Bengals News (10/12): Folded under pressure

Quick Hits: Cincinnati Bengals deal with more injuries on the defensive line
The Bengals suffered one of the injuries they couldn't suffer on defense in the second half of Sunday's loss in Baltimore when nose tackle D.J. Reader was carted off the field with a left knee injury that is being reported as season-ending.

The Cincinnati Bengals defense played much better against the Ravens potent rushing attack.
"Like I said at the beginning of the week, I think that we had a really good game plan going into it to stop that zone read and the quarterback stuff," said free safety Jessie Bates III. "But we didn't do well on third down, which we didn't really emphasize on. (It's) emphasized every week, but we didn't do that well today.

Burrow Absorbs An AFC North Lesson
The Bengals couldn't get on the board until 32 seconds left in Sunday's 27-3 loss at Baltimore. When the dust-cleared their red-hot quarterback had been cooled off on seven sacks, 15 hits, two turnovers, 183 yards on 19 of 30 passing and countless of blitz looks while missing on 13 of 16 third downs.

Postgame news conference quotes from Zac Taylor and Joe Burrow
I thought the defense did a lot of really good things. The offense put the defense in a lot of tough positions with turnovers, penalties, and really, the defense gave up 20 points over the course of the game. We had a fumble for a touchdown at the end. They did a lot of good things we can build off of. If they play like that again, we can win a lot of football games. Again, this is one of those times when we didn't complement each other on both phases of the ball, and offensively, we have a lot of work to do.

The Cincinnati Bengals lose to the Baltimore Ravens, 27-3, in Week 5
Burrow, so good in his first four games, was a prop for the Ravens' array of blitzes as he was sacked seven times, hit 15 times and chased virtually every other time he dropped back to pass. Burrow finished 19 of 30 for 183 yards and a passer rating of 66.4. Running back Joe Mixon had room to get just 59 yards on 24 carries as the Bengals could muster 300 yards fewer than last week with 205.

Bengals trail 17-0 at halftime against the Baltimore Ravens
The Ravens tried-and-true formula of getting an early lead and then unleashing their ravenous pass rush worked to perfection Sunday in Baltimore's M&T Bank Stadium when they built a 17-0 halftime lead in the game's first 15:04 over a Bengals offense stunned by the pressure and couldn't generate 100 yards after getting 505 last week.

Ravens defense makes Bengals' Joe Burrow look like rookie
This year’s top overall draft pick found himself on the ground often and looked out of sorts in a 27-3 loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday. Burrow was 19-of-30 passing for 183 yards, one interception and one lost fumble. Burrow was pressured early and often as they kept the rookie unsettled all afternoon.

Podcast: Failing to Protect Burrow, Green's Future and Injuries Taking Their Toll
CINCINNATI — Tony Pike and I discuss the Bengals' inability to protect Joe Burrow in their 27-3 loss to the Ravens. We also talk about A.J. Green's future in Cincinnati and the significance of DJ Reader's potentially season-ending quad injury.

Cincinnati Bengals are already ruining Joe Burrow
Burrow, who was the No. 1 pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, is being ruined by the Cincinnati Bengals. And if the team doesn’t get it fixed soon, Burrow will end up being an afterthought in the NFL.

Ravens vs. Bengals score: Baltimore defense dominates with three turnovers in blowout win over Cincinnati
The Baltimore Ravens defense arguably put up the best performance by any team in the NFL this season, allowing just a field goal to an overmatched Cincinnati Bengals team in a 27-3 victory Sunday. Baltimore shut down Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati offense, holding the Bengals to just 205 yards on the afternoon while forcing three turnovers and completely dominating the line of scrimmage in the win.

Around the league

Mike Zimmer on fourth-and-1 decision in loss to Seattle: 'I'm not going to second-guess any of that stuff'
Choices are a fickle friend. We all make thousands a day, most with unseen consequences that map out our days and guide individual Choose Your Own Adventures. Some, however, lead to massive waterfalls of aftereffect that cascade, flooding from one plane of existence into another.

Cowboys' Dak Prescott undergoes successful surgery Sunday for compound right ankle fracture
Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott underwent successful surgery Sunday night after suffering a compound right ankle fracture and dislocation in the third quarter of Dallas' 37-34 win over the New York Giants, the team announced. He is expected to be released from the hospital Monday.

Falcons fire coach Dan Quinn, GM Thomas Dimitroff after 0-5 start
In a team statement, the Falcons announced president and CEO Rich McKay has assumed oversight of the teams' day-to-day operation and that an interim coach is expected to be announced on Monday. In addition, the team announced McKay and owner Arthur Blank would lead the search for a new GM and head coach.

NFL Week 5: What we learned from Sunday's games
1) Why is it far better to have a seasoned veteran holding your QB clipboard than a youngster? Exhibit A: Andy Dalton. The Cowboys backup, who logged 133 starts in nine seasons with the Bengals, calmly led Dallas to 13 points after Dak Prescott's gruesome ankle injury, including a game-winning field goal as time expired. It wasn't all from a storybook for Dalton – he was sacked on his first play and later lost a fumble on a bad snap exchange, but he delivered some key throws in crucial spots that couldn't be expected of a rookie. Dalton finished 9-of-11 for 111 yards, and given Prescott's pending surgery, he figures to be the Cowboys' man for an extended period.

NFL could add additional weeks to regular season
This could happen as soon as Monday morning. If positive tests among the Buffalo Bills and/or Tennessee Titans force Tuesday's game between those teams to be postponed -- and given that the Titans have already had their bye -- the game would be indefinitely postponed (potentially pushed to Week 18).