Baltimore Ravens vs Cincinnati Bengals 11/11/2019 Matchup Preview: Analysis, Depth Charts, Daily Fantasy

The 2020 fantasy football season is quickly approaching which means it’s time to get a start on your research. We have you covered with our fantasy football rankings as well as projections for the upcoming season. If you are interested in the defensive side of the ball we have you covered there as well. Leave no stone unturned and check out everything we have to offer.

Rookie quarterback, Ryan Finley, and the Cincinnati Bengals have a tough week ahead of them when they have a rematch against Lamar Jackson and the red-hot Baltimore Ravens. This contest looks to be an extremely difficult outing for a winless Bengals team, which recently benched their eight-year starting QB, Andy Dalton. A year after firing their former head coach Marvin Lewis, this Bengals team has struggled all season to run the ball and contain opposing offenses. Cincy’s challenges will only worsen when they host a Ravens defense that has held their last three opponents under 20 points. The Ravens defense has been exceptional at limiting opponent rushing yards this year and will look to capitalize on an abysmal Bengals running game that is last in terms of rushing yards per game. For matchup odds movement and full matchup history, visit the Baltimore Ravens vs. Cincinnati Bengals matchup page.

TV Schedule

Date: Sunday, November 11th, 2019
Time: 1:00 PM ET
Location: Paul Brown Stadium – Cincinnati, OH
Coverage: CBS

Injuries:

Cincinnati Bengals: R. Glasgow (IR) – knee, J. Miller (Q) – groin, C. Glen (Q) – concussion, C. Lawson (Q) – hamstring, A. Green (Q) – ankle, D. Dennard (Q) – D. Kirkpatrick (Q) – knee, A. Richmond (Q) – ankle, K. Wynn (IR) – concussion, J. Ross (IR) – shoulder, D. Phillips (IR) – knee, O. Dugas (IR) – undisclosed, R. Anderson (IR) – undisclosed, J. Williams (PUP) – shoulder/labrum, N. Scott (IR) – undisclosed

Baltimore Ravens: D. Mack (O)* – coach’s decision, B. Powers (O)* – coach’s decision, J. Scott (O)* – coach’s decision, Z. Sieler (O)* – coach’s decision, U. Kamalu (O)* – coach’s decision, T. McSorley (O)* – coach’s decision, M. Canady (O)* – thigh, P. McPhee (IR) – triceps, D. Elliot (IR) – knee, T. Jefferson (IR) – ACL, B. Trawick (IR) – elbow, O. Alaka (IR) – hamstring, K. Dixon (O) – knee, R. Crecelius (IR) – concussion, T. Young (IR) – neck, F. Smithson (IR) – undisclosed, A. Collins (O) – leg, J. Acklin (Q) – undisclosed, C. Byndom (Q) – undisclosed, A. Bailey (Q) – undisclosed, D. Henry (Q) – undisclosed
* – status as of week nine

Cincinnati Bengals Analysis:

The Cincinnati Bengals have had an utterly atrocious 2019 season due to their inability to win even a single game through their first eight games of the season. While the Bengals’ season has been a disaster overall, the lone bright spot has been their ability to move the ball through the air. Prior to his benching, QB Andy Dalton ranked in the top ten amongst quarterbacks in terms of passing yards per game. However, his dreadful QBR, lackluster TD: INT ratio, and subpar pocket presence prompted head coach, Zac Taylor, to bench the former horned-frog.

Ryan Finley’s receiving unit has a lot of potential, but lack the consistent production to uplift the young rookie. Wideouts Tyler Boyd and Alex Erickson have shown flashes of greatness throughout the small season, but only have a combined three games with 100+ yards this season. Unfortunately for Finley, the Bengals receiving corps is tied for the fifth most drops in the NFL, making them far from reliable. This shoddy receiving corps coupled with a porous offensive line, giving up the third-most sacks, and a 7.5% adjusted sack rate will make Finley’s first start in the NFL difficult (Football Outsiders).

If Finley is looking to lean on his running game to ease some of the pressure, he’d be extremely disappointed. The Bengals are currently last in the NFL in terms of rushing yards per game, and running back Joe Mixon is last in the amongst RBs with at least 64 rushes in terms of Defense-adjusted Yards Above Replacement and Defense-adjust Value Above Replacement according to Football Outsiders. He also ranks in the bottom five when it comes to effective yards and success rate amongst running backs with at least 64 carries, according to Football Outsiders. While most of Mixon’s struggles can be attributed to his team’s horrid offensive line, Mixon has been misused this season, preventing him from breaking off a big play to the outside. If Joe Mixon has any chance of being successful on Sunday, Zac Taylor needs to draw up more outside zone runs, and utilize Mixon in the short-yardage passing game.

A year after firing their defensive-minded head coach Marvin Lewis, the Cincinnati Bengals’ defensive unit has regressed to one of the worst in the NFL. The Bengals are allowing the most total-yards amongst all teams in the NFL this season, and they are currently allowing the ninth-most points per game in the NFL. This team is especially bad when it comes to stopping the run, as they give up nearly 180 rushing yards per game. The Bengals are way below average when it comes to tackling opposing players, as they have missed almost 60 tackles this year. The Baltimore Ravens lead the league in terms of rushing yards per game, so look for them to continue their rushing success when they head to Ohio this Sunday.

Cincinnati Bengals Depth Chart

QB: Ryan Finely
RB1: Joe Mixon
RB2: Giovani Bernard
WR1: Alex Erickson
WR2: Auden Tate
WR3: Tyler Boyd
TE: C.J. Uzomah

Baltimore Ravens Analysis:

The Baltimore Ravens have had one of the most surprising seasons in the NFL this year. Most of their success is derived from the improvement of second-year starting QB Lamar Jackson, who has seen increases in his completion percentage, passer rating, average yards per carry, and average yards per attempt. However, the sophomore star still has to improve his accuracy in order to solidify himself as a franchise QB. According to player profile, Jackson is 23rd amongst all QBs in terms of money throws, 17th in terms of completed air yardage, and 20th in terms of true completion percentage. Jackson probably won’t have much trouble against a Bengals defense that is surrendering the 11th-most passing yards, but he needs to develop more as a passer.

The Baltimore Ravens are a team that is oriented around their exceptional ability to run the ball. They are the only team in the league that averages 200+ rushing yards per game this season, and their top three rushers all average over four yards per carry. While most organizations are grateful to have a running back run for 1,000 yards in a season, the Ravens are blessed enough to have RB Mark Ingram, and Lamar Jackson projected to rush for 1,000 yards in 2019. The Ravens have a top ten offensive line according to Football Outsiders, and their ability to run the football should carry them throughout their contest against the Bengals.

Defensively, the Ravens have been excellent this season, due to the play of their secondary. The Ravens are in the top ten in terms of interceptions, and their star corner Marcus Peters is ranked 11th amongst all corners with at least 185 snaps in terms of yards allowed per snap, according to Pro Football Focus. An area where Baltimore can improve defensively is amongst their front seven. While Baltimore is a sound tackling team, they are currently a bottom-five team in terms of hurries and sacks. Even though their pass coverage has protected them so far, Don “Wink” Martindale is going to need to figure out a scheme to dial up pressure if the Ravens are going to be a legitimate Super Bowl contender.

Baltimore Ravens Depth Chart

QB: Lamar Jackson
RB1: Mark Ingram
RB2: Gus Edwards
WR1: Miles Boykin
WR2: Willie Snead
WR3: Marquise Brown
TE: Mark Andrews

Daily Fantasy:

Tyler Boyd ranges between a low-end WR2 option and a decent flex option on Sunday. With A.J. Green hobbled for most of the season, Boyd has been the Bengals’ no. 1 WR in terms of receptions and receiving yardage this year. Through his first eight games, Boyd had six games with at least nine targets and saw nearly 30% of the Bengals total target share. Even though it’s not a certainty that Ryan Finley will choose to target Boyd as much as Andy Dalton did, Boyd is the Bengal’s most consistent and reliable WR. He’ll be a satisfactory fantasy option for players in deep leagues.

Lamar Jackson is a definite QB1 option against the Bengals in week ten. Jackson is the biggest dual-threat QB in the NFL and is currently leading all Ravens players in terms of rushing yards this year. Cincinnati has allowed the most rushing yards per game this season, so expect Lamar to get an even larger share of carries than he usually does. Cincinnati is also surrendering the 11th most passing yards to opposing offenses this year, so look for Lamar Jackson to see quality passing production as well, especially when the play-action game opens up.

If you haven’t cut Mixon yet, you should probably cut him as soon as possible. Through eight games this year, Mixon has not even reached the 400-yard milestone and is on pace to rush for approximately 650 yards a game. To make matters worse, Mixon has not recorded a rushing touchdown this year and is being hampered by a horrendous Cincy OL. Mixon has only recorded 15+ points in two games this year and is ranked as the 33rd best RB in ESPN Fantasy for PPR leagues. He should be avoided in week ten against a Ravens defense that is holding opposing offenses to the least rushing yards per game this season.

Mark Andrews ranges between a low TE1 to a reliable TE2 option. Even though Andrew’s production has decreased over the past two weeks, he leads all Ravens players in terms of receptions and receiving yards. Lamar Jackson likes to target tight-ends on nearly 50% of his passes, and targets Mark Andrews on nearly 30% of his total passes. Despite a stingy Bengals defense that limits opposing tight-ends to only 8.4 yards a game, Andrews projects to have a productive day, especially when the Ravens open up the play-action game.

Mark Ingram is a high-end RB2 option in week ten. While Ingram is a RB who has to split carries with Lamar Jackson and Gus Edwards, he has recorded 10+ fantasy points in five games this year. Mark Ingram had a quality game against the Bengals in week six, rushing for 52 yards and one TD along with two catches for 22 yards. Look for him to best those numbers since the Bengals are allowing over 30+ fantasy points to opponent RBs per game.