Baltimore Ravens vs. Cincinnati Bengals: Live Score, Highlights and Analysis
The game is over in Cincinnati, where the Cincinnati Bengals have defeated the Baltimore Ravens 23-17.
Both teams have clinched playoff berths, and the Ravens are your AFC North division champions.
Both teams, though, are looking to maintain some momentum heading into the postseason while perhaps getting some rest for the veterans.
You can catch all the latest analysis and score updates here while we live-blog the game.
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Final: The Bengals won that game on the strength of a great game from their front-seven. Vontaze Burfict was all over the field stopping the Ravens' running game, while Carlos Dunlap, Michael Johnson and Wallace Gilberry all made big plays.
Their offense wasn't great, but with great field position throughout the game, the Bengals were able to score just enough.
The Bengals should feel confident heading into the postseason. They remind of the Giants from a few years ago. Their pass rush is superb, their offense is inconsistent but talented and they are usually a disciplined football team.
The Ravens, on the other hand, should be concerned. Though they played their backups for most of the game, it was starter Michael Oher who had the worst game. He struggled all day long, and opponents will prey on him in the postseason.
The Bengals matchup is still undetermined for next week, but the Ravens will host the Colts.
2:00 in Fourth Quarter: Impressive performance from Tyrod Taylor on this drive. He's spreading the ball around and making plays with his feet, despite nearly constant pressure.
The Bengals are keeping everything in front of them, though, making sure the Ravens take plenty of time off the clock on this drive. They are doing a good job of preventing big plays.
4:28 in Fourth Quarter: Fake punt from the Ravens! Sam Koch shows off some surprising speed on a first-down run, and that gives the Ravens new life. That's the best thing Koch has done all day.
6:07 in Fourth Quarter: And that's the game folks! Carlos Dunlap gets the pressure, swats the pass and comes down with the interception, returning it for a touchdown.
It's worth noting he did that against Ravens' starting tackle Michael Oher, one of the few remaining starters in the game.
7:16 in Fourth Quarter: Josh Brown knocks in another field goal for the Bengals and gives them the lead. The pass from Gradkowski to Tate was the big play on the drive, and it was enough to give the Bengals the lead.
8:41 in Fourth Quarter: What a perfect deep connection for the Bengals there! Brandon Tate got open deep, blowing by Chykie Brown, and Gradkowski delivered a nice throw for the big gain. Gradkowski definitely throws a nice deep ball.
8:54 in Fourth Quarter: The Ravens drive stalls after David Reed is manhandled in coverage and the pass falls incomplete. Justin Tucker missed just his third field-goal of the season on a 45 yard try. He usually misses to his left, and this was no exception.
Tyrod Taylor made some nice plays on that drive, though. He is moving well and maintaining good vision down the field. The Ravens have to be happy with what they see from him today.
11:36 in Fourth Quarter: Ugly drive there for the Bengals. A bad snap sealed the Bengals fate, forcing them to punt. Huber has his worst punt of the day, giving the Ravens excellent field position.
The Bengals might have lost out on serious penalty yardage, though, as the referees could have easily called Chris Johnson for pass interference. There was no call, though, and the Bengals were eventually forced to punt.
One final thing worth noting: I think Bruce Gradkowski throws a better deep ball than Andy Dalton. The sample size for Gradkowski is small, but his throws seem to have more velocity, accuracy and touch.
That doesn't mean Gradkowski is a better quarterback, because he's not. In that one area, though, he might be.
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12:50 in Fourth Quarter: Touchdown Ravens! The field opened up just enough for Taylor to make some nice runs, but it was his third-and-eleven strike to Ed Dickson that was the key play on that drive.
Taylor has been impressive today when given time, but the Bengals defense has generally done a good job of pressuring the young signal-caller.
Worth noting is that the Ravens' offensive-line looked rejuvenated at the beginning of the fourth quarter. Could they have made an adjustment that will be the difference? We'll see if this is a trend.
End of Third Quarter: The Ravens finally are moving the ball thanks to a Nate Clements pass-interference penalty.
Bernard Pierce is running well when he has a hole, but the Bengals are dominating the line for the most part.
On one run, the Bengals got four players into the backfield. How many Ravens had to miss their blocks for that to happen?
All in all, great efforts by both defenses so far, but field position has favored the Bengals. The scoreboard shows it.
2:21 in Third Quarter: The Bengals are getting free points, starting with great field position and being the beneficiaries of stupid Ravens' penalties.
The Ravens might be one of the least disciplined teams in the NFL. Jimmy Smith is a bust at cornerback, as he does not know how to cover legally. His 21-yard pass interference penalty virtually guaranteed points for the Bengals.
3:16 in Third Quarter: The reason the Bengals are winning: Kevin Huber.
Ravens' punter Sam Koch has averaged just 36 yards on his punts, while Huber has averaged 45 and has knocked four inside the Ravens' 20 yard line. The Bengals can score at will when they keep starting drives in field goal range.
5:12 in Third Quarter: The sad thing about the Ravens' offense right now is that it is starters like Jah Reid and Michael Oher getting dominated. That offensive line is the reason the Ravens won't go anywhere in the playoffs.
Give credit to the Bengals, though. That was Carlos Dunlap on the sack for the Bengals, one of their many excellent pass-rushers.
Worth noting is that the referees completely missed an obvious horse-caller tackle on the third-down sack. Still, the Ravens' offense probably wouldn't have done anything with the penalty anyway, so it's not a big deal.
6:15 in Third Quarter: Kevin Huber scored three points for the Bengals there. I know, he didn't move the football on offense, nor did he make the field goal. But his punting forced the Ravens to punt from deep in their own territory, and the Bengals were the beneficiaries of it.
They got the ball in great field position after the Ravens stalled again, and were just one penalty away from field goal range.
7:50 in Third Quarter: Once again, the Bengals just completely blew by the mediocrity that is the Ravens' offensive line.
The most impressive individual effort was yet another great open-field tackle by Vontaze Burfict, who slammed down the shifty Tyrod Taylor.
Taylor almost threw a pick-six on third down, but was lucky to see Reggie Nelson drop the ball.
Sam Koch let loose another poor punt, giving the Bengals good field position yet again.
10:23 in Third Quarter: Whatever Kevin Huber is making, it isn't enough. If the Bengals win, it will be because of Huber's brilliant punting, as another gets downed inside the five.
The Ravens got the stop on that drive thanks to a great effort from their big men on third-and-short. They might not be household names, but Terrence Cody, Ma'ake Kemoeatu, DeAngelo Tyson and Art Jones all weigh 300+, and they all held strong on third down. Good luck running on that kind of girth.
14:00 in Third Quarter: Bruce Gradkowski is into the game for the Bengals! He doesn't get much credit, but Gradkowski is one of the better backups in the league.
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HALFTIME: Not a terribly entertaining game so far, but we've seen some exciting plays.
The highlights include Tyrod Taylor's 28 yard run to set up a Ravens' touchdown, and the touchdown from Andy Dalton to Marvin Jones.
Both defenses have been impressive. The Ravens shut down the Bengals until a poor Sam Koch punt set the Bengals up in Ravens' territory. The Bengals, meanwhile, have gotten pressure on seemingly every pass play.
The key to the game thus far has been the field position battle. The Ravens keep starting drives back behind their own 20, while the Bengals have benefited from good field position. Sam Koch has struggled today, while Bengals punter Kevin Huber has been excellent.
Another player worth mentioning is Vontaze Burfict. Not only has Burfict been all over the field making plays, but he has also goaded the Ravens into two personal foul calls. He has been excellent.
In the second half, expect the Bengals to start to assert their dominance over the Ravens' backups. The Ravens simply can't match the talent of Geno Atkins, Michael Johnson and Carlos Dunlap.
0:39 in Second Quarter: The Ravens usually take a knee in this situation, but they absolutely must try to put together a drive here.
They should want to see what Tyrod Taylor can do in a two-minute drill situation, and trying to score here is ultimately just good football sense. The game is tied, and the Ravens have three timeouts. They have no reason to take a knee.
0:45 in Second Quarter: Touchdown Bengals on a nice move by Marvin Jones! Jones took advantage of poor tackling from the Ravens to get into the endzone.
2:07 in Second Quarter: Well, Sam Koch could not replicate the success of the Bengals' brilliant punt. That was a dribbler, and he has struggled today.
The Ravens' drive is barely worth mentioning. Poor blocking from the offensive line and another penalty. What else is new in this game?
The Bengals pass-rush continues to play like angry hornets. Michael Johnson already has two sacks.
3:01 in Second Quarter: What a point from Kevin Huber! It looked like it was bouncing out of bounds, but then it kicked back in at the last second, dribbling to the five yard line. Brilliant punt.
3:43 in Second Quarter: The Bengals surrendered two sacks on that drive. With the offensive line struggling so badly, no wonder the Bengals were forced to punt again.
5:01 in Second Quarter: The Ravens should be excited about the play of young players like Bernard Pierce, Tyrod Taylor and Anthony Allen.
Unfortunately, veterans like Bobby Williams and Bryant McKinnie keep committing stupid penalties that stall Ravens' drives. The Ravens have already been penalized five times for 44 yards today. That's not good.
The Ravens were forced to punt because of the penalties, and the Bengals will look to get their struggling offense going.
8:11 in Second Quarter: The Bengals drive stalls yet again, as the Ravens have dialed up some pressure.
Dalton is running around quite a bit, which he turned into a decent gain on first down. He was unable to do the same on third down, firing a wildly inaccurate deep pass. Dalton has not looked good so far in this game.
The Ravens will once again start with the ball inside their own 20.
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