Bengals vs. Packers snap counts: Joe Mixon limited in running back rotation

Two overtime games in five weeks is pretty draining to think about. The Cincinnati Bengals got lucky in Week 1, they weren’t so fortuitous in Week 5 against the Green Bay Packers. This is just how it goes in a league where one-score games are equitable to coin flips. Especially against really good teams.

Here’s how the Bengals distributed snaps in their 25-22 loss to the Packers.

• Nearly five quarters of play and 25 combined drives somehow only netted out to 131 total plays. The Bengals barely out-snapped the Packers 67 to 64 despite punting five times to the Packers’ two. Cincinnati barely edged out Green Bay in offensive success rate 48% to 46%, which adds up to the difference in team snap counts.
• No one knew for sure how much Joe Mixon (19) would play, but he was definitely limited with his ankle sprain. He got the ball 10 times and scored his third touchdown of the season late in the fourth quarter.
• Samaje Perine (41) got the other 50% of the running workload while also seeing a career-high 26 snaps on passing plays. Chris Evans (7) did not see the jump in usage like many had hoped for with Mixon sidelined for most of the game.
• Tee Higgins (47) also made his return in a more limited fashion. While he got some rest here and there, Auden Tate (13) and Trenton Irwin (9) were rotated in as Mike Thomas couldn’t play with an ankle injury.
• Darius Hodge being a healthy scratch further solidified Wyatt Ray (13) as Trey Hendrickson’s (51) true backup at right defensive end. Hodge’s impressive preseason showing simply wasn’t enough for him to contribute in the regular season, but with the way Hendrickson has played, it hasn’t been a big deal. Hendrickson added two sacks to his already excellent 2021 campaign.
• While he was good to suit up, Larry Ogunjobi (37) was rotated off the field more often this week due to his knee injury that kept him limited in practice. D.J. Reader (49) ended up topping his 48 snaps from Week 1, while B.J. Hill (26) and Josh Tupou (25) played their usual percentages.
• Chidobe Awuzie (57) looked a bit shaken up right before half-time but didn’t miss much time. It was Trae Waynes (43) who needed a bit of in-game rest as his hamstring issues popped up again. Eli Apple (28) stepped in once more to relieve both of them.
• The Bengals only used three-safety looks a handful of times as Ricardo Allen (6) didn’t see the field nearly as much as he did back in Week 1.