There’s no more stark example of the Bengals’ early-season futility than this: They stumbled their way into their Week 4 game against the woeful Carolina Panthers, and Carolina had more wins on the season, since “1” is more than “0.”
But Carolina tends to be good for what ails its opposition, and Cincinnati managed to pull out a 34-24 victory for its first win of the season. Joe Burrow still lacks the sharpness of old, and the Cincinnati defense was far too charitable to former Bengal Andy Dalton, but a win is a win.
The Bengals were already facing huge odds to make the playoffs; only six teams have ever made the playoffs after starting 0-3, and only one — the 2018 Houston Texans -– has managed it since 2000. And only one team in NFL history — the 1992 then-San Diego Chargers — made the playoffs after starting 0-4. Yes, Cincinnati lost its first three games of the season by a combined total of 12 points … but there’s no “near miss” column in the standings. So until further notice, the Bengals are in a must-win situation from here on out.
Sunday won’t go down in Bengals history as a pretty win, but it was a necessary one. The teams traded touchdowns for most of the first half, but Cincinnati took the lead for good one second before halftime, when Burrow found Zack Moss for a one-yard touchdown to go up 21-14. The Bengals would extend the lead to 31-14 before the Panthers got back on the board.
Burrow finished the day with 232 yards on 22-of-31 passing, with two touchdowns. But he made some uncharacteristic mistakes, none more obvious or glaring than a fourth-quarter interception. Scrambling to elude pressure, Burrow slung a pass in the vague direction of Ja’Marr Chase, but ended up lofting it right into the hands of Carolina’s Xavier Woods:
It was a bit of redemption for Woods, whose missed tackle on Chase earlier in the game led directly to a long Cincinnati touchdown:
Dalton, meanwhile, was once again steady in his second start after the benching of former No. 1 overall draft pick Bryce Young, throwing for 220 yards and two touchdowns against one first-quarter interception. It wasn’t enough for a victory, but it was likely enough to keep Dalton in the QB1 role going forward.
Opportunity still looms for Cincinnati, which faces division rivals Baltimore and Cleveland in the next three weeks, with an out-of-conference date with the Giants sandwiched between. The opponents will likely get tougher than Carolina, so now’s the time for the Bengals to step on the gas.
