The Cincinnati Bengals emerged as major winners during the team’s Week 7 win over the Atlanta Falcons.
In a simple blowout victory that never really felt in doubt, the Joe Burrow-led offense confirmed an outburst from the week prior wasn’t a fluke and that things can look like this on a week-to-week basis.
And while the opponent wasn’t the most dangerous, the defense showed that even without DJ Reader and Logan Wilson, it can remain its stingy, bend-but-don’t break self.
Here are some of the biggest winners and losers coming out of the victory before the team starts prep for a primetime game against the Cleveland Browns.
Star: QB Joe Burrow
He’s all the way back now. We can talk about the numbers, sure. A huge 481 yards and three touchdowns is nice. But it’s more about the look and feel — he’s seeing the field well, comfortable in the pocket and making the right decisions on the fly, be it before or after the snap. That’s the most important thing coming out of a rougher-than-expected start to the season.
Stud: WR Ja'Marr Chase
It’s Chase’s world right now. He’s scored four of his six touchdowns over the last two games. He’s winning one-on-ones. He’s taking shorter throws the distance. He’s making wicked catches on the sidelines in traffic. His start was a little slower than expected but that was on the offense as a whole, too. And his most recent outburst came after a week of mostly limited practice due to a hip issue.
Dud: RT La'el Collins
This is more unfortunate than anything else. It has been no secret that Collins has been battling a back issue that derailed most of his training camp. He needed to hit the blue medical tent last Sunday and miss a chunk of the game. His return was steady, but with some major outlier hiccups. Now he needs to try and get his body ready again in roughly a week before a massive game.
Stud: CB Cam Taylor-Britt
How about the rookie looking good in his first NFL action? CTB went in and got some work on the boundary in place of Eli Apple and looked the part. This was merely the team getting him some critical developmental live-game reps in a blowout, but the fact he’s convinced coaches to give him this time already is a good sign.
Dud: CB Eli Apple
Apple got torched on a touchdown of 70-plus yards. These things are going to happen to cornerbacks, the hardest position to play in the league. But coaches said after the game it was an error shared between Apple and Vonn Bell. Apple lost playing time to CTB, something coaches said will continue.
Stud: DE Joseph Ossai
Ossai got into the game late against the Falcons after Trey Hendrickson went down and made a huge impact with a sack. He’s had a long, long journey after battling injuries and trying to match immense hype. Besides how great this is for him, it’s a huge boon to the depth outlook amongst pass-rushers.
Bonus stud: DT Jay Tufele
It was easy to wave off the interior of the defense as a weakness with DJ Reader out. But Jay Tufele erupted out of nowhere on Sunday as a superb depth rotational piece and suddenly things just don’t look so bad. He even got a callout from coaches for his performance, with he and rookie Zach Carter teaming to form a better-than-expected depth combo.
