The Cincinnati Bengals got the recent curse against the Cleveland Browns off their back on Sunday with a 23-10 win while moving to 9-4.
They did it while losing some pivotal names on both sides of the football, too.
Joe Burrow lost two of his top targets and the defense, at least for a little while, lost a starting cornerback. Yet the defense collapsed on Deshaun Watson and Burrow kept right on playing at an MVP level.
Here’s a look at some quick notes and takeaways from the game.
Quick Hits
— Bengals lost wideout Tyler Boyd and cornerback Mike Hilton to injuries over the first two drives of the game. Hilton eventually returned, Boyd did not.
— Tee Higgins left not long after those two with a hamstring issue and didn’t return.
— Horrific first drive for Jonah Williams and the offense against Myles Garret that led to lots of little timing mistakes and a quick punt. Adjustments saved the day gradually, though.
— Defense lost contain on Deshaun Watson on the Browns’ first drive and struggled down the field. Cleveland mind-numbingly took Watson off the field for Jacoby Brissett on a fourth-and-one attempt and failed, bailing the defense out (somebody needs fired for taking a $230 million QB off the field on fourth down by the way).
— When the Bengals weren’t getting a key play from a Trent Taylor or Trenton Irwin, the Browns were helping them down the field anyway. In the first half alone, the Browns were called for seven penalties for 83 yards.
— Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase linked up for one of the year’s best touchdown connections.
— Not to discredit the Bengals but…this looked like the 0-16 Browns of old at times:
"Ope – I'm just gonna scooch around ya"#ProBowlVote x #SamajePerine#CLEvsCIN 📺 CBS pic.twitter.com/Qi2eK8LZE0
— Cincinnati Bengals (@Bengals) December 11, 2022
— Zac Taylor was coaching circles around the Browns all day too, including this funny (and perfect) flea-flicker touchdown trick play.
— Lou Anarumo was calling an incredible game defensively too, often taking the eight-man-coverage approach to Watson that they use on Patrick Mahomes.
— Jessie Bates had a nice field-crossing interception to keep this one out of reach. That will go on the highlight reel when he’s asking for a long-term deal.
— Browns tried Cam Taylor-Britt repeatedly near the end of the game in the endzone. He came up with a handful of pass-breakups, a stunning feat for a rookie.
Key Stat
34: Rushing yards for Nick Chubb, good for a 2.4 per-carry average. That was 28 and 2.8, respectively, at halftime. We could spotlight the number of Browns penalties as a major difference here, but the defense deserves credit for putting a clamp on one of the league’s best.
Game Balls
QB Joe Burrow: The MVP contender went 18-of-33 with two touchdowns in a slow-starting performance. But he was wicked accurate and turned it on when necessary, including running for several key first downs.
LB Logan Wilson: The star linebacker was everywhere, totaling 12 tackles before halftime. He finished with 17 and 0.5 sacks and was a key cog in the steady defensive showing.
Top Takeaway
Momentum: This was ugly and a lesson that the offense still greatly struggles against pass-rushers like Myles Garrett. Luckily, there aren’t many of those and this marks five in a row for a Bengals team with a ton of momentum during a key playoff push. The key now, perhaps more than anything, is keeping the core pieces healthy.
