Before the clash against the Giants, the objective for the Bengals was simple — win the game at all costs. Luckily for the team, QB Joe Burrow was in the mood to do it all himself as he stunned the Giants’ defense early in the game with a 47-yard rushing score.
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Cincinnati eventually won the game on the road with a 17-7 score, and HC Zac Taylor was elated by Burrow’s instinct to run with the ball, deviating from the original plan.
“I mean, we called two plays, but he took off in a run when he saw the coverage,” Zac told the media in a post-game interview. “That’s instincts by him.”
Taylor also labeled Burrow’s play “pretty impressive” and rightly so. For starters, the 47-yard TD was the longest run of Burrow’s career and set a franchise record for a rushing TD by a quarterback.
So, how did the Bengals quarterback pull it off? Following the snap, Burrow first took a few steps backward and acted as if he were going to pass to the left side of the field. It was believable too, considering that all of his receivers were positioned in that area.
But much to the opposing defense’s surprise, this was a smokescreen, as Burrow began advancing down the right side of the field with no defenders in his path.
This was originally meant to be a pass play, as Zac confirmed in the interview. However, everything changed when the QB noticed the Giants’ defense positioned on the left.
“It was a pass play… he can see that they had overloaded that side over there with the coverage and he found a good rush lane. Once the rushers kind of took off, he used his feet to do the rest.”
That said, what relieved the Bengals head coach the most was his players finishing the game after the bright start.
“Everyone just stepped up”: Zac lauds the team’s efforts
Before the season began, not many expected the Bengals to be 1-4 in the first five games of the season. One of the major issues that the team faced in this stretch of games was their collective inability to close games.
This time, however, the Bengals’ defense stepped up in a big way, barely giving Daniel Jones & Co. any room to breathe. The offense, on the other hand, was somewhat “sloppy,” as Zac admitted.
That said, the head coach was left impressed with his special teams players, particularly for their punts, which helped gain crucial yards in key moments.
“Our defence kept us in it. Our offense was a little sloppy at times tonight, but there in the fourth quarter when we needed it, everyone just stepped up and everyone did their job. I thought special teams put us in some really good positions with some of those punts you know.”
Overall, Zac was happy with his players’ efforts and hoped to use this as a building block for the upcoming games. Was this a convincing win? Not at all, but the Bengals need wins in their column at this point, and in the short run, this performance was just what the doctor ordered.
