NFL Playoff Picture: Bengals Will End Jets' Playoff Hopes with Win vs. Ravens

The New York Jets will fail to make the 2011 NFL playoffs because the Cincinnati Bengals will beat the Baltimore Ravens at home to secure the sixth and final AFC wild-card berth.

The Bengals' season looked over a few weeks ago but they have won two straight games and are in control of their own destiny in Week 17.

With the Jets playing an improved but inferior Miami Dolphins team on Sunday, the Bengals have to win because it's quite unlikely that New York loses.

Against the Ravens, Cincinnati must stop running back Ray Rice who is having a fantastic season and was selected to his second career Pro Bowl on Tuesday.

The Bengals run defense is ranked fifth in the league, and must play well on Sunday. Forcing the Ravens to win with quarterback Joe Flacco is the way to beat them.

Flacco is a good quarterback but he turns the ball over too much and is way too inconsistent. He's thrown 12 interceptions and has nine fumbles this year.

Since Baltimore beat the San Francisco 49ers in Week 12, they have faced only one team fighting for the playoffs, the San Diego Chargers.

The Ravens lost that game and then followed it up with an unconvincing performance against the Cleveland Browns in a 20-14 win.

Baltimore has been perfect at home this season but have struggled on the road. All of their four losses have been on the road and most of them have been against bad teams.

They have these lapses against inferior teams and while many Ravens fans may think it's not a big deal, it really is.

Against a quality team like the Bengals who are fighting for their playoff lives, the Ravens cannot afford to not be ready for this game.

Rookie quarterback Andy Dalton is ready to cap off his tremendous first NFL season with a win and a playoff berth, and with a good defense backing him up, Cincinnati will win on Sunday.