KANSAS
CITY
http://www.thebengalslockerroom.com/authentic-joe-mixon-jers ey ,
Mo. (AP) ¡ª The Cincinnati Bengals knew that with a banged-up defense facing the
NFL's highest-scoring offense, there was a good chance they'd have to simply
outscore the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday night.They barely outscored the
Chiefs' defense.Andy Dalton was held to 148 yards passing with a touchdown and a
pick-6, Joe Mixon managed 50 yards on the ground and the Cincinnati offense
struggled to keep up with the high-flying Chiefs in what turned into a 45-10
rout finished off by the backups at Arrowhead Stadium. "Yeah, that's a good
team. Everybody knows that they've been able to score points," Dalton said.
"When you don't do that on your side of the ball it can turn into a game like it
did."So much for the Chiefs bringing in the NFL's worst defense.Dalton was only
sacked twice but was under constant duress, and the Bengals' running game ¡ª
which still has not produced a 100-yard rusher this season ¡ª went absolutely
nowhere.Meanwhile, Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs offense piled up 551 yards in
a dominant performance."It's on everybody," Bengals coach Marvin Lewis said.
"The coaching staff has to do a great job of preparing. The (players) have to
understand and make the adjustments, the execution ¡ª we knew that was going to
be a big part of it. Communication, being
alert
Jessie
Bates III Jersey White , making the adjustments and so forth throughout
the football game. We did a poor job of that. We've got to understand that we
have opportunities."We had a lot of plays," Lewis said, "where we've got to do
better."Indeed, it's been a miserable couple weeks for the Bengals (4-3), who
were flying high after a shootout win over Atlanta and a solid win over Miami.
Dalton and Co. was rolling on offense and a defense that had been suspect coming
into the season was starting to round into shape.Then came last week's 28-21
loss in Pittsburgh, when the Bengals picked up a slew of injuries while watching
Ben Roethlisberger find Antonio Brown to give the Steelers the winning
touchdown.That loss was competitive, but deflating.Their defeat Sunday night?
Downright embarrassing.Making it sting even more was the fact that the Bengals,
already without three key players due to injuries, watched three more playmakers
go down. Emotional linebacker Vontaze Burfict limped off in the third quarter
with a hip injury, speedy wide receiver John Ross went down with a groin injury
and tight end Mason Schreck left with a knee injury.Throw in injuries to running
back Giovani
Bernard
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perhaps it's not so surprising the Bengals only managed 239 yards total offense
against Kansas City.Ron Parker capped the forgettable performance by reading
Dalton's eyes early in the second half, stepping in front of a pass and taking
the interception back for a touchdown. The Chiefs had just scored to take a 31-7
lead, and the defensive score gave them two TDs in a span of 9 seconds."My guy
kind of just stood up and blocked," Parker said, "and I just had my eyes on the
quarterback. I saw him just looking to the right, had my eyes on him and took me
right to the ball."If only Dalton's own targets were so productive.A.J. Green
had seven catches for 117 yards but failed to reach the end zone, and Tyler Boyd
was shut out until the second half after two TD grabs against the Steelers.
Mixon tried to give the offense a bit of balance, but the Bengals were in such a
hole early that they had to air it out.That didn't work. Nothing really
did."It's just one game. We've got another one next week," Dalton said. "As much
as this one sucks, like I
said
Jordan
Evans Jersey , everything's still right there. We're in a great position.
We've got to go take advantage of it."Sam Hubbard¡¯s first NFL game in his
hometown stadium was one to remember When Sam Hubbard was drafted by the Bengals
in the third round of the 2018 NFL Draft, opinions were mixed.Did the Bengals
really need another defensive end?Was he worth the pick?Why did he fall?Another
Ohio State guy (after just taking Billy Price in Round 1)?But in his first game
playing in his hometown NFL stadium (second NFL game overall) Hubbard began to
show that the Bengals may have gotten a major draft steal.With 9:16 remaining in
the first quarter of the Bengals¡¯ Thursday Night Football win over the Ravens,
Hubbard ran after Joe Flacco and sacked him for a loss of 11 yards. It was the
rookie¡¯s first NFL sack and it was awesome.What a moment for the Cincinnati
native.¡°I thought he¡¯d threw the ball away and stole it from me,¡± Hubbard said
after the game. ¡°It was awesome. It was a great feeling. A perfect play. It¡¯s
something I can emotionally never replace or forget about.¡± Hubbard went on to
have an impressive tackle for loss in the second quarter and totaled five
tackles in the game.He also ¡ª for the second week in a row ¡ª was used on offense
in a goal-line run package. The Bengals let Ryan Hewitt walk during final roster
cuts, and it seems the plan is to use Hubbard as a fullback, when needed. When
Hubbard came in as a fullback in Week 1,Joe Mixon scored a touchdown. Mixon
wasn¡¯t as successful with Hubbard in the mix this week. But, I¡¯d expect to see
more of Hubbard on offense going forward.In the lead up to Thursday night¡¯s
game, defensive coordinator Teryl Austin said, ¡°I have to play Sam Hubbard
more.¡± Hubbard played just seven snaps on defense in the Bengals¡¯ Week 1 win
over the Colts.And playing Hubbard more is that¡¯s exactly what happened in Week
2. Was it because he was a bigger part of the game plan? Or was it because of
Michael Johnson¡¯s knee injury? Either
way
Vincent
Rey Jersey , Hubbard is proving he deserves to be on the field and we
should expect him to be playing (on offense and defense) going forward.¡°It was a
blast,¡± Hubbard said. ¡°It was a little bit hot but it was a blast. The first
primetime game.¡± In addition to it being great to see Hubbard becoming a
productive member of the team, it¡¯s also mind blowing to see Marvin Lewis
playing his defensive rookies. Just before Hubbard¡¯s first NFL sack, fellow
rookie Jessie Bates got his first NFL interception. It came on a Joe Flacco pass
intended for Michael Crabtree just minutes into the game. Bates returned it 21
yards to the Ravens¡¯ 16 yard line and it led to Andy Dalton¡¯s first touchdown
pass to A.J. Green.It¡¯s a different feeling as a Bengals fan to watch rookies
making an impact on defense and it¡¯s a feeling I think fans will enjoy quite a
bit.¡°Playmakers making plays,¡± Hubbard said after the game.It looks like Hubbard
is a playmaker!