The Cincinnati Bengals seem cursed when playing against their in-state rivals. The Bengals once again fell to the Cleveland Browns, 32-13, on the road in Week 8 of the 2022 NFL season. This fourth loss kept the Bengals at solo second place in the AFC North. Here we will look at Jonah Williams and three other Bengals most responsible for their Week 8 loss vs. the Browns.

For some reason, the Bengals just cannot figure out the Browns. Little to nothing went right for Cincinnati as they just look flustered against Cleveland. Poor performances from key players and one major injury resulted in the Bengals falling to 4-4- in the season.

This game has surpassed the Bengals' Week 1 defeat to the Steelers as the team's worst performance of the season. The Bengals offense missed Ja'Marr Chase and was utterly outmatched by Cleveland's defense. Meanwhile, the Bengals defense was unable to overcome the loss of CB Chidobe Awuzie.

Cincinnati will host Carolina next before taking a week off. Following their bye week, the Bengals, like Cleveland, will play three straight road games. In Week 11, they will face the Steelers on Sunday Night Football before traveling to Nashville for a repeat of last year's divisional round drama.

Here we look at Jonah Williams and three other Bengals most responsible for their Week 8 loss vs. the Browns

4. QB Joe Burrow

Bengals QB Joe Burrow is still winless against the Browns, which is the only team in the AFC North he has yet to defeat. He's 0-4 in starts against Cleveland and 2-2 against Pittsburgh and Baltimore.

In this game, Burrow was just “okay,” though his standards are so high that we cannot really call this performance impressive. I mean, he was sacked five times and completed 25-of-35 passes for 232 yards. The Browns also forced a fumble by Burrow.

Burrow didn't have a good start after Myles Garrett tipped his very first pass that led to an INT. The Bengals just couldn't get much going in the first three quarters, where they gave up 25 points. Burrow eventually stopped the bleeding with a 13-yard touchdown throw to Tyler Boyd early in the fourth quarter, but it was too little, too late.

3. RB Joe Mixon

Bengals RB Joe Mixon carried the ball eight times for 27 yards and grabbed seven of nine targets for 32 yards. It was certainly a far cry from his 91 total yards last week against the Falcons.

Mixon was held in check in the first half, gaining only 17 scrimmage yards on nine carries as the Bengals trailed 11-0 at the break. The Bengals offense didn't get going until the game was way out of hand in the second half, so things didn't get any better for Mixon as well.

With the team down large, Mixon's running attempts were restricted, but he equaled his season highs in both targets and receptions.

2. WR Tee Higgins

While Chase was gone, Tee Higgins failed to step up and be the WR1 that the Bengals hoped he would be. Most fans consider Higgins to be good enough to be a WR1 for many other teams. That's reasonable, but it didn't appear to be the case on Monday night. Higgins had little impact on the game for the majority of the night before scoring late in the contest when the game was already beyond reach. Higgins grabbed three of six receptions for 49 yards and a score in this stinging loss.

He struggled in the first half due to increased defensive attention, catching only two of five targets for eight yards. He wasn't even targeted again until the Bengals trailed 32-6 in the fourth quarter. Higgins' ability to win downfield jump balls gives him a high upside week in and week out, and he'll likely see more regular use as Joe Burrow's go-to receiver in the coming weeks. For now, however, he was a dud against the Browns.

1. OT Jonah Williams

Bengals head coach Zac Taylor had a game plan that just didn't seem to work. It also did not stand a chance because of how the offensive line performed, especially at left tackle. As such, OT Jonah Williams was absolutely outmatched in far too many crucial moments in this game. It underscored how he has underwhelmed this season. In fact, Williams currently has allowed more sacks than any other offensive tackle in the NFL.

The truth is painful, but it needs to have its day. Williams' miserable season continued in a harsh manner here in Cleveland. He was just repeatedly beaten by Garrett and others.

https://twitter.com/FTBeard7/status/1587243203719069696

Williams had help in some instances, but not in others. In any case, he wasn't looking like a franchise left tackle who deserved the massive money he'd earn in free agency. That is a very bad look for both him and the team.