Bengals Preseason Week 2: Passing, rushing, receiving and tackling leaders

The Bengals dominated the Lions in a convincing win on Thursday night, 30-14. The weakest point on the team was kicker Mike Nugent who missed an extra point and a field goal in the Bengals’ second matchup of the preseason. Nugent also missed a field goal in the Bengals’ preseason opener last Friday.

As we look back at the game, let’s review who led the Bengals in rushing, receiving, passing, interceptions, sacks and tackling on Thursday against the Lions.

Rushing:

Rex Burkhead left the game and was seen icing his shoulder on the sideline, but is expected to be fine and should play in the Bengals’ third preseason game next Sunday against the Jaguars in Jacksonville. That’s good news because the Bengals’ third string tackle looked solid on Thursday night and led the team in rushing yards. Burkhead had four rushing attempts for 42 yards, including an 18 yard run. Undrafted rookie Tra Carson had 7 rushes for 20 yards and looks like a strong practice squad candidate.

Receiving:

The Bengals’ receivers all had modest numbers on Thursday night, but rookie Tyler Boyd led the team with 2 receptions yielding 38 yards and a touchdown. It was a solid showing for Boyd who started the game in place of the injured Brandon LaFell. Boyd is instilling confidence in the coaches and it’s great to see.

Boyd’s touchdown catch was nice...

But this diving catch was even better.

Boyd also contributed this punt return which was taken out 24 yards.

Rex Burkhead actually had the second most receiving yards of anyone on the team, hauling in three catches for 31 yards. Cody Core followed closely behind with three catches for 25 yards.

Passing:

The Bengals quarterbacks played incredibly well and efficiently on Thursday night, throwing no interceptions. AJ McCarron was 10/15 for 95 yards and a touchdown. Andy Dalton started off the action going 7/9 for 78 yards. And, Keith Wenning came in during the fourth quarter and was 4/5 for 16 yards. Wenning is holding onto the No. 3 quarterback role, but last week, we saw Joe Licata attempting to push him out of the way. Licata wasn’t given a chance to play on Thursday.

Tackles:

Marquis Flowers, Michael Johnson and Chris Lewis-Harris all had four solo tackles on Thursday night. Vinny Rey had three solo tackles and 1 assisted tackle, while Chykie Brown had 2 solo and 2 assisted tackles. Josh Shaw and Nick Vigil each had one solo tackle and three assisted tackles. All of these players had 4 total tackles, which was the most on the team on Thursday night. Deshawn Williams, Clayton Fejedelem and Floyd Raven had three tackles each.

Interceptions:

The only two interceptions of the night both were made by Bengals safeties. First, Derron Smith picked off Dan Orlovsky for a beautiful pick six.

“I just came down into the flat, and the quarterback was looking the other way,” Smith said via Bengals.com after the game. “He tried to come over there late, and I don’t think he ever saw me. I was just able to make a play on the ball, and it was clear sailing to the end zone.”

Later in the game, Floyd Raven intercepted Jake Rudock and ran the ball 22 yards toward the Bengals’ endzone.

Sacks:

Carlos Dunlap had the only sack on either team for the night. It also forced a fumble, though, it was recovered by the Lions.

We’re looking forward to seeing many more sacks from Dunlap in 2016 and beyond.

Who impressed you most in the Bengals’ second preseason matchup of the year?