The Bengals took on the Ravens for a second time in a week, but this game had a lot more on the line. It was the Wildcard round, with the Bengals entering as the 3rd seed, and the Ravens as the 6th. With Baltimore missing Lamar Jackson, Cincinnati was favoured by more than a TD. However, as we often see with AFC North football, the game was much closer than expected.
Cincy got off to a fast start. They drove down for a field goal on the game’s opening drive. Then, Akeem Davis-Gaither came up with an interception on Baltimore’s first offensive possession.
Off the turnover, the Bengals went to work with good field position. Ja’Marr Chase was featured on this drive, making a handful of catches. Tee Higgins also contributed. It was Chase who finished off the drive with a 7 yard TD catch. McPherson missed the extra point, so the score was 9-0 Bengals at this point.
The Ravens would answer on their next drive. And it was exactly the kind of football that Baltimore came in hoping to play. The drive was 17 plays long and lasted over 10 minutes. A 12 yard completion from Huntley to Sammy Watkins got things going, before Dobbins and Edwards proceeded to gash the Bengals in the run game. Now deep in Bengals territory, a 14 yard completion to Andrews set up the Ravens at the Bengals 11. Not long after, Dobbins punched it in from 2 yards out. 9-7 Bengals.
Hayden Hurst would cough up the football on Cincinnati’s next possession. With possession back, Baltimore would continue to have success in the run game. They drove the ball inside the Cincy 5, but the Bengals defence held them to a field goal. Baltimore went into the half with a 10-9 lead.
The Bengals went on a long drive of their own to start the 2nd half. It consisted of a lot of shorter plays, as they had to move methodically against a tough Ravens defence. Now inside Baltimore territory, Burrow hit Chase for 10 yards on 3rd & 9. He found him again on the next play, for 19 yards. The momentum continued for the Bengals. Burrow found Hurst for 18 yards to get down to the 1, leading to a QB sneak TD for Burrow. They went two, and the pass to Higgins was complete in the endzone. 17-10 Bengals.
Baltimore’s next possession was a bad one for the Cincinnati defence, as big plays proved to be costly. Huntley completed his first pass to Dobbins, who took it 27 yards. He then found Gus Edwards for 13. Now inside Bengals territory, the Ravens went deep. Eli Apple bit on the slant route, and Robinson turned up field and was wide open for a 41 yard TD. The game was tied at 17.
After the Bengals offence went three and out, the Ravens again drove the ball deep into Cincinnati territory, looking to retake the lead. Huntley hit Mark Andrews for 25 yards, and then ran the ball himself for another 25. Jessie Bates was able to make the tackle short of the endzone, bringing him down at the 2.
A few plays later, with the ball now at the 1 yard line, Huntley tried a QB sneak. He extended the ball out, hoping to break the plane, but it was short of the line. With the ball sitting up there, Logan Wilson was able to punch it out, right into the hands of Sam Hubbard. Hubbard had green grass in front of him and took off. Despite Mark Andrews’ effort to chase him down, Hubbard found his way into the endzone. 24-17 Bengals.
The offence would fail to generate anything more in the 4th quarter, and the Ravens were given one last shot to get back in it. They ended up in a 4th & 20 situation on the Cincinnati 27, with only 8 seconds left of the clock. Huntley threw up a Hail Mary into the endzone. The ball was tipped up into the air by Mike Hilton. On its way down, Proche was able to get his fingertips on the ball, but could not secure the catch, ending the game.
The Bengals, despite some rough moments, pulled through with the 24-17 win. Wilson’s forced fumble and Hubbard’s return ended up being the game changing moment. Cincinnati advances to the Divisional round, and will fly to Buffalo to take on the Bills next Sunday.
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