Halftime Observations: Eagles lead Bengals 13-10

CINCINNATI — The Bengals trail the Eagles 13-10 at halftime.

Philadelphia scored a touchdown with 16 seconds left to take the lead. Carson Wentz found Greg Ward Jr. for a 26-yard touchdown.

The drive was set up by a poor kickoff by Randy Bullock that gave the Eagles the ball at their own 40-yard line.

Cincinnati's offensive line continues to struggle, as rookie quarterback Joe Burrow was hit eight times in the first half.

The Bengals tried to get the running game going early. Joe Mixon got the ball on three of Cincinnati's first four plays.

The fourth-year running back finished the half with nine carries for 30 yards.

Pressure

Carlos Dunlap, Carl Lawson and Sam Hubbard were able to put pressure on Wentz in the first half. It was the best the Bengals pass rush has looked all season.

Lawson and Hubbard both had sacks. Lawson also forced a fumble that was recovered by the Eagles. The Bengals hit Wentz three times and rookie linebacker Logan Wilson had his first career interception.

Huge play by DJ Reader and Logan Wilson! pic.twitter.com/FU9Eio6q9x
— Bengals Talk (@BengalsTalkSI) September 27, 2020

The defense has played well outside of the five-play, 60-yard touchdown drive they allowed in the final minute of the second quarter.

Slow Start

The Bengals were forced to punt on their first four possessions of the game. Burrow completed 5-of-8 passes for 27 yards and was sacked twice over that span. He was hit five times in his first 10 dropbacks.

The Bengals had 36 net yards on their first 17 offensive plays.

Burrow was sacked three times in the first half.

Finding a Rhythm

Burrow and the Bengals put together their first sustained drive of the game on their final full possession before the half. They went on an eight-play, 75-yard drive to take their first lead of the game.

Burrow found Tee Higgins in the end zone for a one-yard score. The rookie quarterback completed passes to Tyler Boyd, Auden Tate, Giovani Bernard and Higgins on the drive.

Zac Taylor opened up the offense on that final drive. He put the ball in Burrow's hands and let him push the ball downfield. That needs to continue if the Bengals are going to get their first win of the season.

The Eagles will get the ball to start the third quarter.

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