With their season hanging on by a thread, the Bengals entered week 11 in a scenario where a win would significantly boost their playoff odds, while a loss would cause them to take a huge hit. Unfortunately, the team came out flat on both sides of the ball, which put them in a big hole at the break. Despite the deficit, they fought their way back in the 2nd half, tying the game at 27. The Bengals had multiple chances to go down and win it, but various issues caused them to fall short. Their comeback highlighted some of the strong points of the team, but the end result again showed that this team is flashy, but also very flawed.
The Good:
WR, Tee Higgins
Higgins returned to the lineup after missing the last couple of games due to injury, and he had a huge impact. He was a frequent target of Joe Burrow, stepping up to make some big grabs and move the chains on multiple occasions. His biggest play was a deep shot TD on 4th & 2. On the day, Higgins totaled 9 receptions for 148 yards and a TD.
WR, Ja’Marr Chase
Chase, not to be outdone, also had a big day. His 7 receptions for 75 yards couldn’t matchup to the numbers Higgins put up in those categories. However, Chase led the team with 3 TD’s.
QB, Joe Burrow
His 56% completion rate wasn’t the greatest, but Burrow led a big 2nd half comeback, throwing for 356 yards and 3 TD’s, while adding 28 yards on the ground. He ran for a key 1st down, and his ability to direct traffic on the run led to one of Chase’s TD’s.
RB, Chase Brown
Brown had a solid day on the ground, rushing for 86 yards, but his biggest impact might have been in the passing game. He made 5 catches for 56 yards, and some of those catches were tough ones in tight coverage. Over the last few weeks, Brown has been stepping up in both phases of the game.
CB, Josh Newton
Newton was tossed into the lineup to replace Cam Taylor-Britt, and did not look out of place. The rookie held his own, and was even able to make a couple of pass breakups, including a big one on 3rd down.
CB, DJ Turner
Turner’s season ending injury was unfortunate, especially given that he was having a pretty good game. He wasn’t perfect in coverage, but he stepped up to make 3 pass breakups in this one. In fact, his injury was sustained on a diving PBU. A tough end to his season, but he’s got something to build on going into next season.
DE, Joseph Ossai
I wouldn’t say Ossai blew me away, but it was good to see a pass rusher other than Hendrickson at least show a little life. Ossai had some solid moments, including where he was able to finish a play off for a sack. He was also solid against the run.
The Bad:
K, Evan McPherson
The McPherson struggles continue. In this one, he missed 2 field goals late in the game, each of which would have given the Bengals the lead. As we know, they went on to lose another one-score game.
CB, Cam Taylor-Britt
Speaking of continued struggles. Taylor-Britt continues to be a shell of the player we had seen in the past couple of seasons. He got another chance and, after getting picked again, was benched in favour of rookie Josh Newton. It was only after Turner’s injury when he was able to get back into the game.
DE, Sam Hubbard
This is a soft one, as I know Hubbard is playing through an injury that reportedly could have ended his season, had he opted for surgery before the regular season started. It’s a tough situation, but he is still playing a large chunk of snaps, but not contributing much as a run defender or pass rusher.
CB, Mike Hilton
Hilton has been one of the team’s better defensive players in recent weeks, but was a bit off in week 11. He only gave up 3 receptions on 7 targets, but these receptions went for over 60 yards, and he allowed a completion of nearly 30 yards.
LB, Germaine Pratt
Pratt wasn’t at his best in coverage, allowing receptions on 4 of 5 targets. He also had a couple of missed tackles to add salt to the wound.
Performance in the 1st Half
The team’s performance was good in the 2nd half, but their weakness on both sides of the ball in the 1st half is what put them in such a big hole in the first place. The defence was allowing chunk gains over and over again, while the offence had trouble sustaining drives. And when they did go down the field, they stalled out inside the 10 yard line. This led to a 24-6 deficit at halftime.
