5 Ravens who could give Bengals trouble in Week 2
- Duvernay could be a special teams threat
- Smith and Washington will look to make the offense's day miserable
- Flowers and Jackson could make things tricky vs defense
By Glenn Adams
4. Roquan Smith
Another player that the Bengals will have to deal with, unfortunately, is linebacker Roquan Smith. He is back and is as menacing as ever.
Last season, the linebacker finished third in the NFL with 169 combined tackles. He added 4.5 sacks and 11 tackles for loss to go along with that.
It looks like this season will be another one where he will end up as one of the league's top tacklers. Against the Texans, Smith recorded 16 tackles, which led his team. He also added two tackles for loss, one sack, and one quarterback hit.
There is no love lost between the Bengals offense and the Ravens linebacker. Last year, there were accusations of Smith playing dirty in the final game of the 2022 regular season. Of that claim, Smith infamously replied, “See you Sunday,” referring to the AFC wildcard game that the two teams played the following week (a game in which Baltimore would subsequently lose to Cincinnati in large part because of the “fumble in the jungle.”)
Smith is off to an excellent start this season. Expect him to be extra motivated when he visits Cincinnati’s Paycor Stadium this Sunday. Anticipate him playing as he would describe it, through the whistle.