Baltimore (3-2) used the turnover to tie the game on Justin Tucker’s 56-yard field goal with 1:35 remaining, and the Ravens stole a 41-38 overtime win Sunday at Paycor Stadium in the AFC North opener for both teams. Just like that, the Bengals went from a chance to be one win away from .500 to now sitting at a dire 1-4.
The Ravens won the coin toss to determine they would have the first possession of overtime, and Germaine Pratt’s fumble recovery when Lamar Jackson bobbled a snap gave Cincinnati a chance to secure the win. However, Ryan Rehkow botched the hold on Evan McPherson’s 52-yard field goal attempt and it came up short.
Tucker won the game the next drive with a 24-yard field goal. Jackson finished with 348 yards and four touchdowns to go along with 55 yards rushing, and Derrick Henry finished with 92 yards rushing.
Burrow threw for 392 yards and a career-high five touchdowns, including a go-ahead 41-yard pass to Ja’Marr Chase on an important final drive going into halftime that gave Cincinnati a lead it wouldn’t lose until the end. The Bengals defense had come up with a third-down stop to give Burrow the ball back with 34 seconds remaining in the second quarter, and he made the most of a chance to double-dip with back-to-back scores going into and out of halftime.
The Bengals extended a three-point lead to 24-14 after the first drive of the second half when Tee Higgins caught a 5-yard touchdown pass on third down. Burrow had completed three other third-down passes on the drive, including a 17-yarder on third-and-14 to Tee Higgins and a 39-yarder to Andrei Iosivas on third-and-10.
Baltimore responded with a quick four-play touchdown drive, sparked by Lamar Jackson’s 55-yard pass to tight end Charlie Kolar to get to the Cincinnati 4-yard line, but the Bengals kept their momentum going on offense with a third straight touchdown drive, capped by Chase Brown’s 4-yard catch.
The teams ended up trading touchdowns the entire second half, as neither defense could get a stop. Chase added a 70-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter to make it a 38-28 lead after catching the ball at the line of scrimmage and outrunning the Ravens’ secondary.
The Ravens kept the pressure on Burrow after Jackson made an incredible play to cut the deficit back to three points with 5:24 left, finding Isaiah Likely in the endzone for a 6-yard touchdown as he was being chased out of bounds. Jackson fumbled the snap and stiff-armed Sam Hubbard to keep him from making a sack.
Burrow couldn’t keep up his near-perfect play, though, to seal the game off, and Baltimore’s kicker proved the ultimate advantage.
Cincinnati’s defense did enough in the first half to allow the offense to build a lead it wouldn’t lose. Cam Taylor-Britt’s third-down pass breakup on Baltimore’s second drive, after the Ravens took a 7-0 lead on the opening series, gave the Bengals a chance to catch up following a three-and-out the first possession on offense.
Burrow tied the game with an 11-yard dart to Tee Higgins, and the defense forced a three-and-out the next drive, but third-down sacks for the Ravens’ defense prevented Cincinnati from opportunities to gain a lead until just before the break.
Baltimore re-gained a lead in the meantime when the Bengals left Rashod Bateman wide open for a 16-yard touchdown reception as Geno Stone was trying to chase down Jackson, but the next time Cincinnati’s defense took the field the team recorded its first safety since 2019. Daijahn Anthony downed a 66-yard punt from Ryan Rehkow at the 2-yard line, and Sam Hubbard tackled Derrick Henry in the endzone to cut the deficit to 14-9.
Trey Hendrickson had a hit on Jackson as he threw an incomplete pass on third down with 44 seconds left to set up the Bengals’ go-ahead touchdown drive.
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