The playoff-bound Cincinnati Bengals defeated the New England Patriots 22-18 on Saturday at Gillette Stadium. Here’s what you need to know:
- The loss makes a postseason berth look out of reach for the Patriots (7-8), who were held scoreless through the first half but threatened a fourth-quarter comeback. The Baltimore Ravens clinched a playoff spot with their win over the Atlanta Falcons and New England’s loss.
- Bengals (11-4) quarterback Joe Burrow went 40-of-52 passing for 375 yards, three touchdowns (two to receiver Trenton Irwin) and two interceptions in his team’s seventh straight win. Burrow’s 28 completions in the first half were a career high.
- Patriots quarterback Mac Jones went 21-of-33 passing for 240 yards, two TDs and zero interceptions. New England’s third TD came via a 69-yard pick six from cornerback Marcus Jones.
The Athletic’s instant analysis:
Bengals win despite inconsistency
Apparently, the Bengals only need one good half of football to beat flawed teams these days. That’s important because the other halves of wins against Tampa and New England offered up ugly trends in an otherwise impeccable stretch of football for Cincinnati. The Bengals need to figure out what’s going on with five turnovers the last two weeks that have changed the dynamic of the games, but they again found a way to withstand a team with all the momentum.
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This time it was Vonn Bell making the game-saving play for a team that always seems to find one. The inconsistency won’t be good enough going forward, specifically in the massive “Monday Night Football” game next week against Buffalo, but they are still as dangerous as anyone in football when they are rolling. — Dehner
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Dehner Jr: Bengals, Joe Burrow put up big stats, but there are concerns in win
Evaluating Burrow’s performance
Burrow has seen the turnover bug show up the last two weeks — on an otherwise ideal day, the quarterback saw two miscommunications with his receivers result in critical turnovers that kept the Patriots alive. The first was his first red-zone interception since Week 13 of last year that wiped points off the board, and the next the pick six by Jones that sparked the New England comeback.
Burrow finished 40-of-52 for 375 yards and three TDs, but the two interceptions will be plays that should have him working extra in the meeting rooms and practice fields to figure out. — Dehner
Bell deserves credit
The forced fumble by Bell in the final seconds will be extra-effort play the Bengals will look back on as one of the most underrated of the year if they end up landing the No. 1 seed or winning the AFC North. Everyone at the top of the AFC got wins today and this game turning into a meltdown loss would have put the division in jeopardy and taken the top seed off the table. Instead, the Bengals are still in a great place if Kansas City slips up just once in the final two games. — Dehner
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'We found a way to win': Vonn Bell, B.J. Hill among Bengals who came up big vs. Pats
New England keeps things interesting
These Patriots don’t play normal games. Last month, they won on a punt return touchdown with just a few seconds remaining. Last week, they lost on a crazy lateral play that left the Raiders to notch a walk-off win. And this week, they were five yards away from pulling off an incredible 22-point second-half comeback before Rhamondre Stevenson fumbled with 59 seconds remaining to give the Bengals the win. — Graff
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What went wrong for the Patriots?
The Patriots offense can’t get out of its own way. Stevenson has been one of the team’s best players all season but has made critical mistakes in the last two games. He started the laterals last week, then fumbled this week with the game on the line. These Patriots make too many crucial mistakes for sustained success and the plays in the final minute the last two weeks are emblematic of that. The offense finished with just two TDs — and one was on a deflected pass. — Graff
New England’s defense was resilient
The Patriots defense responded in a big way. After it struggled in the first half to slow Burrow and the Bengals’ passing attack, the unit was incredible in the second half. The rookie Jones, one of the bright spots on this team, recorded a pick six, and the Patriots defense didn’t allow a single point after surrendering 22 in the first half. They gave the team a chance to win, even if it didn’t happen. — Graff
Highlight of the game
OMG 😱 MAC JONES. JAKOBI MEYERS. @Patriots
📺: #CINvsNE on CBS
📱: Stream on NFL+ https://t.co/12iaSiFKaP pic.twitter.com/4dpAjOO4Rx
— NFL (@NFL) December 24, 2022
Key stats
New England had just 10 total net yards in the first quarter, compared to Cincinnati’s 189.
Required reading
(Photo: David Butler II / USA Today)
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