Joe Burrow is undoubtedly one of the NFL's premier quarterbacks, but he hasn't been elite against the Ravens the past two seasons.
During Mike Macdonald's tenure as the Ravens' defensive coordinator, Burrow averaged 189 passing yards per game and completed less than 65% of his passes. He had a negative completion percentage above expected, per Next Gen Stats.
The Ravens won three of those four games in large part because they put a lid on Burrow and the Bengals' explosive passing offense.
Now it's Zach Orr's turn against Burrow, and there's no doubt that he'll borrow some of what worked for his predecessor.
"Every year is different; every game is different," Orr said. "I think part of the success has just been everybody being on the same page playing team defense and going out there playing as hard as we can and not giving up big plays. That's a big focus for us going into this week is [for] everybody [to be] on the same page; us playing team defense and us eliminating explosive plays, because we know they're a real explosive offense. I think if we do that, we give ourselves a good chance."
Burrow's last meeting with the Ravens ended with his season-ending wrist injury. His last play was a touchdown pass that gave Cincinnati a 10-7 lead late in the second quarter. The Ravens went on to roll to a 34-20 victory at M&T Bank Stadium after Burrow's exit.
Burrow got off to a sluggish start in Week 1 this season, but the man with the frosted blonde tips has been heating up since.
He's thrown seven touchdowns over the past three weeks and finished with a 100+ quarterback rating in each game. Burrow threw a 63-yard touchdown pass last week to Ja'Marr Chase, who broke through an arm tackle and raced down the sideline.
"I think the biggest challenge is not letting him know where to go with the football, and then really trying to switch stuff up on him," Orr said. "He's a really good football player; he's really smart. He understands coverages; he understands pressures.
"It's tough to confuse him; it's tough to trick him, and even when you do, he has the ability to still beat you with his arm and move around the pocket and still beat you with his feet as well. We have a lot of respect for him; we know what he's done; we know what he's capable of, and we have to be on our A-game if we want to come away with a victory."
Burrow was reportedly "especially intense" during his meeting with Cincinnati reporters this week, with the Bengals sitting at 1-3 and now playing their first divisional game.
Baltimore snatched the AFC North crown last year after the Bengals won it the previous two seasons. Burrow knows if the Bengals are going to have a chance to reclaim it this year, he'll need to be at the top of his game, especially against Baltimore's defense.
"I'm gonna have to play damn near perfect," Burrow said. "That's how I'm preparing. So it's an exciting opportunity."
Ronnie Stanley Is NFL's Top Pass Blocker
When the Ravens traded Orlando Brown Jr. back in 2021 at his request, it solved a predicament. Brown wanted to play left tackle and the Ravens already had committed big money to Ronnie Stanley to hold down that spot.
The Ravens were then (and especially now) happy with the compensation they got. It resulted in Odafe Oweh, who is off to a very strong start in his fourth season.
The problem was it was also the beginning of issues at left tackle. Stanley was coming off a major ankle injury that took another full year and another surgery to recover from. That, plus other injuries, hampered Stanley in the years since and his 2023 season was particularly tough.
To make matters worse, Brown continued to be a reliable and one of the top left tackles in the game, first with the Kansas City Chiefs and now with the Bengals.
As the Ravens and Bengals get set to face off Sunday, however, this is how Baltimore envisioned that trade. Through the first four weeks, Stanley leads the NFL in pass block win rates, two spots ahead of Brown.
"I thought it was very motivating for me to get back to what I expect myself to be," Stanley said. "The performances I had in the past gave me something to work harder and make sure I never go back to that place I was."
Stanley has a tough test this week going against defensive end Trey Hendrickson, who has been limited by a neck/back injury but is still expected to play. Hendrickson posted 17.5 sacks last season and has three so far this year. Stanley didn't play against Hendrickson last year as he missed both games against the Bengals due to knee injuries.
"He's a good player. He's a leader for that whole defense," Stanley said. "I expect it to be a battle for the whole game."
Chase Calls Lamar Jackson-Derrick Henry Combo 'Cheating'
Chase doesn't have to deal with it, but he thinks the Ravens' Lamar Jackson-Derrick Henry combo isn't fair.
"That's cheating," Chase told reporters. "If I'm playing Madden, RPO read with those two… In real life, they're still doing the same thing. It's a great duo they have back there."
Henry and Jackson teamed up to hang 238 rushing yards and three touchdowns on the Dallas Cowboys. They had 253 rushing yards and two touchdowns against the Buffalo Bills.
Ravens 'Wouldn't Be the Same Offense' Without Patrick Ricard
When Todd Monken became the Ravens' offensive coordinator last year, there were lots of questions about whether he would have much of a role for fullback Patrick Ricard.
Even Ricard questioned it so much that he auditioned at guard for a bit during training camp (and abandoned it not too long after).
Well, it's safe to say that the four-time Pro Bowler is still very much part of Baltimore's arsenal as part of the plow making room for Henry and Jackson.
While Ricard's snap counts have dropped since the Greg Roman days (he played 64% of the offensive snaps in 2022), Ricard is still seeing a lot of action. He has played 39% so far this year, and 56% over the past two games when the Ravens have gone run heavy.
"Pat is a valuable piece for what we're able to do. He's kind of a part of an identity," Monken said. "[He] gives us the ability to run the ball down hill, the ability to run the C-gap, and we wouldn't be the same offense without him.
"The best teams score touchdowns in the red zone, and we've been really good at that, and he's been a big part of that. So, I'm fired up he's been here as long as I've been here."
Ricard has been getting the love this week with the Ravens' run game rolling.
