The Bengals entered week 18 needing a win to stay alive in the playoff race. Although they got that win, they, unfortunately, did not get the help they needed on Sunday in order to get in. On that note, it was a disappointing week for Who Dey Nation. But in a vacuum, it was a positive finish to the season, getting a win over the Pittsburgh Steelers, with several players stepping up to make some key plays. For one final time this season, let’s take a look at some of the good and bad from last week’s game.
The Good:
DE, Trey Hendrickson
Hendrickson finished the season off in style. He was a disruptive force, and a huge reason why the Bengals were able to stifle the Steelers offence. He put up an insane 3.5 sacks, cementing his title as the league’s sack leader for the 2024 season.
CB, Mike Hilton
Hilton was also a big part of things, and played well against his former team. He made some nice plays near the line of scrimmage, and was effective bringing the pass rush as a blitzer from the slot. Further, this was one of his better games in coverage this season.
LB, Shaka Heyward
Heyward didn’t play a ton on snaps, but he made the most of the ones he did get. As well, he made his presence felt on special teams, forcing a fumble after a Bengals punt. Akeem Davis-Gaither was able to get on it to get the offence back on the field
DE, Cedric Johnson
Speaking of limited snaps, Johnson is another who played very sparingly. Only 9 snaps on defence. But still, he was able to pressure the QB a few times. It’s a positive for him to build on, going into next season.
DT, McKinnley Jackson
Jackson has really taken a nice step forward, based on his play in the final 4 or 5 weeks of the season. He was using his size more effectively, and also showed off good athleticism for his size when he moved laterally along the line of scrimmage to blow a play up.
WR, Ja’Marr Chase
Chase, as he often is, was the heartbeat of the Bengals offence. He was Joe Burrow’s go-to guy, catching 10 passes for 96 yards and the team’s only TD. His TD was a clean win in the redzone, and he also made a few tough catches along the sideline to put them in scoring position on other drives.
TE, Mike Gesicki
Gesicki only had 68 yards to Chase’s 96, but his 8 receptions should not be overlooked. He became a reliable second option after Tee Higgins exited the game early due to injury.
C, Ted Karras
Karras was the only member of the offensive line not to struggle at various points in the game. He was steady in pass protection, and also did his job in the run game. A solid all around performance for the veteran.
K, Cade York
The difficulty of his kicks wasn’t too bad, but going 4/4 on field goals and 1/1 on extra points is notable when the team scored a grand total of 19 points. He did his job, and with the defensive improvements in this game, it was enough to secure the win.
The Bad:
Offensive Line Outside of Karras
Outside of Karras, nobody on the offensive line really had a great day. I’ll cut the OT’s a little bit of slack for how tough their matchup was. And with Ford being a backup, he probably still performed above expectations. But overall, the duo did still allow their fair share of pressures. Would have liked to see a bit more out of Orlando Brown.
Where things really get bad is when we look at the G duo. Alex Cappa’s historically bad season continued in full force. He allowed 2 sacks and several pressure/hurries. Volson didn’t fare much better, all so letting a lot of pressure to come through the middle, while allowing a sack. Both were actually pretty solid as run blockers in this one, but we can’t have our pass protection be this bad.
DT, Kris Jenkins
Jenkins and Jackson both started showing some flashes a few weeks ago, but Jenkins hasn’t been able to parlay it into the success that Jackson has. Jenkins got his fair share of opportunities, but failed to make an impact as a pass rusher. The tools are there and we’ve seen some flashes, but it is clear that he still has some work to do.
Redzone Offence
The Bengals offence finished the year very much how they began it. With issues in the redzone. Outside of the one to Chase, they just couldn’t punch it in, having to settle for field goal after field goals. One would hope that Zac Taylor’s vanilla scheme becomes a bit more lively next season. Otherwise, we might see these problems continue to bleed over into future seasons.
