The Baltimore Ravens went on the road this week to face off against bitter division rivals, the Cincinnati Bengals. After a battle that was more lopsided for the most part than the final 27-24 score would indicate, head coach John Harbaugh paid respect to the Bengals team while simultaneously congratulating his guys–especially the offensive line and the secondary–for an excellent display of team football.

While talking with reporters, Harbaugh made sure to address the Bengals: “[The] Bengals are outstanding. That’s an awesome team win. Just an outstanding effort and a great way to open the AFC North trek we’re about to be on.” He later went on to point out the offensive line's dominance as well, stating “Look at the way the offensive line played. They just played tremendously well.”

It's no secret that the Ravens secondary, which has faced key losses such as CB Marlon Humphrey and S Marcus Williams, is nowhere near full strength. However, against a Bengals team notorious for its lethal receiving corps made up of Ja'Marr Chase, Tee Higgins, and Tyler Boyd, the Ravens' secondary impressively managed to hold their own.

The secondary held Burrow to just over 200 passing yards and, according to Harbaugh, successfully “pressed the Bengals WRs [to] limit damage.” Obviously, superstar receivers are going to make catches and get yardage. So in situations like this, the goal is to control the chaos that typically ensues when lining up across them. The Ravens' secondary, depleted as it may be, rose to the occasion and did just that.

Coming into the season, the Ravens and Bengals were the two teams expected to duke it out for the AFC North division title. The Ravens, who have suffered a number of unfortunate postseason outings in the Lamar Jackson era, are determined to be contenders this year. That starts by winning the division, something they are clearly well-positioned to do.

They have paid Jackson handsomely, signed and drafted ample talent to cover their weaker areas, and started the season with a decisive victory over the Houston Texans. Now, with the Bengals also in the rearview mirror and a perfect 2-0 record, the Ravens return to Baltimore in Week 3 to host the Indianapolis Colts who–despite their decisive victory against the Texans today–are nonetheless reeling from the loss of their rookie quarterback Anthony Richardson to a concussion in Sunday's match.

The Ravens are slowly returning to full strength (see: the return and performance of star TE Mark Andrews) and Sunday's Week 2 win against the Bengals, who eliminated them in the wildcard round of the 2022 playoffs, is a great indicator of their potential for this season. Indeed, John  Harbaugh was correct in saying that his guys “just played tremendously well”.