6 regrettable stats from Bengals Week 15 win vs. Vikings

2 carts

Unfortunately, this is not a fun write-up about a squeaky mic cart from a couple of years ago. Something that we have not heard from in a while.

No, this is far more discouraging, as the Bengals had to bring out the cart twice in the first half due to injured players. First, we watched one of the biggest unsung heroes of the NFL, DJ Reader, get carted off with a knee injury. 

It was a tough loss emotionally for the team. It was tougher schematically as Cincinnati’s defense struggled to contain Chandler, who, like Addison, had the best game of his career, rushing for over 100 yards.

Later, another cart had to be called to take away rookie cornerback DJ Ivey. The situation was even more unfortunate after his superb outing against the Colts a week ago. 

It was an emotional scene for the rookie, who appeared to be on his way to getting more opportunities and breaking out.

Adding insult to literal injury, when Cincinnati needed him most, Ja’Marr Chase walked gingerly into the locker room on the team’s penultimate drive of regulation. Fortunately, the team scored on an incredible play from the other star wideout, Tee Higgins.

Regrettably, Chase was later spotted on the sidelines with his arm in a sling underneath his hoodie. It was a tough day on the injury front for the Bengals. We can only cross our fingers that some of them are not as serious as we initially thought.

We have talked about these stats before, except for the cart. The Bengals overcame them and came away with a victory, whereas this combination of unfortunate stats usually results in a Bengals defeat.

Unlike previous games, when we overlooked some of the issues plaguing the team after a win, expect the coaching staff to attack some of these issues head-on. They know the team can’t allow the same things to occur against the Pittsburgh Steelers and anticipate coming away with a victory.