BALTIMORE (AP) — Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens shook off their fourth-quarter woes in a big way.
Over half of Baltimore's total yards — and 21 of its 35 points — came in the final period Thursday night as the Ravens rallied to beat Cincinnati 35-34. Baltimore trailed by 14 points in the third, which was a rare type of deficit for this team but clearly a surmountable one.
“It’s huge,” tight end Mark Andrews said. “A lot of teams can kind of go in the tank and shut it down when things aren’t going our way, and we fought an uphill battle for most of the game. Again, just the belief and the fight and the resiliency that the guys had throughout four quarters and just understanding that we have no quit.”
The Ravens (7-3) are very hard to outplay by any considerable margin. They hadn't trailed by 14 points with Jackson healthy and playing since Nov. 7, 2021, in a game against Minnesota.
The bigger issue has been closing out games. Before facing Cincinnati, Baltimore had been outscored 93-61 in the fourth quarter. The Ravens blew a 10-point lead to the Raiders, nearly squandered a bigger advantage at Dallas and gave up three fourth-quarter touchdowns in a win at Tampa Bay.
On Thursday, they outscored the Bengals 21-13 in the fourth and gained 231 yards in the quarter.
What's working
It was another sensational game for Jackson, who threw for 290 yards and four touchdowns. He has an NFL-high passer rating of 123.2, a touchdown/interception ratio of 24 to 2 and a league-best average of 9.3 yards per attempt. And that's before his running production is taken into account.
A third MVP award is very much in play.
What needs help
The secondary was run ragged again — and lost star safety Kyle Hamilton to an ankle injury. Ja'Marr Chase had 11 catches for 264 yards and three touchdowns for Cincinnati. Chase has given the Ravens fits his whole career, and the absence of injured Bengals receiver Tee Higgins didn't help Baltimore much.
Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey had quite a bit to say after the game.
“These wins are getting harder to enjoy based off of what we’re doing in the pass defense,” he said. “Something has got to change. We’ve just got to play better. I’ve got to play better. We’ve all got to play better. We’ve got to play as a unit, and we’re just not doing that. Really nothing really more to say. We’ve got to keep working.”
Stock up
Although Joe Burrow threw for 428 yards and four TDs, the Ravens got a decent amount of pressure on him. Nnamdi Madubuike had three sacks after having only two previously on the season.
“Feels good,” Madubuike said. “This year is definitely more double teams and stuff like that, and I could easily fall into the frustration bucket, but I chose to just stay poised, stay focused."
Stock down
For much of the game, Baltimore's top-ranked offense looked out of sorts. Penalties were an issue, and the Ravens went three-and-out on four of their first six possessions.
Baltimore was also held under 100 yards rushing for the first time in 43 games. Derrick Henry had only 68 yards on 16 carries, and the Bengals had 75 total plays to the Ravens' 58.
Injuries
Hamilton sprained an ankle and didn't return. Running back Keaton Mitchell was active for the first time since injuring his knee in December, and he had a 30-yard kickoff return.
Key number
98 — The total yards receiving for Tylan Wallace in his 3 1/2-year career before he had 115 on Thursday. Wallace turned a short pass into an 84-yard touchdown in the fourth.
Next steps
The Ravens have a little extra time off before playing at AFC North-leading Pittsburgh on Nov. 17. Baltimore won the division last year despite being swept by the Steelers.
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Noah Trister, The Associated Press
