BOLD PREDICTIONS: Off to The Frozen Jungle

Seeking their fourth-consecutive road victory, the Baltimore Ravens (6-7) travel to battle the Cincinnati Bengals (4-9) at Paycor Stadium (1 p.m. kickoff). This AFC North tilt features two teams that remain in playoff contention, with Baltimore sitting one game behind 7-6 Pittsburgh, which upended the Ravens, 27-22, last Sunday. Cincinnati is coming off a 39-34 loss at Buffalo.

Baltimore is 32-27 all time vs. Cincinnati in regular season play, including a 19-16 mark under head coach John Harbaugh. Sunday’s contest marks Baltimore’s second game against the Bengals in the past three weeks, following Cincinnati’s 32-14 win on Thanksgiving Night in Charm City. The Ravens field the NFL’s 19th-ranked offense and the 25th-ranked defense while the Bengals offense is 21st and their defense sits at the bottom of the league at 32.

Television: CBS / WJZ Ch. 13 (Local Baltimore)

On The Call: Spero Dedes (PBP) Adam Archuleta (analyst) Aditi Kinkhabwala (SL)

Officiating Crew Chief: Brad Allen who called the Ravens v. Browns game in Week 2 at The Bank. The Browns were flagged 6 times for 42 yards. One penalty was declined. The Ravens were penalized 6 times as well for 28 yards. Two penalties were for offensive pass interference.

Forecast at Kickoff: Cloudy, 10 degrees, winds W at 9 MPH with gusts up to 17 MPH, wind chill -2, 0% chance of precipitation

Betting Line:

• DraftKings: Ravens – 2 1/2, over/under at 51 ½
• FanDuel: Ravens – 2 1/2, over/under at 51 ½
• Bet365: Ravens – 2 1/2, over/under 52 ½

Tony Lombardi

I don’t expect Lamar Jackson to miraculously morph into the player he was earlier in the season, particularly with the Arctic conditions he’ll be playing in on Sunday. He’ll probably have 5 layers of Under Armour heat gear beneath his jersey. So, look for the weather to impact his performance. Turnovers could again be a factor. Maybe Lamar will run more to stay warm?

Jackson has played well in Cincinnati where he’s 4-0 as a starter, averaging 230 yards in the air, 3 TD’s and he’s only thrown 1 INT in total during those 4 starts for a passer rating of 126.4. But this season and in these conditions, I’m expecting 2 TDs and a passer rating in the 90’s. His TD tosses will go to Mark Andrews and Zay Flowers.

Derek Henry gets another 25 carries and breaks one off for 40+ yards and totals 125.

But the Ravens red zone struggles will continue, and the trouble is exacerbated by Tyler Loop who will be challenged in the unfamiliar climate.

Joe Burrow does Joe Burrow things again while playing the Ravens. He’ll throw for over 300 yards and 4 TDs, 2 to Ja’Marr Chase.

The Ravens playoff hopes take a big hit as Cincinnati prevails with a 4th quarter drive that puts the game out of reach.

Bengals 34, Ravens 24

The Ravens’ record against Pro Bowl-level QBs this season:

258.7 passing yards allowed per game
14 TDs
0 INTs
67.6% accuracy
0-6 record

Joe Burrow, Drake Maye and Jordan Love are next on the schedule. Can the Ravens’ defense step up in time? https://t.co/Y0rVpjJf98

— Jonas Shaffer (@jonas_shaffer) December 10, 2025

Kevin McNelis

The Ravens saw the Bengals on Thanksgiving in a game that I think we’d all like to forget, and the first half of that contest was close despite Baltimore losing the turnover battle handily. The Bengals pulled away after halftime of a game that was an offensive disaster, and now the Ravens try to even the season series on the road. Baltimore is favored in this matchup in a lot of books, but they were heavy favorites the last two weeks, too, so my hopes aren’t high.

— Lamar took a rest day Wednesday, which was a point of contention when Harbs was asked about it in media availability. I doubt a single day of rest is going to allow Lamar to bounce back through the collection of injuries we’ve seen reported this season, and while I anticipate that he connects with the tight ends effectively like he did in the Thanksgiving game, I think you see him under siege again, throwing at least one pick and fumbling on a strip sack.

— Tavius Robinson anticipates a return to the lineup in this one, and while I think he may not be full speed, you’ll see his return free up some other rushers. Dre’Mont Jones gets 1.5 sacks and a TFL that kills a Bengals drive.

— It won’t be for lack of trying that Baltimore’s defense will struggle. It will be a matter of not being able to get off the field and being run down, giving up big plays. Ja’Marr Chase takes advantage of a gassed secondary after a second-half turnover, burns the coverage and tops 100 yards on the day with a long TD.

Bengals 27 Ravens 16

Derek Arnold

Couldn’t get up and execute against these same Bengals on a home Thursday night game. Couldn’t get up and execute against your hated rival and their geriatric quarterback or sieve of a defense a week later.

There’s no reason to believe they’ll be able to suddenly flip the switch in frigid conditions in a road division game against a quarterback-WR combo that gives them fits on their best day. Not with this offensive line. Not with this “pass rush.”

— Burrow throws for 275 and 3 touchdowns, and is sacked just once.

— The Ravens lose the turnover battle again, though not as bad as on Thanksgiving (progress!) 2-0.

— Someone – let’s say Zay Flowers – fumbles for a Cincy scoop-and-score.

Bengals 31 Ravens 20

Rob Shields

The Ravens are in the midst of their “third season” this year.  In the  first season, they went 1-5. In the second season, they went 5-0. Now, in the third season, they have given up their division lead with an 0-2 stretch in the division.  And this week, they play what is essentially a must-win-or-your-season-is-over game, against the same Cincinnati team that beat them handily a few weeks ago.

Now, that Cincy win was aided by five turnovers, so you figure that won’t happen again.  Can the Ravens offense get going against a bad defense?  Can Lamar continue to miss practice every week and finally play a good game?

And can the Ravens defense slow down that passing game?

Joe Burrow had an odd press conference this week that made you believe he either wants to retire or wants out of Cinci. Will that matter on Sunday?  Who knows.  I tend to doubt it but you never know if the distraction affects them.

Lamar has an excellent record against the Bengals and Burrow, although it didn’t look like it on Turkey Day.

Can the Ravens move past the struggles the last two weeks?  Or is the season just spiraling out of control?

For now, I’m having a hard time seeing the Ravens stopping this team and the offense doing what it needs to.

Now, if they win, they could turn things around again, but can they get this win?

I’ll take Cinci in a close game.

Bengals 31 Ravens 27

Chad Racine

I’ve lost track on how many games have become a must-win this season. It’s safe to say now that they all are. It’s hard to have faith in the Ravens right now but they still have a chance to get hot down the stretch.  I think last week we saw a glimmer of hope as Lamar looked much healthier.

With Tee Higgins possibly out again, if he’s not I question the Bengals leadership. That should ease things up a bit for the defense. However, Chase is nearly impossible to stop. Have the Bengals lost their motivation for the remainder of the season? Listening to Joe Burrow today sounded that way. I don’t think that’s the Burrow that shows up on the field on Sunday.

I think the Ravens offense will show signs of improvement from the last few weeks keeping the game close throughout. The Ravens defense will slow down the Bengals but will give up a few big plays.  Those plays will be the dagger. Along with an offensive line that keeps Lamar from being confident.

Bengals 24 Ravens 20

Jason Woolbert

What is there to say that wasn’t said two weeks ago when these same teams met?   What are the Ravens going to do differently to avoid the same outcome?

The Ravens offense managed to make the worst defense in the league look good.  They scored 14 points against the Bengals, their lowest total of the season.  Even the lowly Browns scored 16.  Then, while the Ravens were busy urinating away a game against the Steelers, the Bengals gave up 39 points to Buffalo, including 21 in the fourth quarter.  Now, the team has to play them in Cincinnati.

I feel like I can’t properly evaluate a game while the Baltimore Falcons are their own worst enemy.  This used to merely be a problem in the playoffs, with inexplicable execution, but 2025 gives us the regular season version.  It’s a psychological disease that has spread instead of receded.

Bengals 34 Ravens 17

Jared Pinder

This is where the season ends. I should have confidence that they pull this out but I’ve completely lost that in this team.

They are going to get embarrassed and have their season end in December for a team that was supposed to go to the Super Bowl. Pathetic.

Lamar plays poorly, throwing a couple picks, and the defense struggles again.

Bengals 35 Ravens 21 

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