Pride of Detroit
The Detroit Lions are winning in all sorts of ways this season. From an offensive explosion against the Chicago Bears, to an impressive defensive showing against the Baltimore Ravens, and all three phases equally doing their part against the Cleveland Browns. The Lions are showing they are a complete team this season, and this week they now take on another AFC North team, its third in a row, in the Cincinnati Bengals.
The Bengals are coming in 2-2 after getting destroyed by the Denver Broncos on “Monday Night Football.” The biggest storyline regarding the Bengals is their franchise quarterback, Joe Burrow, being sidelined for months as he suffered a turf toe injury back in Week 2. He is expected to miss three months, and if the Bengals are out of the playoff race by the time he returns, he could miss the rest of the season. With him out, this team looks completely different, and the Lions will have to adjust how they attack this offense.
There is more to the team than Burrow for the Bengals, so let’s take a look at how the Bengals are doing this season for the Detroit Lions Week 5 scouting report.
Week 1: Defeated the Cleveland Browns, 17-16
Week 2: Defeated Jacksonville Jaguars, 31-27
Week 3: Lost to Minnesota Vikings, 48-10
Week 4: Lost to the Denver Broncos, 28-3
Stats:
After an offseason that was filled with drama, when it came to the on-field play, the Bengals were aiming to return to the playoffs and potentially the Super Bowl. Burrow and company survived a scare against the Browns in Week 1 and had a better outing in Week 2. Once Burrow went down, though, the team’s future went up in the air. Against the Vikings, the team looked like the year was already over, getting blown out by 38 points. Even against the Broncos, it seemed like the Bengals couldn’t figure anything out on offense as they could only cross the 50-yard line twice the entire game.
Backup quarterback Jake Browning has been a rough project for them, throwing for 506 yards with three touchdowns and five interceptions. He hasn’t seemed like the same backup he was back in 2023, but we are only two starts and three games into the season for him. Things could improve as the year progresses, but right now, this team is struggling offensively, and it starts with the quarterback play. When your quarterback isn’t playing well, it can affect the offense overall.
With teams not having to worry about the pass as much, they have started to focus on stopping the Bengals’ ground attack led by running back Chase Brown. Brown finally eclipsed 100...
