Bengals vs. Lions snap counts: Rookies see more play time

The Cincinnati Bengals finally had a game where they weren’t clawing for a win until the final seconds of the game. The Detroit Lions laid down in the second half, which lead to a pretty big blowout win.

It is weird to look at the snaps in a game like this because Cincinnati actually got to rest their starters in the fourth quarter. It is hard to remember the last time they were afforded that opportunity. However, it does shine a pretty bright light on where some players stand on the depth chart.

Snap count takeaways from Bengals win against Lions

• The Bengals out snapped the Lions 72 to 63 this week. Cincinnati’s defense pretty much dominated Detroit most of the game. They struggled moving the ball. Meanwhile, the Bengals moved the ball pretty consistently for most of the second half. Not too much to read into this week other than the defense gets a gold star.
• One of the biggest takeaways this week is Darius Phillips appears to be in the doghouse with the coaching staff. He had one return early in the game that didn’t go for much. Then he was replaced by Trenton Irwin there. Phillips has had a couple decent returns, but he hasn’t been as consistent as we’d hope. He then wasn’t even put in for a defensive snap despite the backups like Jalen Davis and Nick McCloud over him. The team also claimed Tre Flowers this week. It certainly seems like the Bengals are preparing for life without Phillips. Also worth noting that Eli Apple is the only defender who played every snap.
• Rookie running back Chris Evans had a breakout game with a touchdown catch early. It was interesting that he did while playing only 16 snaps. It was also his pass blocking that showed up the most. It is getting to the point that Evans may be pushing Samaje Perine, who missed this week’s game on the COVID-19 list, for the spot behind Joe Mixon. The rookie is running with his opportunity.
• Rookie Trey Hill got an opportunity to play at right guard with 49 snaps with Jackson Carman dealing with an illness—the 8 Mile treatment—and he looked good. He also got to play some center when Trey Hopkins missing some snaps as well. He looks like he could be a solid player for the future while moving a round some guys. He really recovered well from some early penalties.
• The rotation of defenders next to Logan Wilson continues to get split pretty evenly among three players. Akeem Davis-Gaither led the group with 35 plays and Germaine Pratt and Ricardo Allen both had 22 snaps each. These guys seem to be rotated based on situation on obvious running or passing situations. Hard to imagine we will see that same split again next weekend against the Ravens.
• Of note from the backups getting more play, Auden Tate scored his first touchdown after 24 snaps. Brandon Allen also took advantage of his 13 snaps. Trayveon Williams played since the Bengals were short on running backs, but it is always good to see him out there. Wyatt Ray also played over 30 snaps on the defensive line and is slowly getting more playing time.
• It will be interesting to see how the snaps get dispersed with Tre Flowers coming in, and Khalid Kareem returning to practice. Those two could start working their way into rotations.

What was your biggest takeaway this week?