Spirited effort needed to duck dubious lasts
Cincinnati faces a Baltimore team that has won five of its last six.
The Cincinnati Bengals’ season, and possibly Marvin Lewis’ tenure as head coach, will come to an end today in Baltimore.
The Cincinnati Bengals’ season, and possibly Marvin Lewis’ tenure as head coach, will come to an end today in Baltimore.
So it only seems appropriate the game be played on New Year’s Eve, with its “out with the old and in with the new” mindset. Lewis, who reportedly will step away from the team to pursue other opportunities, isn’t likely to make his decision public until a few hours into 2018. He has a press conference scheduled for 11:30 a.m. Monday.
But before that, the Bengals have 60 minutes of football remaining in 2017. And with the game vs. a division opponent and players wanting to send Lewis out a winner, expect a spirited effort.
If the Bengals are able to secure their seventh win in their last nine games against Baltimore, it could mark the end of the line for the Ravens, too, although a loss alone will not prevent them from making their first playoff appearance since 2014.
Here are five things to watch for in the game:
Final farewell: In addition to Lewis and his assistant coaches, a number of players could be making their final appearance as a member of the Bengals organization today.
Ten players on the current 53-man roster are in the final year of their contract: punter Kevin Huber, center Russell Bodine, quarterback AJ McCarron, defensive end Chris Smith, tackles Eric Winston and Justin Murray, defensive tackle Pat Sims, running back Jarveon Williams, safety Brandon Wilson and linebacker Hardy Nickerson.
Another five are on injured reserve: tight end Tyler Eifert, running backs Jeremy Hill and Cedric Peerman, linebacker Kevin Minter and tackle Andre Smith.
Turnover tally: The biggest story in the 20-0 loss Cincinnati suffered against Baltimore in the season opener was turnovers. The Bengals committed five.
That game set the tone for the season for both teams, as the Bengals failed to find consistent success on offense while the Ravens lead the NFL in turnovers forced (33), turnover margin (plus-17) and interceptions (22).
“That’s the key,” Lewis said. “When you look at their (plus-17 turnover margin), they’re doing a great job with that. They scored some touchdowns defensively, and also in the return game on special teams. It’s a big part of where they are.”
Likewise, the Bengals’ inability to force turnovers is a big reason why they are where they are.
Unless the defense can force six turnovers today, the Bengals will break the franchise record for fewest in a season, which is 18, set in 1994.
Only winless Cleveland (11) has fewer turnovers this season. And only five teams in the Super Bowl era finished a non-strike season with fewer than 13.
2015 49ers (5-11), 12 2006 Redskins (5-11), 12 2016 Bears (3-13), 11
2015 Cowboys (4-12), 11 2013 Texans (2-14), 11 Flustering Flacco: The Bengals defense has had a lot of success against Baltimore quarter- back Joe Flacco, particularly since Paul Guenther took over as coordinator in 2014.
In six games since Guenther took over for Mike Zimmer in 2014, Flacco is averaging 254 yards per game with five touchdowns and seven interceptions for a passer rating of 73.34. The Bengals are 4-2 in those games.
Flacco hasn’t thrown for 300 yards in 18 consecutive games, but he’s doing a much better job of taking care of the ball during the Ravens’ stretch of five wins in six games, throwing just two interceptions and eight touchdowns.
The Bengals rank seventh in pass defense and haven’t allowed a 300-yard passer since Week 13 last year when Philadelphia’s Carson Wentz threw for 308.
The run of 19 consecutive games is the second-longest active streak in the league behind Denver’s 33.
Last call: The Bengals enter the season finale ranked last in total offense and 31st in rushing offense. The last — and only — time the team has finished last in total offense was 2008, with an average of 245.4 yards per game. The Bengals are averaging 275.3 ypg this season.
In 2008 the Bengals were just 3.7 behind No. 31 Cleveland. In order to avoid the indignity of another last-place finish, the Bengals need to outgain the Colts by 175 yards, or No. 30 Chicago by 270.
If the Bengals want to avoid finishing last in rushing offense, they need to avoid being outrushed by Detroit by 50 or more yards, or they need to outrush No. 30 Arizona by 51 or the No. 29 New York Giants by 70.
With 1,220 rushing yards this season, the Bengals have been outgained by three individual running backs — the LA Rams’ Todd Gurley (1,305), Kansas City’s Kareem Hunt (1,292) and Pittsburgh’s Le’Veon Bell (1,291).
Cincinnati is almost guaranteed to post the fewest rushing yards in any 14- or 16-game season in franchise history.The record low is 1,439, set in 1995.
The team also is danger of setting the franchise low for average yards per attempt, which is 3.56 (2010). The Bengals head into Baltimore averaging 3.52.
Hold the line: But before you chalk up any last-place finishes, it’s important to note that the reshuffled, injury-depleted offensive line is coming off one of its best performances of the year.
With left guard Clint Boling moving to left tackle for the first time in his career and 2016 fifthround pick Christian Westerman making his NFL debut splitting time at left guard with 2016 college free agent Alex Redmond, the Bengals rolled up 142 rushing yards last week against Detroit. It was the team’s second-highest total of the season, and the 4.2 average also was the second-best of the season.
Baltimore ranks ninth in total defense (322.8) and 14th in rushing defense (108.9).
Note: The Bengals made a change to the injury report Saturday, declaring linebacker Vontaze Burfict out for the finale. Burfict, who injured his shoulder Sunday against Detroit, had been listed as doubtful Friday.