W2L4: With Joe Burrow Out Another Game and No Ja’Marr Chase, Joe Flacco Looks For Upset Of 9-2 Patriots In Possible Finale With Bengals

Patriots (9-2) at Bengals (3-7), Sunday, Nov. 23 at Paycor Stadium (Field Turf CORE), 1 p.m. ET, TV: CBS: Locally WKRC-TV Ch. 12 (Cincinnati) Kevin Harlan (PBP), Trent Green (analyst), Melanie Collins (sideline). Radio: Dan Hoard, Dave Lapham. 700 WLW AM, WEBN-FM (102.7 FM), ESPN1530. National: SportsUSA Larry Kahn (PBP) and Marvin Lewis (analyst).

CINCINNATI — Joe Flacco will have one more shot to make a lasting impression on the Bengals.

Joe Burrow will not be activated off injured reserve for the Patriots game, making it more likely that he will take the field against the Ravens on Thanksgiving night in Baltimore. The biggest factor in this decision was no doubt keeping Burrow from trying to play twice in five days coming off left big toe surgery and the rehab associated with it.

Burrow was a full participant in practice on Wednesday and Thursday and limited on Friday as he and Flacco split the reps. The most likely reason Burrow took full snaps on Wednesday and Thursday was to have Burrow exposed to two full practices, as the only practice day for the Bengals next week will come on Tuesday, and that is traditionally light anyway. The point was to ramp up Burrow so he’d be ready to go for Baltimore and take the stress of two games in five days off his plate.

With the Bengals not activating Burrow off injured reserve by the Saturday 4 p.m. ET deadline for Sunday’s game, the Bengals will stick with the 18-year veteran at quarterback.

Flacco has had tough luck and bad defense behind him and has only been able to win one of five starts with the Bengals. His only win came on Oct. 16 when he threw three touchdowns and led a two-minute drive down the field to beat Pittsburgh, 33-31. It is the only win in the last eight games for the Bengals after starting the season 2-0.

Of course, the other major storyline Sunday will the absence of another star Bengal for an entirely different reason. Ja’Marr Chase is serving a one-game NFL-imposed suspension for spitting at Steelers safety Jalen Ramsey in last week’s 34-12 loss in Pittsburgh. That suspension will cost Chase a $500,000 game check.

With Chase out, Tee Higgins becomes the No. 1 receiver, with Andrei Iosivas the No. 2 and Mitch Tinsley the No. 3. Charlie Jones is the returner and a No. 4 and it will be interesting to see if Jermaine Burton is active for the first time this season.

As the Bengals now try to get in the win column for the first time since Week 7, they will lean on an offensive attack that has performed among the league’s best since Flacco’s arrival in early October. Flacco, who Cincinnati acquired in a trade with Cleveland on Oct. 7, ranks in the top five in the NFL in completions (135; second), touchdown passes (12; third) and passing yards (1453; fourth) since his first Bengals start in Week 6.

Flacco has built chemistry with several of the Bengals’ top playmakers, including sixth-year receiver Tee Higgins, who has at least one receiving TD in each of the past four games. Higgins additionally has found the end zone in each of his last nine games played at Paycor Stadium, and by doing so again on Sunday he would join former Minnesota WR Cris Carter (2000-01) as the only players in NFL history with a receiving TD in 10 consecutive home contests.

Another offensive contributor who has seen their production skyrocket since the Flacco trade is running back Chase Brown, who has registered at least 100 yards from scrimmage in four straight games. Protecting Flacco is an offensive line that has allowed just eight sacks over the past five games, which are tied for the third-fewest in the NFL since Week 6.

The Bengals aim to snap a three-game losing skid when they host the New England Patriots at Paycor Stadium on Sunday. Cincinnati is coming off a road loss at Pittsburgh in Week 11 to move to 3-7 on the season. While much of the game played out as a familiar low-scoring battle between two AFC North Division rivals, the Steelers pulled away with two defensive scores in the second half.

The turning point of the contest occurred late in the third quarter, when the Bengals were driving inside Pittsburgh territory while trailing 13-9. On a third-down play, Flacco was hit while attempting a pass, and his throw was intercepted by Steelers safety Kyle Dugger and returned 73 yards for a pick-six. Ironically, Dugger was acquired by the Steelers from the team the Bengals face Sunday, the Patriots.

While a Bengals field goal on the ensuing possession trimmed their deficit back to one score, the Steelers separated again with a lengthy TD drive and later returned a fumble to the end zone to put the game out of reach.

“You feel all the losses,” said head coach Zac Taylor following the game. “They all eat at you. We’re working like crazy to make sure that this doesn’t happen. It happened today — it’s disappointing. Our option is to come back tomorrow and keep fighting and find a way to get a win. We’ve got a red-hot team coming in here (in New England), and so that’s what we’re going to do. We’re going to do everything we can to clean this up, correct the mistakes, get back to work and fight another week, and find a way to get a win.”

New England enters Sunday’s matchup riding an eight-game win streak. The Patriots, whose 9-2 record is tied with Denver for the best in the NFL through 11 weeks of play, last suffered a loss on Sept. 21 against Pittsburgh.

The series:

The series began at baseball’s storied Fenway Park. In an American Football League game in 1968, the Boston Patriots beat the expansion Bengals, 33-14. The Patriots lead 18-10 overall, with the Patriots holding a slight 8-7 edge in games played in Cincinnati. Cincinnati’s first victory in the series was a memorable one, as the 1970 team won 45-7 over Boston at Riverfront Stadium to clinch the AFC Central Division title. The Paul Brown-coached Bengals, in their third season, became at the time the youngest franchise ever to reach the playoffs.

Here’s what to look for:

• When the Bengals have the ball:

Flacco is coming off his worst outing in Stripes, completing just 23-of-40 passes for 199 yards and a touchdown to go with a pick-6 tossed to Kyle Dugger. Flacco won’t have Ja’Marr Chase so he’s going to rely on Tee Higgins, Andrei Iosivas and the return of tight end Mike Gesicki off IR with a pectoral injury. Gesicki could have a revival off IR after being a non-factor for the first three games with the Bengals. Gesicki has just eight catches for 61 yards this season. Chase Brown is going to have a tough time running the ball against the top run defense in the NFL, allowing just 84.7 yards per game. The matchup to watch is Patriots star corner Christian Gonzalez against Higgins. It would’ve been fascinating to see what Mike Vrabel and defensive coordinator Terrell Williams would have done if Chase were available. The Patriots have struggled at times containing tight ends this season so Noah Fant could have a big factor. This could also mean the Bengals will try to get Chase Brown more involved in the passing game. The revamped Patriots defense has been terrific this season, though they’ve had the advantage of playing a last-place schedule and have been tested only twice, once at Buffalo and once at Tampa Bay. But in both cases they came out on top. Christian Barmore is one of the best defensive tackles in football. K’Lavon Chiasson and Robert Spillane lead a terrific group of linebackers and Carlton Davis III and safety Jaylinn Hawkins complement Gonzalez in the secondary.

• When the Patriots have the ball:

Drake Maye hasn’t made Patriots fans forget Tom Brady. But Pats fans certainly aren’t longing for his return like they have the last several seasons. Maye has been sensational in his first full season as New England’s starting quarterback. He has been hugely assisted by longtime and highly-accomplished offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels. McDaniels has the North Carolina product getting the ball out on time and feeding his receivers like Stefon Diggs and Kayshon Boutte, who have combined for 82 catches and 1090 yards and eight touchdowns in 11 games. Mike Vrabel and McDaniels must have licked their chops when they saw what Darnell Washington did to the Bengals linebackers last week and what tight ends have done to the Bengals all season. The Bengals have not been able to contain running backs out of the backfield in pass routes and TreVeyon Henderson – the Ohio State star – is coming off a three-touchdown effort against the Jets. He could have a massive day against this defense, as well as Rhamondre Stevenson, who is coming off a toe injury of his own and is expected to be available. Stevenson was the running back that fumbled when Vonn Bell punched the ball out on Christmas Eve 2022 as the Bengals held on, 22-18, at Gillette Stadium. With Cam Taylor-Britt going on IR, the Bengals could move Dax Hill outside along with DJ Turner and move Jalen Davis to the nickel corner. Josh Newton and Marco Wilson are backups while Daijahn Anthony will wait at least another week to be activated off IR.

• Bottom Line:

It would be a great story for Flacco to go out on a winning note but without Ja’Marr Chase and with a reinvigorated team like the Patriots hunting down the No. 1 seed in the AFC, there’s practically no hope in this one. The Patriots have too much talent on both sides of the ball and the Bengals have shown little ability to keep up with any offense that is put in front of them, let alone a quarterback that is in the MVP conversation this season.

Patriots 35, Bengals 20