GREEN BAY Wis. — The Bengals lost to the Packers 27-18 on Sunday at Lambeau Field. It was their fourth-straight loss. Cincinnati is 2-4 on the season.
Here are our winners and losers from the loss:
Winners
Joe Flacco
Flacco played well in his debut, leading the Bengals on three scoring drives in the second half. He completed 29-of-45 passes for 219 yards and two touchdowns. Flacco finished with a 90.9 quarterback rating.
“I certainly thought that he had a lot of confidence and got into a rhythm,” Bengals head coach Zac Taylor said. “There are times when you get in those games where you are having to throw the ball there at the end to get back in it, it is not all stuff that is on the call sheet. We were having to adlib a little bit as you explore how they are playing our guys. You have to adjust as the game goes and I thought he did an unbelievable job of handling that, just a description of a play at times. He just made it work and found ways to get balls to our guys. He knows where to find Ja’Marr [Chase] and Tee [Higgins], whether they were single covered or double covered, he gave them a chance, and it paid off for us.”
Ja’Marr Chase
Chase had 10 catches for 94 yards and arguably the touchdown catch of the year. A one-handed grab that kept the Bengals in the game and cut the Packers deficit to 24-18.
“They came up and pressed him,” Flacco said. “We were able to take a shot, and listen, I mean, obviously when he gets a one on one, I think you’d be wrong a lot not to go his way.”
The Bengals need to feed Chase early and often if they’re going to dig themselves out of the hole they’ve put themselves in. It’s also worth noting that Tee Higgins had a season-high five catches for 62 yards and nearly scored a touchdown.
DJ Turner II
Turner was amazing on Sunday. He finished with five pass breakups and four tackles (one for loss). He’s settled in nicely and is clearly one of the Bengals’ best players on defense.
“I thought DJ showed up big time,” Taylor said. “I thought he made a lot of plays on the ball and he operates with a lot of confidence. He practices hard. It is important to him. I have seen a lot of leadership qualities from him, and so I was excited to see DJ, I am not surprised, I was excited, not surprised. He did a great job of getting his hands on some balls and he was there in some key moments.”
Losers
First Half Offense
The Bengals were awful on offense in the first half. They didn’t score a point, only had four first downs and struggled to move the ball. They went 3-and-out on three of their first four drives.
The Bengals have been outscored 79-9 in the first half of their last four games. That has to change if they’re going to start winning games.
Second Half Defense
The Bengals’ defense didn’t get a stop in the second half, giving up 17 fourth quarter points, including a conversion on 3rd-and-8 where Jordan Love had 4.3 seconds to throw. Ultimately, Love found Matthew Golden for a 31-yard gain with 2:32 left in the game. That was the dagger that ended the Bengals’ chances of rallying for a win.
The Bengals also lost star defensive end Trey Hendrickson in the second quarter due to a back contusion. He didn’t return to the game. They desperately need him to play on Thursday night if they’re going to beat the Steelers.
Andrei Iosivas
Iosivas struggled with drops on Sunday. He had multiple drops and let a pass go through his hands on 3rd-and-8 from the Green Bay 27-yard line. Iosivas’ catch would’ve extended the drive. Instead, Cincinnati had to settle for a field goal that cut the Packers’ lead to 17-10 in the fourth quarter.
Logan Wilson/Linebackers
Wilson was benched in favor of Barrett Carter. He only played 12 snaps. Meanwhile, Carter played all 60 snaps for the Bengals.
The Bengals might’ve been comfortable with the rookies, but they struggled. Rookie Demetrius Knight Jr. started alongside Carter. They finished with 17 tackles combined, but Green Bay picked on them with their running game. Josh Jacobs ran for 93 yards and two touchdowns.
The Bengals need Carter and Knight Jr. to bounce back in a big way on Thursday against the Steelers.
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