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The Ravens lead 13-0 at halftime and lose 35-13 to the Bengals, their 10th blown double-digit lead since 2022 cover
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The Ravens lead 13-0 at halftime and lose 35-13 to the Bengals, their 10th blown double-digit lead since 2022

Baltimore held the ball for more than 22 minutes in the first half and scored no touchdowns after Zay Flowers' opener. Joe Burrow threw four second-half touchdown passes in a 35-13 Cincinnati win.

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  • The Baltimore Ravens led the Cincinnati Bengals 13-0 at halftime on Sunday and lost 35-13. According to the Associated Press, it was the second straight week the Ravens blew a double-digit second-half lead, and the 10th time since the start of the 2022 season.

    The numbers on the season are worse. Baltimore has outscored opponents by 65 points in first halves and been outscored by 70 after halftime, per the AP.

  • Sunday's first half should have been a blowout. The Ravens held the ball for 22:20, Tyler Huntley threw for 215 yards, and Zay Flowers had 120 receiving yards before the break, including a 48-yard touchdown. Baltimore came out of all that with 13 points because it kept stalling near the goal line. The Ravens went 0 for 3 in the red zone for the game and settled for two short Tyler Loop field goals before halftime.

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  • Cincinnati punished every one of those stalled drives. Joe Burrow went 66 yards on the first possession of the third quarter and hit Mike Gesicki for a touchdown. Baltimore went three-and-out. Burrow found Tee Higgins from 13 yards for the lead. When the Ravens finally put together a real drive, Huntley threw incomplete on fourth-and-2 from the Cincinnati 12, and the Bengals went 88 yards the other way for Samaje Perine's touchdown.

    Burrow added a 2-yard touchdown to Ja'Marr Chase and a 16-yarder to Drew Sample, and Joe Flacco, of all people, came in late to finish off his old team. Burrow finished 22 of 30 for 292 yards and four touchdowns, all in the second half. Higgins caught six passes for 148 yards. The Bengals were 5 for 5 in the red zone.

  • Lamar Jackson's ankle explains some of it. He missed a third straight game after practicing on a limited basis, and Baltimore is 1-2 without him. Huntley still moved the ball in the first half and finished 23 of 34 for 298 yards, with a touchdown, an interception to Demetrius Knight Jr. and four sacks taken. Derrick Henry ran 17 times for 45 yards, the Ravens took 10 penalties, and the offense went quiet after halftime, which is the same pattern Baltimore has been showing all year.

  • The Ravens are 4-3 and have lost five of their last six home games. Next up is a trip to Buffalo, which isn't where a team that can't hold a lead wants to go.