The Bengals were looking to continue on their momentum that had been built up after winning two straight games. The opportunities were there to do so, despite falling behind early. Unfortunately, mistakes proved to be too costly.
The 1st quarter was one to forget, as the Chargers got out to a quick 16-0 lead, scoring on their first three possessions. The Bengals had chances to get off the field on the opening drive, but allowed them to convert on 3rd & 10 early, and then on 4th & goal.
The next two Charger scores came off Bengal turnovers. On the first one, Burrow was strip sacked, a play in which he also dislocated his right pinky finger. On the second one, Burrow hit Ja’Marr Chase in stride on a deep route. It should have been a TD. Unfortunately, he bobbled the pass and it ended up in the hands of Michael Davis. Both TD’s were scored by Keenan Allen. Dustin Hopkins, meanwhile, missed one of the extra points, but made a field goal. 16-0 after 1.
After each team traded punts to start the 2nd quarter, the Chargers struck once again. They only needed three plays, as Justin Herbert launched up a jump ball for Guyton, who won the battle of Jessie Bates. They went for two points and successfully executed a Philly special, as Keenan Allen found Justin Herbert in the end zone.
At that point, it was 24-0 Chargers but to the Bengals credit, they did fight back. They finally were able to move the ball down the field. Burrow found Tyler Boyd for 32 yards on 3rd down, and then again for 18. Burrow capped off the drive by finding Tee Higgins in the end zone for the 29 yard score. The Bengals called a timeout and decided to attempt a two point conversion, but got called for delay of game. McPherson then came on for the single, but ended up missing it. The score was 24-6 for the Chargers.
On the next Charger drive, Germaine Pratt did well to strip Ekeler of the ball. It popped up into the hands of Jessie Bates, who returned it to the LA 19 yard line. The Bengals took advantage of the short field. Joe Burrow’s 6 yard TD run made the score 24-13.
After getting the ball back, Herbert was picked off by Chidobe Awuzie. It was a deep pass intended for Josh Palmer. Awuzie ran it back, seemingly giving the Bengals good field position. However, he was later ruled to be down at the 12. The offence moved the ball, eventually getting just past their own 40. As the clock was expiring, they were attempting to get the ball spiked, but miscommunication caused them to miss out on getting the snap off. It was 24-13 at the half.
The Bengals got the ball to start that half. The ball was spread around on this one, with Boyd, Higgins, Mixon, and Perine all getting at least one touch. The longest play of the drive was a 20 yard completion to Boyd, but unfortunately, it stalled out at the Chargers 30. McPhearson’s field goal made it 24-16, a one score game.
Afterwards, the Bengals defence continued to step up. Yet another Ekeler fumble was forced. Trey Hendrickson and Mike Hilton were involved, while Germaine Pratt fell on the ball. The Bengals offence needed only 5 plays to reach the end zone. The first two were completions to Chase, while the next three were all to Mixon. His 7 yard TD put the Bengals within 2 points, but unfortunately, they failed to pick up the two point conversion.
That was as close as they’d get to coming back. The Bengals did have a promising drive going, looking to take the lead. Inside the LA 35 yard line, Joe Mixon had the ball knocked loose by former Bengal Christian Covington. It was recovered by Campbell who returned it 61 yards to the house, making it 31-22.
The momentum accumulated by the Bengals had been taken away in an instant. LA would later score another TD, in the form of an Ekeler TD, making the score 38-22.
Down 16, technically 2 scores, the Bengals offence marched down in a late attempt at another big comeback. It was another promising drive. But on 2nd & goal from the 15, Burrow was picked off in the end zone after making a bad decision. That one sealed the game. The Chargers would add a field goal, making the score 41-22, which is how it ended.
The Bengals record falls to 7-5. With the Ravens losing to the Steelers, Cincinnati remains only a half game back of 1st place in the AFC North. They will host the San Francisco 49ers next week.
Modified Homescreen Image Via: Alexander Jonesi (CC)
