Lamar Jackson steals show as Ravens rally past Bengals; previewing massive NFL, CFB weekend

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🏈 Good morning to all, but especially to …

LAMAR JACKSON AND THE BALTIMORE RAVENS

Sometimes, you just have to sit back and laugh. What Lamar Jackson is doing, making professional defenses look lost, is absurd. The Ravens rallied past and then held off the Bengals, 35-34, in arguably the most entertaining game this season.

• Jackson threw for 290 yards and four touchdowns and added 33 yards on the ground, including this ridiculous 10-yard scramble that featured him traveling over 58 yards total on the play.
• After scoring one touchdown on their first seven drives, the Ravens scored touchdowns on their final four drives (not including the game-ending kneel down), with Jackson throwing touchdowns to Tylan Wallace (84 yards), Mark Andrews (18 yards) and Rashod Bateman (5 yards for the game-winner) over that span.
• The Bengals got to within one point on Joe Burrow‘s touchdown to Ja’Marr Chase with 38 seconds left, but Burrow missed Tanner Hudson on the two-point conversion attempt that probably included, not one, but two uncalled penalties on Baltimore. 

The Ravens’ secondary is a mess, and Kyle Hamilton‘s ankle injury certainly won’t help. But that’s a discussion for another day. For now, we must focus on Jackson. Remember when people said he couldn’t overcome deficits? This is his third career comeback from down at least 14 points in the second half, the most in the league since 2021. Remember when people said he couldn’t win when the rushing offense failed? Baltimore had a season-low 99 yards rushing.

Jackson has a passer rating of 123.2 this season, on pace to be the highest in a season in NFL history. (Not bad for a running back, eh?)

This is a player at the peak of his remarkable powers. The 7-3 Ravens go as he goes, and he’s going as well as anyone who’s ever played the position.

👍 Honorable mentions

😬 And not such a good morning for …

THE CINCINNATI BENGALS

Entering last night, players who threw for 400 yards, four touchdowns and zero interceptions — as Burrow did — had won 13 straight games, and players who had at least 250 yards receiving and three touchdown catches — as Chase did — were 8-1 all-time.

This was a must-win game for the Bengals, and their two biggest stars did everything they could to win it. But a leaky defense and a few tiny mistakes proved to be too much to overcome.

• Up 21-7 in the third quarter, Chase Brown fumbled. Five plays later, the Ravens were in the end zone.
• On Baltimore’s next drive, Jackson threw a short pass to Wallace on third and 2, simply hoping to move the sticks. Instead, Wallace evaded multiple tackles and went the distance — 84 yards. Wallace entered this game with 98 yards receiving in 46 career games. He had 115 last night.
• Cincinnati also failed on two fourth-and-shorts.

Then the final dagger was failing on the two-point try. The offensive outputs were huge, but the margins proved tiny. At 4-6, the Bengals have no room for error.

👎 Not so honorable mentions

🏈 NFL Week 10 picks: Steelers-Commanders leads loaded weekend

There are awesome games up and down the NFL Week 10 docket, but Steelers-Commanders leads the way. Before the season, we probably weren’t expecting this to be the marquee game, but in today’s NFL, you expect the unexpected. Here’s Tyler Sullivan’s pick:

• Sullivan: “Where Pittsburgh has thrived this year has been in the second half of games, where they’ve pulled away from opponents, owning a +76 point differential. Meanwhile, Washington ranks 21st in the league in second-half points allowed (12.7) this season. That, coupled with Pittsburgh owning a 4-0 SU and ATS record in their last four games post-bye, I have them pulling off the upset. Projected score: Steelers 27, Commanders 24 The picks: Steelers +3“

Here are all of our expert picks/best bets:

Pete Prisco | Will Brinson | John Breech | Jordan Dajani | Tyler Sullivan

As we enter the second half of the season, here are top storylines:

Finally, last week we went 2-1, and our season record moved to 18-7. Not too shabby. This weekend, we’re rolling with …

• 49ers over Buccaneers
• Bears over Patriots
• Jets over Cardinals

🏈 College football Week 11 preview: CFP lives on the line at Alabama-LSU showdown

You know it’s a big deal when they’re bringing a real, live tiger to the stadium. No. 14 LSU hosts No. 11 Alabama on Saturday night (preview) in what’s essentially a College Football Playoff contention elimination game for both two-loss teams.

Kalen DeBoer first year in Tuscaloosa has been a rollercoaster featuring wins over Georgia and losses to Vanderbilt and Tennessee. Alabama hasn’t lost three games in a season since 2010, the longest active streak in FBS. Can it stay that way? In The Six Pack, Tom Fornelli says …

• Fornelli: “I won’t pretend LSU’s historic success in home night games doesn’t play a major role in my thought process. However, it’s not the sole reason for this play. There are parts of this matchup that tilt the Tigers’ direction. … Defensively, Alabama plays a lot of man coverage compared to the national average, and Garrett Nussmeier has torn man coverage apart this season. … LSU’s defense won’t allow the Tigers to pull away from Alabama, but based on the situation, I trust Nuss more in this spot than Jalen Milroe. The Pick: LSU +3 (-110)“

Those aren’t the only two-loss SEC teams with a make-or-break task. No. 16 Ole Miss hosts No. 3 Georgia (preview), and for the Rebels to win, they have to take advantage of a struggling Carson Beck, Dennis Dodd writes.

• Dodd: “With at least five games to go, Beck’s 11 interceptions are the most in a season by Georgia quarterback since Aaron Murray in 2011. All 11 of those interceptions came in the last five games. It seems like Beck now has football’s version of the yips. It happens. But how to get out of it? Unknown. Heading into Ole Miss, Beck’s play could be the difference between the playoff and the Citrus Bowl.”

Here’s more:

🏈 Billy Napier expected to remain Florida’s coach in 2025

Despite a 15-18 record at Florida, Billy Napier received an endorsement from athletic director Scott Stricklin, and it appears Napier will return in 2025. Florida is 4-4 this season and, with a brutal schedule continuing, in danger of missing a bowl in consecutive seasons for the first time since 1984-86.

The Gators have young talent — though their recruiting must pick up, Will Backus notes — and they’re gambling on growth over uncertainty, Richard Johnson writes.

Ultimately, keeping Napier has plenty of pros and cons, according to Shehan Jeyarajah.

• “Pro: Stability is important at this moment — Perhaps the most under-discussed reason for this change could be the impending House v. NCAA lawsuit going into effect. When that happens in 2025, teams will suddenly have a new line item on their budgets of more than $20 million. With that in mind, spending $26 million on a buyout becomes a far riskier proposition, especially when that money could be spent on players.”
• “Con: The potential downside is vast — The expanded SEC and College Football Playoff will lead to a mass reorganization of the sport, one that could set the table for years. If Florida bottoms out, trying to create a competitive roster and attract talent to Gainesville will be substantially more difficult.”

With Napier safe, we ranked 13 coaches on the hot seat.

🏀 Tyrese Maxey (hamstring) out weeks as 76ers’ tough start continues

The 76ers‘ season, filled with high expectations, was already off to a slow start. It might just get slower, literally and figuratively. All-Star guard Tyrese Maxey (hamstring) is expected to miss multiple weeks, further delaying the much-anticipated debut of Philadelphia’s Big Three of Maxey, Joel Embiid and Paul George.

• Maxey is averaging 27.6 points this season and a league-high 39.7 minutes. He’s had to carry such a burden because Embiid is yet to play due to a knee injury and a three-game suspension for shoving a journalist. George missed the first five games with his own knee ailment.
• The 76ers are 1-6 this season, putting them among the league’s bottom feeders so far. They’re 29th out of 30 teams in Colin Ward-Henninger’s most recent NBA Power Rankings.

The team said it will be cautious with Maxey’s recovery, but don’t give up on this year just yet, Bill Reiter writes.

• Reiter: “This Sixers team — even with the shove, the injuries, NBA investigations and a brutal start to the season — is not in dire danger. So slow that disaster forecast down. There’s still plenty of time for Philly to be fine … They have a plan — a gamble, as we saw this summer, by an organization willing to take risks to get where it wants to go.”

📺 What we’re watching this weekend

Friday

🏀 Army at No. 7 Duke (M), 6 p.m. on ACC Network
🏀 No. 9 North Carolina at No. 1 Kansas (M), 7 p.m. on ESPN2
🏀 Suns at Mavericks, 7:30 p.m. on ESPN
🏈 Cal at Wake Forest, 8 p.m. on ACC Network
🏈 Iowa at UCLA, 9 p.m. on Fox
🏀 Virginia at No. 10 Oklahoma (W), 9 p.m. on SEC Network
🏀 76ers at Lakers, 10 p.m. on ESPN
🏀 New Mexico at No. 22 UCLA (M), 11 p.m. on CBS Sports Network

Saturday

🏈 No. 4 Miami at Georgia Tech, noon on ESPN
🏈 Florida at No. 5 Texas, noon on ABC
🏀 No. 12 Tennessee at Louisville (M), noon on ACC Network
🏈 No. 3 Georgia at No. 16 Ole Miss, 3:30 p.m. on ABC
🏈 Michigan at No. 8 Indiana, 3:30 p.m. on CBS
🏈 No. 20 Colorado at Texas Tech, 4 p.m. on Fox
🏈 South Carolina at Vanderbilt, 4:15 p.m. on SEC Network
🏀 Jazz at Spurs, 5 p.m. on NBA TV
🏈 No. 11 Alabama at No. 16 LSU, 7:30 p.m. on ABC
🏀 No. 8 Baylor vs. No. 15 Arkansas (M), 7:30 p.m. on ESPNU
🏀 Nets at Cavaliers, 7:30 p.m. on NBA TV
🏀 No. 11 Auburn at No. 4 Houston (M), 9:30 p.m. on ESPNU
🏀 Raptors at Clippers, 10:30 p.m. on NBA TV

Sunday

🏈 Giants vs. Panthers in Munich, 9:30 a.m. on NFL Network
🏈 Steelers at Commanders, 1 p.m. on CBS
🏈 Bills at Colts, 1 p.m. on CBS
🏈 Broncos at Chiefs, 1 p.m. on CBS
🏈 49ers at Buccaneers, 1 p.m. on Fox
🏀 Michigan at Wake Forest (M), 1 p.m. on ESPN2
🏀 No. 11 Duke at No. 18 Maryland (W), 1 p.m. on FS1
🏀 No. 9 NC State vs. No. 1 South Carolina (W), 3 p.m. on ESPN
🏈 Eagles at Cowboys, 4:25 p.m. on CBS
🏈 Jets at Cardinals, 4:25 p.m. on CBS
🏀 Arizona State at No. 6 Gonzaga (M), 5 p.m. on ESPN
🏈 Lions at Texans, 8:20 p.m. on NBC
🏀 No. 12 Baylor at Oregon (W), 10 p.m. on Big Ten Network