Winners and losers from the Bengals loss to the Chargers
The Bengals lost to the Chargers 16-13 on Sunday. There were plenty of ups and downs in their first game of the season.
Here are three winners and losers from Joe Burrow's NFL debut.
Winners:
Josh Bynes
Bynes was all over the field. He finished with eight tackles and a sack. The former Baltimore Raven stepped up and made plays when it mattered, making multiple stops on 3rd-and-short. The 31-year-old linebacker showed why he was named one of the defensive captains. He's a great leader and he played well on Sunday.
Jessie Bates
Aside from a couple questionable unnecessary roughness calls, Jessie Bates played like an elite safety against the Chargers. The 23-year-old made five tackles and was a major factor in coverage. Bates flew around all game and made some plays, including a pass break-up that was nearly an interception in the second half.
Joe Burrow
Statistically, Burrow’s performance wasn’t great. He finished with 193 passing yards, a rushing touchdown, and an interception. Despite looking out of sync for most of the game, he showed what he's capable of on the final drive. Even though they didn’t score, the rookie quarterback marched his team right down the field and put the Bengals in a position to win or tie the game.
Not to mention, the former Heisman winner spent most of the first half under pressure from the Chargers defensive line. He could have played better, but he's a winner because he took command of the team when he needed to and his teammates believe in him
Honorable mentions: William Jackson, A.J. Green, Germaine Pratt
Losers:
Bobby Hart
Burrow was constantly under pressure in the first half. Hart was going up against Joey Bosa, who is one of the best pass rushers in the league. There were times it seemed like Burrow was in legitimate danger. Hart had some clear misses that directly led to sacks. On a positive note, Hart did clean up his play in the second half, which proved if the Bengals line gives Burrow more time, good things can happen.
Randy Bullock
Bullock should have sent the game into overtime. As a professional kicker, those kicks have to be made. The game was not entirely on Bullock, but your kicker has to make a 31-yard field goal when the game is on the line.
Backup interior d-line
I know that they're backups, but with Geno Atkins out and DJ Reader missing snaps, the Bengals had a huge problem stopping the run. The only touchdown the Bengals defense gave up all game was when both their star defensive tackles were out. Obviously when both guys are healthy this isn’t a problem, but the Bengals are surely hoping they don’t have to play without both those guys again.
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