Baltimore @ Cincinnati preview

Last Meeting ( Dec 31, 2017 ) Cincinnati 31, Baltimore 27

Coach John Harbaugh did his best to downplay the notion of revenge as the Baltimore Ravens travel to Paul Brown Stadium to face the Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday in an early-season AFC North showdown. Harbaugh maintains that his focus will be on defeating a fierce division opponent rather than facing the club that unceremoniously ended the Ravens' playoff aspirations in 2017 with a last-minute touchdown in the season finale.

"You always want to redeem yourself as best as you can, certainly, but it's not going to factor into who wins the game. It's not going to matter in the outcome," Harbaugh said of a perceived revenge factor. "You still have to play better than your opponent on that day, and that's really what we have to focus on. You could easily get all wrapped up in that and get distracted from what matters, which is going out there Thursday night and playing well." Baltimore certainly played well in its season opener on Sunday, as new Ravens receivers Michael Crabtree, John Brown and Willie Snead each caught a touchdown pass from Joe Flacco in a convincing 47-3 romp over Buffalo. The Bills effectively ended a long postseason drought last year after Cincinnati's Andy Dalton capped a three-touchdown performance by tossing a 49-yard scoring strike to Tyler Boyd in the season finale against Baltimore. The 30-year-old Dalton overcame an early interception on Sunday to complete 21 of 28 passes for 243 yards with two touchdowns in a 34-23 season-opening victory over Indianapolis.

TV: 8:20 p.m. ET, NBC. LINE: Pick. O/U: 44

ABOUT THE RAVENS (1-0): Alex Collins has been plagued by fumbles throughout his brief NFL career, so much so that Harbaugh made it a point to bench the running back after he put the ball on the ground in the second quarter of the opener. "It's always a technique-thing. You can't fumble no matter what. Alex knows that, " Harbaugh said. "... We don’t want to turn the ball over – especially fumbles. He knows that. He'll focus on that." Collins joined fellow running backs Javorius "Buck" Allen and Kenneth Dixon by finding the end zone while electric backup quarterback Lamar Jackson added 39 on the ground against the Bills, although Dixon's availability for Thursday's contest is in question as he nurses a knee injury. Baltimore's defense made a statement in the opener, permitting the fewest points and yards (153) in the league while recording six sacks and two turnovers.

ABOUT THE BENGALS (1-0): Coach Marvin Lewis isn't worried about expanding the workload of Joe Mixon, who had 22 carries and collected 149 yards from scrimmage (95 rushing, 54 receiving) on Sunday. "I think (Mixon) can carry it 22 times. The number of receptions (five) he had was good, and they were well-used," Lewis said of the 6-foot-1, 220-pound Mixon. "He got to the right spots in the pass game, and that's important." Mixon's performance drew rave reviews from teammate A.J. Green, who said that the second-year running back belongs in the same class as Los Angeles Rams star Todd Gurley and Pittsburgh Steelers stud Le'Veon Bell. Green, who had six receptions for 92 yards and a touchdown against the Colts on Sunday, was limited to just seven catches for 91 yards total in a pair of games versus the Ravens last season.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Cincinnati LB Preston Brown is optimistic he'll play on Thursday despite sustaining an ankle injury in the season opener.

2. Tavon Young became the first Baltimore defensive back in 22 years to record two sacks in a game last week.

3. Bengals LB Nick Vigil, who had a team-high 11 tackles in the opener, posted 10 tackles and an interception in a 20-0 loss to the Ravens on Sept. 10, 2017.

PREDICTION: Ravens 27, Bengals 17