Lamar Jackson, Ravens pull out AFC North thriller over Bengals

BALTIMORE — Lamar Jackson‘s dominance over the Cincinnati Bengals continued Thursday night — as did his flair for the dramatic.

Jackson’s 5-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Rashod Bateman with 1:49 left in the game lifted the Baltimore Ravens to a 35-34 victory and improved his career record to 10-1 against the Bengals.

The outcome came down to the final minute as the Ravens needed their defense to force a Joe Burrow incompletion on a 2-point conversion with 38 seconds remaining to preserve Jackson’s 12th career game-winning drive. There will be debate about whether a penalty should have been called on the 2-point try.

Jackson has had two game-winning drives this season, and both have come against the Bengals. He helped Baltimore to a 41-38 overtime win in Cincinnati last month.

The NFL’s reigning Most Valuable Player needed to shake off his worst start of the season. After being limited to 71 yards in the first half, Jackson completed 15 of 19 passes for 219 yards and three touchdowns.

The Ravens scored 28 points in the second half, the most by any team in a second half this season.

The Ravens (7-3), who have swept Cincinnati in back-to-back seasons, are now in a virtual first-place tie atop the AFC North with the Pittsburgh Steelers (6-2).

QB breakdown: Jackson was dominant in the fourth quarter, completing 11 of 13 passes for 197 yards and three touchdowns. It was the second-most passing yards in a fourth quarter this season. Jordan Love had 202 in Week 4 vs. the Vikings. With two on Thursday, Jackson has nine touchdown passes from outside the pocket, four more than any other quarterback this season. Burrow is second with five.

Eye-popping stat: Wide receiver Tylan Wallace picked an opportune time to record his first career touchdown catch. With Baltimore down 21-14 in the fourth quarter, Wallace took a short out pass from Jackson and turned it into an 84-yard touchdown by somehow staying in bounds while running down the left sideline. Wallace gained 78 yards after catch over expected, which is the second-most YACOE on a reception since 2018, according to NFL Next Gen Stats.

Troubling trend: The Ravens’ pass defense, which is the worst in the league, looked like it in the second half, when Baltimore was without All-Pro safety Kyle Hamilton (ankle). The Ravens allowed touchdown passes of 67 and 70 yards to wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase. For the season, Baltimore has now given up a league-high 28 completions of 25 or more yards.

Most surprising performance: Justin Tucker. The seven-time Pro Bowl kicker hooked an extra point wide left that would have tied the game at 21 in the fourth quarter. Tucker had made 75 straight extra points prior to that miss. He had some struggles earlier in the season, but he entered Thursday having made 10 of his previous 11 field goals.

Next game: at Steelers (1 p.m. ET, Nov. 17)

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Eye-popping stat: Ja’Marr Chase had his sixth career game of at least 150 receiving yards and a touchdown. That ties Lance Alworth for the third most by a player under the age of 25 in league history, according to NFL research. Only Randy Moss and Justin Jefferson had more, with each having seven. Chase finished with 11 catches for 264 yards and three touchdowns.

Pivotal play: Cincinnati was in control of the game until Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey stripped Bengals running back Chase Brown for a fumble that Baltimore recovered with 7:05 left in the third. That sparked a 21-point run that allowed the Ravens to not only get back in the game but eventually take the lead. It compounded the Bengals’ rushing game woes on a night where they struggled to get much going.

QB breakdown: Burrow had a strong performance. Despite facing pressure all night and not having wide receiver Tee Higgins, Burrow extended plays and consistently found Ja’Marr Chase. His 70-yard touchdown pass to Chase in the fourth quarter immediately halted Baltimore’s momentum after the Ravens had scored 21 straight points to take the lead. It was Burrow’s ninth career game with at least 350 passing yards and three passing touchdowns (he finished with 428 and four), extending his own lead for most in Bengals history. It might not have been a coincidence that Burrow turned it up after Hamilton went down with the ankle injury. Burrow was 15-of-21 for 243 yards and three touchdowns after Hamilton left the game with 1:17 left in the second quarter.

Next game: at Chargers (8:20 p.m. ET, Nov. 17)