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CINCINNATI — Safety Kyle Hamilton loves the words “glass eater” to describe outside linebacker Tavius Robinson.

It’s what pass rush coach Chuck Smith dubbed Robinson in the offseason as he called the fourth-year player the embodiment of what a Raven should be.

And Robinson showed why Sunday as he returned from a broken foot that knocked him out for a month and recorded a sack on the Cincinnati Bengals’ opening possession.

“Obviously, you saw T-Rob’s impact,” Hamilton said. “First drive, he got a sack. ... If I had to give him an NBA comp, probably like a Jalen Duren or Dennis Rodman, guys who just eat glass and do the dirty work, and at the end of the game you look up and they’ve got good numbers. Team guy, super physical.”

Robinson’s sack foreshadowed the day for the defense, which shut out quarterback Joe Burrow for the first time since his college career.

The Ravens finished with three sacks and 10 quarterback hits.

It was a huge improvement from two weeks before, when the Ravens had one sack and seven hits in the 32-14 loss to the Bengals on Thanksgiving.

It was an even bigger improvement from Week 14, when the Ravens could not get to Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, finishing with no sacks and one QB hit.

Even more significantly, the pressure came from the traditional pass rush positions. In addition to Robinson, who finished with two quarterback hits, including the sack, the Ravens got contributions from outside linebackers Dre’Mont Jones (five QB hits), Mike Green (one sack) and Kyle Van Noy (one QB hit), along with defensive lineman Travis Jones (one sack).

“We feel super proud,” Dre’Mont Jones said. “Every D-lineman in [the locker room] is ear to ear, smiling, because we work so hard. We prep it all the time. Reaching the passer is the thing we focus on each and every day, so it is good when everything comes to fruition like that.”

In Week 13, cornerback Marlon Humphrey had the sack as the Ravens tried to get creative to spark a dormant pass rush, using defensive backs and linebackers. Travis Jones, Green, Van Noy and defensive lineman Brent Urban accounted for the other quarterback hits.

The pass rush has suffered significant injuries, starting in Week 2, when defensive lineman Nnamdi Madubuike, who often drew double teams, was lost for the season. Through the first 11 weeks, Madubuike was tied for the team lead in sacks despite playing only two games. Green reached 2.5 sacks in Week 12.

The group took another hit when the Ravens traded outside linebacker Odafe Oweh to the Chargers for safety Alohi Gilman in Week 5. Although Gilman has sparked the defense, the pass rush had struggled. And in the next game, a Week 6 loss to the Los Angeles Rams, Robinson broke his foot.

The Ravens, who averaged over three sacks a game last season, did not have a three-sack game until they beat the Jets 23-10 in Week 12. This was their second.

Robinson said watching the games during his recovery was painful. He was hoping to bring energy to the defense with his return. He said he felt 100%, couldn’t even tell his foot had been broken. But backing that up with his game performance made even a glass eater like Robinson emotional.

“After I got the sack, I ran out the field, hugged all the trainers that were with me from day one when I said, ‘Look, I’m going to be annoying. I’m going to be in here as many hours as possible to get this foot right,’” Robinson said. “So I went over there, hugged all those guys and just, yes, just trying to bring juice every second.”

Dre’Mont Jones said his own performance was a result of studying but also the hard work from players like Robinson. Green said Robinson’s return made a difference across the board.

“He’s very versatile,” Green said. “He can line up on the outside, line up on the inside, and that gives us a lot of wiggle room to use his skill set, so it was great to have him back.”

Travis Jones agreed, saying Robinson does the “dirty work” and brings a physical presence.

Travis Jones, who signed a three-year contract extension Thursday, also had an impressive performance. In its early grades, PFF judged him well above average in overall defense (76.4), run defense (76.3) and tackling (69.0), and above average in pass rush (59.8) and coverage (66.4).

“I mean, it tells you everything you need to know when you see how big he is, and he’s able to get sacks, as well,” Green said. “So he’s dominant in the run, and he’s dominant in the pass. He deserve every bit of it [the contract].”

The success up front was an example of the complementary performance that led to the shutout.

“We have great rushers up front, [and we had] the rush and coverage coming together,” Gilman said. “They put together a good plan for us to go out and execute. We knew we had to do it together, so that was kind of the emphasis of where we can get [home on] these guys. Let’s get a little bit more sticky in our coverage, give these guys an opportunity, and then as it all came unfolded, we just let it rip from there.”