Bengals Beat: Out Of Gate Bengals Show They’re Not All About Offense, Can Handle Adversity

CLEVELAND — In many ways, the Bengals needed to win a game like Sunday.

Last year, they lost no fewer than five games like Sunday. Win one of them and they’re in the playoffs.

But last year is last year. This year, they showed in a 17-16 win over the Browns, they are not entirely reliant on an overpowering offense. Good thing, because they were facing one of the best defenses in the game, at least every time Cleveland defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz faces off against Joe Burrow.

Burrow was able to throw for only 113 yards, completing just 14-of-23 passes. There’ll be other days for the offense. But on this day, the defense indeed showed they were not what they showed in the preseason. They were helped out by the drops from Jerry Jeudy (twice), Cedric Tillam and tight end Harold Fannin Jr.

But they won because they won the turnover battle, 2-0, instead of losing it like they did last year at home against New England in a 16-10 loss. Being in the right place at the right time is not just luck, it’s skill and that’s where Jordan Battle and D.J. Turner were in their two interceptions. Battle’s led to the game-winning field goal and Turner’s sealed the game after the Bengals couldn’t move the ball after Andre Szmyt’s missed 36-yard field goal attempt.

They won because their defense, for one day, was the difference in a good way. They were criticized all offseason and in the preseason and doubt swirled around them.

“It’s great but all the outside noise we don’t care about,” Turner told me. “We’ve known the entire time what the defense can do. And we
gotta show it on film, and we gotta do it next week.”

Next week is Trevor Lawrence and the 1-0 Jaguars at Paycor Stadium in the home opener.

“We found a way to win,” Burrow said. “We didn’t win any of these games last year. Usually when you can win a game like this, that’s a recipe for success and that means you are going to be a good team if you can find a lot of different ways to win and we did.”

“From being in the NFL for so long now, the games that are ugly and we win we gotta take it,” said Ja’Marr Chase, who was held to two catches on five targets for 26 yards. “Every game is not gonna be pretty, every game is not gonna be the best. For me, for Tee (Higgins), for Joe, it’s not gonna be best for us. We gotta take everything we can, and get the W.”

The Bengals lost the opener last year to the Patriots 16-10, they lost the next week to Kansas City when they allowed a 4th-and-16 conversion. They lost to Ravens in overtime after blowing a 10-point fourth quarter lead and missed a field goal in overtime to win it. They lost again to Baltimore when they had a 21-7 lead and were driving to put the game away and Chase Brown fumbled. They lost to Chargers in LA after battling back from 27-6 down when Evan McPherson missed two makable field goals in the fourth quarter. They lost to Pittsburgh when they allowed over 400 yards passing and 500 yards of offense to Pittsburgh.

No wonder the Bengals were in no mood to feel guilty for accepting the gifts that Cleveland presented Sunday.

“Glad to get a win,” Taylor said in opening his press conference. “I thought did a great job rising up out there on the last couple possessions of the game. We didn’t put them in great spots, and they just rose up. They got two turnovers. So to win the turnover battle the way that we did, that’s a key stat in a win in week one. We knew there was going to be adversity. There’s always adversity.

“There’s always adversity in week one. There’s always adversity when we play Cleveland. There’s always adversity when we’re on the road in Cleveland. It’s never simple. So for our guys just to find a way to win in the end. I’m proud of them. The best outcome of this game is 1-0. Forget about the stats. Forget about the score. Forget about how it all played out. The best the outcome could have been was 1-0 and we’re proud of that. We’ll make some corrections and move forward.”

The biggest bit of adversity came in the fourth quarter when it looked like the Bengals were reverting to 2024 form, collapsing literally and figuratively back into their end zone.

After a Browns punt went into the end zone and gave the Bengals the ball at their 20, Burrow dropped back three times and was sacked three times, including on third down when Burrow was nearly sacked in the end zone for what could’ve been a game-winning safety for the Browns. The Bengals faced 4th-and-28 from their 2, leading just 17-16.

“We called play action, and Myles (Garrett) won on the edge. I tried to step up, but he did a good job abandoning and running me down,” Burrow said. “I’m having a tough time remembering the second play. The third play, on third down, the pocket started to collapse a little bit, I kind of jumped over the line and the guy (DE Isaiah McGuire) grabbed my leg – I tried to dive out of the end zone right there.”

Zac Taylor was accountable for the sack barrage, especially the third one.

“It’s hard. A lot of times, it’s just one play on a drive. If one play drills you and now you’re behind the sticks a little bit, that plays into their hands,” Taylor said. “We had some great efficiency early on. There was a play here or there and there are things I can do to put us in a better spot. I think we’re all going to be accountable with that on offense. We felt like there was an opportunity there that we didn’t fully take advantage of. There’s opportunities where I could put us in a better position. I look forward to correcting that all that after a win. It’s a lot easier.

“Play action on the first one, and I didn’t see exactly how (Browns DE Myles Garrett) 95 got in there, but he did. We’re trying to account for him on every snap, and he just finds a way to win sometimes. The second play was very similar. I think they played tempo and they got us. The third play, that’s a regret that I have is on the nine-yard line and calling a deeper throw like that. Probably something to just get the ball out of our hands quicker so we can save some space for the punt. It was a third and really long situation.”

No one expected the Browns to outgain the Bengals 327-141 for the day. No one expected the Bengals to have minus-23 yards of offense in the fourth quarter or two yards of offense in the second half. But then again no one expected Tycen Anderson to be the second safety next to Jordan Battle at the start of training camp but he was on Sunday when Geno Stone went down briefly in the second half.

At one point Sunday, the Bengals had Anderson, Jordan Battle, Barrett Carter, Demetrius Knight Jr. and Shemar Stewart on the field, and at the same time. Three rookie draft picks and two other unlikely players in the secondary picking up the defense. Battle finished with 12 tackles while Knight had 10, including a team-leading eight in the first half.

Trey Hendrickson had his impact on the game with three tackles, one sack and three quarterback hurries.

The Bengals lost Logan Wilson, Geno Stone and Lucas Patrick at various moments Sunday and all of their replacements came in and held up to the test. The test Sunday were the Cleveland Browns, and maybe the Bengals can count themselves lucky that their opposition contributed to the final result with their mistakes.

The Bengals know they’ll be better than what they were Sunday on offense. But for one game, the defense stepped up and won a game when the Bengals needed them. Take the win and move on. It beats the alternative that was all too common in 2024.