In a tight and tense defensive struggle, the 1-4 Cincinnati Bengals knew they couldn’t afford another loss and did just about enough to hold off the battling Giants as Chase Brown’s 30-yard touchdown run clinched a 17-7 win with 1:52 remaining. Big Blue dropped to 2-4 on the year with the loss.
The only score of the first half came late in the first quarter as Joe Burrow took off on a 3rd-and-18 scramble and broke into the clear for a 47-yard touchdown run.
New York finally got on the board on Tyrone Tracy’s one-yard touchdown run to tie the score at 7-7 in the third quarter. This was the Giants’ first touchdown in a home game all season.
On the ensuing drive, the Bengals recaptured the lead on an Evan McPherson field goal with less than a minute remaining in the third quarter. This came after a holding penalty had negated a 3rd-and-goal touchdown.
The Giants drove back into Bengals’ territory on their next possession, but the drive stalled at the 30 and Greg Joseph missed a game-tying 47-yard field goal attempt with 10:27 remaining.
After a Bengals’ punt, New York drove inside Cincinnati’s 40-yard line but opted to go for it on fourth down and Daniel Jones’ pass was broken up with three minutes to go. The Bengals narrowly avoided a turnover when Brown’s fumble rolled out of bounds with 1:58 on the clock but he scored the clinching touchdown on the next play.
Here are the takeaways…
– Both teams struggled to convert drives in the first half as they combined to go just 5-for-14 on third down. The Giants, who were outgained 149-119 in total yards, got down to the red zone once but Jones was intercepted by Germaine Pratt as heavy pressure caused his throw over the middle to loop into the air.
– With Kayvon Thibodeaux out, the Giants still got some good production from their edge defenders as Brian Burns stepped up with his third sack of the year, three run stuffs and a big third down hit on Burrow in the fourth quarter.
However, it was Azeez Ojulari who made the biggest impact. He had two first-half sacks and it should have been three as he had Burrow wrapped up on another play only for him to escape and get rid of the ball. Ojulari later combined with Bobby Okereke on a third-quarter hit that forced a key fumble.
-The Giants’ offensive line, which has been much improved following some smart offseason additions, had some struggles with the Bengals’ defensive front. Andrew Thomas uncharacteristically gave up two sacks to Trey Hendrickson and was called for a penalty that negated a 56-yard pass from Jones to Darius Slayton. Right tackle Jermaine Eluemunor was guilty of allowing the pressure that led to Jones’ red zone interception.
– Aside from Burrow’s touchdown run, the Bengals didn’t get much going in the first half, but Tee Higgins was productive with four catches against the Giants’ No. 1 corner Deonte Banks. The Giants opted to use Cor’Dale Flott and Adoree’ Jackson on Ja’Marr Chase and kept him quiet for most of the first three quarters.
However, Chase’s big 33-yard catch just after the Giants had tied the score at 7-7 flipped the momentum and he ended up with 72 yards on five catches. Higgins had seven catches for 77 yards.
– In his first career start, Tracy was impressive. While he averaged less than three yards per carry in the running game, he was productive as a pass catcher, giving him a total of 107 yards from scrimmage on 23 touches.
– Coming out of the half, head coach Brian Daboll said that the Giants needed to stop shooting themselves in the foot but then was immediately guilty of creating a self-inflicted wound himself when the Giants opted to go for it on 4th down from inside their own 40. The Bengals got the stop and looked set to make it a two-possession game. However, Micah McFadden’s recovery bailed them out.
– Daboll deserves credit for sticking to his guns, though. On the 16-play drive which saw New York tie the score at 7-7, he went for it on fourth down twice more and it paid off as Tracy converted each time to keep the drive going.
– Jones completed 22 of 41 passes for 205 yards and rushed for another 56, but it was third downs that hurt their chances as New York was just 5-for-15.
Highlights
What’s next
New York hosts the Eagles (3-2) as Saquon Barkley makes his first return to MetLife Stadium since he signed with Philadelphia as a free agent this offseason on Sunday in Week 7. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.
