The Ravens don’t have much time to stew, but the tape from Cleveland probably didn’t make for a pleasant watch.
Baltimore is preparing for its home matchup with the Cincinnati Bengals, and there still isn’t any word on whether Lamar Jackson will be back in the lineup. That uncertainty hangs over a team that just limped through an ugly road loss to the Browns, mustering only 10 points with Tyler Huntley at quarterback.
Offensive coordinator Declan Doyle made it clear the film review wasn’t going to be a casual check-in.
“What we put on tape wasn’t up to our standard,” he said, per Jamison Hensley of ESPN on X, formerly Twitter.
Hensley also reported that “Doyle said he went over 25 plays the next day with players to try to correct them.”
That kind of session fits the kind of afternoon Baltimore had in Cleveland. The Ravens stayed in it because the Browns weren’t exactly lighting up the scoreboard either, but the game still ended in a walk-off field goal for Cleveland. Derrick Henry’s costly fumble earlier in the fourth quarter loomed large in the final result.
Even with Jackson sidelined, the Ravens have seen Huntley give them something workable before. In the previous road win over the Atlanta Falcons, he helped engineer two key drives in the fourth quarter and overtime to get Baltimore the victory.
Now the focus shifts to Sunday, when the Ravens and Bengals are scheduled to kick off at 1:00 pm ET in Baltimore.
In Other News...
Lamar Jackson Gives Ravens Fans Hope Before A Huge Bengals Test
The Ravens Week 7 injury report brought a dose of optimism back to Baltimores sideline, with Lamar Jackson returning to limited practice after missing two weeks because of an ankle injury. It was the kind of update Ravens fans have been waiting for as the team turns its attention to a huge AFC North matchup with the Bengals, especially with several other Baltimore players cycling through full, limited and no-practice designations.
Cam Jurgens also showed up on the report with his best sign yet since joining Baltimore, practicing fully for the first time and putting himself in position to be available against Cincinnati. The Bengals, meanwhile, had a much cleaner report of their own, with safety Kyle Dugger the only player limited, which only adds to the intrigue around how much of a boost the Ravens can expect from their own injury picture before kickoff. [Read more 🡒]
Ravens May Be Holding Nate Wiggins Back From His Ceiling
Nate Wiggins has already shown why the Ravens are excited about his future, but the way he is being deployed suggests there may still be another level to reach. The second-year corner has been effective in 2026, especially when asked to play press coverage, yet Baltimores defense under Jesse Minter has leaned heavily on zone looks that keep Wiggins off the line more often than not.
That setup has helped the Ravens in some spots, but it may also be limiting what Wiggins does best. He has had trouble finishing plays as a tackler this season, and the contrast between his comfort in press and the less natural fit of playing off in zone has made the usage pattern worth watching. Mixing in more press work could give Baltimore a better version of Wiggins without asking him to abandon the scheme entirely. [Read more 🡒]
Ravens Are About To Find Out If Bengals Defense Is For Real
Cincinnati spent the offseason trying to change the conversation around its defense, and early signs suggest the upgrades have at least moved the unit in the right direction. The Bengals brought in Jonathan Allen and Dexter Lawrence to fortify the front, and through five games the group has looked better in pass defense and pressure rates than it did a year ago, even if the run defense still has left some questions hanging. At 3-2, they have given themselves a little breathing room, but the schedule is about to offer a tougher test.
Baltimore is the kind of matchup that can expose whether those improvements are sustainable or just a short stretch of cleaner football. The Ravens lean on Derrick Henry to stress defenses in ways that show up quickly on tape and in the box score, and if Cincinnati is going to keep building credibility, it has to handle a physical challenge it has not always handled well. This is the sort of game that can tell you plenty about a defense, even if the final answer is still a week away. [Read more 🡒]