The Cincinnati Bengals plan to upset the Baltimore Ravens in week 17, but Baltimore’s defense may have something else in mind.
What do you get when you combine the league’s 27th ranked scoring offense and 28th ranked total YPG offense and pit them against the league’s fourth-ranked scoring defense and ninth-ranked total YPG defense in a game where playoff hopes are on the line? You get a dominant defensive effort. That’s precisely what will happen when the Baltimore Ravens square off against the Cincinnati Bengals in week 17.
The Bengals have historically given the Ravens fits, with an all-time record of 23-26. In recent seasons, however, Baltimore has had Cincinnati’s number, winning the last four games. A lot of the success has to do with the way the offense has played, but the defense has done more than just hold up its end of the deal. The Bengals are averaging just 13.5 PPG in those four meetings. To call that dominating would be an understatement. Much will be the same in this go-around.
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Cincinnati is missing its star quarterback Joe Burrow, which the team had the last time they played. Burrow still only managed to score three points while getting sacked seven times and throwing an interception. Now Ryan Finley is entrenched as the starter behind the league’s worst offensive line and a bang-up cast of weapons. That’s not exactly a recipe for success.
Meanwhile, Baltimore’s defense should be getting back Marcus Peters after missing the last two weeks with a calf injury. Peters was the player who recorded the interception the last time these two played. Calais Campbell will also be back to nearly 100% and Matt Judon is red hot right now. Baltimore also didn’t have Yannick Ngakoue the last time these teams played and still managed seven sacks.
All this leads to a perfect storm for the Ravens to shut down the Bengals. Cincinnati will struggle to move the ball effectively, let alone score, against a defense that had their number earlier in the year. Baltimore has also gotten better defensively while Cinci has gotten worse offensively.
It’s simply an uneven matchup; nevermind the fact that this game has major playoff implications or that these two teams hate each other. It won’t be close. In fact, it wouldn’t be the least bit surprising to see the Bengals get shutdown and shutout by a surging Ravens team.
This is simply a complete mismatch in talent and coaching. Better luck next year to the Cincinnati Bengals, but the Baltimore Ravens will have this team’s number and mop the floor with them. The defense is going to feast and deliver a crucial win for Baltimore.