Five winners from Bengals' 34-20 victory over Cardinals
Fun was not an emotion experienced often during the Cincinnati Bengals' 1-3 start to this season. Nothing's enjoyable when urgency is heightened in the first week of October.But when the Bengals played against the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday, it felt like fun was being had again. Just ask one of the team's best players. "It […]
Fun was not an emotion experienced often during the Cincinnati Bengals' 1-3 start to this season. Nothing's enjoyable when urgency is heightened in the first week of October.
But when the Bengals played against the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday, it felt like fun was being had again. Just ask one of the team's best players.
"It felt fun, let me say that," Ja'Marr Chase said after the 34-20 win in the desert. "It's fun when you're having fun."
Chase was an obvious winner from the 14-point victory. Let's see who else joined him.
Five Winners From Bengals’ Week 5 Win Over Cardinals
QB Joe Burrow
While the Cardinals are no juggernaut, this was the game everyone in Cincinnati was waiting to see from the franchise quarterback. Burrow looked like his usual self for the first time since straining his calf back in July. It was his sixth-career game featuring a completion percentage of at least 75% (78.3%), 300 yards (317), and three touchdowns. Add in the several plays he kept alive by his rediscovered mobility, and it’s precisely the performance he’s expected to have when he’s healthy.
Burrow may not be all the way past his calf injury, but when he plays like this, the Bengals are going to be tough to beat regardless the opponent.
WR Ja’Marr Chase
No Tee Higgins? No problem at all. Just find No. 1 and get out of his way. Chase set the Bengals’ franchise record for receptions in a game with 15. They went for 192 yards and three touchdowns.
Can you believe he's already had a game similar to this? He's now the first player in NFL history with multiple games of at least 10 receptions, 150 receiving yards, and three touchdown receptions in his first three career seasons. The guy's 23 years old, by the way.
A huge statement game for Chase, AKA 7/11.
WR Trenton Irwin
The absence of Higgins opened up an opportunity for Irwin, who did what he’s always done for the Bengals’ offense when duty calls. Irwin blew his previous career-high three receptions in a game out of the water with eight catches against the Cardinals. His 60 receiving yards were also a career best, and he was inches away from going over the century mark when a flea flicker bomb just missed his outstretched hands.
Irwin has been the next man up for Cincinnati's stacked receiving corps for two years now, and days like Sunday are why he continues to stick around inside the locker room. He just gets the job done when needed.
ED Trey Hendrickson
The Bengals' defense has some real issues to work through, but Hendrickson's pass-rushing ability is not one of them. His 2.5 sacks against left tackle D.J. Humphries was a season-high for the two-time Pro Bowler. He now has six sacks in five games, which is the second-most a Bengals pass rusher has ever had for the first five games of a season.
It wasn't even a sure thing Hendrickson was going to play Sunday. He was questionable with a back injury that kept him out of Friday's practice, and he ended up putting the Bengals' pass rush on his back again. His value continues to skyrocket.
HC Zac Taylor
Amid a bevy of doubters calling for his decision making yet again, Taylor stood firm in his stance this past week about his offense on track to taking off. He made light of the question whether or not Burrow should even play in this game. The quarterback playing up to his standard validated everything Taylor and his game plans have stood for.
Slow starts are nothing new for Taylor, who sports a meager 6-11-1 record in the month of September, but he's always maintained a sense poise and rationality entering the meat of the season. Freak outs and overreactions are not his thing. That's served the Bengals well the past two years, and it did this week too.
Irwin was not alone entirely in replacing Higgins. 16 of rookie Andrei Iosivas' 26 snaps came on passing plays, and he caught his very first catch for nine yards. He joined second-year player Kwamie Lassiter II, who also caught his first regular season pass, in breaking the seal as an NFL receiver his receiver.
Cornerbacks Cam Taylor-Britt and DJ Turner II deserve recognition as well. Taylor-Britt's second-career interception (first in the regular season) was taken back to the house to put the Bengals up 17-10 right before halftime; a huge pendulum swing only a couple plays after the Bengals couldn't find the end zone on fourth-and-goal. Turner also got through his first start in place for Chidobe Awuzie and made some key tackles and notched a pass breakup near the end zone.
And how about the punter? Rookie Brad Robbins boomed a 59-yarder, his second-longest in two weeks, and averaged 48.3 yards per punt. He entered the week with an average of 43.3 yards per punt.
Bengals WR Kwamie Lassiter II catches first NFL pass against his dad’s former team
Lassiter II achieved a career milestone as a practice squad elevation for the week.
