The Bengals’ 27–24 overtime win over the Vikings in Week 15 wasn’t just thrilling because Cincinnati tied the game with 39 seconds remaining in regulation. The outcome provided a compelling ending to a storyline for quarterback Jake Browning.
Browning, now the Bengals’ starting quarterback due to Joe Burrow’s season-ending injury, was cut by Minnesota before the 2021 season. That clearly left a lasting sting for Browning, who yelled “You never should’ve f—--- cut me!” into a camera after Cincinnati defeated the Vikings.
Sweet revenge for Browning, right? Maybe on a personal level. But when speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Browning wanted to make sure that reductive narrative was expanded to tell the whole story.
“You keep it all pent up and then it comes out,” Browning explained. “But I guess my biggest regret was that game turned into like my revenge game, when in reality there were so many things that went into getting that win. Making sure it’s acknowledged it wasn’t just my revenge game, it was a great team win.”
A very authentic 2 minutes from Jake Browning.
— Joe Danneman (@FOX19Joe) December 19, 2023
(Authentic is the word he used multiple times)
The #Bengals quarterback talked about his now viral moment after the Vikings game, and although he regrets it becoming his "revenge game", but "I have an edge." pic.twitter.com/LBNq9TM9QB
Sports fans know that athletes can take the smallest perceived slight to use as motivation. (Cue the Michael Jordan “I took that personally” meme.) Browning surely did take the Vikings cutting him personally, which he revealed in an emotional moment.
However, he knows that such a satisfying personal triumph wouldn’t have occurred without the entire team contributing to the winning effort. The Bengals didn’t win just because of Browning, who threw for 324 yards and a touchdown, Football is never that simple. The quarterback showed leadership by reminding everyone of that.
