Majority of Pundits Pick Baltimore to Win at Cincinnati
The Ravens and running back Derrick Henry were the talk of the NFL after last week's 35-10 rout of the previously undefeated Buffalo Bills. Next up is a desperate but dangerous Cincinnati Bengals squad in the first AFC North contest of the season.
Baltimore (2-2) will look to continue its momentum after an 0-2 start, while the host Bengals, who entered the season with high expectations, will try to avoid falling to 1-4.
A majority of the pundits we sampled (41 of 54) believe the Ravens will come out on top.
Here's what pundits are saying about the game:
The Ravens will run all over the Bengals' defense.
Fox Sports' David Helman: "I think it really comes down to what this abysmal, for lack of a better word, Cincinnati defense can do against the Ravens' run game. Cincinnati has allowed 150 rush yards in three of four games. They are bad against the run, and what do the Baltimore Ravens do? They run the damn ball. They've outrun their opponent by a hundred yards in all four games. They've gone over 250 against the Cowboys and most recently against the Buffalo Bills. If the Ravens get out to any sort of lead, it's going to be curtains for Cincinnati by sheer virtue of the fact that Cincinnati won't be able to get off the field."
The Athletic's Paul Dehner Jr.: "Any positive vibes of Cincinnati's first win on Sunday evaporated watching the Ravens steamroll the Bills later that night. Baltimore is playing at a higher level and their strength directly attacks the Bengals' weakness on the defensive line. If you promised Defensive Coordinator Lou Anarumo today the Ravens would rush for fewer than 200 yards on Sunday, he might take it. I have Baltimore and Henry rolling on."
USA Today’s Lorenzo Reyes: "Baltimore is, far and away, the most dominant rushing team in the NFL, averaging 45.5 more rushing yards per game than the next-closest team. The Bengals struggle to stop the run. As long as the Ravens play to their strengths, this is a spot they should easily handle."
The Ravens will pick up where they left off last week.
Bleacher Report’s Gary Davenport: "There won't be a letdown in a divisional game, and we just saw these Ravens mollywhop the undefeated Bills."
The Ravens will prevail in a hard-fought game.
The Athletic's Jeff Zrebiec: "I haven't shown a lot of faith in the Ravens the past two weeks and they've made me look foolish. I'll go with them in a tense and close game in Cincinnati. The Ravens appear to be the more balanced team at the moment."
Don't be surprised if Lamar Jackson has a big game throwing the ball.
NBC Sports’ Chris Simms: "This could be the week where we see the 350-yard passing game from Lamar, because I think the Bengals are stuck in a spot where they're going to go, 'If we don't stop the run we're definitely going to lose. So let's see if we can stop the run and then maybe pull it out with Lamar in the passing game and maybe they make a mistake.'"
It could be Zay's day.
ESPN’s Seth Walder: "Bold prediction: Ravens wide receiver Zay Flowers bounces back from a cold couple of weeks with a 100-plus-yard receiving performance. Flowers ranks seventh in open score so far, so he should have plenty of targets coming his way."
Bengals QB Joe Burrow will exploit the Ravens' pass defense and lead the Bengals to a narrow victory.
CBS Sports’ John Breech: "Although the Bengals defense might get steamrolled by the Ravens rushing attack, Burrow might be able to keep them in the game because he'll be going up against one of the worst passing defenses in the NFL. Through four weeks, the Ravens have given up an average of 257.5 yards per game through the air, which is the third most in the NFL, and now, they'll be going up against a Bengals offense that ranks in the top six in passing yards. … The Bengals are going to be desperate and they're going to be at home where Burrow is 3-1 against the Ravens since the start of the 2021 season (including the playoffs)."
The Bengals win a shootout.
CBS Sports’ Pete Prisco: "The Ravens give up a lot of big pass plays, so that will factor here. The Bengals defense has issues, so look for a lot of points. In the end, I think Joe Burrow wins it."
| Source | Prediction | Commentary |
|---|---|---|
| ESPN | 10 of 11 panelists pick Ravens | |
| Baltimore Sun | 5 of 5 panelists pick Ravens | “As long as the Bengals have Joe Burrow throwing to Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, they’ll be a threat. They’re better than their 0-3 start, especially on offense. The Ravens don’t want to spot Cincinnati a lead and have the game turn into a throwing contest. The good news for the Ravens is they have the right playmakers to punish a Cincinnati defense that has lost a lot of talent over the last few years. Led by Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry, they’ll try to follow the same script that worked against the Cowboys and Bills. The Bengals won’t be the team to stop them.” — Childs Walker |
| USA Today | 5 of 6 panelists pick Ravens | |
| NFL.com | 3 of 5 panelists pick Ravens | “For a squad that tends to run the ball down the opposition's throat, Lamar Jackson and Co. are having a lot of trouble closing out games. It would help if Justin Tucker was making his kicks. Anyhow, maybe the script starts to flip on Sunday night. The Bills have been dominant the last two weeks, but the only team that gave them any trouble this season was the Cardinals, who held a 17-3 lead late in the second quarter of what turned into a 34-28 loss at Buffalo in the opener. Jackson can put the Bills' defense on its heels like Kyler Murray did in Week 1, and perhaps a Ravens team learning from its mistakes will finish the job at home this time.” — Dan Parr |
| NFL Network | 7 of 10 panelists pick Ravens | |
| Sporting News | Bengals 27, Ravens 24 | "The Ravens should be licking their chops with Derrick Henry to keep going nuts against the Bengals' No. 25 run defense. There's also a chance to bury their AFC North rivals early in the division race. But Joe Burrow got Cincinnati off the mat last week, and with his full cadre of receivers, he can find some good matchups to exploit in the passing game. The division race is meant to be long with emotional twists and turns, and this is the first one.” — Vinnie Iyer |
| CBS Sports | 5 of 8 panelists pick Ravens | “This an enormous game for the Bengals. They can get right back in the division race with a victory here. Their offense has come alive with Tee Higgins back. The Ravens give up a lot of big pass plays, so that will factor here. The Bengals defense has issues, so look for a lot of points. In the end, I think Joe Burrow wins it.” — Pete Prisco |
| Pro Football Talk | 2 of 2 panelists pick Ravens | “Can the Bengals’ defense slow down Baltimore’s offense? (Probably not.)” — Mike Florio |
| Sports Illustrated | 4 of 6 panelists pick Ravens |
Henry Named Offensive Player of the Year Through Four Weeks, Top Five MVP Candidate
The accolades continue to roll in for Henry.
The four-time Pro Bowler was ESPN's Bill Barnwell's pick for Offensive Player of the Year after the first four weeks of the season.
"After a quiet Week 1, the Henry 31 other teams were afraid of showed up in Baltimore," Barnwell wrote. "His rushing production has risen each week, jumping from 46 yards in the opener to 199 in the Week 4 blowout of the Bills. He leads all backs in RYOE (185) and RYOE per carry (2.4) and ranks second in yards per carry behind J.K. Dobbins (6.0). He's alongside Saquon Barkley in success rate (46.3%).
"It's exciting to see the big play return to Henry's game, because it seemed as if it might have been lost to the outlier workloads he endured at his peak in Tennessee. He already has two plays of 35 yards or more, which matches his total from 2023. He's also halfway to his 2023 touchdown total of 12."
Sports Illustrated’s Matt Verderame ranked his top five MVP candidates heading into Week 5, and Henry landed at No. 4. "King Henry" was the only non-quarterback on the list. The last non-quarterback to win the award was running back Adrian Peterson in 2012.
"If any running back is going to break through, it's Henry," Verderame wrote. "The future Hall of Famer signed a two-year deal with Baltimore this offseason, and the early returns are fantastic. After being limited to 130 rushing yards on 31 attempts over the season's first two weeks, Henry has exploded. The 30-year-old torched the Dallas Cowboys and Buffalo Bills in consecutive weeks for 350 rushing yards and three scores, including an 87-yard touchdown on Baltimore's first play from scrimmage against Buffalo on Sunday night.
"With 480 yards, Henry leads the league and is on pace for a whopping 2,040. If he somehow hits that benchmark, Henry would become the first player in NFL history to have multiple 2,000-yard seasons."
Jackson Is No. 1 in NFL.com's Quarterback Rankings
Jackson is getting his share of love from pundits as well.
The two-time and reigning MVP took over the No. 1 spot on NFL.com’s Nick Shook’s quarterback rankings. Jackson was No. 2 last week, behind the Bills' Josh Allen.
"It sure is frightening for other defenses when Derrick Henry gets going, because it makes defending Jackson that much more difficult," Shook wrote. "Jackson took full advantage of the Henry effect on Sunday night, running for 54 yards and a touchdown via red-zone misdirection that he made look far too easy.
"He also completed 13 of 18 passes for 156 yards and two touchdowns. Jackson layered a beauty between the second and third levels of coverage to Isaiah Likely and fired a rocket into a tight window to Nelson Agholor for a key gain. Jackson was rolling, so it's no surprise Baltimore won easily. The Ravens are finding themselves, and if these kinds of performances become the norm, Jackson might win another MVP."
Speaking of which, Jackson was No. 3 in Barnwell's MVP rankings.
"Jackson's numbers might even be better than what he was doing during his 2023 MVP season," Barnwell wrote. "His completion percentage, interception rate and yards per attempt are nearly identical. His rushing yards and rushing success are up, and he has halved his sack rate."
Ronnie Stanley, Marlon Humphrey 'Have Quietly Been Two of Ravens' Best Players'
Two of the Ravens' longest-tenured players, left tackle Ronnie Stanley and cornerback Marlon Humphrey, entered this season with something to prove, and Zrebiec said they "have quietly been two of the Ravens' best players, while pushing back on the questions about how much high-quality football they still have left."
Both players have provided a steady veteran presence to go along with their stellar play.
"Humphrey, a three-time Pro Bowler who was limited by injuries to only 10 games last year, has allowed just 14 catches on 23 targets for 90 yards and a touchdown," Zrebiec wrote. "His ability to win in the slot has allowed [Defensive Coordinator Zach] Orr to get [rookie cornerback Nate] Wiggins on the field regularly.
"Stanley, a 2019 Pro Bowl selection who has battled injuries since 2020, has helped solidify a young Baltimore offensive line. Per ESPN Analytics, Stanley is the league's top-ranked tackle in pass block win rate. Some of Henry's top runs have come behind Stanley, too."
