In the Pittsburgh Steelers’ AFC North opener Sunday at Acrisure Stadium, they handled the Cleveland Browns in a 23-9 win, moving to 4-1 on the season. Most importantly, they’re now 1-0 in the division, too.
While the Steelers were rolling over the Browns, the Baltimore Ravens were once again authoring another ugly performance at home at M&T Bank Stadium. They dropped a tough 17-3 decision to the Los Angeles Rams, sending them to one of their worst starts in franchise history.
A few hours later in Joe Flacco’s first start for the Cincinnati Bengals, the Bengals suffered a key injury defensively ahead of a short week and really had no answers for the Green Bay Packers in a 27-18 loss that wasn’t as close as the final score indicated.
With Week 6 wrapped up in the AFC North, here’s how things stand in the division.
1. Pittsburgh Steelers (4-1)
2. Cincinnati Bengals (2-4)
3. Baltimore Ravens (1-5)
4. Cleveland Browns (1-5)
The Steelers continue to extend their lead in the division. It’s still very early in the season and the Steelers still have five division games left, but the size of their AFC North lead is encouraging. They’re handling injuries and adversity much better than the other three teams in the division.
Baltimore is really falling apart. Without Lamar Jackson, the Ravens look like one of the worst teams in the NFL.
Baltimore dominated time of possession against the Rams, holding the ball for nearly 38 minutes. Despite running 75 plays, the Ravens generated just 296 yards of total offense and 3.9 yards per play.
Penalties were an issue, too, as the Ravens were called for seven of them and turned the football over three times.
Baltimore opened the game with a Tyler Loop field goal to take a 3-0 lead, but that would be all of its scoring. The Ravens had a shot at punching one into the end zone later in the game, but the Rams stood tall with a goal-line stand from the 1-yard line, stuffing Derrick Henry on two runs and tight end Mark Andrews on two sneak attempts.
While the Ravens struggled on offense, the Rams tied the game at 3-3 before the half on a 36-yard Joshua Karty field goal. It was all Rams in the second half as running back Kyren Williams scored on a 3-yard touchdown run, capping a great drive in which Williams made a remarkable catch along the boundary.
Matthew Stafford later found tight end Tyler Higbee wide open for an 8-yard touchdown pass, making it 17-3, which ultimately held up as the final score.
Down 17-3, the Ravens benched quarterback Cooper Rush for former Pro Bowl quarterback Tyler Huntley. Rush was just 11-of-19 for 72 yards and an interception and lost fumble before getting yanked. Huntley went just 10-of-15 for 68 yards and was sacked four times after replacing Rush.
Henry seemed to get back on track in the loss, rushing for 122 yards on 24 carries, but the Rams’ goal-line stand ultimately changed the game, and Henry was stopped in his tracks twice.
Zay Flowers led the Ravens in receiving with six receptions for 46 yards, but he lost a fumble, leading to a Rams score.
With the loss, the Ravens fall to 1-5 on the season. They enter their bye week and have a chance to get Jackson back in Week 8 against the Chicago Bears in a 1 PM/ET. kickoff at home.
In a 4:25 PM/EST kickoff between the Packers and Bengals, there was a lot of hype for the Bengals in the Flacco debut. After trading for him earlier in the week, the Bengals inserted the 40-year-old into the starting lineup. He showed some promise, but once again the Bengals couldn’t stop anyone.
The Packers rolled up 409 yards of total offense and largely did whatever they wanted. The Packers rushed for 153 yards and two touchdowns while Jordan Love threw 259 yards and a touchdown in the win.
The story was Flacco though. After coming over midway through last week, Flacco breathed some life into the Bengals’ passing game, throwing for 219 yards and two touchdowns. He hooked up with Ja’Marr Chase for a 19-yard score and found tight end Tanner Hudson for a touchdown as well.
Chase and Tee Higgins combined for 15 receptions for 156 yards, showing that they can still be a formidable pairing with a serviceable quarterback under center, something they didn’t have in recent weeks with Jake Browning.
Just when it looked like the Bengals were going to make it a one-score game late, kicker Evan McPherson missed a 56-yard field goal,
Defense will be the real issue though, especially with star pass rusher Trey Hendrickson suffering a back injury and exiting the game, which could put his availability in question for Thursday night against the Steelers.
The Bengals will host the Steelers on Thursday Night Football in Week 7, while the Browns will host the Miami Dolphins at 1 PM/EST.
