Bengals (4-6) at Chargers (6-3) Sunday, Nov. 17 at SoFi Stadium (Field Turf), 8:20 p.m. ET, TV: WLWT-TV Ch. 5 (Cincinnati), NBC (National) Mike Tirico (PBP), Cris Collinsworth (Analyst), Melissa Stark (sideline), Terry McAuley (rules). Radio: Dan Hoard, Dave Lapham. WEBN-FM (102.7 FM), 700-WLW, ESPN1530. National (Westwood One): Ryan Radtke (PBP), Mike Golic (analyst).
The Bengals return to the scene of Super Bowl LVI for the first time Sunday night and they are looking for a different outcome that could get them back on track for a playoff push.
The Bengals enter at 4-6 but with a chance to beat a team ahead of them in the AFC and gain potentially a valuable tie-breaker in the race for one of the three wild-card spots.
Coming off the 35-34 gut-punch on Nov. 7 in Baltimore, the Bengals face a second straight prime-time road test when they take on the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium on Sunday Night Football.
The Chargers are 6-3 and have taken advantage of a weaker schedule in their first half of the season. The quarterbacks they’ve beaten in Weeks 1-9 include Gardner Minshew II, Bryce Young, Bo Nix, Shane Rattler, Jameis Winston and Will Levis. You play the schedule and don’t ask questions but the Chargers have beaten quarterbacks and piled up a great points-against average against a group of quarterbacks ranging from rookie to marginal.
Cincinnati fell just short in a back-and-forth Thursday Night Football showdown at Baltimore in Week 10. The Bengals took over possession trailing 35-28 with 1:49 left in the fourth quarter, and put together a 70-yard drive that ended with Ja’Marr Chase’s third TD to cut the deficit to one point. Cincinnati elected to attempt a two-point conversion to potentially take the lead, but Joe Burrow’s pass fell incomplete and the Bengals left M&T Bank Stadium sitting at 4-6 on the season.
Of the Cincinnati’s six losses, five have come by a margin of one possession. While head coach Zac Taylor acknowledged the emotional toll that comes with dropping one-score decisions, he remains confident that his group’s weekly approach and fortitude will help flip the results in their favor.
“This team is going to continue to put us in good positions, and there’s going to be a point in the season where that turns,” said Taylor following the Ravens game. “We’ll respond the right way from this game. We’ve got a one-game season next week against the Chargers before the bye. We’ll get our bodies right and get ready to go fight them.”
Not to be lost in the final score at Baltimore is the performance from Cincinnati’s offensive stars. Burrow posted season highs in completions (34), passing attempts (56) and passing yards (428), while throwing four TD passes with no turnovers. He became the eighth QB in NFL history to pass for at least 400 yards and four TDs on 50 attempts with zero interceptions. Through Week 10, he is the league leader in attempts (358), completions (246) and passing yards (2672), is tied for the lead in TD passes (24), and ranks second in passer rating (108.1).
Chase finished the night with 11 receptions for 264 yards and three TDs. His haul included a 67-yard TD in the third quarter and a 70-yard score in the fourth, and he became the first player in NFL history to record 260-plus receiving yards in multiple games in his career. He now leads the league this season in all three receiving categories, with 66 receptions for 981 yards and 10 TDs.
As Cincinnati seeks momentum ahead of its Week 12 bye, Burrow expressed his belief that the team can overcome its early adversity and climb back into the AFC playoff picture.
“You are what your record is,” Burrow said. “We’re a 4-6 football team right now. It’s going to be an uphill battle to get back into this thing, but I like what we have in the locker room. I like the coaches that we have up there, so just keep plugging along.”
Burrow and the offense, which enter this week ranking sixth in the NFL in points per game (27.0), get set to face an L.A. defense that allows a league-low 12.6 points per contest. The Chargers, who have won three straight games, are the fourth NFL team in the last 40 years to hold each of their first nine opponents to 20 or fewer points.
The Chargers lead 22-14 in regular season (the series is tied 1-1 in postseason).
This game will be just the Bengals’ second road game against the Chargers in Los Angeles (the first was a 26-21 Chargers win in 2018 at Carson Stadium, home of the LA Galaxy of MLS.). Since moving the franchise from San Diego to Los Angeles in 2017, the Chargers are 3-0 against the Bengals, including the win in L.A. in ’18, as well as wins in Cincinnati in ’20 and ’21.
Overall, however, the Bengals are 11-7 on the road against the Chargers in the series, which began when both franchises were members of the AFL. In fact, the Bengals’ inaugural regular-season game was against the Chargers in San Diego on Friday night, Sept. 6, 1968. The Chargers won that contest, 29-13.
Here’s what to look for:
- When the Bengals have the ball:
With Tee Higgins expected back in uniform for Sunday night’s game, the Bengals already-clicking offense gets another boost Sunday against a defense allowing a league-low 12.6 points per game. Higgins has missed five of the 10 games this season (two with hamstrings, three with quad). The Bengals are 3-2 in the five games he’s played. As great as Ja’Marr Chase has been this season on his own, he becomes that much more dangerous with Higgins on the field challenging the secondary to cover more of the field. Joe Burrow heads into the game tied with Lamar Jackson for the NFL lead in TDs with 24. The Bengals should have a good degree of confidence that they can attack this secondary if Burrow is given the time. The key will come down to handling the edge rushers of the Chargers. While veterans Khalil Mack and Joey Bosa get a lot of attention as big-name rushers, keep an eye on Tuli Tuipulotu, who has 4.5 sacks over the last two weeks on a defense that’s totaled 13 sacks in wins over Tennessee and Cleveland. Mack has not practiced this week with a groin injury that limited him to four snaps last week.
- When the Chargers have the ball:
The Bengals are well aware of what Chargers offensive coordinator Greg Roman likes to do on offense from his days as an OC with Baltimore. The Chargers love to establish the run, playing a physical game at the line of scrimmage and unleash Justin Herbert’s arm in advantageous down-and-distance situations. This reflects the personality of first-year head coach Jim Harbaugh to a tee. The Bengals have been doing very well against the run of late, including last week when they stopped Baltimore’s streak of 100-yard rushing games at 42. Justin Herbert has Quentin Johnston and rookie Ladd McConkey as his biggest threats in the passing game. J.K. Dobbins and Gus Edwards lead the rushing attack. If the Bengals don’t allow explosives in this game, they should be able to keep the Chargers’ offensive weaponry in front of them and manage the LA offense.
- Bottom Line:
The strategy in this game is simple: Get the early lead and force the Chargers to play from behind. That’s much easier said that done but it really is the key to success against a Chargers team build to play with the lead. No one is better at feeding his key players better than Joe Burrow, who is in the midst of a MVP-caliber season. The road to an unlikely playoff berth begins Sunday night in the same spot, on the same network that their Super Bowl dreams ended in Feb. 2022.
Bengals 24, Chargers 16
