Mapping a out a blueprint to success in this AFC North showdown.
The Baltimore Ravens will be back on the road in Week 5, visiting the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday afternoon for their first AFC North matchup of the season. After a commanding victory over the Buffalo Bills in Week 4, the Ravens will be looking to extend their winning streak against their bitter rivals. Not only would a win push their record over .500 for the first time this season, it could even put them into a tie for first place in the division if the Pittsburgh Steelers lose to the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday night.
Here are five keys integral to the Ravens’ coming out on top in Week 5.
Continue to lean on dominant ground attack
The formula for the Ravens’ punishing run game has driven their success on offense during their impressive two-game win streak. Led by dynamic dual-threat quarterback Lamar Jackson, bruising Pro Bowl running back Derrick Henry, and a revamped offensive line that is rounding into form, Baltimore has fielded the league’s most productive rushing attack with more than 270 yards in back-to-back games. The Bengals’ rushing defense ranks 28th overall and 31st against runs from under center and outside the tackles, so Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken shouldn’t deviate from his recent game plans that should produce at an extremely high level for the third week in a row.
Cloud post-snap picture for Joe Burrow
Under former defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald for the past two seasons from 2022-2023, the Ravens have held the Bengals Pro Bowl signal caller to some of the least productive outings of his career. The key to keeping him in check has been deploying deceptive coverages that takeaway throws he thought were available pre-snap and blitzes, stunts and while mixing in simulated pressures, stunts, and twists he didn’t see coming. First-year defensive coordinator Zach Orr is coming off his best game as a play-caller in which he confused and confounded MVP frontrunner Josh Allen into the second-lowest dropback success rate of his career. Orr will need to channel that same level of creative unpredictability in order to get similar results and continue the unit’s success against Burrow.
Limit explosive plays from Ja’Marr Chase
After a slow start to the season following a hold-in during training camp, the Bengals’ three-time Pro Bowl wide receiver has begun to heat up over the past two weeks. He has racked up a combined nine receptions on 13 targets for 203 receiving yards and trio of touchdowns including his first 100-plus receiving yard game of the season. The bulk of his yardage and all three of his scores have come on receptions of 30-plus yards including a beastly 61-yard catch-and-run to the house against the Carolina Panthers last week in the Bengals’ first win of the season. Chase is just as capable of running through a defense as he is of running past it, so solid coverage won’t be enough on its own. The Ravens’ second- and third-level defenders will need to tackle in open space to neutralize Chase’s dangerous yards-after-catch ability.
Keep Trey Hendrickson at bay
The Bengals’ pass rush ranks second-to-last in sacks with just five in their first four games, tied for the second-fewest in the NFL. Three-time Pro Bowler Trey Hendrickson is the only Bengal with multiple sacks, but two of his three came in one game against struggling rookie Kingsley Suamataia. Since Hendrickson is the Bengals’ only consistent pass-rusher, minimizing his impact on the game will be key to keeping the offense in rhythm. He is currently dealing with a back and neck injury that limited his participation practice, but likely won’t keep him out of the game.
Deploy heavy play action passing attack
The Bengals’ defense has gotten carved up through the air over the past two weeks, allowing Jayden Daniels to complete 91.3% of his passes (a single-game rookie record) in their Week 3 loss on Monday Night Football. By establishing a potent rushing attack, the Ravens’ offense could set itself up for explosive gains off of play-action passes, against which the Bengals rank 25th in pass defense efficiency. This could result in another outing with over 10 yards per completion from Lamar Jackson with the potential for big games from tight ends Isaiah Likely and Mark Andrews as pass-catchers after starting the year with more blocking duties.