NFL Week 5 Primer: Cincinnati Bengals (1-2-1) at Baltimore Ravens (3-1)

The Bengals haven’t officially lost in two weeks.

Sure, one was a game they should’ve won against the Eagles instead of tied, but they did officially get rookie quarterback Joe Burrow his first win. It came with Joe Mixon’s best game of the season as well, but Burrow also looked like anything but a rookie in the win.

Things get a lot tougher for the Bengals this week though. They will be travelling to Baltimore to take on the Ravens. It will likely be the first of many installments of Lamar Jackson vs. Burrow. These are two young quarterbacks in the AFC North who will see plenty of each other.

Jackson and the Ravens have looked like the cream of the AFC crop outside of their loss to the Chiefs this season. Their offense looks unstoppable once it gets going, and the defense has done a terrific job of making things hard for opposing offenses.

This is a great measuring stick game for a young Bengals team looking to prove they are on the upswing. The Ravens are a Super Bowl contending team, and are exactly what this Bengals team aims to be. Are they closer than people think, or is this team in for a reality check?

Everything you need to know for when the Bengals take on the Ravens:

Game: Cincinnati Bengals (1-2-1) at Baltimore Ravens (3-1)

Date/Time: Oct. 11th, 2020 at 1:00 p.m. EST

Location: M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, Maryland

Series Leader: The Ravens lead the series 25-23

Streak: The Ravens have won the past three games

Coaches vs. Opponent: Zac Taylor: (0-1). John Harbaugh (12-12)

Television: The game will air on CBS-TV. In the Bengals’ home region, it will be carried by WKRC-TV (Ch. 12) in Cincinnati, WHIO-TV (Ch. 7) in Dayton and on WKYT-TV (Ch. 27) in Lexington. Broadcasters are Greg Gumbel (play-by-play), Rich Gannon (analyst) and Amanda Balionis (reporter).

Radio Broadcast: The game will air on the Bengals Radio Network, led by Cincinnati flagship stations WLW-AM (700), WCKY-AM (ESPN 1530; all sports) and WEBN-FM (102.7). Broadcasters are Dan Hoard (play-by-play) and Dave Lapham (analyst).

SB Nation Ravens’ site: Baltimore Beatdown

Weather: Mid 60’s, possible rain and overcast [NFL weather]

Odds: Bengals, -14 [Odds Shark]

Bengals Notes

• Joe Burrow completed 25 of 36 passes (69.4 percent) for 300 yards and a touchdown and an interception for a 92.4 passer rating last week, becoming the first rookie quarterback with 300 passing yards in three consecutive games in NFL history. He aims for his fourth in a row with a touchdown pass and a passer rating of at least 90. He ranks second in the NFL with 116 completions this season.
• Joe Mixon had 181 scrimmage yards (151 rushing and 30 receiving) and a career-high three touchdowns last week. He had 151 scrimmage yards (114 rushing and 37 receiving) in the last meeting with the Ravens.
• Tyler Boyd had seven catches for 90 yards last week. He aims for his fourth in a row with at least seven catches and 70 receiving yards. He had six catches for 62 yards in the last meeting with Baltimore. He ranks third in the AFC in catches (28) and receiving yards (320). Tee Higgins had a career-high 77 receiving yards last week. He ranks third among AFC rookie wide receivers in catches (12) and receiving yards (152). Auden Tate had 91 receiving yards in the last road meeting with the Ravens.
• Carlos Dunlap had a pass deflection last week. He has a sack and pass deflection in two of his past three games at Baltimore. Andrew Brown had his first-career sack last week. Jordan Evans had a sack and interception last week. He had a pass deflection in the last meeting. Jessie Bates led the team with 10 tackles and had two pass deflections and a tackle for a loss in Week 4. He had an interception in the last meeting. He has a pass deflection in six of his past games seven on road.

Ravens notes

• Lamar Jackson passed for 193 yards and two touchdowns and an interception for a 107.8 passer rating and rushed for 53 yards and his first touchdown of the season last week. He has a passer rating of at least 100 in six of his past seven games. He completed 15 of 17 passes (88.2 percent) for 223 yards and three touchdowns for a perfect 158.3 passer rating and rushed for 65 yards and a touchdown in the last meeting.
• Mark Ingram rushed for a touchdown last week. He has a rushing touchdown in two of his past three games. He aims for his fourth in a row against the Bengals with a touchdown. J.K. Dobbins is one of three AFC rookie running backs with 2 touchdowns this season.
• Mark Andrews had 57 receiving yards and two touchdown catches last week, his fourth-career game with at least two touchdown catches, most among tight ends since 2019. He had two touchdowns in his last game against the Bengals as well. He has touchdown catches in four of his past five games at home. He leads tight ends with four touchdowns in 2020. Marquise Brown led the team with four catches for 86 yards last week. He had 80 receiving yards and a touchdown catch in the last meeting.
• Matthew Judon had two sacks and a pass deflection last week. He had a sack in last home meeting against the Bengals. Calais Campbell had a pass deflection in Week 4. He has three tackles for a loss in his past two games against the Bengals. He has four pass deflections in his past two games at home. Marlon Humphrey had a season-high nine tackles, a pass deflection and a forced fumble last week. He has a forced fumble in two of his past three games. He aims for his third in a row against Cincinnati with at least two passes defended. Marcus Peters had a fumble recovery in Week 4. He had an 89-yard interception returned for a touchdown the last time these teams met.