OWINGS MILLS, Md. — Following Sunday night’s loss to the Steelers, Ravens running back J.K. Dobbins said on Monday night the Ravens are Bills fans. That's because Baltimore needs Buffalo to beat Cincinnati on Monday Night Football to have a shot at winning the AFC North division and hosting a playoff game. The game will air live on WMAR. Coverage begins at 8:00 p.m. Kickoff arrives at 8:30 p.m.
If the Bengals do lose it will set up a regular season finale on Sunday, Jan. 8 in which the winner between Baltimore and Cincy clinches the division. If the Bengals beat the Bills on Monday night, Cincinnati locks up the AFC North crown and the Ravens will be either the five or six seed in the AFC.
All of this is in play because the Ravens failed to handle business in prime time on Sunday night. They lost to Pittsburgh 16-13. The offense again struggled to move the ball with any consistency. The defense faltered late in a tale reminiscent of other implosions earlier in the season. That unit authored its worst game against the run, allowing 198 yards on the ground, 111 to Najee Harris before he caught the game-winning score.
"‘I was disappointed in it. The guys were, too. That was not what we expected; we’re better than that – there’s no question about it. It wasn’t any one thing. It was just not being quite up to standard across the board probably," said Ravens head coach John Harbaugh on Monday. "Guys were fighting, and there was effort. I give them credit – they blocked and ran hard. It’s a good team, now, and we respect them. They were better than us in terms of the fundamentals of running the ball and run defense, is really the bottom line."
Back to the offense and quarterback Lamar Jackson’s availability for the regular season finale - Harbaugh said he does not yet know if Jackson will practice this upcoming week. Lamar has missed four games and has not practiced since spraining his knee on December 4.
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