The Cincinnati Bengals have to hope the second week of the Jake Browning era goes better than the first if they want to avoid losing a fourth straight game.
Not that the backup quarterback is the only one to blame for the 16-10 loss to Pittsburgh one week ago, but going 19-of-26 with 227 yards, one touchdown and interception with four sacks didn’t help.
The Bengals will get star wideout Tee Higgins back for Monday night’s primetime game. But that won’t help a running game that has appeared broken since the summer and currently averages 3.8 yards per carry.
That’s especially notable because the hosting Jaguars have a defense that ranks third overall against the run at 87.4 yards allowed per game on average. It’s a unit that allows just 20.5 points per game, too,
For comparison’s sake, an underwhelming Bengals defense ranks second last in rush defense at 139.6 yards per game surrendered. The unit’s struggles in coverage aren’t shocking given the youth movement, but the rush defense suddenly being a sour point has cost the team games.
None of this has even mentioned Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence, who has completed 67.3 percent of his passes this year with 12 scores and seven picks and running back Travis Etienne Jr., who has 726 yards and seven scores on the ground and 36 more catches through the air.
Even with the Jaguars missing some key linemen that could help pass-rusher Trey Hendrickson and breaking-out rookie Myles Murphy hit home on Lawrence, the Jaguars were favored by more than a touchdown in this one for a reason.
While this has never felt like a team that will simply throw the proverbial towel if someone as important as Joe Burrow goes down, the difference in losing a top-five passer can’t be understated.
If the Bengals put up a fight on primetime, get some core pieces of the future must-have developmental snaps and even earn the silver lining of better draft positioning, that’s not necessarily a bad thing given the circumstances.
Prediction: Jaguars 27, Bengals 14
