Baltimore Ravens collapse spectacularly to Bengals, tying franchise record for futility with 2nd-half meltdown The Baltimore Ravens, known for their penchant for second-half collapses, hit a new low Sunday by giving up 35 consecutive points to the Cincinnati Bengals. This epic meltdown ties the franchise record for futility and highlights the ongoing issues with general manager Eric DeCosta's team building and rookie head coach Jesse Minter's defensive strategy. The Baltimore Ravens have been the NFL's most pathetic chokers throughout Lamar Jackson's tenure with the team, dating back to 2018. Even by their lowly standards, giving up 35 unanswered points to the Bengals in the second half is a new low for general manager Eric DeCosta (ties worst in franchise history), the one constant in all those heartless losses that now span seven coordinators and two head coaches after Sunday's epic meltdown. Rookie Coach Jesse Minter Blows LeadsDeCosta's rosters have done it with regularity and reckless abandon many, many times with the two-time MVP on the field, and without him, it feels almost inevitable. Rookie head coach Jesse Minter - yet to prove he is remotely ready to run a sideline and call a defense at the same time - blew a double-digit lead for the fourth time in seven games, and lost doing so two weeks in a row; Minter is a master at this, doing it twice at home already this season and three times in 2026.Minter's feeble scheme and weak-minded players blew a 13-0 lead Sunday as Joe Burrow destroyed them like lesser QBs like Tyler Shough and Cam Ward have in the past. The Ravens now have lost 17 games with a double-digit lead since 2019, Minter has proven to be far more adroit and adept at it than anyone else, the fraud GM who builds these awful defenses year after year got platitudes from the owner when coach John Harbaugh was fired, and this 35-13 loss at M&T Bank Stadium is as ugly as any of them, even if it was Snoop Huntley at QB.Imagine getting DeCosta-ed now at 17 times-and-running in this short a period of time and thinking swapping out a veteran staff for a bunch of rookies coaches who are younger and cheaper and way more malleable was going to fix Baltimore's clear, systemic problems of which DeCosta and team president Sashi Brown are prevailing culprits. Oh well. Steve Bisciotti has been yammering about selling the team for years. Maybe they will finally get a real GM in charge then.The Ravens (4-3, last in AFC North) have won three times in their last 10 home games, they are remarkably devoid of anything approximating a true playmaker on defense, Minter's scheme has been an utter failure in the second half and they face Josh Allen in Buffalo off a bye next week. Jackson returningThe Ravens dominated the first half but didn't have enough to show for it, stalling twice deep in Bengals' territory and settling for field goals.Ravens Offensive Stalling Costs GameThey built a 13-0 lead into the half but settled for three after an 18-play, 78-yard march that took 11 minutes off the clock and stalled at the 16. And then went 13 plays and 82 yards on their next drive, taking six minutes off the clock and reaching the 6 before settling for three. Six offensive penalties in the first half - including four false starts and a delay of game - led to some of that stalling out.It's truly pathetic what must go on in the Ravens locker room during halftime with a big lead. They ceded momentum in the second half like they can't wait to hand a game away. It's staggering, really, but it's their brand. Sunday they wasted no time swinging the tenor of the game after owning the Bengals in the first half and holding the ball for nearly 23 minutes.How's this sequence - Burrow carves them up in the underneath passing game for a TD drive to make it 13-7, Ravens offensive line gets swallowed up again on the next drive with a three-and-out that ends on a sack and then a huge return on the ensuing punt that forces the long-snapper to make a tackle. And that was followed up by Baltimore's secondary getting absolutely carved up - and no semblance of a pass rush - on Cincy's second drive of the second half, this capping it with a TD pass to Tee Higgins to make it 14-13.Joe Burrow Dominates Second HalfBurrow was 9/10 for 100 yards and two TD passes on the first two drives of the second half. Baltimore's tackling was once against atrocious in the second half, even Kyle Hamilton fell prey to it several times including on a TD run (Marlon Humphrey, a $19M corner, made an even bigger a mockery of "tackling"' the net drive), and this team will have to win shootouts when Jackson returns because the defense is just as fraudulent in 2026 as it was in 2025 and 2024.Burrow was 16/18 with four TD passes and a perfect 158.3 rating in the second half. Joe Flacco got to play the final four minutes in this debacle. Minter has been fairly atrocious in the second half of games and seems to be suffering trying to run the team and call the defense at the same time.Minter Blows Fourth Quarter DecisionHe also has become a big part of Baltimore's choking tendencies and it's in his head now, too, and he made a failed decision to open the fourth quarter that blew up in his face.