Cincinnati Bengals: 7 quick takeaways from Week 4 win vs. Jaguars

Was that fun or what?! After the Cincinnati Bengals got off to an embarrassing 14-0 deficit to start the game, it felt like the same ol’ Bengals we’ve grown accustomed to watching in primetime.

Well, NOT THIS TIME, my friends!

That’s right — the Bengals fought back down 14 points to win the game in the final seconds off the leg of Evan McPherson. Who says you shouldn’t draft a kicker in the fifth round, huh?

Let’s take a look at seven quick takeaways from the 24-21 victory.

Fought back after 14-0 deficit

As I mentioned, the Bengals looked sloppy to start the game and sloppy might actually be putting it nicely. The offense had one impressive drive to start the game but it ended with no points as McPherson missed his first field goal of the season.

After half time, however, I don’t know what kind of pep talk the Bengals had in the locker room but whoever gave it to them deserves a raise. We saw the team come out of the locker room and score three touchdowns on three straight drives. It was pretty damn impressive and this is what good teams in the NFL do.

Burrow for over 300 yards

For the sixth time in his NFL career, Joe Burrow tossed for over 300 yards. It was the first time this season where had to put the team on his back and carry them to victory and he did just that. He finished the night with 348 passing yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions.

Atta boy, Joe!

Offensive line had another good game… for the most part

Who would have guessed that after such an atrocious start to the season that the o-line would actually look good in the third and fourth game of the season? They surrendered just one sack on Burrow and while yes, Jackson Carman and Quinton Spain had bad penalties on that final drive, it didn’t end up mattering.

This is the kind of performance we’ve been wanting to see from the Bengals’ o-line.

Defense was hit and miss

Not having Jessie Bates proved pivotal at first, as the Cincy defense was getting embarrassed in the first half. In the second half, however, the defense still let Trevor Lawrence cook but they made stops when it mattered most and it was really great to see them pop when they needed to pop.

Big Game Boyd

Tyler Boyd went for over 100 yards in a game for the first time this season and he was everywhere Burrow needed him to be. Boyd finished the game with nine catches for 118 yards and no matter what Burrow needed, Boyd delivered.

With no Tee Higgins on the field, Boyd did exactly what was asked of him and had a big game as a result.

Uzomah came to play

If you had told me that C.J. Uzomah was going to be the recipient of both of Burrow’s touchdowns, I’d have probably rolled my eyes at you. The tight ends had been a non-factor in Cincinnati this year but not this week!

Uzomah finished the game with five catches for 95 yards and two touchdowns. It was an absolute monster game for the Bengals’ tight end and whenever Burrow needed a chunk play, Uzomah was there to grab the ball and bulldoze over some Jags defenders.

McPherson saves the day again

I’ve jokingly nicknamed Evan McPherson “Dreamboat McPherson” because he always seems to rescue his team. While he did miss his first field goal of the season, he made the one that counted, which was the 35-yard game-winner as the clock ticked to 0:00.

What a man.

This win might have come against a winless Jaguars team but the Bengals of old would have crumpled after that rough start. This group didn’t though, and I’m proud of them for that.

Now they get a long week off to bask in their victory and they deserve to celebrate.