Once again...the secondary fails. At what point does the Ravens make this a point to change for the better and stop saying there is no problem? Even when they have won the other 3 games, the secondary got torched. I can't stand when people are not willing to recognize there own faults. Guess what, all our future opponents will make a point to expose those faults.

Could a shutdown corner help? You bet. Maybe even getting a WR that demands double teams could possibly strike a balance? Possibly. At least we are not talking about obvious 'calls gone wild' like last week.

Can someone tell me what happened to Willis??? Why didn't he play today???

Even if the corners are compromised (and I believe they are), the pass rush (?) isn't doing them any favors. Palmer had way too much time to throw. This isn't the usual Ravens defense in my book.

Even if the corners are compromised (and I believe they are), the pass rush (?) isn't doing them any favors. Palmer had way too much time to throw. This isn't the usual Ravens defense in my book.

No Willis? No throws to Derrick Mason?Flacco had a bad game. If he hits a WIDE open Clayton with 2 minutes left, we are all happy! Bad game. Still should have won.

Offense can't get anything going. Defense costing us games, and we look like we're not ready to play?????

Ray's still making tackles, but oftentimes getting dragged 4 or 5 yards in the process.

Butkus retired at 29.
Lambert at 32.
Singletary at 33.

just sayin'

Disgusting... That's the only way to describe this game.

No disrespect to the Bengals, because they deserve the win.

However, the performance by the Ravens defense this season is just atrocious. Aside from Ed Reed, the backfield should be ashamed. Ray Lewis is done. And Greg Mattison should be fired for the completely uninspired coaching he has provided thus far. What happened to the beloved Baltimore “D?”

Hey, I guess it isn’t that bad that we’re looking at 3-3 going into the bye week, but it’s all downhill from there on out. The only bright spot is that they should be able to draft high after this season is over. Perhaps they’ll get lucky and find a shut-down corner or a deep-threat receiver. Here’s hoping that in 2010 the Ravens will be competitive again.

This was like I was having a dream - and Billick was still the coach!!!
Did Cam Cameron take the day Off - and ask Billick to sit in for him???

I agree. Last week I was probably the biggest critic of the officiating and I still believe that grossly incompetent refereeing was the singlemost important factor in the loss to the Patriots.

This week, however, the Ravens have nobody to blame but themselves. The offense looked completely impotent (did they dial it down too much after the first Flacco INT?). One target for Mason and one carry for McGahee, netting -2 yards between the two, was an ominous sign. 13 targets for the running backs and a lot of dumpoffs underneath to Heap too. Meanwhile Mason and Washington- our two biggest WRs so far- combine for one catch on the day. Everyone agrees that Cameron is a talented O-coordinator and his unpredictability can be an asset (remember "we'll pass 50 times one game and run 50 times another"?), but I think in the Ravens' rush to be unpredictable and outsmart the other team, they sometimes lose consistency and forget what they are good at. Last week they forgot that they have a dominating running game, this week they forgot that Mason, Washington, and McGahee are three of the biggest reasons their offense has been successful.

Defensively, the Ravens have done well overall, especially considering the degree to which they are constrained by their extremely weak secondary. However, I've noticed a troubling trend (starting before this year), of yielding big drives at the end of games. With two minutes left, a four point lead, and the opponent starting from their 20, a defense is supposed to have the advantage. Yet time and time again the Ravens will play strong defense for 58 minutes only to fall apart when the opponent is running their two-minute drill. Roethlisberger last year, Rivers this year, and Palmer today- it has been proven that good quarterbacks can drive on this defense with the game on the line in the fourth quarter. I'm not sure what the problem is, but sure wish the coaches would get on top of this problem. It isn't going away on its own

I am going to disagree with the notion that you have to dominate to win games, last time I checked Pittsburgh won a superbowl last year after a pleahter of close games. Not to take anything away from the Bengals, but the officating had a role for the second week in the row.

Next we have to look at the Ravens front office, not having a dominant receiver has hurt the Ravens the past few games, this was a problem diagnosed in the summer. You cannot depend on Ray Rice/McGhee to play running back and receiver.

Lastly, the defense in my opinion has been out of sink all year,time for Greg M. to step up or step out. Even though they suffered two straight loses, the ravens is still a championship team with some adjustments.

Why is it that in the last 2 minutes you start seening more defensive backs and linebackers in the game. They can't seem to stop the other team from scoring. So why are they brought in. When the bengals scored the receiver looked wide open.

Ouch!, man that was painful. I'm just not used to seeing the Ravens D get pushed down the field so easily when the game is on the line. By the way, what ever happened to the Ravens running game?
You said that the real test for the Ravens was going to be the Steelers Pete. Well, if they can't beat the Bengals at home, then by the time we get to the Steelers it might not be all that big a game after all.
Really, really disappointing day.

Ok, I'm going to differ from all this talk about the Ravens secondary. Part of the problem with the secondary is that the Ravens have a TERRIBLE defenisve coordinaotr who is in over his head. The corners are going to get beat repeatedly when you ask them to cover for 4 and 5 seconds. On the final drive of the game, the Ravens did not blitz ONCE. They rushed 3 or 4 players EVERY SINGLE TIME. Against the best QB's in the game, (last week, this week, and next week) they will get beat. Mattison is in over his head. He does not have an NFL coordinator pedigree, and he has the job because of a relationship with Harbaugh. Stop blaming the corners. We are now playing a coverage scheme with pressure personnel. The Steelers have won 2 super bowls in 5 years with mediocre corners. The rules are tilted in favor of the passing game, the way to win in the NFL is to BLITZ. Mattison doesn't understand this because he's been in the college game.

Stop piling on Greg Mattison. The fact is, Ozzie Newsome failed to go out and get a much-needed pass-rushing defensive lineman to rotate in when you get in this kind of game. Ozzie gave out megamoney to a vastly overrated Terrell Suggs, signed a couple of soft cornerbacks, opted for a strong safety (Landry) who is weak in pass coverage and didn't bring in anyone to replace Bart Scott. None of those personnel issues is Greg Mattison's fault.

The NFL officiating is a joke. I'm done watching NFL football, the officials gave this game to the Bengals, plain and simple.

Somebody tell the corners that Taco Bell is hiring entry level folks.

Somebody tell the corners that Taco Bell is hiring entry level folks.

2 games lost in closing minutes. cincy was playing with emotion due to coach's wife death. the ravens didnt seem to have any fire. no halftime adjustments. poor clock management at 2 mins. this one is on youngblood joe.

2 games lost in closing minutes. cincy was playing with emotion due to coach's wife death. the ravens didnt seem to have any fire. no halftime adjustments. poor clock management at 2 mins. this one is on youngblood joe.

2 games lost in closing minutes. cincy was playing with emotion due to coach's wife death. the ravens didnt seem to have any fire. no halftime adjustments. poor clock management at 2 mins. this one is on youngblood joe.

2 games lost in closing minutes. cincy was playing with emotion due to coach's wife death. the ravens didnt seem to have any fire. no halftime adjustments. poor clock management at 2 mins. this one is on youngblood joe.

2 games lost in closing minutes. cincy was playing with emotion due to coach's wife death. the ravens didnt seem to have any fire. no halftime adjustments. poor clock management at 2 mins. this one is on youngblood joe.

Whenever a team points to the officiating as the reason for a loss, its merely an excuse for their own poor performance. Clayton is no longer trustworthy, I don't know how Foxworth even got a job in the NFL, and Flacco's protection is nearly non-existent. This team needs to look within before they start shifting blame.

I think the officiating cost the ravens more today than last week. We had a chance to score at the end of both halfs against the patriots and came up short. In spite of how poorly the ravens played today the refs flat out cost us the game with the bogus pass interference call. It's ironic too, because if walker had let ocho make the catch the bengals would have faced fourth and about five with the clock running and no timeouts.

Hey Purple Kool Aid drinkers, was that Kyle Boller at QB today? Brian Billick at head coach and Matt Cavanaugh at offensive co-ordinator? What happened to Air Flacco? Before the season I said they would be 3-3 after six games and was vilified. What say you now PKA drinkers? Minnesota on the horizon; Denver, Indy, two with Pittsburgh, The Bengals at Cincinnati. Hmmmm, let me do a prediction for the rest of the season: 6-10. Where's that vaunted defense led by Ray the has been Lewis? I love reading the posts on here. Sounds like Orioles fans. Where's the anonymous posting 'fire harbaugh'? *LMAO* Oh wait....it was all the refs fault right?

First of all Roy, 26 year old players who can play defensive end AND OLB, AND who already have 2 or 3 pro bowls don't grow on trees. Ozzie had to pay Terrell. Second, who in the NFL is winning by "rotating" pass rushing lineman around and only rushing 3 or 4? WHO? Please tell me who that is. Because that is Mattison's strategy, he said so himself. But I can tell you, NOBODY. Only the Giants get away with rushing 4, and that is sometimes, and that's because they have THREE guys who would be the top pass rusher on most teams. But even they blitz A LOT. Bart Scott got most of his notoriety for the Ravens as a BLITZER! But that wouldn't happen under Mattison would it? You could have Champ Baily and Deon Sanders playing corner, Mattison doesn't know how to get free rushers at the QB consistently. When he does blitz, you can see it coming a mile away, and it gets picked up easily. If you know football, then you know a corner knows it's a blitz and is looking to break on a quick route, if he has to cover longer, there's no help, and most of the time it's a big play. You can play whomever you want back there, you can draft fifty thousand cover corners and safeties, with no pressure, it's a losing proposition. Period.

The Ravens never addressed the receiver problem in the off season..there "D" Line is getting old..the corners are too small for todays game...The Offence looked like they were "Lost"...Time to think about rebuilding !

The Ravens never addressed the receiver problem in the off season..there "D" Line is getting old..the corners are too small for todays game...The Offence looked like they were "Lost"...Time to think about rebuilding !

Well, you won't see me again after today. That was the worst loss ever. No part of the team looked good. Yes the refs proved the game is fixed, but we could have won it despite them.

Ray is done. The secondary is horrendous. Landry is much worse than Leonard was. Foxworth ain't a pro player at all.

No consistent pressure. The D line had to compensate for Foxworth sucking so we gave up run after run.

Our offense looked like it was scripted by a 4-year-old. Hardly anything to receivers. Everything short and useless.

touchdown Brandon Marshall

Until the Ravens figure out how to pressure the QB, their secondary will continue to get torched.

How many 3rd and longs has the D given up so far this year? I bet it's more than 50%. They can't get off the field and they're gassed by the end of the game when it matters most.

We'll see a lot more outcomes like today if they don't fix it.

Run the ball!

Still was sweet to see Ray JACK up Ochocinco.....

The ravens had a bad game n they didn't play well.But the refs still was the deciding factor of the game

Perhaps the Bengals defense is all world. That must be the explanation for why the Ravens offensive play calling was so conservative. The only difference between Flacco and Boler today was I don't recall seeing Flacco trip over his own feet.

As for the Ravens D they are setting a bad pattern here. How many games are the Ravens going to lose in the last 2 minutes?

3 and 2 is not bad. That the Bengals are on top of the heap is but that is why they play the game.

1. The five yard discrepency after the over-turned touchdown.

2. The questionable call on the interference call.

3. The phantom, apparently invented, illegal formation on the extra point.

Yeah, the Ravens played poorly, but come-on. The officiating was terrible today, and it was worse last week.

Owned!!!

I wish we could play your team every week!

Where was the offensive pass interference on Chad HomoStinko when he broke up what was likely going to be an interception? He wasn't playing the ball, he was tackling the defender.

If Flacco doesn't overthrow Clayton by a step this one is in the win column...

If the D doesn't allow the slowest QB I've seen in years to convert on 4th down this one is in the win column...

If. If. If. Lots of near misses.

Bottom line is that the Ravens had a poor showing and still nearly won the game... Relax all of you doom and gloom fans out there. As for you Cincy fans who are rubbing it in - you just wait. Payback comes in a few short weeks.

Three flags on the Ravens in the last drive for about 45 yards. Kind of makes you think they'd have thrown a fourth, a fifth, and a sixth, until the Bengals finally scored the game winner.

We played poorly, but kept in the game, and should have won. Will any of our games be decided by the players?

After last week, the three flags at the deciding point of the game leave a very bad taste.

stunned is not the word to describe the ravens loss. their heads just were not in the game. they have to stop making stupid penalties when they have the opposition in long yardage situations. it was a game they could have won. and should have won. time will only tell if they do stupid things like they did today when they play pittsburgh

yeah the ravens lost! big surprise! and what was the big deal with lewis going after ochocinco. in his words, "that was embarrassing" from last week. well real mature RAY! but then again, it was the officiating that caused them to loose the game right? not the fact that they got outplayed.

Yeah the Ravens lost. Flacco had a bad game. The D wasn't sharp. It happens. How many bad games has Favre had? I'll still hold my Ravens up against the Bungles any day. Let's compare histories. :)

I'm sitting here watching the Colts game and see another instance of a team stopping an offense cold, only to have the drive continue after drawing these BULLS*** roughing penalties. A defense can't even touch a QB without giving up a new set of downs and 15 yards. And almost every freaking time the next play, or second following, ends up in the end zone. Why? Because the D is demoralized after doing their job only to have it taken away — they don't know what to do. They make it to the QB, and because they roll into him or he happens to get the pass off a half second early, it's a huge penalty. Something has got to be done about this ruling. It's ruining the game.

Enough already with blaming the refs. Yes, there were some bad calls, but that's football. Get over it. Fact is, we didn't play well enough to win. 7 offensive points? Really? And it's the refs fault? You guys sounds like children.

And enough with season being over talk. We're 3-2 with a shot at 4-2 going into the bye week. Yes, it'll be tough. And yes, we'll be the dogs going into the game. But so were the Bengals coming into our place. In other words, it can be done.

Enough about the officiating, people. From what I saw, both calls were warranted.

Where is Ray's big speech this week after a boneheaded play kept a drive going? Hellooo? Ray? Anyone seen Ray?

Oh, never mind, I heard that you zipped out of the locker room before you had to stand up like a man and admit your mistakes, instead of blaming someone else like last week.

I guess Jesus told Ray to hit Ochocinco late, and skip the press conference.

So, Peter... Will we be allowed to even make contact with Favre The Aged NFL Golden Boy or are the flags going to be flying?

Also, about Ray's hit on HomoStinko - by virtue of that penalty am I to assume that Ray is supposed to run full tilt and time his hit to jar the ball loose but then stop himself on a dime because the pass was high? I see receivers get cleaned out on drops all the time - what made this hit a penalty?

Pete, Please don't let comments like gernb's go up without screening. Thanks.

If you want to make the blog accessible only to those over 18, fine, but I don't think there's a place for such language in a open blog. I know of late you've just allowed comments to post and then come back later to them for your reply, but people like gernb are abusing that freedom.

In any case, as for the game, as soon as I heard that the Bengals were dedicated the game to the defensive coordinator, who's wife passed away earlier in the week, I figured the Ravens were playing them on the wrong week and so they were.

Of course, three killer defensive penalties on the Bengals last drive also made the Cincy win possible. I expect playback on Nov. 8th, when the Ravens play them at Paul Brown Stadium.

..............................................................................................
Pete's reply: Ken, I delete those posts as soon as I get to them, but the only other solution is to stop open posting and approve each message individually. So, I'll put it out there for readers. What do you want to do? If I have to screen each post, they're not going to go up for hours sometimes. I can't monitor the blog 24/7. I've got other duties at The Sun and I also have other duties at home. It's just not practical.

Rex Ryan {+} Bart Scott {+} Jim Leonhard {+} Brandon Marshall {-} Greg Mattison {=} 5 & 0

Greg Mattison {+} Dwan Landry {+] Mark Clayton {=} 8 & 8

3&2 after 5 games , well to tell you the truth i got caught up with those first 3 wins like everybody else. But if you want to be realistic this isn't a very good football team.Our defense isn't even in the same ball park as all the others, due to a complete lack of pass rush, something that wasn't addressed in the offseason.Paul kruger is nothing but a project and we didn't have the luxury to draft any projects when the only legit pass rushers we have are jarett johnson and suggs, Pryce is finished, and when gregg and haloti are in the game at the same time we get nothing from them. I could go on and on but i will make some observations for everybody to pick apart.

1 Make no mistake that this team misses bart scott, jim leonard, and jason brown, birk allows way to much pressure up the middle and is getting to old, bad move on the ravens part.
2. Make no mistake that this team has gone completely away from what made them successful last year running the ball and controlling the clock thus allowing the defense to be fresher at the end of the game.Outside of the cleveland game we have had the ball way less then the opponent.

3 Make no mistake what so ever that signing Foxworth at 27,000,00 will go down as the worst free agent signing in raven history.
4. Like i said earlier drafting paul kruger way to undersized was a huge mistake because the ravens needed a pass rusher with the departure of bart scott and they showed signs last year of not putting pressure on the QB. Kruger is nothing but a huge reach at this time.
5 Yesterday the ravens were completely out coached and out played period. The bengals played cover two and made us look like billick was still calling the plays. Say what you want with 2 games left against pitts, colt,s minn, denver, gb, bears, this team will be lucky to finish 8 and 8. And in comclusion how in the world can you take willis out of the game plan, he has busted his butt this year without complaint 1 carry for minus 2 yards. Coach h i have been in your corner since the hire but the last 2 games you have been completely out coached and yesterday was totally unacceptable.

Why is it losing teams are always talking about officiating. A "toss up" on a call is ridiculous Peter - it was pass interference because it was called. They didn't get the job done and even a hint of conerns about a call deflects the real issue...they didn't get it done at crunch time.

"There were few complaints about the officiating in the Ravens lockerroom after the game, perhaps because they all recognized that they didn't play nearly well enough to win today."

Well, was one of them "few complaints" the losing of 5 yards after winnign the replay on Clayton's fumble? I wish someone would address this. It's inexcusable for the coaching staff to miss this.

If a team shows up the refs in the media one week they should not expect to have the calls go their way the next week. Hopefully, the Ravens learn that, because I don't think the league is going to do anything about it.

Pete: I say keep the comments unmoderated. It would be nice if users could flag messages. Then you could be alerted if an offensive message is posted.

what about the obvious foul on the last touchdown pass by the receiver - are the refs completely blind - or just looking to call a foul on the Ravens?

Are you guys still crying about refs?

Wow!!

The Ravens put the BAWL in Bawltimore.

The Viks will hand you another loss. You'll be 4-4 going into the BYE week, so you can keep crying for the next 2 weeks.

Bawl some more, Ravens

lol

The Bawlsimore Ravens - nice name, you earned it.