Rival Report: Bengals blanked by Ravens in opener
During preseason analysis, it was the Baltimore Ravens that looked to have a worrisome season, yet their defense kept them in games. On Sunday, against the Cincinnati Bengals (who went 1-3 in the preseason), the Ravens shut out their AFC North opponent, 20-0. Counting the preseason, the Ravens are now unbeaten in 2017 and things in the division are starting to look at a lot differently after just one week of regular season play.
Dalton in disarray led to overall disaster on offense
The Bengals put the fate of their season in the hands of veteran quarterback Andy Dalton and on Sunday, he arguably offered them the worst game of his career. In the first half alone, Dalton was pressured heavily and threw three interceptions. On the game, Dalton finished with four interceptions and a fumble, completed just 16-0f-31 passes attempted for 170 yards. His passer rating was 28.4.
The Bengals offense was ineffective as their leader struggled. Left tackle Cedric Ogbuehi had a near breakdown in blocking duties and guard Trey Hopkins injured a left knee (and may be lost for the season), allowing a fast, powerful Ravens defense to get into the offensive backfield on nearly every play.
The best part of the offense may have been Giovani Bernard outrushing both Jeremy Hill and Joe Mixon. Hill and Mixon combined for 35 yards on 14 carries while Bernard added 40 yards on seven carries, then made two of the biggest offensive plays – a 23-yard run and a 39-yard screen pass catch-and-run.
Even playmaking receiver A.J. Green was held to just five receptions for 74 yards.
The result was that Cincinnati was shut out for the first time in a season opener since 1979 and are the first team in the NFL to get shutout in a home opener since the 2006 season.
I have to make the throw, regardless of what’s going on. I have to play better, and everybody feels like they have to play better … We have a chance to put this behind us quickly though. That’s our mindset. – A. Dalton
Bernard was quick to defend his quarterback after the game, saying:
Outside people don’t see what really goes on. They just see that line and Andy’s doing this or doing that. But at the end of the day, it’s a team effort and we really didn’t help him out too much.
Atkins, Willis and Vigil positives on Bengals ‘D’
The Bengals defense – especially its front four – showed positive effort. Geno Atkins was able to record a sack against Joe Flacco, Carlos Dunlap was very active and Jordan Willis cranked things up early in the fourth quarter. Willis was responsible for nearly single-handedly shutting down the Ravens’ run game and helped get the ball back to the Bengals offense for one last hurrah with 12:23 left in the game.
Defense pressures.@GenoSacks finishes. #BALvsCIN #Bengals50 pic.twitter.com/x4bStVdY5N
— Cincinnati Bengals (@Bengals) September 10, 2017
Linebacker Nick Vigil recorded nine tackles (four assisted) and an interception. Unfortunately, every time the Bengals did something positive, the offense gave the ball back to Baltimore. Cincinnati faces a tough turnaround as well, facing the Houston Texans on Thursday night.
I thought as a defense, we played pretty well … But us as a defense, we’ve got to make stops. That’s what you work for. That’s when you’ve got to be able to play in uncomfortable situations. As a defense, that’s our responsibility – get stops. – N. Vigil
https://twitter.com/CeeingTheDraft/status/906951677625868288
Ravens defense lives up to hype
If you aren’t a Baltimore fan, you may not have been hearing all the different players on the Ravens defense that have been promising they were going to be spectacular this season. They have been defiant on social media, in their preseason post-game press conferences and after six months of promises – they delivered. Unfortunately for the Bengals, they were the first team to challenge.
Forcing five turnovers, recording five sacks and holding the Bengals to just 221 total yards, the Ravens pitched a shutout in their season opener for the first time since 2006 (and did it once before in 2000). This defense may rival the defense of 2006 that finished with a number one ranking and the 2000 defense that set an NFL record for fewest points allowed in a 16-game season.
We knew how big this game was for us … We’ve been preparing for this game since the first day of training camp — preparing for them and watching film on them. We didn’t care about our opponents in preseason. Everything was tailored for this game, and it showed. – Eric Weddle
Bengals fans likely remember that last time the Ravens were able to win in ‘their town, their stadium’ was in 2011, when guys like Ed Reed and Ray Lewis were able to dominate the field. On Sunday, they watched Lardarius Webb and Terrell Suggs channel the chaos into a defense that any team in the NFL should be wary of this season.
You know you want to watch the INT by @LWebb21 again. pic.twitter.com/S8sNtY3aiM
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) September 10, 2017
Ravens offense not pretty, but got job done
Quarterback Joe Flacco wasn’t shy admitting that the offense that the Ravens ran against the Bengals was not the most glamorous in his post-game conference, saying:
It reminded me of my first couple games as a rookie … It was one of those where we had to run the ball late in the game and just run the clock out. It’s good coming here to get a win. I don’t care how you do it.
Flacco would have preferred that the offense showed balance, but instead of throwing for a majority of yards (he had nine completions in 17 attempts for 121 yards, a touchdown, and an interception) he fed the ball to a rotation of backs – Terrance West, Javorius Allen and Danny Woodhead. When Woodhead was forced from the game due to injury (hamstring) after just one series, West and Allen pounded the ball for 151 yards and a touchdown.
Flacco was pressured and he came close to tossing three or four balls into the hands of Bengals defenders. Having a run game may be the change this Ravens offense should bank on instead of forcing yards and points to come via the passing game.
Although the Ravens shuffled their offensive line, it did better in run blocking than pass protection and Flacco was knocked to the turf throughout the game.
I’d like to keep (Joe) cleaner … We’re going to have to keep working to do that. – Coach John Harbaugh
Part of the improvement is thanks to coordinator Greg Roman who joined Baltimore during the offseason to improve the run game. Regardless, the Ravens offense will be forced to lean on ‘get by’ offense and put games on their defense unless they can clean a few things up.
It’s always great to run the ball like we did today … It’s a great feeling and creates a lot of pride among the linemen. We’re attacking defenses from a lot of angles, making them think a lot more, keeping the defenses on their heels. – Ronnie Stanley
https://twitter.com/MarkVSlaughter/status/907039833939480576
Keys stats and grades from the Ravens dominant defensive performance against the Bengalshttps://t.co/BVZ9Hkre0n pic.twitter.com/uONncH8vyg
— PFF (@PFF) September 10, 2017
