Matthew McAdow
Contributing columnist
That title should be stating “Cincinnati Bengals Beat The Chiefs,” but once again, Zac Taylor’s roster has found a way to be 0-2 to begin the season. This loss would’ve hurt a little bit less if Cincinnati would have handled business against a poor Patriots team, but this team must like playing with their backs against the wall. This is now the third straight season with an 0-2 start, including missing the playoffs last season and an appearance in the AFC Championship in 2022. Is Cincinnati capable of coming back from this? Of course they are, but the slow start certainly doesn’t help. With the Commanders on Monday Night Football this week and the Panthers to follow, Cincinnati needs to be 2-2 before taking on the Ravens on October 6.
Enough about the future though, let’s dive into the positives and negatives from yesterday’s loss with the Chiefs:
Positives
*Cincinnati held Travis Kelce to one reception for five yards. What a performance throughout all four quarters against the best tight end in the league.
*Mahomes was held to 151 yards and two interceptions. Cincinnati pressured him and forced him to make bad decisions repeatedly.
*Joe Burrow looked way better than he did in week one. Two touchdowns, 258 yards and zero interceptions. He outdueled Mahomes in every single category outside of winning the game, without Tee Higgins.
*Mike Gesicki fits perfectly in this offense and was the lead man with nine targets, seven catches and 91 yards.
*Jermaine Burton had a 40+ yard reception and I hope he sees more snaps, as Cincinnati needs him vertically. He should see the field more than Trenton Irwin.
*Germaine Pratt had 16 total tackles with Logan Wilson right behind him with 12. The tackling was so much better than whatever we watched in week one.
*Cam Taylor-Britt had one of the best interceptions I’ve witnessed.
*Akeem Davis-Gaither joined the fun and picked off Mahomes.
Negatives
· The most obvious negative from this game is that we picked off Mahomes twice, held him to 151 yards and held Kelce to 1 catch, while still managing to lose. Frustrating!
*The run game was nearly non-existent, as the team totaled 74 yards on the ground.
*The extra point that Evan missed was crucial in this game, as the game-winning field goal put Kansas City ahead by 1 to win the game.
*Fumbling the ball up five points by Burrow was the biggest mistake of the game. Cincinnati just had a great interception by Taylor-Britt and had a drive in place to go up two scores, only to find themselves down just moments later.
*Zac Taylor used timeouts like they didn’t matter in the second half, leaving Cincinnati without a way to stop the clock if need be.
*Ja’Marr’s penalty was crucial. While Cincinnati scored three on the possession, they could’ve gained a first down on a 3rd and short and possibly led to a touchdown rather than three points. With the contract issues and the unnecessary penalties in two straight weeks, I’m beginning to lose faith in our WR1.
*Not having Tee Higgins was obvious in this one. Someone donate Tee a hamstring, as this team needs him on the field.
*The penalty at the end of the game was certainly a penalty. However, why was Daijahn Anthony even out on the field in that situation? 4th and 16 and you get a pass interference? Sheesh…
*BJ Hill got hurt, along with Sheldon Rankins. Cincinnati cannot afford to have these guys off the field over the next two weeks, I don’t care who we are playing.
*The biggest negative of all, I startled my son while yelling in the mancave at the game. My five-month-old will soon get to go through Cincinnati sports, just like his old man…And that saddens me!
Predictions
Now that we are two weeks into the NFL season, what are your predictions for Cincinnati? After an 0-2 start, I still believe they can win the AFC North. Pittsburgh will fall apart and luckily for Cincinnati, the Ravens are 0-2, just as they are. However, Cincinnati will have to find a way to beat divisional opponents in 2024 if they want to find themselves playing playoff football. We are in familiar territory, but it better get turned around quickly for Cincinnati to take advantage of our last season with Chase and Higgins. I’m reminding myself to breathe in and out, as we’ll be saying “Who Dey” over the next two weeks.
