It took four weeks, but the Cincinnati Bengals notched their first win on Sunday. Joe Burrow took his team into Charlotte and defeated former Bengal Andy Dalton and the Carolina Panthers 34-24. The stretch of games against the Patriots, Commanders, and Panthers was supposed to lay the foundation for a strong start for this team. The way it played out on the field was very different, however.
The Patriots loss came down to key Bengals mistakes. Against the Commanders, Jayden Daniels worked his magic and proved he is a star in the making. Those losses turned Sunday’s contest against the Panthers into an absolute must-win. Luckily the Bengals met the moment and did what they had to do. And now this team secured a victory before what seems like a do or die matchup against the Baltimore Ravens next week.
There was plenty to learn from the close win against Carolina but here are the three most important takewaways:
THE BENGALS RUNNING GAME IS FOR REAL
The departure of Joe Mixon this offseason left room for both Zack Moss and Chase Brown to demonstrate that they were ready to improve upon the Bengals rushing attack. In 2023 Cincinnati averaged just 89.8 yards per game on the ground. This was second worst in the NFL. The team signed Moss and developed Brown to bring life to this anemic phase of their offense, and it has paid off.
The Bengals are now 21st in the NFL in rushing. Additionally, their numbers have improved across the board. They now average 102.3 yards per game. Their backs rush a rate of 4.6 yards per carry.
Against the Panthers Brown had one of his best games in an orange and black uniform. He reached the end zone twice and racked up 80 yards on the ground. Brown averaged 5.3 yards per carry along the way as well.
For his part, Moss had 51 rushing yards and 27 yards receiving. This included a huge touchdown on a third-down play that was all grit:
At the end of the day, the Bengals do not need to have Emmitt Smith or Adrien Peterson in their backfield. What they need is exactly what they are getting. Bengals running backs need to get positive yards, catch passes out of the backfield, and compliment the passing game by keeping defenses honest. Moss and Brown are giving them just that, and you can tell the positive impact it is having for Joe Burrow.
THE COMBINATION OF A HEALTHY TEE HIGGINS AND JA’MARR CHASE WILL BE LETHAL
Tee Higgins is a big, physical wide receiver. Ja’Marr Chase can turn any play into a touchdown. And we saw both of those traits on display in the win over the Panthers. Tee paced the receivers with six catches. He had 60 yards and showed sure hands that led to several key first downs.
Chase, though, did what he does best. He caught a pass over the middle, broke several tackles, and left the Panthers defense in the dust. His 63-yard touchdown was electric and helped the offense continue its blistering pace.
Bengals fans saw exactly why Higgins and Chase make such a deadly duo. One makes the tough catches and the other is lightning in a bottle. Joe Burrow needs both in order to win games and it makes it so difficult for defenses to stop two receivers with such impressive talent.
CAM TAYLOR BRITT HAD A GAME TO FORGET
Cam Taylor Britt has an immense amount of talent. He also has taken over the Pac Man Jones role of King Trash Talker when it comes to the Bengals secondary. Unfortunately, this week was yet more evidence that he’s not able to back up his big words to the media. Britt had one of the worst games we’ve seen in quite a while. He was out of position for much of the game and gave up a bad touchdown to Diontae Johnson:
Britt was taken out at one point and D.J. Turner played meaningful snaps in this game. Turner played reasonably well, and it is fair to wonder what the split in playing time may be going forward. The Bengals’ secondary has been hung out to dry due to the lack of a meaningful pass rush this year, that cannot be disputed. At the same time, though, CTB was beat several times early on in the play this week. It often did not matter whether Andy Dalton was pressured or not. Ultimately, this Bengals defense is not loaded with talent or game-changing playmakers. As one of its leaders, this team cannot afford for Cam Taylor-Britt to fall so flat, and it is something that must be corrected right away.
Overall, against the Panthers the Bengals defense once again struggled for large stretches of the game. They held Andy Dalton to 220 yards and did intercept him once. However, the run defense looked porous for another week. Carolina averaged 5.3 yards per carry and Chuba Hubbard had over 100 yards.
Though the Bengals defense did enough to win this week, it does not get any easier next Sunday. The Baltimore Ravens have a running back in Derrick Henry who is orders of magnitude better than any that Cicinnati has yet faced. Lamar Jackson is like Jayden Daniels on steroids. Put simply, the Ravens’ offense has the potential to be Lou Anarumo’s worst nightmare.
There is good news and bad news on this front. The good is that Cincinnati hopes to get defensive end Myles Murphy back next week off of IR. There is a chance they could also get defensive tackle BJ Hill back as well. The odds are less optimistic for a return for Sheldon Rankins but there is still time. Getting any of our starters back on the defensive line would be a net positive, especially against Baltimore. It will certainly be a all-hands-on deck situation.
The bad (perhaps the soul-killing bad) is the status of all-world defensive end Trey Hendrickson. He went down against the Panthers late in the game and did not finish the game. He reportedly had a neck injury and was later seen with a sling on his arm after the game.
The hope is that it is just a stinger, and that Hendrickson will be good to go for next week. The reality of Lamar Jackson dropping back with impunity with no one to touch him is yet another nightmare for this Bengals defense. It is also a major reason this team needs Rankins, Hill, and Muphy healthy and back playing, right now.
A WIN IS A WIN
It doesn’t matter how ugly a victory might be in this league. This is especially true for the Bengals here. Weeks 1-3 were a nightmare for Bengals fans and the hope is that has come to an end. This team has notched its first win and has shown what it can do under pressure. The stars are there in Burrow, Chase, Higgins, and others. It is just a question whether this team has the focus and drive to make adjustments, buckle down, and steal a win against a very good Ravens team next week.
