When the Cincinnati Bengals lost QB Joe Burrow for the season, it might have been expected that head coach Zac Taylor would lean on RB Joe Mixon and the ground game to compensate. That wasn't the case in the team's 16-10 loss on Sunday to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Mixon accounted for just 16 yards on eight carries. After the game, Taylor was asked about the Bengals' rushing attack being unable to help out Burrow's replacement, Jake Browning. “This has nothing to do with Joe Mixon,” Taylor clarified, per the Associated Press.
“This is the entirety of the unit coming together, and so don’t make this about one person. You know, it’s not like there were some missed opportunities there from what I could see. He continues to run hard, and he’s given us what we needed this season.”
Bengals need Mixon to step up
What the Bengals need from Mixon is up for interpretation. Mixon ranks outside of the top-10 in rushing yards on the season. He's topped 80 rushing yards in a game just twice.
With Browning making his first start of the season, the last thing Taylor would want is to allow T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith to pin their ears back and attack Browning at will.
But the Bengals ran the ball just 11 times as a team, including a kneel down by Browning.
Considering the lack of run game propping him up, Browning had a decent day. He completed 19-of-26 passes for 227 yards. He threw for one touchdown, one interception, and took four sacks.
The loss was a major blow in the Bengals' race to keep pace in the AFC North. If Mixon and the running game cannot get going, it's going to be a long rest of the season for Taylor without Burrow working his magic.
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