MACON, Ga. — WLWT News 5 anchor Mike Dardis once told me that a football game can be decided in three to four plays. These plays can be referred to as turning points, changing the momentum and outcome of a game.
There were several turning points in the Bengals loss to the Cowboys on Sunday, dropping them to 0-2 on the season and putting all the high expectations coming into the season in serious jeoprady.
12:29 1Q (Dallas facing 4th&2 on own 39-yard line)
The Bengals had the Cowboys in a tough spot here and seemed poised to get the ball for the first time with game scoreless. Dallas, though, opted to be aggressive and go for it. A stop would be huge this early in the game. But instead, Cowboys backup quarterback Cooper Rush delivered a dart over the middle to wide receiver Noah Brown for a 17-yard gain and a first down.
The play set the tone for the game. Dallas was going to be aggressive, even with a backup quarterback, and the Bengals looked helpless on defense to stop the Cowboys offense early. Safety Jessie Bates was twice lost in coverage against Noah Brown on the opening drive, the second leading to a Cowboys touchdown.
14:15 2Q (Dallas leading 7-3, Bengals facing 3rd&4 on own 31-yard line)
All week, the Bengals praised and paid respects to Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons. He’s a hybrid, one-of-a-kind pass rusher. That said, the Bengals looked like they had no plan for him on Sunday. And if they did, their best plan was blocking him one-on-one with right tackle La’El Collins. That clearly did not work.
On this play, an egregious miscommunication led to Parsons running free right at Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow the moment the ball was snapped. Burrow got rid of the ball into no-man’s land, resulting in a fourth down. If there was a play that summarized the Bengals offensive line and Joe Burrow’s day, it was this play.
1:13 3Q (Dallas leading 17-9, facing 2nd&8 at Cincinnati 35-yard line)
The Bengals defense finally forced their first turnover of the season on this play. On a drive where it looked like Dallas was going to extend their 17-9 lead, Rush threw short to tight end Dalton Schultz. Schultz picked up the first down, but Bengals safety Vonn Bell then punched the ball out. Bengals defensive tackle D.J. Reader recovered it and gave the Bengals a chance to go down the field to tie the game.
While the defense has done a good job of overcoming double-digit deficits in the first two games, they haven’t generated many turnovers or sacks that made a huge difference last year. The turnover here kept the Bengals in the game, preventing a two-score deficit heading into the fourth quarter.
1:13 4@ (tied at 17, Cincinnati facing 3rd&3 at own 15-yard line)
First of all, this play was run 46 seconds after the previous play. FORTY SIX. And then the play was a throw to Boyd short of the sticks, giving the Cowboys a great chance to go down the field and win the game.
The Bengals got the ball back with 2:20 remaining on their own eight-yard line. Not ideal, but still plenty of time to go down the field for the winning score. Especially with the weaponry the Bengals have on offense. The big thing here is to pick up two first downs, that way if you do have to punt the Cowboys can maybe not have great field position.
Instead, the Bengals threw short passes on three straight plays, the last of which came on the short pass to Boyd short of the stick. Cowboys cornerback Trevon Diggs made a great tackle to give the Cowboys enough time to get the ball back and go down the field for the winning score.
There was no aggressive play-calling on this drive. Hell there was no effort to even pick up a first down on the drive. With all the weaponry on offense, this was the result of the final offensive drive? With all of the momentum in the game, the Bengals gave it right back to Dallas at the most crucial time.
Let me be Frank and Cut to the Chase 