Football
Burrow’s deserves praise for his performance this season, despite Cincinnati’s record.
Football is a team game played by individuals, which means that on occasion an individual can singlehandedly undo the work of an entire team. The kicker who misses a crucial game-winning field goal, the quarterback who throws a crushing pick-6, the defensive lineman who commits a back-breaking penalty … when one player’s failure is the pivot point on which a game is lost, it’s maddening, but at the same time every player realizes that he could be that player one day, too.
The exact opposite scenario is playing out in Cincinnati right now, a strange dynamic where the team is undoing the excellence of the individual. Joe Burrow is playing some of the best football of his career … and the Bengals defense is taking a sledgehammer to all that hard work.
Look, “Joe Burrow of the 4-8 Bengals deserves MVP consideration” is the kind of clickbaity headline that makes everyone hate the media, but it’s not quite as ridiculous as it sounds. The numbers are pretty staggering, starting with the fact that Burrow leads the NFL in passing yards per game (278.1) and touchdowns (30) and ranks fourth in passer rating, behind only Lamar Jackson, Jared Goff and Tua Tagovailoa.
The Bengals as a team rank fifth overall in points scored (27.9), tied with Tampa Bay and behind only Detroit, Buffalo, Baltimore and Washington. And thanks to Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase’s 1,142 receiving yards and 13 receiving touchdowns both lead the NFL.
The problem, quite simply, is that Burrow is playing on a team with an atrocious, nearly league-worst defense.
Only Carolina has given up more points per game than Cincinnati’s 28.3. The Detroit Lions score an average of 15 more points a game than their opponents. The Bengals score about half a point less.
Put another way, Burrow’s offense has to score more than four touchdowns a game just to outrun his own defense. That’s a phenomenal burden on your shoulders every single game, and Burrow conceded after Sunday’s loss to Pittsburgh that it’s weighing on him.
Zac Taylor, Lou Anarumo shoulder blame amid Bengals’ skid – Ben Baby, ESPN
The Bengals’ coaches are taking accountability for this year’s struggles.
CINCINNATI — Coach Zac Taylor and defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo didn’t shy away from shouldering their share of the blame for the Cincinnati Bengals’ three-game losing streak and a season that has slipped away from them.
After a disappointing loss to the Steelers on Sunday, one that Taylor said the team believed it could have won, he took responsibility for how the team has fared amid a four-win season.
“I’m not going to sit here and put this on the players. As the head coach, you sit there and you’re 4-8,” Taylor said Monday. “You’re a 4-8 head coach. And that starts with you. To get the most out of everybody, that’s my job.”
Anarumo also opened his session with reporters with a similar message after a 44-38 defeat to Cincinnati’s AFC North rival.
“Obviously all of this starts and ends with me,” Anarumo said. “How we play is certainly my responsibility. I think the players have done a fantastic job of preparing, practicing with energy, giving us their best. I’m proud of the way we’ve gone about that.
“We need to do a better job — I need to do a better job of making sure it shows up on Sundays.”
Bengals Announce Unique Uniform Combination for Monday Night’s Game At Dallas – Jay Morrison, Sports Illustrated
Cincinnati will wear unusual threads on Monday Night Football.
CINCINNATI – The Cincinnati Bengals have unveiled their uniform combination for Monday Night Football against the Dallas Cowboys, and it’s a unique one.
The Bengals will wear their black jerseys on the road for just the 12th time since at least 2010, pairing them with white pants, orange stripes and orange socks.
The jersey choice is not entirely theirs.
As the home team, the Cowboys get to decide whether to wear dark or white jerseys, and they almost always wear white at home, as they have done in five of their six games at AT&T Stadium this season.
Two of the previous 11 times the Bengals have worn black jerseys on the road were during games in Dallas in 2016 and 2022.
It’s not uncommon for home teams to elect to wear white in September when the weather is expected to be hot, which is why eight of the previous times the Bengals wore black on the road were in the first month of the season.
The other three were still fairly early.
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