On the heels of Thursday’s much more significant news that Bills safety Damar Hamlin has made excellent progress in his recovery, the NFL announced the suspended Buffalo-Cincinnati game would not be completed, meaning the Ravens’ hopes for an AFC North championship are officially over.
But that doesn’t mean they can’t host a wild-card round game despite the Bengals being recognized as the division champion because of a better winning percentage.
As part of the league’s proposal to address “competitive inequities” created by the cancellation, Baltimore still has a path to potentially hosting a wild-card game. If the 10-6 Ravens defeat 11-4 Cincinnati in Sunday’s regular-season finale — completing a season sweep — and the two teams are then scheduled to meet in the opening round of the playoffs, a coin flip would determine which team gets to host that wild-card game. Such a circumstance would only apply to the wild-card round and not subsequent rounds.
After Baltimore lost to Pittsburgh last Sunday night, the Bengals would have clinched the division championship with a win over the Bills this past Monday. However, a Cincinnati loss to Buffalo would have given the Ravens a final opportunity to win the AFC North with a victory in Week 18.
On Friday, the owners will vote on the proposal that also includes scenarios for the AFC championship game to be played on a neutral site.
To no surprise, opinions on the plan are mixed, but it creates incentive for the Ravens to put their best foot forward rather than Sunday counting for nothing beyond seeding and head coach John Harbaugh potentially resting key starters for the playoffs. Baltimore is assured of being no worse than the No. 6 seed and would move into the No. 5 spot with a win over the Bengals and a Los Angeles Chargers loss at Denver. However, that scenario would eliminate the coin flip for a possible home playoff game because it would mean the Ravens would play at the winner of the AFC South — Jacksonville or Tennessee — instead of facing the Bengals in the opening round.
Of course, winning in Cincinnati will be easier said than done with star quarterback Lamar Jackson expected to miss a fifth straight game with a knee injury and backup Tyler Huntley dealing with a sore throwing shoulder that’s limited him in practices this week.
