the Rams looked like the best team in the NFC behind Jared Gof

Halfway through the season Alex Okafor Jersey , f, and the Saints next in line with Drew Brees leading the way. Those teams have since diverged, with the Saints now cruising toward home-field advantage while the Rams are just holding on trying not to lose a bye week. And a big part of that is the fact that Brees is playing better than Goff.But a bigger part is on defense, where the Saints have played very well — and the Rams have played very poorly — over the second half of the season.In fact, over the last six games, the Rams have allowed an NFL-high 188 points, and the Saints have allowed an NFL-low 74 points.As great as the Rams were in the first half of this season — and they were great, with an 8-0 record and a +109 point differential — they’ve been mediocre at best over the second half of the season, with a 3-3 record and a -4 point differential. The Saints, meanwhile, have been 5-1 with an NFL-best +106 point differential since the halfway point of the season.If it’s a Rams-Saints NFC Championship Game, it’s easy to see which defense should be trusted, and that’s the one that leads the league in points allowed over the last six games. CINCINNATI (5-4) at BALTIMORE (4-5)Sunday, 1 p.m. EDT, CBSOPENING LINE - OFFRECORD VS. SPREAD - Cincinnati 4-5 Larry Warford Jersey Salute to Service , Baltimore 4-5SERIES RECORD - Bengals lead 23-22LAST MEETING - Bengals beat Ravens 34-23, Sept. 13LAST WEEK - Bengals lost to Saints 51-14; Ravens had bye, lost to Steelers 23-16 on Nov. 4.AP PRO32 RANKING - Bengals No. 17, Ravens No. 20BENGALS OFFENSE - OVERALL (25), RUSH (25), PASS (21).BENGALS DEFENSE - OVERALL (32), RUSH (31), PASS (32).RAVENS OFFENSE - OVERALL (15), RUSH (27), PASS (9).RAVENS DEFENSE - OVERALL (2), RUSH (10T), PASS (3).STREAKS, STATS AND NOTES - Cincinnati has won eight of last 10 in series. ... Bengals fired first-year defensive coordinator Teryl Austin after 51-14 loss to Saints, second-most points allowed in franchise history. Bengals became first team in Super Bowl era to give up 500 yards in three straight games. They have allowed 481, 551 Ted Ginn Jr Jersey Salute to Service , 576 and 509 yards in last four games, going 1-3. Bengals are on pace to give up NFL-record 7,273 yards. ... Marvin Lewis takes over defensive coordinator job in addition to head coaching. Lewis was coordinator of Ravens' record-setting defense when they won Super Bowl in 2000. ... Fired Browns coach Hue Jackson was hired to assist Lewis in game planning and defensive coordinating on field during games, Jackson's third stint on Lewis' staff. ... Saints ran for 244 yards at Cincinnati and scored on every possession except last one, when they took knee three times in field-goal range. ... Bengals missing WR A.J. Green, out indefinitely with toe injury. Green has 53 catches and nine TDs in 11 games vs. Ravens. ... Andy Dalton 8-6 career vs. Ravens with 19 TDs, 17 INTs and 76.9 passer rating. He completed 24 of 42 for 265 yards and four TDs in 34-23 win earlier this season. ... Dalton has 185 touchdown passes for career, two shy of Boomer Esiason for second on franchise list. Ken Anderson threw 197. ... Baltimore QB Joe Flacco has right hip injury, which could provide first-round pick Lamar Jackson his first NFL start. Flacco has 13 TD passes and one INT in last nine home games. ... Ravens 18-4 at home in November under coach John Harbaugh, who took over in 2008. ... Baltimore allowing 17.8 points per game, second best in NFL behind Tennessee. ... Coming off bye, Ravens 8-2 under Harbaugh and NFL-best 13-3 since 2002. ... Baltimore owns minus-4 turnover differential with only seven takeaways compared to plus-17 with 34 takeaways in 2017. ... Ravens LB Terrell Suggs is 1 陆 sacks short of tying Lawrence Taylor and Leslie O'Neal for 13th all-time with 132 陆 sacks. ... Willie Snead leads Ravens with 45 catches, John Brown tops team with four TD receptions. ... Fantasy tip: With Ravens QB position uncertain, RB Andre Collins could shine against Bengals' porous defense. Custom Houston Texans Jerseys