Ravens Might Be Chasing Bengals Over Next Several Years

Bengals swept Ravens this past season.

OWINGS MILLS, Md. — The Cincinnati Bengals won the AFC North, advanced to this year's Super Bowl and will have close to $60 million in salary-cap cap space this offseason to further boost their roster.

This has created a huge challenge for the Ravens, who were swept by the Bengals this past season. 

Baltimore GM Eric DeCosta acknowledged the Bengals pose a huge challenge going forward and the Ravens will need to adjust. 

"It’s kind of like [Chinese general] Sun Tzu – studying your enemies," DeCosta said. "I think we have to look at all the best teams, and how do we beat the best teams? Obviously, the Bengals are one of the best teams right now. They’re a very tough team to defend. They have excellent skill position players. They’ve improved quite a bit, and they’ve got a quarterback that’s fantastic. 

"So, we’ll have to find ways of adjusting what we do to play them most efficiently and effectively, and we’ll do that. [It’s] not unlike challenges that we’ve had in the past." 

Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow played two of his finest games against the Ravens, throwing for 941 yards with seven touchdowns. 

In the Week 16 game in Cincinnati, Burrow threw for a franchise-record 525 yards and four touchdowns. With a 20-point lead and two minutes remaining, Burrow threw a 52-yard pass to Joe Mixon. Cincinnati aggressively attacked a depleted Baltimore team even when a 41-21 victory was all but secured.

This prompted former Ravens linebacker Bart Scott to say, the Bengals "won a lifetime career ass-kicking from the Baltimore Ravens." 

Cincinnati also beat the Ravens 41-17 in Week 7 at M&T Bank Stadium. 

The Ravens, however, were decimated with injuries in both of the games, especially in the secondary. Baltimore also played with a third-string quarterback in the latter game. 

Nonetheless, DeCosta knows Cincinnati will be a tough matchup regardless of whom the Ravens have on the field. 

"They’re talented. They’ve got a lot of good personnel," DeCosta said. "I would say this: Over the years, I have probably had as much admiration for the Bengals for how they build their team … They find talent, and [Bengals director of player personnel] Duke Tobin should really be … I don’t want to get in trouble, but he should really be a G.M. He’s great. That guy does a heck of a job scouting, and it would be great to get him out of the division, because they do a heck of a job. 

"So, if you’re looking for a G.M., look at Duke Tobin. I mean, they draft … They’ve always drafted well – with [former Bengals head coach] Marvin [Lewis], with Coach [Zac] Taylor, with the Brown Family. The Bengals have always been a team that [when] I look at what they do personnel-wise, I really think they’re one of the best.”