Bengals' Jordan Battle stopped Isaiah Likely's touchdown with a fumble on Thanksgiving against the Ravens.

Daniel Mader

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Isaiah Likely fumble: How Bengals' Jordan Battle prevented touchdown vs. Ravens on Thanksgiving image

TL;DR

  • Baltimore Ravens faced Cincinnati Bengals on Thanksgiving, aiming for a two-game lead above .500.
  • Isaiah Likely fumbled a potential 44-yard touchdown just shy of the goal line.
  • The play resulted in a touchback for the Bengals, giving them possession and a subsequent field goal.
  • Likely later compensated with a 30-yard reception from Lamar Jackson.

The Baltimore Ravens have been gradually improving their chances for the playoffs lately. During Thanksgiving, they faced a division rival in a game that could have elevated them to two games above.500.

With a leaky Cincinnati Bengals defense at home, the Ravens appeared to have offensive advantages on paper for Thanksgiving. Nevertheless, Baltimore experienced a difficult setback while holding a 7-6 lead in the second quarter.

Isaiah Likely, a tight end, seemed to have scored a 44-yard touchdown with a sprint down the field, but after review, he dropped the ball just shy of the goal line.

Baltimore lost possession against Cincinnati on Thanksgiving due to an unfortunate fumble by Likely.

MORE: Updated look at the Ravens' playoff outlook

Isaiah Likely's fumble against the Bengals

The Ravens held a 7-6 advantage in the second quarter of Thursday's game, thanks to a touchdown run by Derrick Henry, before the Bengals kicked two field goals. However, a Lamar Jackson fumble had already hampered Baltimore, and shortly after, a second fumble disrupted their offensive strategy.

Jackson connected with Likely as he was running, and the tight end had an open route to the end zone with Bengals defenders closing in. However, on the final 44 yards Likely required, the ball was dropped.

He leaped over a tumbling defender, yet upon touching down, the football caromed into the end zone for a touchback. Initially ruled a touchdown, the replay clarified the situation; Jordan Battle's forceful contact with Likely's hands dislodged the ball.

The play ended up as a touchback due to the fumble in the end zone, giving the Bengals possession at their own 20-yard line, from where they then scored another field goal to go ahead.

For Likely, the play reminded fans of another "almost" highlight he had earlier in his career, a failed toe-tap touchdown reception against the Chiefs.

The tight end was fortunate, as he compensated for his mistake later in the quarter by catching a 30-yard pass from Jackson.

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