Ravens 20, Bengals 17 (OT)
BALTIMORE -- After Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton forced overtime with a 51-yard touchdown pass to A.J. Green as time expired, the Baltimore Ravens escaped with a 20-17 victory on a 46-yard field goal by Justin Tucker on their first possession of the extra period.
With the win, the Ravens got back in the race for the AFC North title and trail the first-place Bengals by two games
Despite the late-game heroics, Dalton was sacked five times and completed just 24 of 51 passes for 274 yards with two touchdowns and three interceptions. A.J. Green caught eight passes for 151 yards for the Bengals (6-4).
Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco threw two touchdowns, but also had two interceptions. Flacco completed 20 of 36 pass attempts for 140 yards and was sacked five times. James Ihedigbo had a pair of interceptions and Lardarius Webb also had a pick for the Ravens (4-5).
Trailing 17-0 at the half, Cincinnati finally got on the board with 10:37 left in the third quarter on a 32-yard field goal by Mike Nugent. Facing a fourth-and-2 from the Ravens 25 with 9:03 left in the game, Dalton slid for the first down to prolong the drive.
On the next play, Dalton found running back Giovani Bernard for an 18-yard yard touchdown, cutting the margin to 17-10. The Ravens appeared to seal the victory by sacking Dalton on a third-and-16 with seconds remaining. However, on the next play Dalton threw a 51-yard pass that was tipped once, then batted up by safety Ihedigbo and grabbed by Green in the end zone to tie the game.
On a fourth-and-2 from the Baltimore 33 in overtime, the Ravens tackled Bernard on swing pass in the backfield for an 11-yard loss, a play that weaved from one side of the field to the other -- all behind the line of scrimmage -- before giving the Ravens great field position.
The Ravens did not play well on offense, but they still managed to take advantage of several Bengals' miscues and costly penalties.
After the Bengals failed to convert a fourth-and-1 from midfield on their first possession, the Ravens made them pay, On the next play, Bengals' safety Reggie Nelson was called for past interference against wide receiver Torrey Smith at the 4-yard line. Three plays later, Flacco found tight end Dallas Clark for a 1-yard score.
It was the first time the Ravens scored a touchdown in the first quarter since the season opener and their first lead since week five against Miami.
Baltimore increased the lead to 10-0 on its next possession on a 36-yard field goal by Tucker with 4:39 left in the first quarter.
An interception by Ihedigbo deep in Bengals territory set up a 7-yard touchdown pass from Flacco to Smith for a 17-0 with 6:30 left in the half. The Bengals outgained the Ravens 102-94 in the first half, but had 114 yards in penalties.
Notes: Cincinnati TE Jermaine Gresham was ruled inactive just prior to the game after missing two practices this week because of a groin injury. Alex Smith got the start. ... Despite some optimism earlier in the week, Bengals MLB Rey Maualuga was out Sunday because of a concussion and sprained MCL he suffered Oct. 27 against the Jets. Vincent Rey got the start at middle linebacker and had an interception and three sacks. ... A.J. Shipley started at left guard for Baltimore after G Kelechi Osemele was placed on injured reserve with a herniated disk. Shipley injured his leg in the third quarter and did not return.
