5 winners (and 2 losers) for Bengals in Week 5 get-right win over the Dolphins

The Cincinnati Bengals were heavy favorites entering Week 5's matchup with the Dolphins in Miami, and wouldn't you know it, they more or less played like it. After a couple discouraging losses, the Bengals badly needed some good vibes entering their bye, and they got those in a 31-24 victory.

Perhaps the most encouraging thing to come out of this contest was how healthy Cincinnati was. Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins were both questionable but played, B.J. Hill made his season debut at defensive tackle, and Bryan Cook was back in the lineup at safety.

I was thinking it'd be best to hold most or all of those guys out through the idle week. What do I know? They all showed up on Sunday...especially Chase.

Winner: Ja'Marr Chase

After suffering a concussion in Week 4, I was nervous about Ja'Marr Chase playing. The Bengals could've rested him until Week 7's road trip to Baltimore. Instead, Chase decided to suit up. And did he ever make his presence felt.

In an acrobatic downfield catch that rivals the one he made in Houston in Week 2, Chase pulled in a ridiculous grab in the end zone from over 40 yards out on a beautifully lofted deep ball by Joe Burrow:

Chase easily led the Bengals in receptions, receiving yards and targets with six, 77 and 10 in those respective categories. And yes, Cincinnati needed every bit of that elite production.

Winner: Jordan Battle

Good for Jordan Battle. He called out Malik Willis for his patting of the ball being a pre-pass tell on how he could break on the ball. I argued that damn near every QB in the sport pats the ball before they throw, and that Battle unnecessarily painted a target on his back.

Thankfully, Week 5 saw Battle return to his stellar form in coverage from 2025, as he picked off Willis twice. Neither was really to do with what Battle mentioned, though.

Willis was, like, overthinking in real time. He couldn't pull the trigger on Sunday. The ball was deflected before Battle's first INT and it was the easiest pick ever. Then, Willis waited till the last second on a rollout to the right before gifting the ball to Battle, who was in the area as two Miami receivers were having spacing issues.

Whatever. The result is the result. A win is a win. I'm still not convinced Battle is a very good NFL player. Hope he proves me wrong.

Loser: Dexter Lawrence

On back-to-back plays, Dexter Lawrence roughed the long snapper — gonna be honest, didn't know that was a thing — and committed a defensive holding penalty to gift the Dolphins a touchdown.

Look, it's hard to find many losers from this one. Sexy Dexy knows better than to commit these infractions. I wrote this week about how Murphy's law the last two games felt, and Lawrence committing consecutive fouls that led to a TD against a 0-4 team kind of had that type of feeling.

All that really matters is how you respond. Although the Bengals got gashed on the ground, it didn't really matter, because Lawrence and the d-line got in Miami QB Malik Willis' head enough to generate three takeaways off him to maintain a mostly comfortable lead.

Winner: Samaje Perine / Loser: Chase Brown

It's quite obvious who the Bengals' starting running back should be. And it's not Chase Brown. It's Samaje Perine, who had 14 carries for 68 yards to Brown's 13 for 39.

For whatever reason, the older, slower, but savvier Perine just seems to fare better as a ball-carrier than Brown. He can catch just as well out of the backfield, seems more powerful, and is more adept at shedding contact.

Every time Brown touches the ball, I expect him to be tackled immediately in space. In the rare event he does bounce off a tackle, Brown can't accelerate upfield from there and gets corralled by multiple defenders. He's just not good by NFL standards. Period.

I can't wait for an upgrade from Brown whenever it arrives, be it at the trade deadline or this coming offseason. Until then, Perine absolutely deserves to start.

Winner: Joe Burrow

Not the most spectacular day you'll ever see in terms of yards gained, but Joe Burrow kept the Bengals on schedule and was highly efficient in completing 23 of 32 passes for 190 yards and four TDs. Just the type of stat-friendly afternoon Burrow needed for a potential MVP campaign.

Really though, Burrow was pinpoint accurate on his first TD pass to Perine on what looked to be either a choice or Texas route. He hit Chase on that epic scoring strike, and narrowly missed Ja'Marr in the third quarter on a deep shot after a Dolphins defender slowed him up 20-plus yards downfield.

With 32 pass attempts and 31 rushes, the Bengals were a lot better balanced in Week 5. Let's pray that continues. The only way it can in my opinion is if Perine keeps getting the rock.

Winner: Bengals AFC North stockholders

Now that the Browns have lost to the Jets, it appears Cleveland is somewhat vulnerable. Yes, it was a rainy day at MetLife Stadium, but the Browns' loss now puts the Bengals in a share of first place in the AFC North, pending the result of Baltimore's Sunday night matchup against the Falcons.

Lamar Jackson isn't playing versus Atlanta. Thus, the Falcons are heavily favored, and if they're able to pull off the prime-time win, Cincinnati will have a chance to beat the Ravens on their own turf in Week 7 to get that critical head-to-head tiebreaker.

Amazing how quickly things can change in one week in the NFL, eh? Time to coast into the bye. The first of three straight wins I predicted before Madrid has come to pass. Let's GO!!

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