The Baltimore Ravens suffered a lopsided 35-13 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 7, a defeat that laid bare offensive self-inflicted wounds and a second-half breakdown that swung the game irreversibly. The Bengals scored 35 consecutive points in the second half, a stretch that ties a franchise low for Baltimore and turned what began as a competitive game into an emphatic rout.
How the second half unraveled
The game pivoted after halftime when Joe Burrow and the Bengals took control. Burrow completed 9 of 10 passes for 100 yards and two touchdowns on Cincinnati's first two drives of the second half, and finished the half 16-for-18 with four touchdown passes and a 158.3 passer rating — an almost flawless performance that the Ravens had no answer for.
NFL writer Nick Shook captured the scale of the drop-off: "The Ravens tallied just five first downs in the second half and collectively failed to deliver even a hint of an answer for what Cincinnati threw at the Ravens on both sides of the ball." That lack of sustained offensive production after halftime prevented Baltimore from matching Cincinnati's surge and allowed the Bengals to build a game-clinching lead.
One sequence crystallized the collapse: after a Bengals touchdown cut into the margin, Baltimore responded with a three-and-out that ended in a sack and a crippling punt return that forced the long-snapper to make a tackle — a special-teams breakdown that immediately handed momentum back to Cincinnati and accelerated the second-half rout.
Penalties, stalled drives and defensive breakdowns
Baltimore's offense repeatedly undermined itself in the first half, committing six offensive penalties — including four false starts and a delay of game — that helped stall drives and erase opportunities. Those penalties, paired with long, clock-consuming marches that produced field goals instead of touchdowns, left the Ravens without enough offensive firepower when the Bengals mounted their comeback.
On the defensive side, Cincinnati repeatedly attacked underneath and exploited coverage lapses. Baltimore's secondary was "carved up" on Cincinnati's early second-half possessions, the sequence capped by a touchdown pass to Tee Higgins that brought the Bengals back into the game. The Ravens produced little consistent pass rush when it mattered, allowing Burrow room to operate during the decisive stretch.
The culmination was 35 unanswered points in the second half — a collapse that matches the worst second-half futility in franchise history and highlights failures across phases in the same game.
Coaching choices and personnel questions
Sunday's loss has amplified scrutiny of coaching decisions and roster construction. Critics point to play-calling and situational judgment as contributors to the meltdown; some analysts have questioned a fourth-quarter call early in the period and raised broader concerns about the team's tactical response during momentum swings. Those assessments have been aired in the aftermath of the defeat and remain debated.
Offseason and in-season roster moves are also under the microscope after a result that many see as symptomatic rather than isolated. The Bengals' second-half dominance exposed holes the Ravens have been trying to patch, and the ease with which Cincinnati moved the ball late will feed questions about personnel fit and in-game adjustments.
Jackson's absence and context
Sporting News noted that Lamar Jackson, the franchise quarterback, remains sidelined with an injury and did not play Sunday. That absence has compounded the team's struggles, and Sporting News described the Ravens as a team that has been struggling this season and unable to find consistent answers.
With Jackson out, Baltimore has repeatedly been forced into patchwork plans on offense and greater reliance on complementary units to sustain drives. Against Cincinnati, those backups and contingency strategies could not withstand the Bengals' second-half onslaught.
Whether this loss is a turning point or part of a longer slide is a matter of debate. The 35-point second-half swing and the statistical dominance by Burrow will be hard to dismiss; the franchise now confronts clear questions about penalty discipline, situational offense, and defensive adjustments when opponents flip the script after halftime.
There are no quick fixes in the immediate aftermath of a game that tied a franchise low for futility, but the Ravens' combination of offensive penalties, stalled red-zone results and an inability to contain Cincinnati's passing game in the second half laid out a concise playbook of what must change if the team is to steady itself while Lamar Jackson remains sidelined.
