| Bengals wide receiver Brandon Tate runs past Browns free safety Eric Hagg on his way to a 44-yard touchdown. (AP) |
Now that defenses are double covering A.J. Green, the Bengals have wondered who will step up to make big plays among the other receivers, all of whom are unproven. On Sunday against the Browns (0-2, 0-1), the question was answered.
Actually, there were three answers: Armon Binns, Brandon Tate and Andrew Hawkins. They combined to haul in 10 receptions for 193 yards and two touchdowns to lift the Bengals (1-1 overall, 1-1 AFC North) to a 34-27 win against Cleveland at Paul Brown Stadium.
Although the Bengals receivers played well, much of the blame for their performance fell at the feet of the Browns defensive backs. Top CB Joe Haden served the first of his four-game suspension, and experienced DB Sheldon Brown saw limited snaps. They were both sorely missed. Backup Buster Skrine and safety Eric Hagg were targeted by Bengals QB Andy Dalton for the big chunks of yardage that ultimately decided the game.
When the game turned: Cleveland appeared to be gaining steam early in the fourth quarter, when it closed the lead to one touchdown. But, on third-and-long, Dalton found Hawkins across the middle and he made three Browns miss on his way to a 50-yard touchdown catch and run. Cleveland shifted from potentially driving for the tying score to rookie QB Brandon Weeden needing to throw them back into the game. Despite his strong effort, it was too much to overcome.
Highlight moments: Adam Jones didn't return a punt all preseason or Week 1, but the Bengals sent him back to see if he still owned the magic displayed when he took four punts to the house his first two seasons. Answer: Yep. Jones dodged four Browns and split the final line of defense for an 81-yard punt return. When asked before training camp to share his thoughts on the open punt-returner position, he looked reporters square in the eyes and said in a semi-serious tone, “I want that job.” Safe to say it's his. ... Trent Richardson heard the comments from Bengals LB Rey Maualuga loud and clear. Maualuga called Richardson's opening-week play “not spectacular.” There was nothing unspectacular about his 23-yard reception for a touchdown. He showed off every element of what makes him a scary back, running over and around four Bengals to reach the goal line.
Top-shelf performances
- Richardson -- 19 rushes, 109 yards; 4 receptions, 36 yards, 2 touchdowns. First Browns rookie 100-yard rusher since Lee Suggs in 2003. That also came against the Bengals.
- Dalton -- 24 of 31 for 318 yards and three touchdowns. Third career 300-yard game and first career game throwing for both 300 yards and three touchdowns.
The Weeden files: No quarterback came under more scrutiny following Week 1 than Weeden, who had a 5.1 passer rating against Philadelphia. He took a dramatic step forward Sunday -- not enough to bring comparisons to Bernie Kosar, but enough that he didn't invite comparisons to Spurgeon Wynn.
Weeden made some difficult throws under pressure and finished 26 of 37 for 322 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions. His passer rating jumped to 114.9.
What they said about the 50-yard touchdown reception by Andrew Hawkins:
- Bengals WR A.J. Green -- “It's unbelievable man. That guy is a freak in space. He gets out of some of the smallest areas. He just makes people look stupid. It's great to have that guy on our team.”
- Bengals coach Marvin Lewis -- “That's one of the points last night (offensive coordinator Jay Gruden) told the offense he wanted to have a scramble play. He needed to have a big play on a QB scramble. We are going to have to move away from the rush, and we needed to make a play on that, an unscripted-type play. Sure enough, we did."
- Bengals WR Hawkins -- “Andy found me. I don't know how he did. It was a back-side throw. He threw an incredible pass, and then you got guys like A.J. and Brian Leonard busting their butt down field to block.”
Numbers you should know: Not only did the Browns commit 10 penalties for 103 yards compared to just six for 54 for the Bengals, the Cleveland infractions came at the most inopportune times. Cincinnati gained four first downs via Browns penalty, including an offsides on third down late while attempting to gain the ball back, down a touchdown.
Surprise Start: The remarkable journey of LB Vontaze Burfict continued Sunday. After falling from potential first-round pick to undrafted with personal fouls, character questions and disastrous workouts peppering every step of the way, Burfict earned his way into the rotation as the starter in base packages for Thomas Howard, who tore his ACL in practice Thursday. Burfict finished with three tackles.
Going forward: Browns -- Despite the loss, Cleveland moves forward feeling better than it did last week thanks to the play of Weeden and the connection sparked with WR Greg Little (5 receptions, 57 yards, TD), who had zero receptions last week … They'll look forward to returning home and facing the Bills. A win might be necessary because traveling to the Giants and Ravens the following two weeks opens the door to a disastrous opening run. ... Bengals -- Cincinnati hopes this will spark a necessary early season surge. This run of playing rookie quarterbacks in four of five weeks heads to Washington to see Robert Griffin III. With a brutal second half of the schedule awaiting after those games, they'll need to take advantage. Fixing a defense that allowed 71 points in two games might be a good place to start.
Follow Paul Dehner Jr. for Bengals updates on Twitter at @CBSBengals.