Team Grades: Bengals Sweep Ravens As Injury Riddled Season Comes To A Close
By Samuel Njoku
With the final game of the season in front of the Ravens, Harbaugh hoped to end it on a positive note and look toward the 2016 season for retribution. Unfortunately, that wasn't meant to be as Cincinnati defeated Baltimore 24-16. The loss dropped the Ravens to 5-11, which gives them the worst record in franchise history since 1996.
Offense: C-
When Ryan Mallett defeated the Steelers last week, he was the talk of the town. He all but cemented his position as the back-up quarterback. But against the Bengals, Mallett looked like a quarterback with only three weeks worth of practice time. The Bengals did a great job of limiting what he was able to do inside the pocket. They made him uncomfortable and made the Ravens receivers work for everything they got. Mallett finished with 292 yards passing with a touchdown and 2 interceptions.
Mallett was also forced to throw the ball 56 times. That's not going to win you many football games. He has to pass the ball frequently because of the Bengals success against the run. Buck Allen was held to merely 38 yards on Sunday and Terrence West managed only 17 yards. The Bengals made Baltimore one dimensional on offense and it was the difference in the game.
Defense: C+
The Ravens defense had a much better performance during the second half of the season as opposed to the first. The game against Cincinnati would give Baltimore a chance to build on their past performances. For the most part, Baltimore was able to contain AJ McCarron. He only mustered up 160 yards passing, but he made the most of his opportunities with two big time touchdown passes. The Ravens defense held the Bengals without a third down conversion but that can be attributed to Cincinnati's ability to convert on second down. Whenever a stat like that presents itself, there's a pretty good chance the run game was successful. This was the case on Sunday as both Jeremy Hill and Giovanni Bernard ran for 6 yards per carry. Hill in particular was 4 yards shy of 100 and reached the endzone once.
Special Teams: A
We don't know where the Ravens would be this season without Justin Tucker and Sam Koch. Tucker was three for three on the day and kept Baltimore in the game during the early portions of the contest. Sam Koch routinely kept Cincinnati deep within their territory with impressive punts. Jerry Rosburg deserves a lot of credit for what turns out to be the lone bright spot of the season for the Ravens.
Coaching: C
The Bengals ability to suffocate the running attack really took the heart out of the offense. The coaching staff abandoned the run once they realized it would be a long day for their running backs. Harbaugh and Marc Trestman shouldn't have totally given up on running with the football, however. Throwing the ball almost 60 times is a recipe for disaster. The Ravens likely would have been better off if they had atleast attempted to keep the defense honest.
Samuel Njoku was born and raised in Baltimore, MD and is a graduate of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore. Samuel has covered the Ravens for Examiner.com since 2010. Prior to 2010, Samuel was an avid blogger and radio personality in Salisbury, MD. Samuel Njoku is a freelance writer covering all things NFL. His work can be found on Examiner.com. You can also follow him on Twitter @Ravens_Examiner.
