Bengals 2018 season awards: Victory of the Year

The Cincinnati Bengals started off the 2018 season with a bang. A 4-1 start included three comeback wins, with thrilling plays being the theme throughout the first six weeks of the season.

Unfortunately, things began to unravel after another familiar heartbreak to the Steelers, as well as when important injuries began to pile up, becoming another 2018 theme. Still, there were some great moments to celebrate in Marvin Lewis’ final season as Bengals head coach.

Cast your vote and sound off on your winner for the Bengals’ 2018 Victory of the Year!

Week 1, Bengals at Colts, 34-23: This game was hard to predict at the onset, as nobody was really sure how Andrew Luck would play after being away from football for over a year with a shoulder injury. He ended up playing pretty well in a Comeback Player of the Year season, and almost had Indianapolis at 1-0 to start.

As they were driving down the field to try and take a late lead, Luck hit tight end Jack Doyle on what looked to be a big third down conversion. However, Doyle was hit by Clayton Fejedelem and fumbled the ball. The backup safety, in the game after Shawn Williams was ejected, scooped it up and ran 83 yards for the game-winning score.

Week 2, Ravens at Bengals, 34-23: Cincinnati had a tumultuous relationship on primetime under Lewis, making this early Thursday night matchup a tenuous one. The Bengals came out swinging, though, thanks to an outstanding performance from the Andy Dalton-A.J. Green connection and a handful of turnovers.

Dalton threw four touchdowns on the night, including three to Green. Shawn Williams had a monster night on defense, notching a sack, an interception and a forced fumble, as the Bengals shattered their primetime image, if only for one game.

Week 4, Bengals at Falcons, 37-36: We had a feeling this one would be a shootout, and it didn’t disappoint. Dalton threw for another three touchdowns in this one, including the game-winner to Green with just seven seconds left in regulation. Given the comeback win and the five third and fourth down conversions on the final drive, “The Cardiac Cats” were reborn, if only briefly.

Week 5, Dolphins at Bengals, 27-17: Cincinnati looked to have hit a wall at home against Miami, as nothing was going well for them in over two quarters of play. However, three Bengals touchdowns in the final quarter, including two crazy ones on defense, gave the Cincinnati an unlikely win and shot them to a 4-1 start to the season.

Week 8, Buccaneers at Bengals, 37-34: By the time the midway point of the third quarter rolled around, Cincinnati had a stranglehold on Tampa Bay, with a 34-16 score. It came courtesy of four interceptions by Jameis Winston, including one pick-six by Jessie Bates III.

However, Dirk Koetter made a late switch to Ryan Fitzpatrick and the game turned on its head. Cincinnati had no answer to the former Bengals backup signal-caller, as he rattled off 18 unanswered points in just over a quarter of work. The Bengals prevailed though, thanks to a Randy Bullock field goal at the end of regulation.

Week 15, Raiders at Bengals, 30-16: It had felt like an eternity since the Bengals had one a game, and the struggling Raiders coming to town was a nice respite. While the win was too little, too late, it did keep the Bengals theoretically alive for the playoffs for a brief moment and was the team’s largest margin of victory in 2018. Joe Mixon had a field day, rushing for 127 yards and two scores, with Tyler Boyd adding another through the air.