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NFL Schedule Week 18 - Ravens @ Bengals
2022 NFL Regular Season Game
Baltimore Ravens (10-6) vs Cincinnati Bengals (11-4)
Date: Sunday 8th January
Time: 1:00 pm EST
Venue: Paycor Stadium - Cincinnati, Ohio
TV Channel: CBS
Live Stream: FuboTV/NFL+
Live Radio: Sirius XM
Ravens vs Bengals Preview
The Baltimore Ravens will face the Cincinnati Bengals in a matchup that will decide the AFC North title. There has currently been no decision made on the Buffalo Bills game with Cincinnati that was called early on Monday night.
The Bengals will now turn their attention to hosting the Baltimore Ravens, and if they beat them, they’ll be crowned back-to-back AFC North Champions, something they've never done in the 20-year history of the division.
There's a good shot these two teams could end up facing each other once again in the wildcard round of the playoffs. A Bengals win combined with both the Bills and Chiefs also winning would mean the Bengals finish the season third in the AFC. The Ravens would finish 6th, creating a rematch in the playoffs at the Paycor Stadium.
If the Ravens win the game and the division, Cincinnati would end up a lower seed, losing home-field advantage in the process. This result could potentially have them heading to Baltimore, or facing the winner of the AFC South title game between the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Tennessee Titans.
Ravens vs Bengals Odds, Spread, Moneyline, Over/Under - NFL Odds Week 17
Moneyline: Baltimore Ravens +260, Cincinnati Bengals -320
Spread: Baltimore Ravens +7, Cincinnati Bengals -7
Total: Over/Under 41.5
Game Preview
Both of these teams are playoff-bound teams, that is concrete. However, when the curtains close on Week 18 we find out how these teams will line up in the post-season. This game plays a significant role in confirming that for both teams.
No matter how the rest of the AFC shakes out, this game is a fight for home-field advantage, and we can draw a line under it at that.
So, focusing on the task at hand, the Bengals face a Ravens team that beat them in Week 5 and frustrated their offense into scoring just 17 points. Ja’Marr Chase was held to 50 yards that game, while Tee Higgins didn't feature with an ankle issue. The Ravens' secondary were draped all over the Bengals receivers all afternoon and it was Hayden Hurst and the tight ends who had to provide some of the production on the day.
While that might be the case, this is a much improved Bengals team. Cincinnati's main struggle early in the year came in the form of a new-look offensive line that didn't seem to be clicking. Burrow was sacked 13 times in the Bengals first two games, and a further five in the three games that followed, including a pair against Baltimore.
The loss of La’El Collins could prove significant late in the year. The Bengals big free agency signing went down in Week 16 with a torn ACL and is therefore out for the season, with Hakeem Adeniji taking over at right tackle in his absence.
Adeniji was a sixth-round pick back in 2020, who played his college football at Kansas. He was a two-time All-Big 12 selection and a reliable tackle for the Jayhawks, never missing a game through injury and starting in all twelve games as a freshman.
He’ll have his work cut out against this Baltimore Ravens defense, which ranks third in points allowed per game this year.
The Ravens owe a lot of their success this season to the performance of their defense. Baltimore is allowing just 18 points per game, a statistic only the Bills and 49ers are outperforming. Baltimore have also been extremely effective on third down all season.
The Ravens rank fourth in third down conversions allowed this year, with pressure getting home and sticky coverage doing its job when it matters the most. Marcus Peters hasn’t played for a couple of weeks with a calf issue, and the Ravens will be hopeful he can get back on the field this weekend, having been an important part of the performance that stifled the Bengals pass catchers earlier in the year.
While I respect the work the Ravens have done on defense this year, their list of opponents doesn’t compare to the arsenal of weapons the Bengals have at their disposal. Since the Ravens beat Cincinnati in Week 5, the quarterbacks they’ve faced and beaten are Jacoby Brissett, Tom Brady, Andy Dalton, Baker Mayfield, Russell Wilson, Desmond Ridder, and Kenny Pickett.
While both Tom Brady and Russell Wilson feature on that list, those are perhaps the two most disappointing offenses of this NFL season. The Ravens have then been beaten by Trevor Lawrence and the Jacksonville Jaguars and Deshaun Watson and the Browns.
The latter of those two games highlights the offensive struggles Baltimore have faced this year. With injuries to various running backs and wide receivers, the Ravens have struggled to find offensive firepower all season, and Lamar Jackson has now not played since Week 13, making that struggle worse. They might have lost to the Browns, but the score was 13-3. Any game where your defense holds your opponent to 13 points should be a game you're able to win. The Ravens D does a great job against the run game a lot of the time and then depends on their secondary to provide tight coverage in passing situations.
It comes down to this. While the Ravens beat the Bengals in Week 5, they haven’t faced an offense as strong as Joe Burrow and co since. Trevor Lawrence was able to navigate his way through the defense, and he’s likely the most prolific quarterback they’ve faced. Barring the loss of La’El Collins, the Bengals are as good as healthy offensively, with a wide receiver group of Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins, and Tyler Boyd all having strong seasons once again.
The key matchup will be those guys against the Ravens' secondary, and if the Bengals win these one on ones, they could be back-to-back champions of the AFC North.
Of course, for the Ravens, the question around Lamar Jackson's return still hangs in the balance. The Ravens star quarterback is yet to practice this week and his status for the game is therefore up in the air. If Tyler Huntley once again runs the offense, the Ravens will still have the escapability at quarterback, but the production has been less than ideal.
In the four games since Lamar Jackson went down in Week 13, Baltimore have failed to score more than 17 points per game, and it's been the defense that has held them together amidst that offensive turbulence. In other words, if they can't stifle Joe Burrow for the second time this season, this could be a tough outing.
Ravens vs Bengals Predictions and Picks
There is a part of me that believes the Ravens could force a turnover as they did in Week 5, but this healthy Bengals offense with all its weapons is a much scarier prospect. Joe Burrow has thrown a few interceptions lately but is still on a 34-touchdown to 12 interception total for this season. He has been particularly hot lately with 11 touchdown passes in his last four games.
The Bengals have covered the spread for seven games in a row. Bengals spread bettors will be extremely pleased with their 12-3 record ATS so far this season, and I’ll be backing them once again in Week 18.
The Pick: Cincinnati Bengals -7 (-110)
The over/under is a little tough because of the Ravens genuine ability to keep games to a low score. They have cashed five unders in a row, and with a scoring average of just 11.8 across those five games, that would require the Bengals to muster 30 points against a very sturdy defense.
I'll back the under here with QB Tyler Huntley struggling in recent weeks in a clunky offensive system.
The Pick: Under 41.5 Points (-110)
Best NFL Player Prop Bets for Ravens vs Bengals Week 18
In the earlier meeting between these two teams, it was the tight ends that the Ravens had the most trouble with defensively. Hayden Hurst returns to the lineup having not played since the Kansas City Chiefs game in early December. Before that game, Hurst cleared the 30.5-yard line currently set for him with ease, and in the one game he fell short he hit 28 yards.
I’m backing Hurst to hit his yardage total here and clear the 30.5 yards.
The Pick: Hayden Hurst over 30.5 receiving yards (-110)
Joe Burrow can easily manage 265 yards in this game. The obvious question is whether he needs to. If the Ravens are unable to compete offensively, there's no need for Joe Burrow to be pushing the football down the field for four quarters.
With all that being said, the over stands out for me here, with everything favoring Joe Burrow to have yet another great game throwing the football. The Bengals could quite capably score 21-27 points here which could be enough to win the game and, as a result, the division.