Bengals
Cincinnati’s playoff chances took a massive hit in Week 14 as they fell to 4-9 with a loss at Buffalo. Bengals HC Zac Taylor quickly re-shifted their focus to Week 15 against the Ravens, even though they likely need some help to get in the playoffs.
“I know we’re up against the wall here with whatever our opportunities are, but we got a big home game this week in the division,” Taylor said, via ESPN’s Ben Baby. “So we have to be able to pick ourselves up and find a way to go respond.”
Even though the postseason seems unlikely, Burrow wanted to come back regardless to show what he is still capable of doing.
“I knew it was going to be an uphill battle for us when I was coming back,” Burrow said. “That wasn’t really in my thought process too much. I just wanted to come back and put on a show and play well in front of everybody.”
- Per Dianna Russini of The Athletic, many around the league are wondering if there will be a head coach opening with the Bengals after the season.
Browns
After scoring two late touchdowns to get within two points, the Browns failed a two-point conversion on a wildcat play to lose to the Titans in Week 14. Cleveland HC Kevin Stefanski took the blame for the final play call, where it appeared RB Quinshon Judkins forgot to pitch the ball.
“Not going to get into all the specifics but obviously it did not go as we thought it would,” Stefanski said, via ESPN’s Daniel Oyefusi. “I make every call. … I’m responsible for all of it.”
Cleveland fifth-round QB Shedeur Sanders defended the coach’s decision to call that play because of their preparation.
“We practice for situations, we do everything, and if they knew it would pan out like that, I don’t think they would’ve did it,” Sanders said. “I don’t think in any situation, if we feel like something’s not going to be as successful and intentionally call it and just be surprised if it don’t work. I think that’s the whole league, any play you go into a game with, you expect success. And if that don’t happen, that don’t happen.”
- Per Dianna Russini of The Athletic, many around the league are wondering if there will be a head coach opening with the Browns after the season.
Ravens
The Ravens lost a close game to the Steelers in Week 14, where TE Isaiah Likely had a bang-bang touchdown grab overturned. Baltimore HC John Harbaugh was told he needed a third foot to come down before the ball came out, but thinks another play benefited Pittsburgh in a similar manner that wasn’t ruled the same way.
“The explanation was that the third foot didn’t get down before the ball came out,” Harbaugh said, via Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk. “That’s what they said.”
“You know what, I believe a lot of things. I think the play with — the Aaron Rodgers play – we’re just talking about rules here, it’s not an officiating issue. It comes from New York. But when you’re making a catch, you have to survive the ground. He didn’t survive the ground. He’s not down by contact. He was catching the ball on the way down with another person, so you gotta make a catch there and survive the ground. I don’t know why it was ruled the way it was on that one. All of those things I’m sure they’ll explain it to us, but they had plenty of time to look at it and they’re the ones that are the experts on the rules.”
- Harbaugh spoke on the team’s back being against the wall after a big Week 14 loss: “The players, they know. They’ve been in the NFL. They know how this stuff works. I tell them basically we don’t make any excuses. We don’t point any fingers. That’s not what we do here. We never have. We walk out of here with our chest out and our chin up.” (Mark Maske)
- Ravens DE Dre’Mont Jones was fined $14,055 for a violent gesture.
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