Bengals defeat Jets,
giving Zac Taylor his first win as a Bengal.
CINCINNATI – December 1, 2019 – Bradley Charles – Bluegrass
Sports Nation
On Sunday, the Cincinnati Bengals picked up their first win of
the season under first-year head coach Zac Taylor. After a three-game stretch
with rookie Ryan Finley at the helm of the offense, the Bengals returned to
long-time starter Andy Dalton who made the 129th start of his career.
Dalton took full advantage of the opportunity as he picked
up the win and passed legendary Bengal quarterback Ken Anderson in both passing
touchdowns and completions. Dalton is now Cincinnati’s all-time leader in each
category.
It was more than just Dalton and the offense that played
well, the Bengals defense held the Jets to 271 yards of total offense. Two-time
Pro Bowler Carlos Dunlap played particularly well as he posted seven total
tackles, including three sacks.
Following his tremendous game, Dunlap said, “Regardless of
how the season has went, right now, the Bengals won today. That’s simple as
that. It wasn’t about how the season went, it was about the Bengals winning
today and it being his (Zac Taylor’s) first win.”
With the victory, the Bengals have officially avoided the
dreaded 0-16 season. It was clear in the locker room after the game and during
the postgame press conferences that the spirits were high for both the
Cincinnati players and coaches.
“I don’t know what the stats look like, but it felt like a
complete game from all of our guys, really in all three phases. I thought they
did a good job controlling the game, for the most part we felt like we were in
pretty good control of it,” said Zac Taylor after the game.
I agree with Taylor; the Bengals did play a complete game
and for Cincinnati fans it was refreshing to see. The craziest thing about the
0-11 start is that they almost won on the season-opener at Seattle. However,
Seattle won that game 21-20. Do you remember that? It feels like an eternity
ago now, but they almost got the win right out of the gate.
Cincinnati’s next game is on Sunday, Nov. 8th against Baker
Mayfield and the 5-7 Cleveland Browns. The game will be played at Cleveland and
will air at 1:00 p.m. on CBS.
