Ravens beat Bengals 31-24

What a dogfight that was. Wow. 

The Ravens took a commanding 31-14 lead early in the fourth quarter on a Joe Flacco bomb to Torrey Smith. From there, the defense should have been able to take it over.

Rookie cornerback Jimmy Smith, Baltimore's first-round selection, came up with his first-career interception. He did fumble, the Ravens recovered it.

Lardarius Webb also had a big interception.

That just wasn't enough, though. Andy Dalton completed several passes on the Ravens' defense. Dalton ended the day with 373 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions. He also had a a touchdown called back because of the Calvin Johnson rule. Tight end Jermaine Gresham bobbled the ball, caught it, but as he was going to the ground, the ball came loose. It was ruled incomplete and Cincinnati settled for a Mike Nugent field goal.

Baltimore needed a stop in the last drive for Cincinnati. They got it when Terrell Suggs wrapped up Dalton and Dalton was called for intentional grounding. That's a very good play by Suggs, which is why he should be in the running for Defensive Player of the Year.

The Ravens were able to escape 31-24. I'll have more thoughts on the game later.