Three takeaways from the Cincinnati Bengals’ win over the Cleveland Browns

Three takeaways from the Cincinnati Bengals’ 23-10 win over the Cleveland Browns on Sunday at Paycor Stadium.

1. How much is Joe Burrow worth?

If Cleveland quarterback Deshaun Watson is worth $230 million fully guaranteed over five years — the monetary haul the Browns paid their late-arriving QB — then what is Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow worth? Answer: You’re going to need a lot of zeroes.

Sunday, Burrow once again proved his worth and then some. Bengals’ tight end Hayden Hurst was inactive because of an injury. During the warm-up to the pregame warm-up, wide receiver Tee Higgins felt a twinge in his hamstring. He ended up sneaking onto the field for all of two plays. Wide receiver Tyler Boyd dislocated a finger on the Bengals’ first series. He did not return.

Nor did it matter. Playing with Ja’Marr Chase and a grab-bag of receivers, Burrow calmly completed 18 of 33 passes for 239 yards and two touchdowns, with one interception on a tipped ball, to get his first win over Cleveland in five tries.

“I’ve got so much faith in those guys that come in for those guys,” Burrow said of the backups. “Trent (Taylor) and Trenton (Irwin) are guys that work really hard and know their stuff and are going to be right where I expect them to be.”

And Burrow always puts the ball where it’s supposed to go. The Bengals up 7-3 late in the second quarter, Burrow found Taylor, who made a Browns’ tackler miss, and completed a 34-yard gain that set up Samaje Perine’s 6-yard touchdown run.

Midway through the third quarter, Burrow and Irwin perfectly executed a flea flicker to the tune of a 45-yard touchdown.

“I didn’t even look up,” Irwin said afterward when asked about the coverage bust that left him wide open. “I just kept running. I did what I was supposed to do and Joe did what he was supposed to do. He always does.”

So true.

2. How much is Ja’Marr Chase worth?

With Higgins (60 catches for 861 yards and five TDs), Boyd (45 catches for 655 yards and four TDs) and Hurst (48 catches for 400 yards and two TDs) all sidelined, that put extra pressure on Chase, the Bengals’ stellar second-year receiver.

And the former LSU star came through with flying colors, catching 10 balls for 119 yards and one touchdown. An amazing touchdown. After a scoreless first quarter, on a first-and-10 from the Cleveland 15-yard line, Burrow squeezed a perfect ball between a pair of Browns’ defenders as Chase, who did not show his hands until the very last second, made the perfect catch.

“I don’t think he thought the ball was coming to him,” Burrow said afterward. “Even when he thinks he’s not getting the ball he’s the best receiver in the league.”

“You gotta have a smart player,” Coach Zac Taylor said. “He played all three positions today.”

Chase’s longest reception was for 20 yards, but eight of his catches went for first downs. Despite missing four games, Chase now has 64 receptions for 821 yards and seven touchdowns. And there are five games — plus the playoffs to go.

3. The Bengals are clearly on a roll

After an 0-2 start, the Bengals are now 9-4. They’ve won five straight games and eight of their last nine. Sunday’s win snapped a five-game losing streak to their archrivals in the Battle of Ohio. It also avenged a 32-13 loss to the Browns in Cleveland on Halloween night.

Behind Nick Cubb’s 101 yards, the Browns rushed for 172 yards in that game. Sunday, Cleveland managed just 71 yards on the ground, including a mere 6 yards in the second half. Chubb finished with 34 yards on 14 carries. His longest run went for 13 yards in the first quarter. After that, the NFL’s second-leading rusher behind Las Vegas’ Josh Jacobs was held to 22 yards on 12 carries.

As for Watson, the Cleveland quarterback went 26-of-42 for 276 yards with a touchdown and an interception in his second game since serving his 11-game suspension. Watson played better than he did in his 2022 debut last week against the Houston Texans, but he couldn’t pull out the win.

Down 20-10 after three quarters, the Browns failed to score on all three of their fourth-quarter possessions. On the first, Bengals’ safety Jessie Bates intercepted a Watson pass. On the second, Watson couldn’t connect with Donovan Peoples-Jones on a fourth-and-goal pass from the Cincinnati 6-yard line. On the third and final possession, the Browns went four-and-out with Watson throwing three straight incompletions.

“You’ve got to score more than 10 points,” Browns Coach Kevin Stefanski said.

“The defense stepped up early until the offense found their footing and started moving the ball,” Burrow said. “I think we’re a complete team right now.”

A complete team that travels to Tampa Bay next Sunday and to New England on Christmas Eve before playing another complete team in the Buffalo Bills on Monday night, Jan. 2, at Paycor Stadium. Cincinnati can’t wait.

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