Zac Taylor and the Cincinnati Bengals left Paycor Stadium on Sunday with another one-score loss, dropping to 2-2. The offense outgained Jacksonville 437-323, but went home empty-handed.
The Bengals struggled to run the ball and made huge mistakes. They lost both Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins to injuries. Even without his top receivers on the field, Joe Burrow came very close to leading the team to a comeback win.
Zac Taylor shared his feelings about the loss and praised his team for giving it their all while dealing with those setbacks.
“I am allowed to see the silver lining, and that this team’s got a lot of fight,” Taylor told reporters. “And if I get this team for 14 more weeks, 13 more weeks, whatever it is, I’m signing up for that all day because we’re gonna have a great year… I believe in these guys.”
The Bengals coach admitted that the team could have turned it around.
“I mean, it sucks. We had opportunities there,” Taylor added. “I think we’re going to look back tomorrow, and be upset with ourselves at some opportunities that [we missed]… It’s disappointing that we came up short because we had our opportunities and we didn’t fully take advantage of them.”
Taylor also praised the Jaguars after Sunday’s loss. He said Jacksonville is a very good team in all three phases. The Bengals coach aims to fix the mistakes and bounce back next week. Burrow and Co. will head to Hard Rock Stadium to face the Miami Dolphins in the Week 5 game on Sunday.
Taylor’s Offense Struggled After Ja’Marr Chase Exited
Taylor’s praise for his team’s fight does not change how much the offense struggled after Chase left. Chase exited with a concussion early in the second quarter, and Jacksonville turned almost all of its attention to Tee Higgins.
Higgins still produced 11 catches for 157 yards on 16 targets. But the offense had fewer answers once he was dealing with an adductor injury late in the fourth quarter. Burrow was left with Mitchell Tinsley and Dohnte Meyers as his primary receivers and struggled to create easy completions.
That showed up on the final drive. The Bengals faced 4th-and-10 at the Jacksonville 21-yard line. Chase Brown caught the pass but was stopped one yard short, resulting in the Bengals’ second straight loss.
Non-Existent Ground Game in Cincinnati’s Offense
The Bengals also got almost nothing from the ground game. The team finished with just 23 rushing yards on 15 carries on Sunday. Burrow’s arm kept the offense moving, but the lack of a running game made things easier for the Jaguars.
The Bengals travel to Miami in Week 5 to face the Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium on Sunday, Oct. 11, at 1 p.m. ET.
