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Ravens commit 5 turnovers in ugly 32-14 loss to Bengals, ending winning streak

Brian Wacker, The Baltimore Sun on

Published in Football

BALTIMORE — Lamar Jackson vs. Joe Burrow under the lights at M&T Bank Stadium on Thanksgiving night. It had all the pageantry and drama of a heavyweight fight.

Instead, it turned out to be another bumbling affair for a Ravens offense that can’t seem to find a rhythm or get out of its own way this season.

Jackson fumbled twice, threw a costly interception in the fourth quarter and finished with just 246 yards on 17-of-32 passing against what was the NFL’s worst defense coming into the night. Burrow, making his first start since Week 2 after undergoing toe surgery, threw for 261 yards and two touchdowns and kicker Evan McPherson added six field goals to carry the Cincinnati Bengals to the 32-14 victory.

The loss brings an end to the Ravens’ five-game winning streak. It also knocks them out of first place in the AFC North and, for now, a half-game behind the Pittsburgh Steelers, who will host the Buffalo Bills on Sunday.

Most concerning, though, was how badly Jackson, who has had hamstring, knee, ankle and toe injuries this season, looked against a defense that came in allowing 418 yards and 32.7 points per game this season and was without injured All-Pro edge rusher Trey Hendrickson.

It was a tragic comedy of errors for the two-time NFL Most Valuable Player, though he was hardly alone.

Trailing 26-14 early in the fourth quarter and facing third-and-9 from the Bengals’ 15, Jackson’s pass attempt to Mark Andrews was tipped by defensive end Myles Murphy and plucked out of the air linebacker Demetrius Knight Jr. The turnover led to a 52-yard field goal by McPherson and all the cushion the Bengals needed in what was a common refrain throughout the evening.

Wild things often happen when these two teams meet, and this was no exception.

Midway through the second quarter, Jackson connected with Isaiah Likely on a short pass over the middle, and the tight end broke free and raced into the end zone for what appeared to be a 45-yard touchdown. Except safety Jordan Battle dislodged the ball just before Likely crossed the goal line and it went out of the back of the end zone for a touchback to give Cincinnati possession on its own 20.

Instead of a 14-6 Ravens lead, Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase (seven catches, 110 yards) made the Ravens pay.

The two hooked up twice on the ensuing drive, including on a 43-yard bomb down the right sideline that dropped right in the receiver’s lap and over Marlon Humphrey. Cincinnati was held to a 24-yard field goal to take a 9-7 lead, but the defense could only bend and not break for so long.

 

Those were also hardly the only self-inflicted mistakes by Baltimore.

An offensive pass interference call on Zay Flowers wiped out a 36-yard second-quarter touchdown, and Baltimore later punted after defensive end Joseph Ossai raced in untouched for a sack on third down. Midway through the third quarter, it was an unnecessary pass interference on cornerback T.J. Tampa on an overthrown pass on third-and-3 that extended a drive for Cincinnati and eventually led to a sprawling one-handed 14-yard touchdown grab on third-and-9 by tight end Tanner Hudson over Kyle Hamilton to extend the lead to 19-7.

Keaton Mitchell helped trim it to 19-14 with an 18-yard touchdown run late in the third quarter, but that wasn’t nearly enough to overcome all the mistakes.

In the first half, Jackson completed just 8 of 15 passes for 127 yards, was sacked three times and fumbled twice. Worse yet, both turnovers came inside Baltimore’s own 20.

With the Ravens leading 7-3 after a 28-yard touchdown run by Derrick Henry (10 carries, 60 yards) in the opening quarter to surpass Jim Brown on the all-time rushing list and facing a third-and-9 from his own 15, Jackson was strip-sacked by Ossai with Cincinnati recovering at the 2. Then with just 36 seconds remaining in the half and on his own 20, he coughed it up again, inexplicably losing the ball as he pulled his arm down from an aborted pass attempt.

The Bengals settled for a pair of field goals, but those, along with two other field goals from McPherson, were enough to stake a 12-7 lead through two quarters.

While Cincinnati’s offense managed 45 plays — including 32 of them through the air — for 206 yards in the first half, Baltimore had just 27 for 154 yards. For the game, the Bengals held the ball nearly twice as long as Baltimore (38:46 to 21:14), which at one point went six straight drives without scoring.

Last year, also on a Thursday night in Baltimore, Jackson and Burrow combined for 718 yards and eight touchdowns in a frenetic, down-to-the-wire one-point win for Baltimore, but this one never came close to matching that.

The stadium started to empty out long before the two-minute warning.

It also won’t be the last time the Ravens see Burrow and the Bengals. The two teams will meet again in just over two weeks in Cincinnati. Baltimore will need a much better performance than it had on Thursday.


©2025 The Baltimore Sun. Visit at baltimoresun.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

 

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