In one of the shockers from the early window of games in Week 9, the Cleveland Browns came away with a statement 41-16 win over the Cincinnati Bengals.
It simply was a performance to forget for the Bengals. On offense, the Bengals had quite a difficult time in moving the ball downfield over the course of the contest. From the three turnovers to the sluggish 5.0 yards per play average, quarterback Joe Burrow and company did not have much to work with against a potent Browns pass defense.
On the other side of the ball, the Bengals watched as quarterback Baker Mayfield led the Browns to six scoring drives. They sure took advantage of several coverage errors by the Bengals pass defense, including on the 60-yard receiving touchdown from wide receiver Donovan Peoples-Jones.
The Bengals simply have to turn the page following this loss, but they should take note of a trio of takeaways from their overall dismal showing at home.
3. Sam Hubbard stands out as a bright spot on defense
As mentioned, the Bengals did not have their best outing on defense, as they allowed 30-plus points and 350-plus total yards for the second consecutive game. At the least, defensive end Sam Hubbard made a notable impact in the game.
Hubbard came into this contest ranking in the top two on the team in sacks (4.5), quarterback hits (7.5) and tackles for loss (6).
Hubbard was not able to constantly disrupt the Browns' rhythm on offense over a drive-by-drive basis, but he did total for three quarterback hits, two tackles for loss and one sack.
In his fourth year with the Bengals, Hubbard simply continues to show vast improvements across the board as a pass rusher, such as with his keen speed off of the line of scrimmage.
2. Rare off day from Burrow and Chase
After weeks of being a regular on highlight-reels, Ja'Marr Chase had quite an off day in the Bengals' loss to the Browns.
While Chase was targeted an astounding 13 times by Burrow in the contest, he managed to haul in a mere six receptions for 49 receiving yards. Both of Burrow's interceptions in the contest came from targets to Chase, and the rookie wideout also lost one fumble.
More so, in one instance, Burrow elected to launch a deep ball over to Chase in the end zone during the late stages of the third quarter. But in the end, Browns cornerback Greg Newsome II won the duel against Chase, as the rookie wideout failed to haul in the near-perfect pass from Burrow.
Chase sure will look to bounce back in the Bengals' Week 11 road clash with the Las Vegas Raiders.
1. No need for the Bengals to hit the panic button
The Bengals have now dropped two games in a row following their standout 5-2 start to the season. And as it stands, they sit in last place in the AFC North.
Considering that there currently is no clear-cut favorite to win the AFC North, there is no need for the Bengals to hit the panic button at this point in the campaign. Of course, there is still plenty of football to be played in the season.
In the big picture, the Bengals sure will be tested after the bye week, as their first three games following Week 10 will come against the Raiders, Pittsburgh Steelers and Los Angeles Chargers.
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