Bengals takeaways: Cincinnati wakes up just in time to beat the Cleveland Browns

CLEVELAND — It looked like the Cincinnati Bengals were on the cusp of their most inexcusable loss of the year for two-plus quarters.

The 1-6 Cleveland Browns, playing a third-string quarterback who had been clinging to a spot in the NFL, were driving down the field and on the verge of taking the lead. The Bengals ’ offense couldn’t convert a third down.

The season was on the brink, and the Bengals looked like a tense team.

But in a matter of a few plays, the Bengals snapped back to life, got a stop and a score and a chance to take a deep breath. The Bengals pulled ahead and improved to 3-4 on the season with a 21-14 win over the Cleveland Browns on Sunday at Huntington Bank Stadium.

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"We’re in a great spot," defensive end Sam Hubbard said. "That was a big division win for us. Our thing is always getting hot at the right time, and we’ve got the world in front of us right now. We’ll enjoy this win, and we have a big one to get back to .500 this week."

For a while, the game was spiraling away from the Bengals. The passing game had no rhythm, star left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. was out with a knee injury. Browns reserve quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson, in for injured starter Deshaun Watson, gave a putrid Cleveland offense more life than it had had all season.

The turning point was a 4th-and-2 for the Browns in Bengals’ territory. With the Bengals holding onto a 7-6 lead, safety Vonn Bell’s blitz got home just in time to force an errant pass and a turnover on downs.

A few plays later, quarterback Joe Burrow threw an 18-yard touchdown to wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase. Defensive end Sam Hubbard picked off a pass on the ensuing possession as the Bengals pulled away.

As inconsistent as the Bengals have been all season, they’re in the playoff race. Sunday was one of their shakiest performances of the season, but the Bengals have bought themselves enough time to turn the season around.

"People forgot about us," cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt said. "But we didn’t."

The Bengals’ defense holds on against a reeling Browns’ offense

Entering Sunday, the Browns’ offense ranked in the bottom-three in the NFL in points, yards, first downs and passing yards per attempt. Then in the second quarter, when Watson went down with an Achilles injury, the Browns had to play Thompson-Robinson, their 2023 sixth-round pick who hadn’t shown anything at the NFL level.

In the middle of the third quarter, Thompson-Robinson nearly put together a game-changing drive. After a dropped pick by Bengals cornerback DJ Turner and a 34-yard run by the quarterback, the Browns were on the verge of taking the lead.

Bell has struggled as a blitzer this year, and his inability to impact the quarterback cost them two weeks ago against the Baltimore Ravens. But on this 4th-and-2, Bell made the play and forced a stop.

"He set the tone, and we followed behind him," Cam Taylor-Britt said.

Following a Bengals touchdown, linebacker Germaine Pratt tipped a pass to Hubbard for a pick that gave the Bengals’ defense some more momentum.

Whether it’s Watson or Thompson-Robinson at quarterback, the Browns’ offense doesn’t have a single strength. They traded star receiver Amari Cooper last week, and running back Nick Chubb is shaking off the rust coming off of a devastating knee injury.

The Browns made their share of plays on Sunday, but the Bengals buckled down in the second half.

The Bengals shake off a rocky first half on offense

Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow consistently found one-on-one matchups on Sunday. But because of awkward timing with receivers and sticky coverage by Cleveland’s secondary, the Bengals totaled 86 yards in the first half and didn’t convert on a single third down.

Charlie Jones’ touchdown on the opening kick return was the Bengals’ only first half offense as Cincinnati took a 7-6 lead into halftime.

"We’ve found ways to win," Burrow said. "Everybody was talking about how good our offense was for the first four weeks or whatever it was. And we were 1-3. That’s obviously not ideal. I’d rather be everyone talking about how we didn’t execute on offense and win two games in a row than the other way around."

The Bengals’ offense got its spark in the third quarter right after Bell’s blitz. Running back Chase Brown continued his breakout season with a 22-yard run for arguably the most important play of the game. His breakaway speed has given the Bengals’ rushing attack a new element this season, and he turned on the jets to get the Bengals past midfield.

Burrow capped off the drive with a touchdown throw to Chase, who capitalized on a risky decision from Cleveland. When the Browns put No. 3 cornerback Greg Newsome on Chase, the Bengals’ No. 1 receiver ran a terrific back shoulder route and reeled in the touchdown.

"Great timing, great anticipation," Taylor said. "He gave Ja’Marr a chance to adjust to it, and Ja’Marr did that. They’ve got a billion reps on that. That was a huge one to break it open."

Burrow tacked on a 25-yard touchdown on a slant to wide receiver Tee Higgins as the Bengals took a 21-6 lead.

For a lot of Sunday’s game, the Bengals’ offense looked stuck. But all season and for the last four years, whenever the Bengals need an answer, they’ve always been able to feed their two star receivers for some game-changing plays.

"Joe did a great job with the ball placement, and Tee ran right through it," Taylor said. "Tee has caught that ball 50 times and had similar reactions like that. Those are two guys in the receiver room and our quarterback who provided huge sparks for us."

The Bengals survive a seven-week stretch that tested them

The start of the Bengals’ season has been full of moments that bury a team.

The fumbles against the New England Patriots. Safety Daijahn Anthony’s penalty on 4th-and-16 against the Kansas City Chiefs. The historically poor defensive performance against the Washington Commanders. Punter Ryan Rehkow’s dropped snap on a field goal attempt in overtime against the Baltimore Ravens.

The Bengals still have a long way to go, but they’re starting to emerge from the muck. They’re now only one game under .500, and the defense is starting to play with more confidence. The passing game was terrible in the first half on Sunday, but Burrow, Chase and Higgins are as reliable as they get.

"We just locked in and trusted our players," wide receiver Andrei Iosivas said. "We can always go back to our basic plays for Ja’Marr and Tee. I expect things like that from them."

The Bengals still haven’t beaten anybody noteworthy. Their three wins this year are over backup quarterback Andy Dalton and the tanking Carolina Panthers, a New York Giants team that benched quarterback Daniel Jones on Sunday and Thompson-Robinson’s Browns.

The Bengals won’t be able to make any real statement until they travel to Baltimore in November, but they’re still alive.

The story of the Bengals’ season is yet to be written, and their goals for the season are all still in front of them.

"It tells you you're a good football team when you can find different units to lean on at different times," Taylor said. "Different guys have stepped up. There were a lot of guys that stood up in this game."

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Bengals takeaways: Cincinnati wakes up just in time to beat the Cleveland Browns