What Zac Taylor didn’t say to Jake Browning ended up being the difference in the Bengals stealing a win over the Jaguars
Taylor and Browning emerged as big winners in Cincinnati’s improbable Week 2 victory.
The Cincinnati Bengals are 2-0 thanks to a 21-point second-half showing in a thrilling 31-27 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.
All 21 points were courtesy of backup quarterback Jake Browning, who played most of the game after Joe Burrow had to be helped into the locker room with what’s being reported as turf toe. Browning threw three interceptions to go with his 241 yards on 32 attempts, but two touchdowns through the air and one on a game-winning QB sneak became the difference in Cincinnati stealing a win over Jacksonville.
Browning sneaking it in with just 18 seconds remaining was the result of a 15-play, 92-yard drive that only took the game clock down from 3:42 to 0:18. Head coach Zac Taylor said a lot of things to Browning during those 204 seconds, but what he didn’t tell him may’ve been the difference between winning and losing.
Zac Taylor knew exactly what not to say to Jake Browning
At this point in the game, Browning had been responsible for as many boneheaded plays as plays destined for the team’s highlight reel. Hell, he threw a back-breaking pick on the previous drive. When all the Bengals needed was three points to tie the game, Taylor could’ve relayed to Browning that a field goal was the primary objective. Getting into field goal range and then killing as much clock as possible could’ve been the plan with an overwhelmed backup under center.
But that was not the plan, and Taylor confirmed as much to reporters after the game.
“I never even gave Jake a field goal landmark, because that really was not our mentality,” Taylor said. “Our mentality was, we’re going to go score and win the game, and not just kick a field goal. And obviously, if the circumstances had come to that, I would have done that. But that was not the conversation. The conversation was: Let’s get down the field and try to get a score.”
Yes. 1000x, yes, here. That should always be the mentality in that situation, no matter which QB is in the game. Settling for a field goal would at best set up overtime and give the Jags more chances to win the game, and at worst, set up a potential game-losing drive in the final minute of regulation.
It all could’ve gone down that path after Browning and the Bengals were granted a first down, thanks to a pass interference penalty on rookie cornerback/wide receiver Travis Hunter. The infraction created a new set of downs at Jacksonville’s 42-yard line with 1:49 remaining.
Even if the offense didn’t move the chains again, three runs could’ve positioned kicker Evan McPherson for a tying field goal, while also forcing the Jags to use their remaining timeouts. It would’ve been the conservative route Taylor and Co. have taken before, with Burrow running the show nonetheless.
Taylor made it known about a minute earlier that the conservative play was not on the table when he went for it on fourth-and-three from his own 15. That was the tell, and Browning threw the ball four more times after his second fourth-down conversion until the offense was mere feet away from the end zone. Even then, the goal was seven points, not three.
That’s the kind of trust and aggressive mentality that turns close losses into important wins. Burrow may be out for “several weeks” with his injury, and in the interim, Taylor needs to continue embracing Browning’s attacking nature as well, despite the mistakes he may make.
“You should be delusional,” Browning said of his mindset on the final drive. “I think I’ve thrown three picks, and it was like, somehow we still have chance to win the game. And so, you know, it sounds bad, but you can’t be afraid of the fourth in that situation, because you got a chance to win it.
“Defense did a good job of forcing the turnover on downs. And, yeah, like I said, just being a little delusional and just keep being aggressive, because the moment calls for it.”
The moment absolutely called for it. Taylor answered by, in this case, not telling Browning what could’ve easily been said.
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Joe Burrow’s toe injury gets a telling diagnosis following Bengals’ whacky 31-27 win over Jaguars
Burrow’s injury may keep him out for “several weeks.”
