After kicking off the preseason at home, the Bengals were on the road in Chicago to take on the Bears in their second preseason game. Daxton Hill and DJ Turner started on the boundary at CB, as they are in a battle for the CB2 job. But otherwise, it was a lineup that consisted of 2nd and 3rd stringers, while the starters on Chicago played a significant chunk of the 1st half.
The Bears got the ball to start, with rookie 1st overall pick Caleb Williams taking the field for his first NFL action. The Bengals second team defence fared well, forcing a 3 and out with three incompletions.
On their opening offensive drive, the Benals didn’t get much going, and also punted. However, the second defensive drive was much like the first one. Another 3 and out, with a nice stop on 3rd & short.
The Bengals second offensive drive was a tad bit better. The offensive line opened up a nice hole for Trayveon Williams, who ripped off an 11 yard run. Then, Woodside found Tanner Hudson for 12 yards. Unfortunately, after a sack, this drive also ended up stalling out.
After the Bengals second team defence forced a third punt, the offence went on their best drive up to that point. Woodside found Jermaine Burton for 19 yards, and then Trayveon Williams for 14 on 4th & 1. Deep into Chicago territory, the pressure paid off for their defence, as Woodside could not sense it. As he was hit, the ball popped into the air and was picked off.
A pass interference call on Josh Newton put the Bears in good field position before they eventually settled for a field goal. On their fifth offensive drive, the Bears finally put a TD on the board against the Bengals second team defence. It was a 90 yard drive, with a couple of great off-platform tosses by Williams. The drive was capped off with a TD run by Williams, who was able to escape pressure from the pocket. The Bengals added a late field goal, and went into the half down 10-3.
Woodside started the 2nd half with a pick, which Bagent and the Bears offence capitalized on. He tossed a 4 yard TD to Pettis to put the Bears up 17-3. A 25 yarder, again to Pettis, then put the Bears up 24-3. Later, a Rocky Lombardi fumble led to a Bears field goal, extending their lead. It was 27-3 Bears, which is how the game ended.
A rough scoreline for the Bengals, but in the early stages, the performance by the second team defence against the Chicago starters was quite good.
The Bengals will take on the Colts at home in the preseason finale next week.
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