Bengals vs. Ravens Week 3 Game Preview, Prediction (SB Nation) September 25, 2015 12:12
The Baltimore Ravens entered the 2015 season with the ninth-best odds to win the Super Bowl, but have dropped their first two games and face what is probably a must-win game on Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals. Although Baltimore is a slight Vegas favorite at home, the experts are split on whether the Ravens can avoid a crushing 0-3 start.
The odds are already stacked against the Ravens making the playoffs this season. Since 1990 (when the current playoff format began), only 12 percent of teams that began the season in a 0-2 hole eventually made the postseason. Unsurprisingly, the odds become close to nil if they lose again on Sunday. Over the past 25 seasons, just three teams -- the 1992 Chargers, 1995 Lions and 1998 Bills -- have recovered from an 0-3 start to reach the playoffs.
By losing their first two games, the Ravens are pretty much in uncharted territory. This is the first time under coach John Harbaugh that they've started 0-2 and just the fourth time in franchise history (1999, 2002, 2005). There is some glimmer of hope, though. Both of their games this season were on the road and they return home to M&T Bank Stadium, where they've won six of their last seven games and are 12-4 since the start of the 2013 season.