5 winners (and 2 losers) for Bengals in thrilling Week 1 win over Bucs

The Cincinnati Bengals let the Tampa Bay Buccaneers hang around a little more than expected given that they had so many takeaways in Week 1. Nevertheless, Sunday's 33-27 win at Paycor Stadium was easily the most encouraging start to any season in the Joe Burrow-Zac Taylor era.

While Burrow struggled to some degree with a pick-six that pulled the Bucs to within 27-20 in the third quarter, the Bengals' new-look, more experienced defense had his back. They forced four turnovers and generally played far better than the poor units of yesteryear.

As we dive into the winners and losers from Cincinnati's side, it's hard to find many in the latter category given how stellar Week 1's outing was overall.

Winner: Joe Burrow's long-term health (physical and mental)

That headline is somewhat joking around, but somewhat not. Joe Burrow was down in the dumps last season. He questioned whether football was fun anymore. Every possession was do or die. His literal words, not mine.

Burrow was able to gift-wrap the Bucs an uncharacteristically bad, turnover-worthy throw that Josiah Trotter took the other way for six points. But it didn't take any extraordinary heroics for Joe Shiesty to get the W on Sunday. To notch a victory with Ja'Marr Chase only having 12 yards on two catches would've been unthinkable in seasons past.

What a relief it must be. Burrow was well-protected, he showed off his wheels on some nice runs, Cincinnati ran the ball well enough to keep Tampa Bay's defense honest, and the Bengals' own D really stepped up with all the splash plays.

Loser: The national media's mind-numbingly stupid narratives

I've had it up to here with the moronic narratives the national media throws out about the Bengals. It's like they have a collective blind spot for Cincinnati far more than most teams. Fox Sports' Danny Parkins is a particularly bad actor/offender.

Take your pick: People seemed to ignore the transaction wire re: all the Bengals' defensive additions. Parkins and many others have asserted the Bengals overpaid for Dexter Lawrence.

When Burrow said he was staying in Cincinnati for the long haul, Parkins came out and built a whole segment around him changing his mind at some point.

Can we give it a rest? I'm sick of it. At least for one week, the narratives about the Bengals should be wildly different. That or it'll be straight radio silence.

Winner: Those second-year Bengals linebackers!

I mean, Barrett Carter and Demetrius Knight Jr. were clearly the biggest question marks in the starting 22 coming into this season. Did they ever back up the faith the coaching staff and scouting department had in them!

So much for signing Bobby Wagner in free agency. Carter looked more than up to the task of playing the green-dot linebacker spot. He flew all over the field and consistently made tackles in space including a touchdown-saving tackle on Baker Mayfield that reuslted in a touchback fumble recovery by Bryan Cook (more on him soon!).

Carter's half-sack of Mayfield prior to that helped force the fumble that Knight scooped up and scored to show that this Cincinnati D was not the complete and utter joke it used to be.

Winner: Evan McPherson

Money Mac did indeed back up his elite preseason form with field goals of 55 and 58 yards and a third one from closer range. Those 50-plus conversions were critical momentum extenders. They came when the Bengals were up 27-20, and gave them some valuable cushion at 27-10 on the first second-half possession.

All indications are that Evan McPherson is back to his rookie-year self. Guess what happened that year? That's right. The Bengals played in the Super Bowl!

Loser: The finer details on the defensive line

I counted four offsides within the first few quarters. Jonathan Allen was lined up in the neutral zone twice. These are just dumb mistakes that can be avoided. Given that the d-line is so laden with vets, I expect that issue to be nipped in the bud in short order.

But look, it's hard to find losers from this contest. Multiple sack-fumbles that led to turnovers, including Knight's scoop-and-score. Solid run defense to keep Tampa Bay pretty one-dimensional. Just gotta clean up those basics, fellas.

Winner: Bryan Cook

All-Overpaid Team, eh? Bryan Cook's homecoming to Cincinnati began in earnest on Sunday, and he made quite the impression in his Bengals debut. He forced the fumble on Bucky Irving that led to a TD, and pounced on Baker Mayfield's fumble in the end zone for a key takeaway thereafter.

Couldn't ask for much more from Cook. He's just the type of physical, tone-setting presence in the secondary that Cincinnati was hoping for when he came aboard from Kansas City in free agency.

Winner: Mike Gesicki

Thank goodness for Mike "TINO" Gesicki (Tight End in Name Only). He was the clear standout amongst the Bengals' pass-catchers in Week 1. Ja'Marr Chase straight up struggled to get going as the Bucs focused much of their coverage on him.

That happened to open up a ton of space for Gesicki, to the tune of a team-high five receptions for 78 yards and a touchdown.

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