Jake Browning's opening touchdown drive all but settles the Bengals' QB2 battle
A long and oftentimes ugly ugly preseason for the Cincinnati Bengals' offense looked like a thing of the past when Jake Browning took the field for Cincy's first drive of the night against the Washington Commanders. Browning, who has been competing with veteran journeyman Trevor Siemian for the honor of sitting next to Joe Burrow […]
A long and oftentimes ugly ugly preseason for the Cincinnati Bengals' offense looked like a thing of the past when Jake Browning took the field for Cincy's first drive of the night against the Washington Commanders.
Browning, who has been competing with veteran journeyman Trevor Siemian for the honor of sitting next to Joe Burrow on the sidelines during the regular season, conducted the Bengals' best drive of the preseason BY FAR. Browning went four-for-four with 42 passing yards, with the last attempt ending in the arms of rookie wide receiver Andrei Iosivas for his first touchdown of the preseason.
It wasn't the first time Browning connected with Iosivas in the drive. Iosivas hauled in a back-shoulder pass that went for 25 yards to convert a third-and-four. It was an even better and more accurate toss than the one that led to a wide-open touchdown.
The possession that went exactly six minutes was reaffirmation of how quickly the rookie out of Princeton has developed. But more importantly, it was the long-awaited sign of life from one of the quarterbacks hoping to keep a job behind the face of the franchise.
Browning got the start Saturday evening since Siemian got the first crack a week ago, but he earned the nod back in Week 1 because of the early impressions he made in training camp. Unlike last year, he was in the driver's seat for more than just a practice squad spot.
For players in his position, it's all about stacking games, drives, and moments over the course of multiple games and weeks. Browning showed some grit in Week 2's final drive that ended with a Chase Brown rushing touchdown, the offense's first score that wasn't a field goal this month.
To come out the gate looking sharp in the preseason finale eight days later is a statement he sorely needed to make.
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