The Baltimore Ravens host the Cincinnati Bengals tonight to kickoff Week 10 National Football League action. This is a game between the two teams in the American Football Conference North Division that were not only expected to vie for their division race but also potential Super Bowl participants.
It hasn’t worked out that way … at least not for the Bengals.
The AFC North is now a race between the Ravens and first place Pittsburgh Steelers. Mike Tomlin is working magic with the Steelers again this season and their six wins in eight decisions is a notch ahead of the Ravens six wins in nine games. The Bengals are two back of the Ravens and two ahead of the Cleveland Browns in the AFC North.
So, what we have here is a serious contradiction. That is, this should be a Bengals game tonight if they were chasing the first place Ravens, but those surprise Steelers toss an unexpected factor into the equation. The Ravens are not looking to preserve first place and the Bengals looking to close on them, no, the Ravens are looking to catch the Steelers while the Bengals are more likely set up to become an also-ran in this race.
So, what happened to the Bengals this year?
First, on opening day they got upset on their home field by the New England Patriots. Opening day is a pretty good indicator of the long-term direction of a team … and losing to the Patriots at Paycor Stadium was a severe blow to the Bengals prospects.
Before they regrouped for a win, they lost two more games, a one-point loss to the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead and a Monday Night Football home loss to the surging Washington Commanders.
The Bengals first win came in Week Four against the Carolina Panthers, which put them in a perfect position to get back into their division hunt with a fifth week home win over the same team they meet tonight, the Ravens. They had more chances to win that game than should have been required to get the victory. But an ill-advised interception was key to send the game to overtime and a recovered fumble that they failed to advance in overtime led to a missed field goal which left the door open for a Ravens win.
Baltimore didn’t miss their last chance to grab a victory and got out of the Bengals home stadium with a three-point triumph, 41-38.
Since that game, the Ravens have continued to surge, their second place standing in the AFC North is a result of Baltimore losing their first two games of the season, first to Kansas City and in second week action against the Las Vegas Raiders. Since that loss, Baltimore has looked like one of the best teams in football, and tonight they have a chance to prove that with a home win over a desperate Bengals squad.
But here is another contradiction. Even though the Ravens are not in first place they are not in as much of a must win situation as their visitors tonight. Which swings the pendulum of advantage towards Cincinnati with the points.
It’s not a big advantage, but if I needed to bet on this game to get a bus ticket out of Bakersfield, I would put my money on the Bengals with the six points.
Fortunately, I’m not in Bakersfield.