The Baltimore Ravens return to the AFC North to take on the Cincinnati Bengals for the second and final time this season. The Ravens are fresh off two big wins while the Bengals are just trying to pick up their first win and keep pink slips off their desks.
With such a one sided looking game today, I asked the writers here at Ravens Wire what bold things they thought could happen and we got some crazy answers.
Kevin Oestreicher:
De’Anthony Thomas gets a return touchdown in his first game as a Raven
This is a bold prediction article right? Then why not go bold. De’Anthony Thomas wasn’t at his best in Kansas City this year as he only averaged 4.2 yards per return on 13 punts and 22.1 yards per return on seven kickoffs this season. However, I expect him to come into Baltimore and provide the level of impact that Cyrus Jones had when he signed with the Ravens last year. He’s a speedy and shifty guy who is extremely athletic, and I think he shows everyone how good of a player he’ll be with a return touchdown in his first game as a Raven
Neil Dutton:
10 Sacks for the Ravens’ defense
Despite being among the league leaders in blitz rate, the Ravens haven’t been able to get to the quarterback on a consistent basis. They have a mere 14 sacks on the season. The Ravens defense will have itself a day against the Bengals though, with rookie Ryan Finley making his career start. Andy Dalton before his benching was absorbing sacks at a 7.9% rate, and his replacement will be taken down 10 times. Only Greg McElroy (11) will have taken more sacks in his first career start among QBs since 2010.
Chuck Mills:
Lamar Jackson throws for 300 yards and 4 touchdowns
Jackson was dominant in Week 6 against the Bengals, putting up a historic performance where he had over 200 yards passing and 100 yards running. But this time he’ll defeat them with his arm, as the Bengals have one of the weakest pass defenses in the NFL and unlike last time, Jackson will have wide receiver Marquise Brown, who should have another big day against a secondary that struggled to stop Jackson when he didn’t have his best wideout on the field.
Alex Bente:
Baltimore defense forces at least 5 turnovers
With a revamped and healthy defense finally playing at an elite level, the Ravens should get back to their old ways of dominating young quarterbacks. Bengal’s rookie QB Ryan Finley is in for a long day as the Ravens, who disguise coverage better than anyone, get a chance to harass the first-time starter for 60 minutes. I expect Baltimore’s opportunistic secondary to capitalize on every mistake leading to multiple interceptions. I also expect Don Martindale to bring a variety of blitzes that, when hitting home, should cause Finley to cough up the ball. Don’t be surprised if the Ravens’ defense scores on one or more of those turnovers too, an exciting trend that seems to have taken root in recent weeks.
Matthew Stevens:
The Ravens lose
This is bolder than any prediction on here right now honestly. Absolutely no one thinks Baltimore could possibly lose to a team that has yet to win a game and is seeing their rookie quarterback start his first NFL game. Yet, it all makes too much sense.
The Ravens have always struggled coming off big games and it doesn’t get much bigger than beating up the New England Patriots on Sunday Night Football. Look to last year when Baltimore got spanked by the Carolina Panthers after losing a close game to the New Orleans Saints. In 2017, the Ravens got beat up by the Tennessee Titans after destroying the Miami Dolphins on Thursday Night Football.
It also doesn’t help that Baltimore has a slate of big games coming up on the schedule after this week either. It’d be far too easy for the Ravens to overlook the winless Bengals by already eyeing up the Houston Texans, Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers coming over the next three weeks.
Let’s also be real here . . . Baltimore tends to drop one head-scratcher every season that no one saw coming. With few of those left on the schedule, this is a prime head-scratching loss for the Ravens.
