The Bengals flew into Denver looking for a crucial win as they continue their playoff chase. It was a hard fought defensive battle so, naturally, there were plenty of performances on the defence worth writing home about. While the offence had some tougher times, they did enough when it mattered most.
The Good:
– K, Evan McPherson
McPherson added yet another stellar performance onto his rookie campaign. He accounted for 9 of the team’s 15 points, with two of his three kicks coming from long range. He first opened the scoring by making a 53 yarder in the first quarter. He kicked a 58 yarder at the end of the first half to put the Bengals ahead. That kick also set a Bengals franchise record as the longest field goal in team history. His third make was from 26 yards out.
– WR, Tyler Boyd
In a game that was lacking in offence on both sides, Boyd was one of the lone skill position guys to truly stand out. He led the team in both receptions and yards, with 5 for 96. His catches came at important times, including one over the middle late in the game to move the chains on 3rd down. As well, it was his 56 yard catch and run TD that ended up being the game winner.
– The DL
It is another week where the DL deserves a shoutout. Larry Ogunjobi was a menace coming from the middle. He caused frequent disruption and added a sack and a half to his season tally. Trey Hendrickson added to his sack streak when he split one with Ogunjobi. Hendrickson was also a constant disturbance in the backfield, causing problems for Bridgewater and Lock. DJ Reader made his presence felt in the run game, while Khalid Kareem only needed a smaller handful of snaps to make an impact. He made a nice play in the run game, and followed it up with another nice play right after. He then forced and recovered a fumble with the Broncos deep in Cincinnati territory.
– LB’s, Germaine Pratt and Markus Bailey
The injuries have been piling up at LB, and Germaine Pratt has continued to take his game to new heights. He was flying all over the field in this one, making 15 tackles, recording half a sack, and performing well in coverage. With Logan Wilson out, he has stepped up as a leader on this defence.
The next man up mentality is important when the injuries hit, and Markus Bailey has shown how important good depth is. Needless to say, he is no Logan Wilson, but he performed well in his own right. He split that sack with Pratt and showed the ability to disengage from blocks to make plays against the run. As well, he made impressive plays in coverage, keeping his man locked up on multiple occasions.
– CB, Eli Apple
Apple was brought in to be the CB4 on the depth chart, but has been playing as the team’s CB2, and performing up to it. It was yet another week where the former 1st round pick has been lock down on the boundary. He also showed great recovery speed to get back into position to break up a pass that could have gone for a TD.
– OT, Fred Johnson & G, Jackson Carman
Fred Johnson got the start at RT with Reiff and Prince both out. Carman, meanwhile, entered the game at RG when Adeniji went down. Neither were perfect, but they did a solid job handling themselves in pass protection. Both are young players. The progress shown by each of them is encouraging.
– P, Kevin Huber
Huber was called on more than anyone would have liked. But to his credit, he did a good job of keeping the Bengals ahead in the field position game. He had a 52.6 yard punting average, with a long of 61. Additionally, he pinned the Broncos inside their own 20 three times, with one being close to the goal line.
The Bad:
– CB, Trae Waynes
Waynes made his return off IR, but it wasn’t his best performance. He was targeted deep on one play. The ball seemed to hang a little bit, presenting the opportunity for a potential interception, but he let Tim Patrick step in front of him for the ball. The play resulted in a Broncos TD. He also missed a tackle on Williams that would have had him down close to the Denver goal line. Instead, Williams was able to turn the potential loss into a positive gain.
– WR’s Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins
Chase and Higgins have both been massive parts of the Bengals offence this season. However, they each failed to make much of an impact, instead being locked up by the Broncos secondary. Separation was hard to comeby. The two receivers combined for 3 receptions for 26 yards, with the majorty of that coming on Higgins’ 17 yard catch.
