Bengals’ weekly awards in their 24-21 Week 4 win over Jaguars

Most Valuable Player

Joe Burrow:

What a game, particularly in the second half, by the Bengals’ franchise quarterback. Burrow had a solid first half, but hit another gear in the final two quarters, taking the team on his back and helping to lead them to a win.

It was Burrow’s best Pro Football Focus performance in his brief NFL career, and arguably his best professional game to date. He finished 25-of-32 for 348 yards, two touchdowns and a 132.8 quarterback rating.

C.J. Uzomah:

As things were slowly coming together in 2020, Uzomah had a nice moment in the Week 2 clash against the Cleveland Browns on Thursday Night Football last year with Burrow’s as the recipient of Burrow’s first NFL touchdown pass. Unfortunately, the night ended with a season-ending Achilles injury for the veteran tight end and his vacancy was felt on the field and in the locker room.

Things came full circle for No. 87, who has had the biggest clutch catches of the 2021 season. Uzomah had five catches for 95 yards and two touchdowns, including the 25-yard screen play to set up the winning field goal.

Tyler Boyd:

With Tee Higgins out the past two weeks, some folks wondered about the potency of the Bengals’ passing attack in his absence. Last week against the Steelers, it was Chase who had the big plays, but Boyd had the lion’s share of receptions and yards this week. Boyd was the team’s leading receiver in both yards (118) and catches (nine).

Logan Wilson:

It wasn’t the type of night from the Bengals’ defense we have seen in the first three weeks, but the newest wearer of No. 55 still shined. He had 10 total tackles and a sack on Trevor Lawrence, as he puts together a Pro Bowl-type of season.

Evan McPherson:

The rookie missed his first field goal attempt of the season when nothing seemed to be going right for the Bengals, but came through in other occasions. Not only did he hit all three extra point attempts, but the 35-yard game-winner as time expired was his second clincher in four professional games.

Unsung Hero of the Week

Joe Mixon:

The Bengals’ running back didn’t have a statistical banner day, but it was efficient. Mixon was a focal part of the offensive game plan before he left with an ankle injury, racking up 67 rushing yards on 16 carries (4.2 yards per carry) and a touchdown.

Ja’Marr Chase:

Boyd led the team in receptions and yards, but Chase remains the big-play catalyst to turn a game on its head. His 44-yard grab in the third quarter started to turn the momentum of the game, as he finished with six total catches for 77 yards.

Larry Ogunjobi:

The free agent acquisition has been a great find for the Bengals. Again, it was an imperfect game from the defense, but Ogunjobi played pretty well. He had three total tackles including being in on the critical fourth down stop with Wilson toward the end of the first half.

Play of the Week

Bengals’ defense gets fourth-down stop at the end of the first half:

The Bengals were inexplicably clinging to life against the Jaguars in the first half and needed some sort of a spark to carry into the locker room. Even though they were vulnerable in the first two quarters, the defense stepped up with a momentum-swinger.

Trevor Lawrence tried to continue to exploit a weakness in the Bengals’ defense with the RPO call, but it backfired. Logan Wilson and Larry Ogunjobi combined to stop Lawrence at the one-yard line with 53 seconds left to play.

Ja’Marr Chase’s 44-yard reception:

After the defense provided a spark before the half, it was up to the offense to get things rolling. On the team’s opening drive, Burrow found his old LSU teammate for a 44-yard pitch-and-catch. It was part of a four-play touchdown drive to get the Bengals back into the game.

C.J. Uzomah’s 22-yard touchdown reception:

If the Bengals were going to get back into the game, they needed a drive with a quick touchdown. After the 44-yard Chase reception, Uzomah’s number was called and he came up huge. Burrow used play-action and floated one to his tight end to start the incredible comeback.

C.J. Uzomah’s 31-yard touchdown reception:

On the second touchdown between Burrow and Uzomah, No. 9 showed some trademark slipperiness to tie the game up in the fourth quarter. After not seeing initially seeing someone open, Burrow slid to his left and waited for Uzomah to get free. He flicked one to him and No. 87 darted into the end zone.

C.J. Uzomah’s 25-yard reception:

Burrow audibled to a “jailbreak screen” on one of the final plays and it paid off big-time. He flipped the ball out to Uzomah, who followed blocked and scampered 25 yards to set up a game-winning field goal.

Evan McPherson’s 35-yard game-winning field goal:

Speaking of game-winning field goals, here it is, courtesy of a Bengals fan sitting behind the posts. McPherson missed one earlier in the game and many of us wondered how he’d respond. Well, he only hit his second time-expiring game-winner in four pro games.