Michael Baca’s takeaways:
- Browning leads gritty comeback win for Cincinnati. In relief for an injured Joe Burrow, Jake Browning led a 15-play, 92-yard drive late in the fourth quarter that concluded with the backup quarterback breaking the plane on a sneak for the game-winning score. Browning, who had previously thrown three interceptions, wiped those bad throws from his memory by going 9-of-13 passing for 65 yards on a game-winning drive that included a pair of fourth-down situations. The second of which featured No. 2 overall pick Travis Hunter, who was in at cornerback getting flagged for pass interference while covering Andrei Iosivas to extend the possession. Browning keyed in on the rookie soon after, zipping a 16-yard strike to Ja’Marr Chase off Hunter’s soft coverage to get to the 21-yard line. It was quite a frenetic sequence once the Bengals got within the 5-yard line as they got stuffed near the goal line multiple times while expending timeouts, but Browning’s number was called on Cincinnati’s last chance to avoid settling for a tie from the 1. Browning finished 21-of-31 passing for 241 yards, two TDs and three INTs for a 69.9 passer rating in his two and a half quarters of play, and while Burrow’s injury hung a cloud over Paycor Stadium, having a backup with some moxie was the silver lining.
- Pair of big drops stymie Jacksonville’s steady offense. The Jaguars were simply unstoppable with the ball through the first three quarters by scoring on five of their first seven possessions. If it weren’t for self-inflicted mistakes — ill-timed penalties, turnovers and a couple of big drops — Jacksonville would’ve walked away with an easy win by virtue of its fantastic offense. The dropped passes might’ve been the biggest blunders. Dyami Brown, who scored the game’s first TD, let a would-be TD pass go right through his hands, which led to the Jaguars settling for three points from the 8-yard line. Later in the fourth, with an opportunity to add to a three-point lead off Browning’s third pick, the Jaguars went for it on fourth-and-5 from the Cincinnati 7-yard line but Brian Thomas Jr. couldn’t corral it near the sticks. It wasn’t a great day for Thomas, who had four receptions (49 yards) on 12 targets and could be blamed for Trevor Lawrence‘s second interception of the afternoon after the wideout seemingly heard footsteps on a throw up the middle. Despite those two moments, Liam Coen’s offense was humming for most of the game. Lawrence operated it well, completing 24 of 42 passes for 271 yards and three TDs, but a stellar rushing attack that averaged 5.1 yards per tote had the Bengals on their heels.
- Cincinnati’s high-priced talent came through. Ja’Marr Chase, the NFL’s highest-paid wide receiver, came through with 14 catches for 158 yards and a touchdown to provide Jake Browning with a comforting target in relief. Tee Higgins, who inked a $100 million-plus contract as a No. 2 receiver, broke free on a 42-yard score to square it up, 24-24, late in the third quarter. Trey Hendrickson, who earned a $14 million raise in late August, brought five QB pressures — one of which influenced an early INT in the red zone — and secured the only sack for Cincinnati in the final seconds to force Jacksonville into a final play frenzy.
Next Gen Stats Insight for Jaguars-Bengals (via NFL Pro): Travis Hunter did not play a defensive snap until cornerback Jarrian Jones was injured late in the first quarter. Hunter finished the game with 42 snaps on offense and 37 snaps on defense (six in Week 1), including a defensive pass interference penalty on fourth down with 1:54 left in the game to keep the Bengals’ game-winning touchdown drive alive.
NFL Research: Ja’Marr Chase had his eighth career game with 150-plus receiving yards and one-plus receiving TD, tying Hall of Famer Jerry Rice for second most such games in a player’s first five seasons. Only Hall of Famer Lance Alworth has more such games (12) in first five seasons.
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