It was a much anticipated matchup, as Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs were given a third chance to take down the Joe Burrow led Bengals. As you’ll remember, the Bengals beat them twice last year, including in the AFC Championship game. The game had much more meaning beyond that, however. The Ravens pulled off a comeback against Denver earlier in the day, so the Bengals needed a win to stay within half a game. As well, with the AFC standings so tight, wins in games like this can make a big difference in seeding.
The Bengals received the opening kickoff and got out of the gate quickly. Perine and Hurst racked up some yards to move the ball up the field and into Chiefs territory. Burrow then completed a 13 yard pass to Mitchell Wilcox, landing them just outside the redzone, at the 21. A 17 yard completion to Boyd landed them at the 4 yardline, where Joe Burrow was able to run it in from just a couple of plays later. 7-0 Bengals.
The Chiefs high powered offence looked to respond on their opening drive. Pacheco gashed the defence a few times early. An 18 yard pass to JuJu Smith-Schuster then moved the sticks on 3rd down. McKinnon picked up another 21 yards over two carries, getting inside the Bengals 10. However, the drive stalled out and they settled for a 26 yard field goal. 7-3 Bengals.
Cincinnati would add 7 on their second drive. Ja’Marr Chase made his first catch since returning from injury. Later on, a defensive pass interference call negated a Chiefs interception, instead moving the ball up 10 yards. On the next play, a roughing the passer call added another 15. Perine would add a couple of solid runs, and Burrow found Chase for another short one, as they continued to advance. Now with 3rd & 8 from the KC 12, Burrow found Tee Higgins for the TD. 14-3 Bengals.
Kansas City finally added a TD of their own a couple of drives later. Mahomes started the dive off with a 15 yard pass to Gray, before a number of shorter gains slowly but surely kept their offence moving. Included was a 4th down completion from Mahomes to Smith-Schuster. McKinnon and Moore each contributed as the drive went on, and it was McKinnon who capped off the drive, making a 2 yard TD catch.
The Bengals, on their next drive, did well to get down the KC 4. But when facing 4th & 1, the jet sweep to Trent Taylor was unsuccessful. They came up empty, and the score into the half was 14-10 Bengals.
Mahomes and the Chiefs got off to a very strong start in the 2nd half. They were able to find the endzone on each of their first two drives to start the half. A 42 yard pass to Valdes-Scantling highlighted the first one, while an 8 yard Pacheco rushing TD capped it off. Their second TD came after a big kickoff return set them up with good field position. Another deep completion, this time 29 yards, to Valdes-Scantling highlighted the drive. This TD came via a 3 yard Mahomes rush on 4th down. As for the Bengals, they kicked a field goal on each of their opening two drives. 24-20 Chiefs.
On the next Chiefs possession, Mahomes found Kelce for a big gain. However, Germaine Pratt did very well to dislodge the ball. It took multiple efforts, as Kelce continued to fight his way forward. After a few tries, the ball finally jarred loose and he was able to recover. This was the turning point of the game.
The Bengals, looking to take advantage of the turnover, went to work. We saw a lot of Samaje Perine early in this drive. He was able to pick up a combined 24 yards on the first two plays, and 7 more a few plays later. Joe Burrow then found Ja’Marr Chase and Tyler Boyd to keep things moving forward. Boyd’s catch moved the chains on 3rd down. With 1st & goal from the 8, Burrow found Chris Evans cutting across the field, and he walked into the endzone untouched. 27-24 Bengals.
Harrison Butker missed the game tying field goal on KC’s next possession. The Bengals got the ball back, and that was all they needed to wear out all of the time remaining on the clock. The play that sealed it was a 3rd & 11 completion to Higgins that went for 14 yards.
Cincinnati improves to 8-4 on the year. As mentioned previously, they still sit half a game back of Baltimore. But the heat is on. The Bengals remain at home next week. They get a rematch with the Cleveland Browns in week 14.
Modified Homescreen Image Via: Alexander Jonesi (CC)