4 stats from Bengals’ Week 11 loss vs Ravens that were downright depressing

Tell us if you’ve heard this before: The Cincinnati Bengals failed to stick to the running game, even though it showed signs of life. Also, the offensive line has sprung several leaks, causing Joe Burrow to get hit and sacked too many times. He's now out for the year and this article was mostly written before the news of him missing the rest of the year came out.

Something else you may have heard about is the Bengals’ defense giving up a lot of yardage and explosive plays. So far this season, we have filed that under bend, but don’t break. Perhaps it is time to reclassify that as something to worry about, as that stack appears to be getting taller with each game.

These are just a few problems the Bengals can’t seem to get under wraps in every game. There was hope that some of this would improve throughout the season but we are now on to Week 12 for the Bengals. It is late in the season, and these ugly statistics keep turning their displeasing heads.

Here are four non-fantastic stats from the loss to the Ravens that we should have seen coming.

2 sacks and 4 QB hits

Perhaps the worst pre-game news regarding stats heading into the game is that the Ravens lead the NFL in sacks with 39, according to Pro Football Reference. Cincinnati was going to have a difficult time keeping Baltimore’s defensive line away from Joe Burrow. That showed up early when the Ravens sacked the Bengals QB for the first time on the team’s second drive. It was on a third down, ending the drive.

Baltimore got to Burrow for two sacks in the first quarter. They added four QB hits in the first half. One of those hits proved to be severely costly. Edge rusher Jadeveon Clowney knocked Burrow down on the play before the Bengals’ quarterback threw the touchdown to Joe Mixon. Because Burrow did not appear to hit his hand on the TD pass, there was the thought that the hit from Clowney caused the injury.

As it turns out, the injury may have happened well before the game, even before the Bengals landed in Baltimore. Burrow was not listed on the injury report during the week. However, he was spotted with what appeared to be a brace on his right hand when getting off the plane.

While the hit from Clowney did not cause the injury, it could have aggravated the situation. The Bengals ruled Burrow out shortly after due to a wrist injury. Baltimore’s defense would go on to deliver a total of five sacks and seven QB hits.

On another note, Congratulations to Jake Browning, who completed his first NFL pass and first touchdown on Thursday night.

Unfortunately, he also got to feel a couple of those ferocious hits that Burrow has been taking all year.