The Cincinnati Bengals finally broke through the barrier on Saturday and won their first playoff game in 31 years. The Bengals accomplished this by defeating a Las Vegas Raiders team that overcame a lot of adversity to reach the playoffs. Several players stepped up and played key roles in the Bengals winning this game, so we're going to examine some takeaways from this 26-19 Wild Card Round victory.

Everybody did their part in this game, with Joe Burrow playing well enough to win and the defense holding strong at the very end to secure the victory. It took a team effort to get the job done in front of a raucous home crowd.

So, let's take a look at the key takeaways from the Bengals' Wild Card win over the Raiders.

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Cincinnati Bengals Wild Card Takeaways

1. An elite QB-WR combo

The Joe Burrow-Ja’Marr Chase connection is legit, and growing. Burrow completed 24 of his 34 pass attempts for 244 yards with two touchdowns and zero interceptions. Ja’Marr Chase enjoyed a record-setting outing, as he led the team with 116 receiving yards, which set the Bengals' all-time franchise rookie record for receiving yards in a playoff game. Chase recorded nine receptions on 12 targets, good for an average of 12.9 yards per reception. The longest reception of the night for Chase was a 28-yard catch on a back-shoulder fade. The Burrow-to-Chase connection remains as strong as ever dating back to their days at LSU. These two young playmakers will only continue to grow together, and as their connection grows, so will the ceiling of this Bengals team.

Chase wasn’t the only receiver to have a big day, however. C.J. Uzomah and Tyler Boyd each recorded touchdown receptions, while Uzomah caught all six of his targets for 64 receiving yards and Boyd added 26 yards through the air, catching four of his five targets. Joe Mixon and Tee Higgins also contributed on the pass-catching front, with Mixon adding 28 yards on four catches and Higgins adding 10 yards on his only catch of the night.

2. Joe Burrow cool under pressure

Speaking of Burrow, the second-year quarterback had himself a night to remember. Yes, Burrow’s stat line (24/34, 244 yards, 2 touchdowns, zero interceptions, two sacks for -19 yards) is not his most impressive outing. That being said, it was the way in which he dominated the course of this game that made it so memorable.

In what was Cincinnati’s first playoff game since the middle of the last decade, with the chance to win a playoff game for the first time since the early 1990s, Burrow exhibited the calmness of a veteran quarterback. There were no jitters, or if there were, he did an excellent job of hiding them. Burrow was poised and in control for the entirety of the game. He was able to rely on his running game and his playmakers, and he was content to pick apart the defense rather than forcing the issue and risking unforced errors.

Credit also must be given to the Bengals' offensive line, which kept Burrow upright for most of the afternoon and only surrendered two sacks to a talented Raiders defensive front led by Maxx Crosby.

3. The running game and defense stepped up

Similar to Burrow, Joe Mixon did not have a great night statistically. Mixon had 17 carries for 48 yards, which was good for an average of just 2.8 yards per carry. However, Mixon consistently used his strength to record timely first downs. A key part of winning a game like this is to keep the pressure off your young quarterback. Thanks to Mixon’s ability to move the chains, he was able to keep drives alive to help allow Burrow to do his thing against the Raiders' defense.

This game was truly won by an all-hands-on-deck approach, and everybody did their part to secure Cincinnati's first postseason victory in three decades.