning to see tight end Hayden Hurst dip into Mark Andrews’ snap counts at times. The same thing happened last week where Hurst played 40% of the offensive snaps compared to Andrews’ 34%, compared to Week 10’s 57% to 51%. As previously predicted, Hurst offers value as both a pass catcher and blocker, allowing offensive coordinator Greg Roman to use more misdirection and catch defenses off guard rather than lining Andrews up and tipping off the play.

It’s also interesting to see how the wide receiver snap counts adjusted this week with Chris Moore inactive and a gameplan that favored the tight ends. By looking at the box score, it seemed pretty obvious the tight ends got far more looks in the passing game, catching 12 of Lamar Jackson’s 18 completions. Naturally, they got far more playing time than the wide receivers to fit that narrative.

Marquise Brown seems to still be on a limited snap count as he returns from injury, playing just 40% of the offensive snaps. But fellow rookie Miles Boykin supplanted Seth Roberts this week, getting the second-most snaps behind Willie Snead. Though Boykin didn’t get targeted in this game, it could point to the team’s growing comfort level with him in the lineup. Given his size and speed, he seems like a natural for cold-weather football to help spell both Moore and Roberts down the stretch.

Ravens offensive snap counts:

Player Position Snaps Snap %
Bradley Bozeman G 47 100%
Orlando Brown T 47 100%
Matt Skura C 47 100%
Nick Boyle TE 36 77%
Ronnie Stanley T 36 77%
Lamar Jackson QB 36 77%
Marshal Yanda G 36 77%
Hayden Hurst TE 27 57%
Mark Andrews TE 24 51%
Mark Ingram RB 23 49%
Willie Snead WR 22 47%
Miles Boykin WR 21 45%
Marquise Brown WR 19 40%
Patrick Ricard FB 18 38%
Seth Roberts WR 18 38%
James Hurst G 14 30%
Justice Hill RB 12 26%
Robert Griffin III QB 12 26%
Gus Edwards RB 11 23%
Patrick Mekari G 11 23%

Click on the next page to see the defensive snap counts and analysis on what it means.

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Ravens hitting their stride at the right time

The Ravens are hitting the point of the season where championship-caliber teams differentiate themselves, and they’re only getting better.

The Baltimore Ravens were supposed to beat the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 10. With Cincinnati winless and having a rookie quarterback getting his first NFL start, it seemed obvious that Baltimore was going to move to 7-2. But the beating the Ravens put on the Bengals proves they’re hitting their stride at the best possible time.

Before kickoff, I noted that this could be a trap game for Baltimore. While they were clearly the superior team on paper, we’ve seen the Ravens embarrass themselves previously under similar circumstances. In fact, it’s a familiar hole they’d fallen into too many times under coach John Harbaugh right as they looked to be on a roll and near the top of the league. But not this week and not this season apparently.

Baltimore’s offense got off to a quick start and never relented, finding room on the ground and through the air against the hapless Bengals. Quarterback Lamar Jackson had another brilliant game, going 15-of-17 for 223 yards, three passing touchdowns and a perfect 158.3 passer rating. He also torched Cincinnati on the ground to the tune of 65 yards and a touchdown, including his highlight-reel 47-yard run. It was a finely tuned game from the starting offense that saw them hang five total touchdowns before putting in backups in the fourth quarter.

The defense got in on the action as well, shutting down the Bengals offense. They pressured quarterback Ryan Finley, largely held running back Joe Mixon down and made two big plays, returning an interception and a fumble for touchdowns. What had been the worst unit on the team earlier this season has quickly turned around into an explosive and dangerous defense.

And that’s really the look of the entire team right now. They’ve gotten better with each and every game. They’re stronger than they were in Week 3 and far more dynamic both on offense and defense. They’ve beaten up on the top teams in the league and are now destroying the teams they should be beating. For as easy as that sounds in theory, look at how the Indianapolis Colts, Los Angeles Rams, Buffalo Bills, New Orleans Saints and Kansas City Chiefs all lost in Week 10 to teams with no better than a .500 record.

This is the point where championship-caliber teams start to differentiate themselves. Injuries have piled up on all 32 teams, and there’s more than enough game film to establish weaknesses and mismatches. Yet Baltimore is the only team actually getting better right now.

With everything coming together on defense and opponents having no answer for Jackson and this unique offense, Baltimore is unquestionably one of the best teams in the league right now. And considering they’re built for cold-weather football, the Ravens are looking really scary. If they can keep this level of play up, there’s no reason to think Baltimore shouldn’t be a front-runner for the Super Bowl.

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AFC North standings: Ravens sweep Bengals with Week 10 win

The Baltimore Ravens sweep the Cincinnati Bengals to keep their lofty lead in the AFC North standings through Week 10.

The Baltimore Ravens handled their business and beat the still-winless Cincinnati Bengals 49-13. It’s Baltimore’s first sweep of Cincinnati since the 2011 season and it marks another big win within the AFC North standings for the Ravens.

Baltimore will now finish no worse than 3-3 within the division, an important step to winning the AFC North. With a final game against the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cleveland Browns left on the schedule, the Ravens appear to have an insurmountable lead over the division at this stage.

Behind Baltimore is Pittsburgh, with their Week 10 win over the Los Angeles Rams. While they’re surging themselves, owning a four-game winning streak now, they still sit firmly behind the Ravens.

The Browns picked up a big win of their own, defeating the Buffalo Bills in the final minutes of the game to get their third win of the season. Though they remain well behind the Ravens within the division standings, there’s still plenty of season left to completely count them out.

The Bengals, on the other hand, are done. Having moved to 0-9, they’re now guaranteed to have a losing season. Though the AFC North isn’t exactly the toughest division in the league this year, it seems almost certain that a winning record is going to be needed to sit at the top of it. And with the playoffs firmly out of reach, Cincinnati has clearly moved into figuring out what talent they have on their roster and perhaps if rookie coach Zac Taylor will return in 2020.

Let’s take a look at the AFC North standings after Week 10.

AFC North standings:

Team Record Division Record Conference Record
Baltimore Ravens 7-2 3-1 5-2
Pittsburgh Steelers 5-4 1-1 4-2
Cleveland Browns 3-6 1-0 3-3
Cincinnati Bengals 0-9 0-3 0-5

The Ravens effectively hold a three-game lead over the Steelers in the AFC North standings after Week 10, thanks to their current head-to-head and division-record tiebreakers. Their Week 17 game looms in the horizon if Baltimore were to lose half of their next six games.

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Tank watch: Bengals get big breathing room in draft order as bad teams win

The Bengals are winning in the NFL draft order, at least.

The Cincinnati Bengals suffered one of their worst losses in franchise history against the Baltimore Ravens over the weekend.

But the team sure keeps winning in the draft order race.

Week 10 was quite fruitful in this pursuit. The Miami Dolphins picked up another win, this time over Indianapolis to make it two wins on the season.

Ditto for the New York Jets with a win over the New York Giants, as well as Atlanta upsetting New Orleans.

Those big winners of the weekend join the four teams sitting at two wins. Five more have three wins. Just one — the Washington Redskins — have a single win.

And then there are the 0-9 Bengals.

The Bengals stand alone atop the draft order and haven’t shown much in the way of progress on the field by comparison, to the point it’s fair to wonder if a coach could get fired.

With the way things have gone, it sure seems like the Bengals could keep a tight grip on the first pick without much of a problem. It’s hard to fathom 0-16, but one look at the remaining schedule doesn’t produce any guaranteed wins.

If nothing else, onlookers can take solace in the fact the top pick should mean the arrival of a new era at quarterback.

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The Bengals have to fire someone, right?

The theme of accountability is losing its luster.

There isn’t a Marvin Lewis to fall back on this time.

Remember 2018? The Cincinnati Bengals fired Teryl Austin on November 12, 2018. His defense had just coughed up 500-plus yards in a 51-14 loss to New Orleans.

Fast forward almost exactly a year, Lou Anarumo’s defense just gave up 379 yards in a 49-13 loss. Baltimore needed 23:49 of clock to do it. A late field goal stopped it from finishing as the worst loss in Bengals franchise history. Sunday marked the team’s 11th straight loss, tied for a team record, and it’s one step closer to matching the franchise’s worst-ever start of 0-10 — captained by one Dave Shula.

But there isn’t a Marvin Lewis this time. When the Bengals fired Austin, Lewis stepped in and helped the defense improve. The team fought.

No such fall back plan exists. The Bengals had problems getting a qualified defensive coordinator in the door in the first place. But one could easily make the argument Anarumo should be fired for his performance. Not only is he failing to establish scheme and adapt to opponents, but his units have also coughed up at least 460 yards in four its last five games.

If the team wanted to pull a stunner and can Zac Taylor, doing so would largely be unfeasible. Who takes over? Anarumo is having a rough time and Brian Callahan on the offensive side is inexperienced and helping craft these miserable gameplans. Does special teams coordinator Darrin Simmons, in his 17th year with the team, jump to interim head coach? What does that accomplish?

And yet, it is brutal to listen to the coaches wax poetic about accountability when this is the product on the field. Were the front office to step in and fire someone it would make plenty of sense.

That probably doesn’t happen. And the Bengals backed themselves into a no-win situation. They hired Taylor knowing he needed to develop as a coach and gave him control of his staff. There’s no easy out here, if they make a move at all. But the longer something doesn’t change, the more potential irreparable harm the team does with its fans.

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‘Disgusting’ and ’embarrassing’ loss featured plenty of bad history for Bengals

The Bengals were historically bad Sunday…even for them.

The Cincinnati Bengals didn’t just lose Sunday.

With a 49-13 knee-slapper of a performance against the Baltimore Ravens, the Bengals inched closer to the 2020 draft’s top pick while looking like a legitimate 0-16 contender.

Defensive end Carlos Dunlap called it “disgusting” and “embarrassing,” according to Fox 19’s Joe Danneman, which is only really beginning to scratch the surface of the disaster.

Keep in mind this all happened after a bye week. The Bengals held the ball for more than 36 minutes but scored 13 points. Baltimore technically didn’t need to take the field offensively thanks to two Ryan Finley turnovers that gave the Ravens 14 points — which would’ve won the game.

Remember that loss 51-14 loss to the New Orleans Saints last year? This slots comfortably behind it by a single point as the second-worst loss in team history. A field goal with 2:29 left stopped it from becoming the worst.

This was also the team’s 11th straight loss, which ties a team record.

Also consider the following from Jay Morrison of The Athletic:

And this miserable Bengals defense let up a historic day for the opposition, too:

At this point, words don’t do the situation justice. It shouldn’t have gotten to this point at all, and the options for improvement seem minimal.

Which is to say, the Bengals won’t run into a player like Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson every week, but wins are going to be hard to come by regardless given the lack of improvement out of the bye.

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Raiders-Bengals odds: Oakland huge favorite vs. Cincinnati in Week 11

The Oakland Raiders are heavily favored in Week 11 when they host the struggling Cincinnati Bengals.

The Oakland Raiders (5-4) host the Cincinnati Bengals (0-9) during Week 11’s NFL regular season Sunday, Nov. 17th, at 4:25 p.m. ET at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. The game can be watched on CBS and the NFL’s Redzone. The Raiders enter as a huge favorite, according to odds from BetMGM.

The Raiders (-455) are favored by 10.5 (-106) points against the spread (ATS) over the Bengals. New to sports betting? With a spread of -10.5, that means the Raiders need to not only beat the Bengals, but they need to win by at least 11 points for an ATS wager on them to cash.

Looking to place a bet on this game or others? Get some action in the game at BetMGM. Sign up and bet at BetMGM now!

Feeling a upset? A $10 wager on the Bengals (+350) would pay $35.00 in profit should they win outright. Meanwhile, a $10 wager on the Raiders to win outright returns a profit of just $2.20.

The Over/Under on the Bengals-Raiders game has been set at 48.5, with a -110 line on both sides for this Week 11 NFL matchup.

Want to get some action on this game? Place a sports bet at BetMGM now. For more sports betting picks and tips, access SportsbookWire.com.

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