Ravens-Bengals One of Top 10 Games of 2022 NFL Season

OWINGS MILLS, Md. — The Ravens got manhandled by the Cincinnati Bengals last season.

As a result, Baltimore will be looking for a measure of revenge this year.

The Ravens-Bengals matchup was ranked No. 7 in the "Top 10 games of the 2022 NFL season" by the NFL Network.

"We had to find a way to get Lamar Jackson — one of the league's most electrifying players — on this list, and there's no better matchup than a meeting with the team that bullied Jackson's Ravens in 2021," NFL.com Nick Shook wrote. "Cincinnati blossomed from little brother to neighborhood menace last season, handling Baltimore in both meetings and legitimizing its standing as a true contender in the AFC on its way to a conference title. The Ravens have had an entire offseason to stew over the results from those two losses, and after a multi-month period of reinforcing their roster and getting healthy, they'll have a chance to exact revenge.

"What better place than the Bengals' home of Paul Brown Stadium to give Joe Burrow a serving of humble pie? Or will the Bengals prove 2021 was no fluke?"

Buffalo Bill at the Kansas City Chiefs was named as the No. 1 game.

Cincinnati quarterback Joe Burrow threw for a franchise-record 525 yards and four touchdowns in Week 16 against Baltimore, which was fielding a short-handed squad because of injuries and issues with COVID-19.

With a 20-point lead and two minutes remaining, Burrow threw a 52-yard pass to Joe Mixon. Cincinnati aggressively attacked a depleted Baltimore team even when a 41-21 victory was all but secured.

While the Ravens players and coaches said they didn't have a problem with the way the Bengals finished the game, former Baltimore linebacker Bart Scott predicts a completely different scenario.

"[Burrow] wasn't playing against the Baltimore Ravens," Scott said on ESPN's "Get Up." "And listen, I've seen this movie (in Cincinnati) before, right? ... But listen there's a culture in Baltimore. Listen, the last thing you ever want to do is poke the bear. OK, you're on a team that nobody had expectations for and you won a game. You beat them twice. Congratulations. You know what you won for your win? You won a lifetime career ass-kicking from the Baltimore Ravens. Because guess what? Our rival is the Pittsburgh Steelers. And listen - it's the way we go about it. Zac Taylor - you're involved in this too. Right? You want to sit up there, you want to run the score up.

"You won't get the benefit of the doubt. And listen, I guarantee you - it's called 'red dot.' And every Raven and former Raven understands what the 'red dot' means. ... You ain't no tough guys. You will not get the benefit of the doubt."

The Bengals also beat the Ravens 41-17 in the first meeting and completed a season sweep of Baltimore for the first time since 2015.