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By Rowan Fisher-Shotton
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The Baltimore Ravens' 35-13 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 7 was bad for several reasons.
The Ravens fell apart completely in the second half after taking a 13-0 lead into the break, allowing 35 unanswered points, matching the most they have ever given up in a second half. The loss dropped Baltimore to 4-3 and 0-2 against AFC North teams this year, leaving them in last place in the division.
Former Ravens defensive coordinator Wink Martindale recently highlighted how the latest loss could lead to bigger consequences if the team doesn't respond this week against Buffalo. He criticized the team's leaders for failing to set the right tone, saying some players were making "business decisions" instead of showing "football character."
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"There is a problem there. It's gotta be a gut check in that locker room. The leaders on that team are not representing the Ravens of old. Watching the defense, there are players making business decisions, especially the so-called leaders. They need to dig deep and find some football character there in that locker room. Everybody wants to express themselves off the field instead of on it, and that's a losing formula," Martindale said.
"If the Ravens don't beat the Bills in Buffalo, there's trouble brewing. I think there's gonna be lineup changes and it could go deeper than that," he added.
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The Ravens' biggest problem this season has been their inability to play well for all four quarters. Baltimore has repeatedly built early leads only to lose control after halftime, and Cincinnati was just the latest example. In the Bengals game, they let receivers get wide open, missed tackles, and put up little resistance against Joe Burrow.
The Ravens are currently allowing 23.9 points per game through seven weeks, and have been outscored 48-0 in the second half of their last two games. Now, they face a 5-1 Bills team coming off a bye, with Josh Allen equally capable of making the most of Baltimore's mistakes.
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This is a potential turning point for Jesse Minter and the Ravens. Another loss would drop the team to 4-4 and deepen its hole in a competitive AFC. Lamar Jackson is expected to return after missing three games with a high ankle sprain, but that still depends on how well he practices over the coming days.
Jackson's dual-threat ability will help give the offense a better chance at sustaining drives and keeping pace with the Bills' high-powered offense. But his return won't resolve the defensive issues. Sunday afternoon will be a good chance for this Ravens defense to bounce back and show they're capable of slowing down one of the NFL's best offenses.
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