Week 14 rooting guide: Ravens can lock up playoff berth and get closer to No. 1 seed

The Baltimore Ravens can clinch a playoff spot, the AFC North and get one game closer to the No. 1 seed with a little help in Week 14.

The Baltimore Ravens are able to clinch a playoff berth with a win in Week 14 over the Buffalo Bills. But that’s not quite good enough and with a little help, the Ravens can lock up a top-4 seed and even give themselves some breathing room at the No. 1 seed in the AFC playoff picture.

But it’s not just about the postseason this week when surveying Week 14’s schedule. And we’ll start our rooting guide off with a game that doesn’t really affect Baltimore directly at all.

Cincinnati Bengals (1-11) at Cleveland Browns (5-7)

Rooting for: Bengals

Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images

There’s a little pettiness here for many Ravens fans. While the Browns are all but mathematically eliminated from the postseason, a loss this week will take their chances to below 1%. For a team that talked so much smack about how they’d own the division this season, falling to 5-8 and effectively killing their playoff hopes completely would be fitting.

But what this could really help is giving the Bengals another win. They’re already eliminated from playoff contention but they currently hold the top pick in the 2020 NFL draft. With a win and a little help, they could hurt their chances of claiming the No. 1 overall pick. Not getting to choose whatever player they want could turn out to be beneficial for Baltimore over the next decade.