Game: Cincinnati Bengals (0-0) at Baltimore Ravens (0-0)
Series Leader: Ravens, 11-13
Streak: Bengals, won three straight six of the past seven.
Coaches vs. Opponent: Lewis is 7-3 against the Ravens. This will be John Harbaugh's first game.
Broadcast: CBS (1:00 PM ET) SIRIUS: 119 (Bal.), 107 (Cin.). Direct TV: 704. Direct TV HD: 7041
SB Nation: Baltimore Beatdown
NFL.com: Game Center
Weather: High of 86, 20% chance of rain. [Weather.com]
Uniform: Black
Site: We plan on being here.
If you combined the touchdown totals for the Ravens roster of quarterbacks, their combined 47 career touchdowns is merely 15 more than the season Carson Palmer had in 2005 (32). While Palmer played 16 games that season, Boller, Smith and Flacco combined to play 57 -- though Flacco has yet to play a regular season down. On the other hand, the Ravens signed the intimidating Todd Bouman. All right, so make that 58 career touchdowns among four quarterbacks that have played 83 career games.
How has Palmer played, in his career, specifically against the Ravens (he's 6-2 against the Browns Colts Ravens)?
Game | Date | Loc. | Comp | Att | Yards | TDs | Int |
8 | 11/11/07 | Away | 23 | 34 | 271 | 0 | 0 |
7 | 9/10/07 | Home | 20 | 32 | 194 | 2 | 0 |
6 | 11/30/06 | Home | 21 | 32 | 234 | 1 | 0 |
5 | 11/5/06 | Away | 12 | 26 | 194 | 1 | 2 |
4 | 11/27/05 | Home | 22 | 30 | 302 | 3 | 1 |
3 | 11/6/05 | Away | 19 | 26 | 248 | 2 | 0 |
2 | 12/5/04 | Away | 29 | 36 | 382 | 3 | 1 |
1 | 9/26/04 | Home | 25 | 52 | 316 | 0 | 3 |
171 | 268 | 2,141 | 12 | 7 |
Jinx alert: Palmer hasn't thrown a pick since the November, 5, 2006 win.
Speaking of Carson Palmer, he's 3-1 when starting kickoff weekend.
Season | Opp. | Result | Notes |
2007 | Baltimore | W, 27-20 | Bengals offense held to 236 total yards. Palmer completed 20 of 32 passes for 194 yards with two touchdowns, including a game-winning seven-yard touchdown to T.J. Houshmandzadeh after Robert Geathers returned a Steve McNair interception for 30 yards. |
2006 | @ Kansas City | W, 23-10 | Bengals scored 17 points in the second quarter during a soggy Sunday afternoon. This is the game that Robert Geathers knocked out Trent Green and recorded two sacks. Justin Smith recorded three of his 7.5 season sacks in the season opener. |
2005 | @ Cleveland | W, 27-13 | Palmer completes 26 of 34 passes for 280 yards passing and two scores. Rudi Johnson rushed 26 times for 126 yards recording a touchdown. David Pollack and Odell Thurman led the team in tackles; Thurman also recorded an interception. Of all the players that recorded a tackle (15 different Bengals), only Robert Geathers and John Thornton remain. |
2004 | @ NY Jets | L, 24-31 | Carson Palmer's career debut, completing 18 of 27 passes and two scores. On the first play after the two minutes warning, down 24-31, Palmer throws an interception that ends a potential comeback, and the game. |
We do a funny thing at Cincy Jungle. Most of the historically reference items that are used for comparison reasons -- suddenly misremembering a significant chuck of my dead brain cells -- is when Marvin Lewis took over as the club's head coach. The rest, we simply throw out like some Professor Dumbledore spell. With that in mind, the Bengals since 2003 against the Ravens:
Date | Result | Location |
10.19.03 | W, 34-26 | Paul Brown |
12.07.03 | L, 13-31 | M & T Bank |
9.26.04 | L, 9-23 | Paul Brown Stadium |
12.5.04 | W, 27-26 | M & T Stadium |
11.06.05 | W, 21-9 | M&T Bank Stadium |
11.27.05 | W, 42-29 | Paul Brown Stadium |
11.05.06 | L, 20-26 | M&T Bank Stadium |
11.30.06 | W, 13-7 | Paul Brown Stadium |
9.10.07 | W, 27-20 | Paul Brown Stadium |
11.11.07 | W, 21-7 | M&T Bank Stadium |
That's right, the Bengals are successfully owning the Ravens since 2003 with a 7-3 record. Never mind that I refuse to recognize the seasons before that; you know, the really bad ones that I misremember.
When the Bengals beat the Ravens 27-20 during regular season game #1 of 2007
When the Bengals beat the Ravens 21-7 during regular season game #9 of 2007
Chad Johnson Ocho Cinco's career against the Ravens.
Game | Date | Loc. | Rec. | Yards | TDs |
13 | 11/11/07 | Away | 4 | 73 | 0 |
12 | 9/10/07 | Home | 5 | 95 | 1 |
11 | 11/30/06 | Home | 8 | 91 | 0 |
10 | 11/5/06 | Away | 4 | 31 | 0 |
9 | 11/27/05 | Home | 5 | 88 | 1 |
8 | 11/6/05 | Away | 5 | 91 | 0 |
7 | 12/5/04 | Away | 10 | 161 | 2 |
6 | 9/26/04 | Home | 8 | 99 | 0 |
5 | 12/7/03 | Away | 2 | 15 | 0 |
4 | 10/19/03 | Home | 5 | 130 | 1 |
3 | 12/1/02 | Home | 4 | 78 | 1 |
2 | 11/10/02 | Away | 7 | 110 | 1 |
1 | 12/23/01 | Away | 3 | 28 | 0 |
70 | 1,090 | 7 |
T.J. Houshmandzadeh's career against the Ravens
Game | Date | Loc. | Rec. | Yards | TDs |
11 | 11/11/07 | Away | 6 | 45 | 0 |
10 | 9/10/07 | Home | 9 | 50 | 1 |
9 | 11/30/06 | Home | 10 | 106 | 1 |
8 | 11/5/06 | Away | 3 | 66 | 1 |
7 | 11/27/05 | Home | 9 | 147 | 1 |
6 | 11/6/05 | Away | 5 | 61 | 0 |
5 | 12/5/04 | Away | 10 | 171 | 1 |
4 | 9/26/04 | Home | 7 | 116 | 0 |
3 | 12/1/02 | Home | 4 | 35 | 1 |
2 | 11/10/02 | Away | 2 | 19 | 0 |
1 | 12/23/01 | Away | 5 | 63 | 0 |
70 | 879 | 6 |
Why doesn't someone pay me for this stuff?
DID YOU KNOW: Team are more likely to win games with a 100-yard rusher than a 300-yard passer; or even a 100-yard receiver? I hope so, because that's just one of the common-sense things that most football fans know. But to prove it...
The winning percentage of all NFL teams -- based on 100-yard rushers, 100-yard receivers and 300-yard passers -- over the past five seasons.
100-Yard Rushers |
100-Yard Receivers |
300-Yard Passers |
||||
W-L | Pct. | W-L | Pct. | W-L | Pct. | |
2003 | 107-44 | .709 | 79-58 | .577 | 29-31 | .483 |
2004 | 134-44 | .753 | 76-88 | .463 | 36-45 | .444 |
2005 | 112-23 | .830 | 79-74 | .516 | 31-33 | .484 |
2006 | 107-47 | .695 | 81-68 | .544 | 36-29 | .554 |
2007 | 102-37 | .734 | 87-66 | .569 | 43-38 | .531 |
Specifically speaking on the Bengals.
100-Yard Rushers |
100-Yard Receivers |
300-Yard Passers |
||||
W-L | Pct. | W-L | Pct. | W-L | Pct. | |
2003 | 5-0 | 1.000 | 3-2 | .600 | 0-1 | .000 |
2004 | 3-2 | .600 | 3-2 | .600 | 1-1 | .500 |
2005 | 4-0 | 1.000 | 4-2 | .667 | 2-1 | .667 |
2006 | 4-1 | .800 | 5-3 | .625 | 1-1 | .500 |
2007 | 2-1 | .667 | 3-4 | .429 | 1-4 | .200 |
TOTAL | 18-4 | .818 | 18-13 | .581 | 5-8 | .385 |
A quick note on accuracy of the above numbers. I went through each game, checked off if they recorded the numbers above, and whether or not they won. It was a quick scan, and could prove wrong in some instances.
You'll note that last season, anytime Palmer threw for 300 yards or more, the Bengals won only one of five games -- usually because we're forced to make up a decent-sized deficit.
DID YOU KNOW: The Bengals are 19-21 all-time in season openers -- including a current three-game winning streak.
DID YOU KNOW II: This Sunday marks what would have been Paul Brown's 100th birthday (b. September 7, 1908).