Baltimore Ravens vs Cincinnati Bengals: Who’s Playing, Who’s Not
Week 8 will be an important one for both the Baltimore Ravens and the Cincinnati Bengals. This game might just end up ultimately deciding the AFC North division winner.
The Bengals currently stand with a record of 3-2-1 while the Ravens are 1.5 games better at 5-2. If the Ravens lose this game, they would also lose the season tiebreaker to Cincy, which would obviously be huge. With that being said, this is a game that, while both teams want to take it, the Ravens need a little more.
How will the injuries impact this game? Well let’s consider this:
Probable: LT Eugene Monroe (knee), LG Kelechi Osemele
This is great news for the Ravens, because the team has been without these two starting offensive linemen for two weeks now. They have had to rely on the inexperience of fifth-rounder John Urschel and undrafted free agent James Hurst.
With Osemele and Monroe likely to return this week, not only will running back Justin Forsett have an easier time finding holes, but Joe Flacco will have loads of more time in the pocket. And it’s not like Flacco wasn’t performing well this season as it is.
Justin Forsett already held the second-best yard-per-carry average in the league, and that was without these two players on the field. Having them out there opens up a whole new realm of possibilities.
TE Owen Daniels is OUT
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Starting tight end Owen Daniels will miss this game after undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery. It was a minor procedure, and the team has stated that it should not hold him out for longer than a week or two.
Rookie Crockett Gillmore, who started the season as the third-string tight end, will have to step up in this game, and he sounds ready to do so. “I’ve prepared to be the guy from the first day I was here,” Gillmore said. “I’ve been following those guys around – Owen and Dennis – so they’ve given me a great opportunity to just step in their shoes and do what I can do.”
WR A.J. Green is DOUBTFUL
This is what we call a game-changer. Nine times out of ten, when A.J. Green plays, he is the best player on the field. The same would have been true against the Ravens, but it looks like he won’t be participating in this game.
He suffered a turf toe injury that has caused him to miss a few weeks now and his recovery has lagged longer than the Bengals hoped it would. But apparently, Head Coach Marvin Lewis is not ready to rule Green out. I think this is false speculation, as many signs have pointed to him being ruled out of Sunday’s game.
Green scored the 77-yard game-winning touchdown in Week 1 against the Ravens, and don’t think either of these teams forgot about that. With this injury occurring, Mohamed Sanu will have to step up for Cincinnati. He is a talented receiver, but can he lead the Bengals’ receiving in the most important game of the season up to this point?
Linebacker Vontaze Burfict was also listed on the injury report, but he participated in practice on Thursday and Friday and is probable for Sunday’s game.