Keys to Victory: Cincinnati Bengals at Denver Broncos

Will the Bengals snap their losing streak?

Author:
Elise Jesse
Publish date:
Dec 18, 2021 11:47 AM EST

The Bengals hit the road to play the Broncos in Denver on Sunday. That could be a good thing. Cincinnati is 4-2 on the road this season.

Here are three keys to victory:

Get After Teddy

Cincinnati’s defense has built a reputation for rushing the passer this season. Defensive end Trey Hendrickson leads the charge. He has a sack in nine straight games (12.5 on the season).

Teddy Bridgewater has been sacked 33 times this year and plays with a conservative, short-passing style, which the Bengals are suited to handle.

The Broncos' offense will likely rely on its rushing attack led by Melvin Gordon and Javonte Williams. Both averaged over four yards per run and both found the end zone last week against the Detroit Lions. Finding pay dirt wont be as easy for them this week when going up against a team like Cincinnati.

The Bengals have played extremely well against the run, holding opponents to an average of 93.1 yards per game which is good enough to be ranked fourth in the league. With Cincinnati’s ability to stop the run and create chaos for quarterbacks, I don’t see how Denver’s offense can flourish on Sunday.

Let Burrow Go for the Jugular

Joe Burrow has a three-headed monster with Ja’Marr Chase, Tyler Boyd, and Tee Higgins at wide receiver. He has the capability to beat Denver’s talented secondary. There’s been a spotlight on Patrick Surtain II who has four interceptions and has managed to keep quarterbacks to a 46.8 completion percentage when they throw the ball into his coverage.

Chase will likely draw a healthy amount of coverage from Surtain, and No. 2 two has a lot to prove going up against No. 1 on Sunday.

The last time these two met in college, Chase caught six passes for 140 yards and a touchdown in LSU’s 46-41 win over Alabama in 2019. Don’t think for a second that either player forgot about that. Surtain will be daring Burrow to throw in his direction, and the Bengals' star will welcome that challenge all day long.

I expect the second-year quarterback to be laser focused with the playoffs in sight.

“We got to control what we can control,” Burrow said this week. “If we go out and win all the games that we're capable of winning, we control our destiny.”

Limit costly mistakes

The Broncos are rolling out the highest paid defense in the league, and the Bengals cannot afford another sloppy outing. Cincinnati has been turnover-prone this season, with 21 total giveaways: 14 interceptions and seven lost fumbles for a turnover differential of -4. The Broncos are going to make the Bengals pay with a loss if they are unable to take care of the football.

The Bengals must play a clean game and limit errors if they want to keep their postseason aspirations alive.

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