Bengals report card through second quarter of the 2022 season

Tee Higgins

• Q1 - A
• Q2 - B-

To be fair to Higgins, he saw limited time for a couple of games during this stretch thanks to a nagging ankle injury, which I'm certain also played a role in his struggles that followed. After starting the season leading the team in reception yards with 315 as well as a pair of touchdowns, his numbers took a dip in the second quarter, only having one game where he went over 50 yards receiving and scored just once and that one score came in garbage time while the team was getting blown out by their in-state rivals.

Higgins had a nice game against the Falcons where he went off for 93 yards, but other than that he hasn't looked as good as he did in the first four games. I don't think his slight regression these past four games is something to be too concerned over, especially considering a lot of it stems from that ankle injury, but the Bengals are going to need him and Boyd to step up if Chase's absence is prolonged.

Tyler Boyd

• Q1- B
• Q2 - B+

Speaking of Tyler Boyd, he's looked about just as good as he did through the first four games, with a lone exception being his breakout game against the Falcons which has easily been his best one all season, catching eight passes for 155 yards, including a 60-yard score on the first drive of the game.

His numbers outside that game may not look great, but when you watch the games you see he's played better than those numbers suggest. Boyd is an incredibly reliable target and leads the Bengals big trio of wide receivers in catch percentage, bringing down 74.4% of passes thrown his way. Even in the nightmarish loss to the Browns, he was a bright spot, managing to make some impressive snags on an otherwise dormant offense.

TB continues to shine as an underrated third option (when Chase is healthy) who could be some team's WR1. I expect more out of him next game and possibly in the weeks following, depending on the Chase's status with his hip injury.