Germaine Pratt declares Bengals will play spoiler to Ravens’ playoff hopes

Linebacker Germaine Pratt declared on social media that he and the rest of the Cincinnati Bengals will play spoiler to the Baltimore Ravens’ playoff hopes.

The Cincinnati Bengals have been out of the playoff conversation for quite some time, but in week 17, they will have an opportunity to make their impact on the postseason. Their opponent, the Baltimore Ravens, find themselves in need of a victory to secure a spot among the seven AFC representatives vying for the Super Bowl.

The franchise that calls Paul Brown Stadium home is no stranger to keeping their bitter AFC North foes out of the playoffs. In fact, they broke the hearts of faithful Ravens fans just a few years ago in 2017, when Andy Dalton delivered a 49-yard touchdown pass to Tyler Boyd, serving as the dagger for Baltimore’s championship aspirations.

Riding high off of a two-game win streak, linebacker Germaine Pratt believes he and the rest of his squad will cause history to repeat itself. In response to the NFL asking fans on Twitter if the Ravens will make the playoffs, the defensive playmaker didn’t hesitate, saying, “nope, over for them”.

Of course, it’s to be expected that a player always enters a contest expecting his club to come out on top. However, the fact that Pratt proclaimed it on social media is telling about his level of confidence entering the matchup.

The Bengals routinely close out the season with a win

Pratt has history on his side when it comes to his declaration, and not just the incident from 2017. Cincinnati has developed a knack for winning their final game of the season, no matter how poorly the campaign has gone up to the finale.

The Athletic’s Jay Morrison has the Bengals winning the final game of the season when entering the contest with a losing record the past 12 times they’ve found themselves in such a situation. Perhaps even more impressive, they’ve come out victorious in these situations 17 out of the past 18 times.

There’s no denying the first matchup between the Bengals and Ravens didn’t go swimmingly for Cincinnati. Zac Taylor’s squad suffered a 27-3 beat down and looked thoroughly outclassed.

However, the organization has seemingly found its footing in recent weeks and has historical precedence on its side. Pratt may just prove his prediction to be true as the Bengals gear up for what should be a much more competitive game this time around.