DENVER –– After the Cincinnati Bengals opened December with consecutive losses, head coach Zac Taylor blamed himself.
Taylor said he was responsible for the Bengals not getting a play off before halftime in Week 13. He was responsible for the delay of game on the two-point conversion. He took the ball out of quarterback Joe Burrow’s hands in overtime in Week 14.
These moments led to the Bengals sliding out of the playoff picture. But on Sunday against the Denver Broncos, the Bengals took a massive step back into the postseason mix.
In a 15-10 win for the Bengals over the Broncos, Taylor pushed the right buttons. After one of the worst starts of the season for the Bengals offense, Cincinnati created just enough momentum down the stretch.
"It was a tough, all-around performance by the whole team," Taylor said. "It was no panic and great poise."
In the moments that decided a game between two playoff hopefuls, the Bengals looked like an experienced team with a postseason berth in their grasp.
Broncos head coach Vic Fangio mismanaged the clock at the end of the first half, and Taylor took advantage of the opportunity. After Fangio let the clock bleed and settled for a 51-yard field goal that missed, the Bengals got the ball back with nine seconds left in the first half.
Following a timeout by Fangio, Taylor called a 19-yard pass to wide receiver Tyler Boyd. Then he gave McPherson a shot for a franchise record 58-yard field goal, and McPherson gave the Bengals a 6-3 halftime lead.
In the middle of the third quarter, the Bengals had 4th down at the Broncos 8-yard line. Instead of going for it, Taylor chose to kick the field goal, take a 9-3 lead and trust his defense. With the way the Bengals defense was playing, it was the right call.
"You’ve probably been able to tell by my tone this week that I’ve got a ton of respect for the Denver Broncos and a ton of respect for their coaching staff," Taylor said. "Fifteen-to-ten sounds about right sometimes when you play them."
On the following series, the Broncos took a 10-9 lead on a 25-yard touchdown throw from backup quarterback Drew Lock to wide receiver Tim Patrick. With the Bengals needing to hold serve, Burrow got his first opportunity of the game to create a big play down the field.
The Bengals had the perfect play.
Coaching against Fangio, one of the most influential and successful defensive coordinators in the NFL, Taylor said an offense needs to stay patient. With multiple safeties down the field in zone coverage and a setup that’s designed to take away big plays, offensive play callers have always had to set up big play opportunities over the course of the game.
With 41 seconds left in the third quarter, the Bengals got their moment.
"Their defense makes you panic because it’s so hard," Taylor said. "I was really proud of our offense taking what they were giving us, being patient and not overreacting."
On the preceding drive, the Bengals established the run on a field goal drive. It created the opportunity for a play action pass, and Taylor called the play the Bengals leaned on in massive moments this season against the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Baltimore Ravens.
As Burrow rolled out of the pocket, he found wide receiver Tyler Boyd wide open down the field for a 56-yard touchdown pass. The Bengals took a 15-10 lead, which held the rest of the way.
"That’s a great call by Zac," Burrow said. "That’s a play we have repped in practice all week. It’s a credit to him. He saw what they were doing to us when we got on the ball and kind of hurried it up. That’s a credit to him."
The Broncos forced the Bengals to win a game where their pass game and their run game weren’t consistent. This wasn’t the style of game that the Bengals have been playing all season, but all that mattered was the win.
It was a game where the Bengals played with their third-string right tackle and their second-string right guard against one of the best defenses in the NFL. It was a game where the Bengals starting linebacker, running back, safety and No. 1 cornerback dealt with injuries.
And the Bengals left Denver in first place in the AFC North.
"It’s like that sometimes, not every game is going to be throwing for 300 yards," Burrow said. "They’re a really, really good defense … We made plays when it counted."
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