It didn't matter that Joe Burrow threw for 428 yards or that Ja'Marr Chase had 268 receiving yards, the Cincinnati Bengals couldn't get the job done on Thursday Night Football in Baltimore. Much will be made about the final Bengals play where they were unable to get the two-point conversion to take the lead in the final minute and how the refs should have thrown at least one flag but didn't.
Let's set the script: The Bengals had the ball in a goal-to-go situation with under a minute to go and opted to go for two to take the lead rather than to tie things up. Fans shouldn't be critical of this decision considering Zac Taylor was going for it on fourth down throughout the game and at this point of the season, playing it safe wouldn't earn him any brownie points.
Unfortunately, it didn't work this time, or at least that's how it'll go down in the history books. In reality, two possible fouls could have been called there and neither were penalized. Burrow was hit in a play that sure looked like roughing the passer but it was not called. Had the refs thrown the penalty flag there, Cincinnati would have gotten another shot at the two-point conversion (and closer to the goal line) and with how much the offense was humming in the second half, it'd have been hard not to see them getting the conversion there.
Bengals drop to 4-6 after refs miss crucial call on Joe Burrow
Losing sucks but losing when a foul wasn't called makes it that much worse. Burrow had been hit hard all night long, getting sacked three times and hit a total of 13 times. It wasn't a surprise to see the Ravens pass rush get to him on that final play but if the league is going to have the roughing the passer rule, then why not call it in those moments?
Perhaps the league is trying to avoid making those calls in big moments. If that's the case, it'll be interesting to see if that's still the case when guys like Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen get hit in the same way in a key moment.
For what it's worth, the NFL Football Operations website lists "an opponent forcibly hits the quarterback’s head or neck area with his helmet, facemask, forearm, or shoulder" as falling into the roughing the passer category.
With the loss, the Bengals drop to 4-6 and the postgame broadcast said that puts their playoff chances at about 25%. It'll be a tough hill to climb but the good news is the schedule is favorable and the rest of the AFC isn't all that menancing. The Thursday Night Football crew also noted that this is an offense that teams won't want to face in the playoffs and that is so true.