Most NFL games have their ebbs and flows, but the wild swings in the Chargers/Bengals matchup last Sunday were hard to manage. Unfortunately, Cincinnati was on the short end of the momentum swings, losing to Los Angeles at home.
Still, a lot of players and moments proved significant for the Bengals this week. Cast your vote and sound off on your winners for some of the big performances!
Most Valuable Player
Tee Higgins:
The wide receiver is on a tear the past two weeks and was one of the only consistent offensive weapons in this one. Higgins had a career-high nine catches for 138 yards and a touchdown. The score reminded us a bit of how A.J. Green used to high-point the ball with a similar tall, lean build.
Germaine Pratt:
The third-year linebacker is starting to turn a corner in his career and it couldn’t come at a more needed time, as Logan Wilson looks to be missing time in the immediate future. Pratt finished with nine total tackles a forced fumble and a fumble recovery. He finished with an outstanding Pro Football Focus score against Los Angeles.
Germaine Pratt had his highest-graded game (90.6) of his career vs the Chargers. pic.twitter.com/aOiXFw2xd9
— Andrew Russell (@PFF_AndrewR) December 6, 2021
Trey Hendrickson:
The Bengals’ edge defenders continue to be a catalyst on defense. Hendrickson played in just 64% of the defensive snaps, but still had four tackles and a sack in the contest.
Mike Hilton:
Another defensive player who is starting to play some of his best football at the most critical time, Hilton made big plays against the Chargers. He had nine total tackles and a forced fumble on Austin Ekeler.
Poll
Who gets your vote for the Bengals’ MVP in Week 13?
This poll is closed
-
58%
Tee Higgins
(161 votes) -
23%
Germaine Pratt
(64 votes) -
10%
Trey Hendrickson
(29 votes) -
4%
Mike Hilton
(12 votes) -
3%
Other
(10 votes)
Unsung Hero of the Week
Joe Burrow:
Normally, we’d have had Burrow on the MVP list, but a particular bobbled would-be-touchdown-turned-interception totally flipped his stat line. While he turned the ball over three times (two interceptions and a fumble), he gutted through a dislocated pinky on his throwing hand to get the Bengals back into the game in the second half.
Tyler Boyd:
Quietly, Boyd was an integral figure on offense. He had five catches for 85 yards (17.0 yards per reception) against the Chargers. Three of those grabs went for first downs.
Isaiah Prince:
As you probably know by now, one part of the criteria for this award is in someone stepping up in the wake of injury. At first blush, Prince’s first start with the Bengals wasn’t overly-impressive, but further film review and a glance at some of his PFF scores bring a bit more respectability.
Isaiah Prince received a 70.6 pass block grade on true pass sets and was the highest-graded offensive linemen on the Bengals in Week 13.
— Andrew Russell (@PFF_AndrewR) December 6, 2021
Be curious to see what pops on him with the A22 and what other folks think about his performance.
Sam Hubbard:
It seems as if Hendrickson and Hubbard are interchangeable on MVP and Unsung Hero awards every week. Hubbard had five total tackles, a half-sack and two quarterback hits on Sunday against the Chargers.
B.J. Hill:
The Bengals are likely looking at giving extensions to Hill and/or Larry Ogunjobi as productive interior defensive linemen. Hill had five tackles and a shared sack with Hubbard on the day.
Larry Ogunjobi:
Speaking of Ogunjobi, he keeps coming up with big plays on defense. He had two tackles, a sack and two hits of Justin Herbert on the day.
Joe Bachie:
Bachie is another example of a player stepping up in the wake of injury. Filling in at linebacker with both Wilson and Markus Bailey dealing with shoulder injuries, Bachie had nine tackles, with six of them solo. He also had a nice day by PFF standards:
Lost in the rubble from the #Bengals loss? Joe Bachie had a really nice performance stepping in for Logan Wilson.
— Willie Lutz (@willie_lutz) December 6, 2021
39 defense snaps
75.9 PFF defensive grade
80.7 PFF tackling grade
77.3 PFF coverage grade
9 combined tackles
2 run stops
Nice day against a good #Chargers offense. pic.twitter.com/qbgtcZ3Ulz
Chidobe Awuzie:
Though he left the game early and did give up a touchdown reception, Awuzie also had his share of nice plays. He had a crazy interception, two passes defended and three total tackles.
Poll
Who gets your vote for the Bengals’ Week 13 Unsung Hero of the Week?
This poll is closed
-
22%
Joe Burrow
(54 votes) -
15%
Tyler Boyd
(37 votes) -
7%
Isaiah Prince
(18 votes) -
6%
Sam Hubbard
(15 votes) -
1%
B.J. Hill
(4 votes) -
5%
Larry Ogunjobi
(14 votes) -
33%
Joe Bachie
(81 votes) -
6%
Chidobe Awuzie
(16 votes) -
1%
Other
(4 votes)
Play of the Game
Tee Higgins’ 29-yard touchdown reception:
One of the biggest plays of Higgins’ career day was his out-jostling of two Chargers defenders for a big touchdown grab. It jump started the comeback that spanned about a quarter and a half.
TEE HIGGINS. WOW.
— PFF Fantasy Football (@PFF_Fantasy) December 5, 2021
pic.twitter.com/0IM9E8uuzb
Germaine Pratt’s forced fumble of Austin Ekeler:
Things began to snowball on the Chargers in the middle quarters of the game, as Cincinnati’s defense played inspired football. Pratt teamed up with Vernon Hargreaves to stifle Ekeler and get the ball back for the offense. It led to another touchdown.
Good initial contact from Vernon Hargreaves which lets Germaine Pratt rip the ball out of the RB's hands. Great team defense. If only Bates was able to put a move on Herbert to score. pic.twitter.com/VnucFc7VBi
— Mike (Sans) (@bengals_sans) December 7, 2021
Joe Burrow’s six-yard touchdown run:
The Bengals took advantage of the first turnover on the legs of Burrow. Pressure came into the pocket, but No. 9 navigated it and sprang himself into the end zone to continue to comeback.
Run It In @JoeyB
— LSU Football (@LSUfootball) December 5, 2021
: #LACvsCIN on CBS
pic.twitter.com/YQIdfTbWq5
Chidobe Awuzie’s interception of Justin Herbert:
As mentioned earlier, Awuzie made an athletic interception before the half. Unfortunately, on the return (which didn’t actually count), the cornerback suffered a foot injury forcing him to leave the game. To boot, the play didn’t net points after the offense stumbled through their final possession of the first half.
Keep Goin pic.twitter.com/QwSFH4uok7
— Chidobe Awuzie (@ChidobeAwuzie) December 7, 2021
Mike Hilton’s forced fumble of Austin Ekeler:
It was a rough day for the versatile Ekeler, who suffered his second lost fumble of the game in the third quarter. Hilton came through with his second big turnover in as many weeks, leading to the Bengals’ continued efforts in climbing back into this one.
Good initial contact from Vernon Hargreaves which lets Germaine Pratt rip the ball out of the RB's hands. Great team defense. If only Bates was able to put a move on Herbert to score. pic.twitter.com/VnucFc7VBi
— Mike (Sans) (@bengals_sans) December 7, 2021
Joe Mixon’s seven-yard touchdown run:
Cincinnati capitalized once again on the turnover, this team leaning on their star running back. Mixon read his blocking assignments well and shot into the end zone to make it just a two-point deficit in the third quarter.
Another perfect jumpcut from Joe Mixon. Look at how he's setting up the defense as if he's hitting the backside A gap. He gets three defenders to commit to that gap before he jumpcuts to his right for the score. pic.twitter.com/WMctQRO0nU
— Mike (Sans) (@bengals_sans) December 7, 2021
Poll
What gets your vote for the Bengals’ Play of the Game in Week 13?
This poll is closed
-
44%
Tee Higgins’ 29-yard touchdown catch
(84 votes) -
13%
Germaine Pratt’s forced fumble
(25 votes) -
2%
Joe Burrow’s six-yard touchdown run
(4 votes) -
27%
Chidobe Awuzie’s interception
(52 votes) -
10%
Mike Hilton’s forced fumble of Austin Ekeler
(19 votes) -
1%
Joe Mixon’s seven-yard touchdown run
(3 votes) -
0%
Other
(1 vote)
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