by Chris Asbrock

The Bengals are sitting pretty in the AFC North and have a chance to dent the hopes of the Ravens with a win today in Baltimore. The Bengals come into this game sitting at 2-0, while the Ravens are a surprising 0-2. With this being the Ravens home opener, the pressure is on for them to perform. A loss for the Ravens in this game could cause some serious concern and overreaction in Baltimore. With that being the case, lets take a look at the different aspects of this game.

Offense

The Bengals offense has been playing very well the first two weeks and the offense has been led by quarterback Andy Dalton. Dalton has been the biggest reason the offense is firing on all cylinders. Through the first two games, he is 41-60 for 483 yards and 5 touchdowns. Add in no interceptions and sacks, you get a quarterback with a QB rating of 120.3. That is the Andy Dalton that Bengals fans have been clamoring for. The key for the Bengals today will also be the play of Jeremy Hill. Hill has seemed to have run into another case of fumbleitis, which caused him to be benched in last weeks game. Hill will have to protect the ball today.

Joe Flacco comes into this game sitting 12th in the league in yards passing. He rebounded last week from a rough first game in Denver, tossing for 384 yards on 32 completions. The Broncos put the pressure on Flacco and that was his downfall. The big armed Flacco will make mistakes, just like all quarterbacks, when under pressure. Justin Forsett is their leading rusher with only 111 yards on 29 carries. He averages 3.8 yards per carry and will have to pick that up if the Ravens have any hopes of winning this game.

Advantage: Bengals

Defense

The Bengals have the clear cut advantage in this category. The Bengals are seventh in the league in total yards per game, giving up an even 300 and third in the NFL in total points. What helps this defense is they have only been on the field for 117 plays which is ninth fewest. The Bengals have been doing a great job of winning the turnover battle. The Bengals were shutting out the Raiders for the first three quarters and managed to keep Philip Rivers in check for the game last week. Expect the Bengals to put the pressure on Flacco and shut down the running game of the Ravens. If they can’t manage to get pressure on Flacco, then the secondary could be under fire from Steve Smith Sr. and company.

The Ravens defense is not what we remember in years past. The Ravens defense has been a mess all season and the secondary was the group that was the issue last week. The Ravens secondary had a few blown coverages last week which caused their demise. If the Ravens can’t stop the Bengals run game from getting going, it could be a very long day. Expect the Ravens to try and take away Gio Bernard and Jeremy Hill, forcing Andy Dalton to beat them.

Advantage: Bengals

Special Teams

The Ravens punter/kicker combo of Sam Koch and Justin Tucker has been solid this season. Koch has punted eight times so far this season for 377 net yards. His longest punt was 59 yards and has pinned three punts inside the 20. Justin Tucker has been solid this season, nailing all six of his field goal attempts, with a longest of 52 yards.

The Bengals have the best punter in the league in Kevin Huber. The other half, Mike Nugent has been questionable this season. He has missed a PAT and a field goal thus far which is a cause for concern on whether or not he can make the crucial kick. If this game comes down to a crucial kick, I give the advantage to the Ravens.

Advantage: Ravens

Coaching

John Harbaugh is one of the better coaches in the NFL. He has continued the Ravens great play in his seven years in charge of the Ravens. He has a career record of 82-47 which includes a 10-5 postseason record. He did lead the Ravens to their second Super Bowl victory in 2012 when they defeated the 49ers in one of the better games in history. I would give Harbaugh the edge over Marvin Lewis in this matchup.

Advantage: Ravens

Prediction: Bengals 20-17

Other Predictions: 

Carolina over New Orleans
Oakland over Cleveland
Atlanta over Dallas
Houston over Tampa Bay
San Diego over Minnesota
New England over Jacksonville
New York Jets over Philadelphia
Pittsburgh over St. Louis
Indianapolis over Tennessee
Arizona over San Francisco
Buffalo over Miami
Seattle over Chicago
Denver over Detroit
Green Bay over Kansas City

Chris Asbrock is a staff writer and analyst for FTI Sports and can be followed on TwitterÂ