by First Quarter
The first quarter ended in a tie 0-0 with both teams coming out and making key defensive stops in the first quarter. The Bengals got off to a rough start as they were only able to get a total of 17 yards between their first two drives. The Patriots had a different look as they were able to move the ball consistently and put themselves in a position to score at the beginning of the second quarter.
Second Quarter
The second quarter ended with the Patriots having a 10-0 lead over the Bengals waiting to get ball back in the third quarter. The quarter opened up with a 3 yard rushing touchdown from Rhamondre Stevenson. The next Bengals possession is horrendous as the team runs 3 plays for 2 yards. The Bengals end up punting on that drive and then the Patriots went 3 and out and ended up punting the ball back to us. The Bengals had a solid drive on the next possession but tight end Tanner Hudson fumbled the ball as he was trying to reach across the goal line. Right before that play Mike Gesicki almost had an unbelievable catch that would of changed the momentum of the game, but was ruled incomplete upon further review. This would lead to the Patriots getting a field goal right before the break
Third Quarter
The Bengal’s woes continue in this quarter as well. To open it up. The Bengals forced the Patriots to punt the ball; punt returner Charlie Jones was not able to field the punt and muffed the catch, leading to a fumble recovery by the Patriots, and ultimately resulting in a field goal for the Patriots on that drive. They are down 13-0 at this point and decided to go for it on fourth down on their next drive but were not able to convert. The Bengals were able to get a stop on the next defensive possession, and then the offense went on a 9-play, 90-yard drive that resulted in a touchdown scored by the newcomer Zack Moss. They were able to cut the deficit in half as the score going into the fourth quarter is 13-7.
Fourth Quarter
The first possession of the fourth quarter results in a field for the Patriots. After that, the Patriots give the ball back to the Bengals and the Bengals can drive down and get a field goal, yet again making it a one-possession game with the score being 16-10. The Bengals forced the Patriots to punt yet again, putting the ball in Joe Burrow and the offense’s hands to go out and win the game. That drive was a 3-play, 5-yard drive that lasted less than a minute. The Bengals made the questionable call to punt the ball back to the Patriots with 2 and a half minutes left in the ball game.
Analysis
The Bengals did not look like they did in the previous years. They honestly looked like a shell of themselves. Now I do get that it is Week 1 and teams have to “work out the kinks”, but at points in the game, it looked like we had bigger problems than just “kinks”.
The defense was poor in terms of their tackling ability as they were missing tackles left and right, and the Patriots were able to make the big plays, but also keep the Bengals in front of them so they could come up and make that play.
It is showing on offense that the Ja’Marr Chase situation could possibly be a distraction. Ja’Marr Chase did not inform Joe Burrow that he was going to play until Sunday morning. Burrow was most likely focused on the game and trying to get prepared for a game without Chase and then suddenly gets the news that Chase will play. I believe that if Chase knew he was going to do this all along in terms of playing this year without a new contract, he is an absolute diva and really is only looking out for himself, and truly would rather have a new contract than to focus and prepare to help this team bring a Super Bowl back to Cincinnati. I am a Chase fan but he just needs to do better and put the team first. He can’t go back and change what happened this summer, but he can limit distractions and help his teammate Tee Higgins get healthy and get back on the field to so Burrow has both of his lethal weapons back out there.
