NFL announces Ravens-Bengals start time; does not imply anything for Bills-Bengals
The Bengals and Ravens face off in a Week 18 matchup with the AFC North possibly at stake, and it does not imply anything for the Bills-Bengals matchup
The NFL has announced that the Baltimore Ravens and Cincinnati Bengals Week 18 matchup will kick off at 1 p.m. ET on Sunday.
The League first kept the start time of the AFC North game unclear when they initially announced the schedule for the final week of the regular season. There was a reason for that: the stakes for the matchup were still unknown, with the Bengals still having to play the Bills last Monday when the times for Week the 18 slate were exposed.
If the Bills had won the Bengals on Monday night, making the Week 18 game the AFC North championship, the matchup would have been played at 4:25 p.m. ET. If Cincinnati had won on Monday night, they would have clinched the AFC North, putting the Ravens game at 1:00 p.m. ET.
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With the NFL now announcing the game will be played at 1:00 ET, some are interpreting this as meaning that the League has decided to cancel Bills-Bengals. If that’s the case, and the NFL determines playoff seeding based on winning percentage, the Bengals would clinch the AFC North.
As some sources suggest, the timing decision for Ravens-Bengals doesn’t imply a decision has been made regarding Bills-Bengals.
Cincinnati is hoping to clinch the AFC North for the second time in as many seasons, which would mark the first time the franchise has secured the division in consecutive years since 1981-82.
Meanwhile, Buffalo, and the rest of the NFL world, are praying for Damar Hamlin to pull through, the Bills safety who suffered a cardiac arrest on the field and remains in critical condition.