The Cincinnati Bengals are moving on.
The Bengals eliminated the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday night at Paycor Stadium in a thrilling Wild Card contest. Cincinnati would deflect a last second Hail Mary attempt thrown by Tyler Huntley to win the game, 24-17.
Huntley’s last second heave came so close to being caught and sending the game into overtime.
Ravens were SO CLOSE to completing the Hail Mary 😨
(via @NFL)pic.twitter.com/suzRAkWGUa
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) January 16, 2023
Other than the pass breakup, the play of this game occurred during the fourth quarter when Huntley attempted to dive over the top of the goal-line to break the 17-17 tie. Instead of scoring a touchdown, Huntley had the football swatted away by multiple defenders and into the lap of defensive end Sam Hubbard, who then sprinted it back 98 yards the other way for a touchdown.
Hubbard’s TD turned out to be the difference in this AFC North clash.
Sam Hubbard takes the fumble 98 yards for the TD ‼️
📺: #BALvsCIN on NBC
📱: Stream on NFL+ https://t.co/hNJJJGqxGF pic.twitter.com/PoVImXrfpz— NFL (@NFL) January 16, 2023
Even though they lost, it’s worth noting that Baltimore played hard all game long. Despite being without their MVP quarterback, Lamar Jackson, they still went blow for blow against the reigning AFC champs and nearly squeaked out the victory. That, to me, is respectable and deserves a tip of the cap. (RELATED: Giants Defeat Vikings On Road To Advance In Postseason)
That being said, I think quarterback Joe Burrow played almost flawlessly for Cincinnati. According to ESPN, Burrow completed 21 of his 27 passes for 195 yards with one passing touchdown and one rushing touchdown. He played like a seasoned veteran and never once turned the football over. Wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase had a solid night for the Bengals, too. Chase caught nine passes for 84 yards and a touchdown. He led receivers and running backs from both teams in yardage.
With the win, Cincinnati will head to Buffalo on Sunday for a heavy weight showdown with the Buffalo Bills in the divisional round. The last time these two teams squared off was back in Week 17 on Monday Night Football. Their game was cancelled in the first half after Bills defensive back Damar Hamlin collapsed and suffered cardiac arrest on the field.
In my opinion, the Bills and Bengals game in the second round could go either way. Both squads have great offenses, defenses and coaches so it makes it almost impossible to predict who will win. Hopefully we just continue to get some exciting playoff games because every single one of them has been awesome so far.