ExtremeRavens Posted October 6 Posted October 6 Here’s what The Baltimore Sun sports staff had to say immediately after the Ravens’ 41-38 overtime win over the Cincinnati Bengals in Sunday’s Week 5 game at Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati. Childs Walker, reporter: Good lord. That was a wildly entertaining game featuring miraculous stuff from Lamar Jackson and his playmakers, but the Bengals dictated the flow until Marlon Humphrey stepped up with an interception and Nnamdi Madubuike with a sack on Cincinnati’s last two drives of regulation. Those two massive plays sent the game to overtime. And then, unimaginable disaster: Jackson dropped a shotgun snap in Baltimore territory, seemingly handing Cincinnati a game-winning field goal. But the Bengals handed it back with a bad hold on the kick, and Derrick Henry took it home with a 51-yard romp against a tired defense. What can you say to do justice to a game like that? This is why we watch this maddening sport. The Ravens had specialized in making Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow uncomfortable the previous two seasons, but coordinator Zach Orr could not find the formula this time around. When he sent extra rushers, they rarely got home, and Burrow persistently attacked the right coverage matchups. The Ravens are built to dictate tempo, but they simply did not see the ball much in the second and third quarters. That was in part because they made a string of disastrous mistakes. Tylan Wallace, filling in for an injured Deonte Harty, failed to field a punt and let it trickle down to the Baltimore 2-yard line. A mysteriously unblocked Sam Hubbard dropped Henry for a safety on the very next play. Then, the Ravens called timeout facing third-and-10 with less than a minute to go before halftime. Why didn’t they either let the clock run or force Cincinnati to call a timeout? Instead, Jackson threw incomplete, and the Bengals had time to drive for a touchdown that put them up 17-14, with the ball coming their way to start the second half. Roquan Smith could have swung the game back toward the Ravens but could not haul in a deflection deep in Bengals territory. Burrow made the Ravens pay with a series of third-down completions on a touchdown drive that put Cincinnati up 10. The Ravens were back within three in the fourth quarter, in desperate need of a stop, when Ja’Marr Chase took a short completion 70 yards for a touchdown. How did safety Marcus Williams take that poor a tackling angle against the most dynamic playmaker on the field? But Jackson and the offense did their job, attacking loaded boxes designed to stifle the league’s best running game until, finally, the Bengals broke. Mike Preston, columnist: Cincinnati came into the game desperate for a win, and the Bengals almost pulled it out on the strength of their quarterback, Joe Burrow, and receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. When those three get in a rhythm, they are hard to stop, as Burrow threw five touchdown passes Sunday. The Ravens’ secondary, like in the first two games of the season, appeared confused and gave up short passes to the outside, and the Bengals protected Burrow well after the first quarter. But Lamar Jackson answered Burrow in the second half, matching him big play for big play, and the contest lived up to the hype. Jackson carried the Ravens in the second half, especially when the defense faltered, but he came up short in the magic department with his fumble in overtime. Regardless, the NFL has promoted this type of offensive production for several years. The game met those expectations. C.J. Doon, editor: Holy cow. Game of the year? Game of the year. The overtime alone had more emotional swings than a typical senior year of high school. Lamar Jackson, brilliant all game, lost concentration for a spilt-second and fumbled the snap, giving Cincinnati a chance to win. But Evan McPherson missed a 53-yard field goal attempt after the holder bobbled the snap, and Derrick Henry charged ahead for 51 yards on the next play to set up Justin Tucker for an easy chip shot to win the game. It feels like a lifetime ago now, but the Ravens were down 38-28 with 8:54 to go in the fourth quarter and looked done for. They couldn’t get a stop all game, but Jackson kept them in it long enough for the defense to make two game-changing plays: a interception from Marlon Humphrey and a sack by Nnamdi Madubuike. This might have been Jackson’s best performance of his NFL career given how much was on his shoulders with the Ravens trailing for nearly the entire day. We haven’t seen much of that throughout his career, with Baltimore usually the team protecting the lead. Don’t forget Jackson’s touchdown pass to Isaiah Likely after stiff-arming Sam Hubbard and falling out of bounds, which will live forever on the superstar’s career highlight reel. It was that good. Tim Schwartz, editor: What the heck just happened?! It’s at least fitting that both teams missed an opportunity to win the game late. Both quarterbacks were magical Sunday. Burrow cut through the Ravens’ defense like a hot knife through butter. Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins put on a show, each catching a pair of touchdown passes, and Baltimore’s defense had no answer until it desperately needed one. Marlon Humphrey’s interception changed the game, and Justin Tucker put away any doubts that he might be washed by nailing a 56-yard game-tying field goal to cap an absolute wild fourth quarter that included four touchdowns. The Ravens surely got some luck by having Evan McPherson miss a field goal attempt in overtime after a stunning fumbled snap by Jackson, but they were probably due for some. It’s hard to overstate how big a win that is — burying the Bengals (1-4) in Cincinnati in a key AFC North showdown despite allowing 442 total yards. Jackson and Ravens were just better when they needed to be. Bennett Conlin, editor: Lamar Jackson is unbelievable, and Derrick Henry serves as the perfect backfield complement. Jackson carried the Ravens to a fourth-quarter comeback, showcasing why he’s one of the most competitive players in the league. As cliche as it sounds, Jackson refused to lose — with a fumbled snap his lone blemish. He made accurate throws, dazzled as a runner and put his team over .500 by playing like the league’s Most Valuable Player. The best teams in the NFL can win in a variety of ways, and the Ravens won a shootout Sunday, leaning on Jackson’s eye-popping skills and seemingly magical ability to avoid being sacked. While fans — and the coaching staff — would prefer both offensive and defensive consistency, Baltimore isn’t the last team this season that will be burned by Joe Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. Baltimore’s defense gave up way too many points and yards, but Jackson and the offense kept pace in the road affair. Zay Flowers looked fantastic, especially after the catch — Ravens fans can take a break from analyzing Davante Adams’ social media posts — and three tight ends contributed in the passing game. The running game produced just enough to keep Cincinnati’s defense on its heels, with Derrick Henry finding the end zone for the 100th time in his career and effectively icing the game with an overtime scamper. Justin Tucker also stepped up, hitting from 56 yards to tie the game late in the fourth quarter and ending it with a short kick in overtime. Sunday’s win was far from perfect, but the best teams can win despite miscues. The Ravens have rapidly flushed the 0-2 start from their system, winning three in a row. There’s plenty to improve on defense with Washington and Jayden Daniels up next, but a win is a win and Marlon Humphrey’s fourth-quarter interception — plus some field goal luck — proved to be just enough defensive help for Jackson. View the full article Quote
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