Cincinnati Bengals/Washington Redskins – Week 7 Recap

The Cincinnati Bengals were in London for Week 8, battling the Washington Redskins to a 27-27 final score. Ricky Gervais’ clueless character from the British version of The Office would call it “Tie and Crumpets” or “The Battle in Beatles Land, if Half the Beatles Were Still Alive.” We call it a great game that could have had a better ending (i.e., a W).

Bengals’ running back Jeremy Hill scored on a 1-yard plunge with less than 7 minutes to go in regulation. That gave Cincinnati a 27-24 lead. Even with the offenses moving at warp speed up and down the field, Cincy hoped the 3-point lead would be enough to clinch the win. But Washington kicker Dustin Hopkins drilled a 40-yard field goal with 1:07 left on the clock to send the game into overtime.

In the extra period, the teams traded punts until Hopkins hooked a 34-yard field goal wide left with 2:13 to go. Andy Dalton (who threw for 284 yards) fumbled 5 plays later near midfield to give the Redskins one more chance. But Cousins and company could not get into field goal range and the game ended in a draw.

Things We Noticed From the Cincinnati Bengals-Washington Redskins Game

1. It looked like the defenses were still weary from jet lag. We often give the Bengals’ D a hard time about not locking down the opposing QB, and there’s no reason to stop that now. Washington quarterback Kirk Cousins threw for 458 yards and 2 touchdowns. It wasn’t just the Bengals who struggled, though. The two teams combined for 961 yards of offense and 65 first downs.  Only Cincinnati defensive tackle Geno Atkins registered a sack for Cincinnati.
2. There were missed kicks on both sides. Hopkins was off on 2 field goals (including the one in OT). Bengals’ kicker Mike Nugent sailed a 51-yarder wide left near the end of the first half. But it was his missed extra point in the 3rd quarter that made Cincy fans utter some NSFW words.
3. Opposing defenses should hope AJ Green is contemplating an early retirement – it’s the only way he can be stopped. Green hauled in 9 receptions for 121 yards and drew 4 illegal-contact penalties from hobbled Washington DB Josh Norman.
4. The Bengals’ running game may be turning a corner. For the second week in a row, Cincinnati rushed for more than 150 yards. Last week, they got 180 yards against the Browns. This week, they tallied 152. Yes, they were playing the 25th-ranked rushing defense in the league. But anytime you gain that much on the ground, you gotta feel good.