Key figures in Bengals-Ravens matchup

John Harbaugh, Baltimre HC

He is the only coach in NFL history to win a playoff game in his first five seasons, and he’ll need to guide the Ravens to a victory today to have a shot at making it six.

James Ihedigbo, Baltimore SS

He was huge against the run and pass in the first meeting with two interceptions, three passes defensed and nine tackles, including one for loss.

Ray Rice, Baltimore RB

He’s looked like a shell of himself this season, with just 645 yards and a paltry average of 3.1 yards per rush. But he always seems to come up huge in big games and always puts up good numbers against the Bengals (eight TDs and a 4.6 average in 11 games).

Giovani Bernard, Cincinnati RB

He had a career-high eight catches in the first game against the Ravens while his 14 rushes were one shy of his high. And with BenJarvus Green-Ellis struggling for consistency, Bernard could be in line for another heavy workload this afternoon.

Michael Johnson, Cincinnati DE

He has three sacks this year after setting a career high with 11.5 in 2012, but Johnson has more sacks against Baltimore (5.0) than any other team, and this is likely to be his last regular-season game in a Cincinnati uniform.

Dre Kirkpatrick, Cincinnati CB

The young cornerback’s education will continue against a group of Baltimore wide receivers who love to stretch the field. Kirkpatrick took a step forward in the tackling department last week but got burned for a TD on a double move the Ravens surely noticed.

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