Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry led the Ravens to a huge, messy win over Joe Burrow, Bengals

Week 5 is a little early for a playoff game, but it certainly felt like it as the Baltimore Ravens took on the Cincinnati Bengals in what turned out to be a great quarterbacks duel and a 41-38 overtime win for Baltimore .

Week 5 is also a little early for a referendum game, but it certainly felt like it for Joe Burrow and the Bengals.

Week 5 is definitely A little early to crown the touchdown pass of the year, but Lamar Jackson may have done it for the Baltimore Ravens.

Jackson appeared to have made a catastrophic mistake in overtime by fumbling a snap, but Cincinnati missed a game-winning field goal attempt and Derrick Henry made the Bengals pay on the very next play with a 51-yard sprint on Baltimore’s walkoff -Field goal prepared.

The instant, classic showdown began as a typical AFC-North Rock battle, but the second half turned into an Olympic sprint. The teams scored an astonishing six straight touchdowns to start the second half, then settled matters with a chaotic back-and-forth in overtime.

The game started with a bit of story. On the Ravens’ first series, Henry raced into the end zone for his 100th career touchdown; He is only the 27th player in NFL history to score triple-digit touchdowns. Jackson found out later that Rashod Bateman took a 14-7 lead midway through the second quarter.

But then the 2024 Bengals looked more like the Bengals of yesteryear — or the Tigers of Burrow’s college days at LSU. Cincinnati stopped Henry in the end zone for a safety and then ran off another 15 unanswered points to take a 24-14 lead.

Burrow, effectively addressing any lingering injury concerns, delivered two standout passes in the run, starting with a 41-yard touchdown pass to Ja’Marr Chase:

He later found Andrei Iosivas in double coverage with a pinpoint rainbow that set up Burrow’s third touchdown pass, and the second to Tee Higgins:

Also included: a strange play where the officials didn’t let Cincinnati snap the ball… and then gave the Bengals a delay-of-game penalty for not snapping the ball.

The second half was a whirlwind sprint, with the first six possessions ending in total touchdowns, none of which was smoother than Jackson’s brilliant touchdown pass that went from disaster to glory with less than six minutes to play:

Burrow’s interception late in the fourth quarter ended a touchdown-only second-half run at the worst possible time for Cincinnati. Luckily for the Bengals, Jackson and the Ravens couldn’t convert that into another touchdown; They managed to force a 56-yard field goal from Justin Tucker and tied the game at 38-38.

Then came overtime and Jackson’s crucial mistake. In Cincinnati territory and driving, the Ravens appeared primed to score a game-winning touchdown. But Jackson fumbled the snap and Cincinnati played conservatively to score a field goal… which Evan McPherson missed after a botched layup.

On the very next play, Henry stomped 51 yards, setting up Tucker’s game-winning score.

The loss ruined an outstanding day for Burrow. He threw for 392 yards and five touchdowns, a career best, but that interception in the fourth quarter, when the Bengals led by three, allowed the Ravens to force overtime. Jackson, meanwhile, was 26 of 42 for 348 yards and four touchdowns, and the missed field goal meant his fumble in overtime didn’t cost Baltimore the game. Henry carried the ball 15 yards for 92 yards.

Cincinnati is now in a world of trouble at 1-4 and faces a daunting mountain to climb to get back into the playoff hunt. Baltimore, on the other hand, has allayed any concerns after an 0-2 start, with three wins in a row and an offensive attack that appears to be working (almost) perfectly.

Looking ahead, the Ravens face the Battle of I-95 next week, taking on Washington, followed by road games against Tampa Bay and Cleveland. Cincinnati, meanwhile, will play road games against the Giants and Cleveland before facing the Eagles. By then, the identity of these two teams will be much clearer, for better or worse.