Ravens @ Bengals Week 18 Game Preview
Both the Ravens and Bengals are playoff-bound, but questions still remain around seeding and the Bengals following the Monday Night Football tragedy.
Ravens at Bengals
The Ravens and Bengals have officially punched their tickets to the postseason, but their playoff seeding is still up in the air. The Bengals currently own a 1.5-game lead over the Ravens in the standings, so a victory on Sunday would sew things up. However, if the Ravens win, it does create a scenario where they could also win the division.
It would ultimately come down to whatever happens between the Bengals and Bills. Monday’s incident involving Damar Hamlin was devastating for everyone involved and thankfully the league and teams decided it wasn’t worth resuming the game that evening. That game has yet to be rescheduled, but if they do play at some point, the Bengals would need to beat either the Bills or Ravens to win the AFC North. If they lose both contests, the Ravens would overtake them in the standings.
The big question with the Ravens involves the health of quarterback Lamar Jackson. He’s missed each of the past four games, and he was absent at practice once again on Wednesday. He’s now missed 13 straight practice sessions with his knee injury, and it remains to be seen if he has a chance to suit up on Sunday.
With Jackson out of the lineup, Tyler Huntley has handled most of the quarterback responsibilities in the team’s past five contests. Huntley entered the year as someone that most considered a competent backup, but he hasn’t lived up to those expectations. He’s averaged just 5.03 adjusted yards per attempt over the past five weeks to go along with two touchdown passes and three interceptions. He also hasn’t been particularly efficient as a runner, averaging just 3.19 yards per carry on 8.6 attempts per game.
Unsurprisingly, the Ravens’ offense has struggled with Huntley under center. They’ve won two of his four starts, but the team still scored 17 points or fewer in five straight games. The offense wasn’t exactly firing on all cylinders with Jackson either, but it’s been a clear downgrade.
Meanwhile, the Bengals’ offense has been red hot. They’ve led the team to seven straight wins, including a marquee win over the Chiefs. They’ve scored at least 20 points in all seven games, and they’ve had at least 34 points in three of them.
They’ll have their hands full with the Ravens, who have improved on defense as the year has progressed. They’re up to eighth in defensive DVOA, and they could get Calais Campbell back in the lineup this week.
The Bengals are currently listed as seven-point favorites, and that number feels about right. The Bengals are clearly the better team, but I always lead towards large underdogs in divisional matchups. That said, make sure to pay attention as the week progresses. It’s possible that one or both teams choose to rest some of their players, which would obviously have an impact.