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    • Bengals beat Raiders Joe Burrow stats
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    Bengals beat Raiders Joe Burrow stats

    Kathleen William Posted on

    Cincinnati Bengals head coach Zac Taylor put the ball in the hands of quarterback Joe Burrow.

    On the Bengals' first possession against the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday, Taylor went for fourth-and-3. Taylor had already seen the damage to the Bengals' defense. Burrow had the worst supporting cast of any game in his NFL career.

    Taylor desperately needed his franchise quarterback to make something out of nothing, and Burrow did that all day.

    Burrow made a throw en route to fourth-string tight end Tanner Hudson, who hasn't had a catch since Week 1. Sunday's 41-24 win over the Raiders at Paycor Stadium was full of moments like that.

    Burrow is paid $55 million per year to make up for deficiencies on the roster. On Sunday, he did that better than ever, throwing four of his five touchdown throws on unscheduled scramble drill plays. His only misstep was a pick six, which he threw in what should have been garbage time.

    The Bengals are heaping more and more responsibility on Burrow. This comes with more and more pressure. Burrow handled it all on Sunday as the Bengals scored on their first five possessions and built a 21-point lead in the third quarter.

    The Bengals improved to 4-5 on the season. After the team's poor start to the season, they are still not out of the woods. But next week's game against the Baltimore Ravens offers the Bengals an opportunity to get back in contention and make a statement for the first time all season.

    The Bengals' makeshift offense is putting on a great performance

    On Sunday, the Bengals were missing wide receiver Tee Higgins (quad), left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. (knee), running back Zack Moss (neck) and wide receiver Jermaine Burton (coach's decision). Burton was expected to be an important part of the game plan as he was one of the Bengals' few receivers consistently open, but his status changed over the course of the weekend.

    Without him, the Bengals were reliant on Ja'Marr Chase and a group of pass catchers that didn't do much all year.

    Burrow managed it with running back Chase Brown, who had a key loss last week and hadn't shown he could be a part of the Bengals' passing game. Without Moss, Brown had to take on more responsibility as a pass catcher. Burrow found him early for a 13-yard gain, and Brown broke free along the back line of the end zone for an early touchdown.

    Burrow did it with wide receiver Andrei Iosivas, who had four catches in his last five games. Iosivas and Burrow were on the same page as Burrow scrambled around the pocket and threw a pass down the field for a 10-yard touchdown, giving the Bengals a 17-10 lead by halftime.

    Iosivas also forced a 17-yard defensive pass interference penalty on the first drive of the second half. That set up a 1-yard touchdown pass when Burrow made contact with tight end Drew Sample on the run.

    Burrow managed it with tight end Mike Gesicki, who disappeared from the offense when Higgins was healthy. Gesicki caught Burrow's third scramble-drill touchdown of the game as the Bengals took a 31-10 lead in the third quarter.

    And Burrow has done it with left tackle Cody Ford playing out of position on an injury-plagued offensive line.

    The Raiders focused on Chase, who didn't have much help around him Sunday. Chase still made some key first-down conversions on screens where he showcased his ability to make defenders miss in space.

    Burrow, Chase, Bengals defensive end Trey Hendrickson and Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby were the only stars on the field Sunday. Burrow was the best player on the field and he took over the game.

    On a day when the Raiders' pass rush provided pressure and Burrow didn't have multiple receivers who could break through quickly, Burrow had to fight a lot.

    His fourth-and-3 conversion and four of his five touchdown throws were on the run.

    Burrow completed his first 15 passes against the Raiders and found enough splitters in the Raiders' defense to keep the chains moving. The Raiders emphasized taking away Chase and taking the ball away deep, and Burrow had little margin for error to work with.

    Burrow was still consistently finding finishes, fighting back when needed and keeping the offense on track. A career game on the ground from Chase Brown gave the Bengals offense enough to win against a Raiders defense that was stingy in 2024.

    The Bengals also learned their lesson from last week's loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.

    Instead of attempting power runs with six offensive linemen or calling screens behind the line of scrimmage for Chase, the Bengals called drop-back passes to Burrow when faced with crucial short-yard situations. Burrow is perhaps the best pocket dropback passer in the NFL, and he showcased his playmaking ability in those situations on Sunday.

    The Bengals' floundering defense had the advantage of going up against a backup quarterback and one of the worst offenses in the NFL. Earlier this week, Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce accused his unit of lacking an identity since the Raiders dealt star receiver Davante Adams, and Raiders quarterback Gardner Minshew was benched in the third quarter for failing to establish a rhythm as a dropback found passerby.

    The Raiders offense got in its own way when Minshew fumbled a handoff to wide receiver DJ Turner in the third quarter. The Raiders mostly beat themselves, but the Bengals defense still provided a few bright spots.

    Backup safety Jordan Battle, taking on a larger role, intercepted a pass to standout Raiders rookie tight end Brock Bowers for a third down stop. The defensive line worked together to generate a sack for Hendrickson in the second quarter, and his sack in the fourth quarter killed the game for the Bengals.

    Hendrickson posted a fourth sack on the ensuing possession while feasting on the Raiders' backup-filled offensive line.

    The Bengals face a much tougher test next week in Baltimore. They will go into this matchup with some momentum and at least won't have to make massive adjustments like the defense has seen in recent games.

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    Kathleen William
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