Bengals, Ravens: The Babes of Sports911 Preview

Forget those worn out dried up previews we see each week for the upcoming football games.  Thursday night's Cincinnati Bengals vs. Baltimore Ravens showdown has the Sports911.com babes - Destiney Bleu Lewis and Carrie Stroup - offering up their own critiques of this game.

First Destiney Lewis....

From Shutouts to Showdowns: Cincinnati Bengals vs. Baltimore Ravens

This time of year in the NFL, almost half the National Football League seems to be in elevator mode, making a serious move upward, rapidly gliding downward, perhaps even stopped with the “emergency help” button pressed. This Thursday night the Cincinnati Bengals take on the Baltimore Ravens, both teams coming off victories where they’re opponents walked home with not only a loss, but without a touchdown or a field goal. Cincinnati is tied with both the Jets and Jaguars (both 6-5) in the playoff hunt, and won't play either team this season. The Bengals stand 4-3 in AFC games, better than the Jags (3-4 in the AFC), and with more time to improve that mark than the Jets (5-4 against conference foes.

With their 27-0 defeat over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, the Ravens moved to a franchise-best 9-2, and they won't have to wait long for a chance to achieve 10-2, as Baltimore's Week 13 match up with the Cincinnati Bengals looms in less than a week.
Baltimore's defense is smothering opponents again and scoring some points of its own. Cincinnati who holds a record of 6-5 has sprung back to life and has a potent offense. It promises to be a spirited battle at Paul Brown Stadium when the Ravens who are currently 9-2 try to finish off their last challenger in the AFC North. The Bengals are the second divisional opponent in as many games, and with a mid-week victory, Baltimore would clinch the team's first AFC North title and a postseason berth. Where Baltimore is playing to maintain its status as top dog in the division, the Bengals are fighting to keep playoff hopes alive with their second place record with 6-5. Despite the distance between 1st and 2nd place in the NFC North, the Bengals have re-bottled their 2005 formula just in time to play the Ravens swaggering into Paul Brown Stadium for Thursday night’s AFC North showdown.

After dismissing the Pittsburgh Steelers under a bombardment of nine sacks in a 27-0 victory Sunday, the Ravens didn't revel in humbling a bitter rival. Not long after the game ended, they were already looking ahead. But, if Baltimore's current five-game winning streak did anything to light a fire to close out the season strong, there definitely won't be a free moment in the coming days when it can fizzle. If the Ravens run their winning streak to six on Thursday night, they can finish no worse than tied with the Bengals in the NFC North division. Baltimore, who defeated Cincinnati 26-20 earlier this month, would win a tiebreaker by advantage of sweeping the season series. A victory would ensure the Ravens of their first trip to the playoffs since 2003. Although a huge accomplishment from last seasons 6-10 finish, but not good enough for Baltimore. They have their sites set on a first-round bye and home-field advantage in the conference playoffs. …or maybe, winning the Super Bowl.

But like I always say, this isn’t going to be a one-sided contest. Talk about peaking at the right time. The Bengals have offered their two most complete games of the season the last two weeks, and on Sunday the offense did its part to aid the shutout by converting seven 3rd downs, nearly as many as it did in the previous three games when it only had 10 combined. No matter how long or short the week is, the Bengals aren’t looking at the past, the Bengals were already thinking about the attack the Baltimore are bringing just 96 hours away. Cincinnati is also coming off a dominating shutout of their own, a 30-0 win over the Cleveland Browns. The Bengals showed signs that it has improved from the team that the Ravens defeated only three weeks ago. The Cincinnati offense has scored at least 30 points in the last three games. WR Chad Johnson has made his return, catching at least one ball of 41 yards or more and is on the way to a 100-yard day for the third straight week. Bengals QB Carson Palmer threw three touchdowns for the third straight game against the ill-fated Browns. Four wins in the five games and the Bengals should be able to slip into one of the AFC's coveted wild-card slots, a launching pad that worked out quite nicely for Pittsburgh last year, considering they won the Superbowl. It's still a long way off, but for the first time in a while, the Bengals at least can see a path back to the postseason. Cincinnati also has three of their final five games at home.

My pick has to be with my alma mater, the boys from the nasty ‘Nati. Although the city traumatized me and those Baltimore boys are no joke, but don’t sleep on the Bengals they’re fighting for the chance that was taken away from them last year. WHO DEY!

The only sure bet is to open an online wagering account at Sportsbook.com (see website here) so that you can take full advantage of huge cash signup bonuses and mega weekly football contests.

 

Carrie Stroup

The only game scheduled Thursday evening could easily be the game of the weekend. Both AFC North teams absolutely throttled their opponents last weekend at a combined score of 57-0.

The Ravens are tied for the longest winning streak in the NFL at five games and have a three game cushion over the Bengals for the AFC North lead. The Ravens are led by their opportunistic defense which allows only 13.4 PPG. Through 11 games the Ravens’ big play “D” in second in the league in sacks (39), first in the league in giveaway/takeaway margin +15, and has scored five touchdowns. This season when the spread is between +3 to -3 the Ravens are an impressive 6-1 ATS. However, on the road, they haven’t fared very well going just 2-3 ATS.

Overall, the Bengals are a disappointing 6-5 straight up and just 5-5-1 ATS. The defending AFC North champs seem to be getting hot at just the right time having outscored their opponents 61-16 in the last two games. Over the last three games, Chad Johnson has averaged 191 YPG has 5 total scores. How the Bengals react to the Ravens’ defense will definitely be the key to the game. At +8, the Bengals are also among the league leaders in giveaway/ takeaway margin. Moreover, Carson Palmer has only thrown 8 INTs in 354 attempts. The Bengals have also improved their pass protection as the season has progressed. Although they have given up 30 sacks this season, the Bengals’ offensive line has been very solid for most of the season. After giving up 11 sacks in the first three games, the Bengals have only allowed an average two sacks per game.

Of the non division leaders vying for two wildcard spots, there are five teams with an equal or better record to the Bengals. Obviously, due to the Bengals inconsistencies, this game is almost in the “must win” category. The Ravens have a ton at stake as well. Over the next few weeks they will be playing for home field advantage and first round bye.

As the early money comes in, it is obvious that the public is pretty much split. Just under 50% of the early bettors feel that the Bengals are peaking at the right time and will win this key match-up by more then the 3 points.
 

The only sure bet is to open an online wagering account at Sportsbook.com (see website here) so that you can take full advantage of huge cash signup bonuses and mega weekly football contests.

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Destiney Bleu Lewis, Carrie Stroup, www.sports911.com

Originally published November 30, 2006 10:35 am ET