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In nail-biting fashion, the Bengals emerged victorious in Paycor Stadium on Sunday 43-36 over Tennessee.
Here are seven winners and three losers from Sunday's win.
Higgins just continues to add to his career-best campaign. He consistently beat his coverage and created easy options for Joe Burrow in the middle of the field and on the boundary. His best grab happened on the offense's first play following a Boye Mafe strip-sack turnover where he and Burrow connected for a 17-yard touchdown. Burrow then found Higgins later for the game-tying touchdown at the end of the fourth quarter.
Higgins has continuosly exceeded expectations this season, and is comfortably on pace for his first 1,500 yard receiving season. He finished Sunday with 10 catches for 155 yards and two touchdowns.
Both Demetrius Knight Jr. and Barrett Carter continue to miss tackles, and this time it played a large part in Tony Pollard gashing the defense for a 41-yard score. They were not alone however as Jordan Battle, Bryan Cook, and D.J. Turner failed to bring Pollard down as well.
To make matters worse, there is absolutely no awareness when it comes to covering tight ends. The Titans have failed to generate production from their tight ends all season, yet on Sunday both Gunnar Helm and Daniel Bellinger combined for eight catches, 112 yards and a touchdown. The lack of performing a basic task on defense is inexcusable at this point.
That is another reason you trade for Dexter Lawrence. Lawrence showed up on the stat sheet with seven total tackles, a sack, and a fumble recovery that he almost scored on. He saved his best play for the most dire moment however.
Cam Ward and the Titans needed to gain only 12 yards to setup a possible game-winning field goal with 32 seconds left. Lawrence then took matters into his own hands, and on 3rd and 3 chased down Ward for a crucial 13-yard sack to force overtime. He is the star that this Bengals defense has missed on the interior of the D-line.
Holding penalties are now officially a problem for Fairchild at this point. He committed a terrible holding penalty on a play where Burrow found Chase Brown in the end zone. He also jumped early for a false start penalty at the end of the third quarter.
Fairchild has maintained a solid level of play at left guard all season, but he has to clean up the penalties.
Mafe showed more dominance on Sunday and added another sack to his total with 5.5 sacks now on the year. It did not stop at the sack however as Mafe knocked the ball out of Cam Ward's hands as well for a fumble that Dexter Lawrence recovered. He has proven himself as one of the best playmakers on the team.
On a day where the defense seeming did all that it could to keep the Titans in the game, one drive stood out more than the rest. The defense committed three different penalties while up 21-13 in the third quarter to extend the Titans drive where they ultimately tied the game.
Josh Newton committed the first of two pass-interference penalties against Gunnar Helm for a thirteen yard penalty.
After a Cashius Howell offsides call, Bryan Cook got to Helm too early at the goal line for a four-yard penalty that placed the ball at the one-yard line. Tony Pollard scored his second touchdown of the day on the next play. These undisciplined mistakes have plagued the defense all year, and cannot continue if they hope to make a deep playoff run.
Chase finished with eleven catches for 141 yards, but his best grab happened on a third down where he and Burrow connected deep over the middle for a touchdown.
That play essentially woke the Bengals offense up for the rest of the game, and like Higgins he showed up on outside as a consistent option for Burrow.
The argument is there for Burrow to not make the winners list after he tossed three interceptions to Amani Hooker. However, the way Burrow continued to launch accurate passes afterwards is the main reason the Bengals avoided an upset in their stadium.
Burrow proved all of the doubters wrong when it comes to his ability as a clutch quarterback. After having an even ratio of three touchdowns to three interceptions, he threw two more touchdowns and ran for the game-winning score in overtime. He could have thrown five interceptions, and he would still make the winners list this week as he set a career high in total touchdowns in a game with six.
Burrow finished Sunday with a statline of 38 for 48 passing, for 472 total yards, and six total touchdowns.
Gesicki has finally become involved in the offense outside of the red zone and still kept his touchdown streak intact.
He finished the day with four catches for 76 yards and a 25-yard touchdown.
Burrow found two of his tight ends for touchdowns today, with Jack Endries hauling in one for what also was his first NFL reception. This is the best first impression Endries could have possibly had after the team placed Erick All Jr. on Injured Reserve with another torn ACL.
Endries should continue to see his role within the offense develop.
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