Bengals @ Falcons
Final Score: Bengals 34, Falcons 17
Writer: Jay Felicio @GMenJay on X
Three Up
- Ja’Marr Chase — Had a career-best 142 receiving yards before halftime.
- Joe Burrow — Accounted for four touchdowns, zero turnovers, and threw for nearly 300 yards despite only seven second-half pass attempts.
- Bijan Robinson — 147 yards from scrimmage and a rushing touchdown despite the Falcons’ continued struggles on offense.
Three Down
- Kyle Pitts — Three catches for 23 yards. Penalties wiped out two third-down catches for a combined 34 yards, and his own hold backed Atlanta up from the Cincinnati 10 in the fourth.
- Drake London — Caught all five official targets for 68 yards. He drew two flags that set up touchdowns, but neither play counted toward his fantasy line.
- Mike Gesicki — Even with extra playing time and Burrow throwing for 271 yards and three touchdowns, wound up with a whopping two catches.
Cincinnati Bengals
Quarterback
Joe Burrow: 24/29, 271 Yards, 3 TDs, 0 INTs | 3 Carries, 7 Yards, 1 TD
Joe Brrr is BACK just in time for winter. Burrow effortlessly completed 18 of 22 pass attempts for 239 yards in the first half, and the Bengals scored on all four possessions. He hit Ja’Marr Chase in stride for a 47-yard touchdown on third and two on the opening drive. Then Burrow and the Bengals put on a clinic on an 88-yard drive in the second quarter. Burrow found his BFF for two third-down conversions before hitting Higgins for a four-yard score. He threw for three touchdowns and ran one in himself on a one-yard sneak to put Cincinnati ahead 14-10.
Running Back
Chase Brown: 9 Carries, 57 Yards | 3 Targets, 3 Receptions, 18 Yards
Notes
I called Brown an easy RB1 this week. That went well. Brown himself played pretty well, though. He took a screen for 11 and ran for 16 on the next play to help set up Burrow’s sneak. When Atlanta cut the lead to seven in the third, Brown ripped off runs of six, 11 and 19 yards on the answer. The problem was getting him the ball. He had 10 touches through three quarters and two in the fourth, when Perine got seven carries. I’m still waiting for that second-half surge.
Missed Opportunities
- Got stuffed at the one the play before Burrow took it in himself.
Samaje Perine: 11 Carries, 43 Yards | 0 Targets
Perine’s 11 carries to Brown’s nine are about as legit as that squishy you bought your kid at the gas station. Perine had four carries for nine yards through three quarters, then got seven more for 34 in the fourth. He did his job, too. He converted third and three on Cincy’s final drive and slipped through for 14 a couple of plays later so Burrow could kneel it out. That’s a good day’s work for Perine and a pretty flimsy reason to panic about Brown.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Ja’Marr Chase: 12 Targets, 10 Receptions, 155 Yards, 1 TD
Notes
This just in. Chase is good at football. Chase got started early, hitting a double move on third and two on Cincy’s opening drive to blow past the Atlanta secondary for a 47-yard touchdown. He made a one-handed grab for 13 on the drive that ended with Burrow’s sneak, then opened the next drive by turning a short pass into a 31-yard gain. He caught five for 69 yards on that drive alone. Chase had a WR1 day in two quarters, bringing in eight catches for a career-best 142 yards in the first half. Spain got treated to peak Chase, taking short passes and racking up the YAC, leaving Atlanta’s defenders in his dust.
Missed Opportunities
- Had Atlanta actually put up a fight, Chase could have put up a historic stat line. But Burrow only had to throw seven times in the second half.
Tee Higgins: 6 Targets, 5 Receptions, 32 Yards, 2 TDs
Five catches for 32 yards. Gross. Oh, what’s that in the next column over? Higgins put up 20.2 PPR points without a catch longer than 8 yards. He went up for a 7-yard grab on third-and-5 to keep Cincy’s first go-ahead drive alive, muscled his way to the pylon for one touchdown and caught the other over the middle as soon as Atlanta made it a one-score game. I said he was being slept on before the game. Two more touchdowns ought to help with that.
Dohnte Meyers: 3 Targets, 2 Receptions, 47 Yards | 1 Carry, 16 Yards
Turns out there’s a third Bengals receiver worth knowing. Meyers took a handoff around the right edge for 16 on the opening drive, then caught a 42-yarder with 57 seconds left in the half to get Cincy into field goal range. I’m still sitting him with Chase and Higgins healthy, but I know whose name I’m looking up on waivers if either of them misses time.
Mike Gesicki: 2 Targets, 2 Receptions, 11 Yards
Remember when I said that finally recommending Gesicki would get him zero targets? He got two. I was wrong in two ways. His 8-yard catch set up the third and two toss to Chase. His other grab picked up 3 yards to set up the 57-yard field goal just before halftime. Useful stuff for the Bengals. Slightly less useful for those of us who started him. He still has the extra playing time, but even a three-touchdown passing day from Burrow couldn’t get him out of tHe gLoB.
Atlanta Falcons
Quarterback
Michael Penix Jr.: 20/31, 162 Yards, 1 TD, 1 INT | 3 Carries, 50 Yards
Notes
I gave Penix half a mulligan for last week’s mess in the rain. I figured he’d get back on track indoors. I didn’t figure he’d do most of the interesting stuff with his legs. He ran for 11 on the opening touchdown drive, then took off for 23 on third-and-5 the next time out. He did squeeze a throw to Drake London over the middle and hit Bijan Robinson on a wheel route for 28 on third-and-6, but 162 passing yards is a tough sell even with a career-high 50 on the ground. I’ll take it in superflex. I’d rather have somebody else in a one-QB league.
Missed Opportunities
- A hold wiped out a scramble to the Cincinnati one in the first quarter.
- His late throw over the middle for Robinson was picked off.
Running Back
Bijan Robinson: 19 Carries, 100 Yards, 1 TD | 7 Targets, 6 Receptions, 47 Yards
Notes
So, about that conversation I wanted to have about Robinson’s floor. We can put a pin in that for a week. He went for 42 yards on his first three carries, getting around the left edge for gains of 19 and 21 on the opening drive. Cincinnati made him work for the other 58, so he went and caught six passes, too. He turned third-and-13 into a first down before halftime, took a wheel route for 28 on third-and-6 in the third and punched it in from the 1 on that same drive. Atlanta had 319 yards of offense. Bijan was good for 147 of them.
Missed Opportunities
- Fumbled after a catch before halftime, but the ball went out of bounds and Atlanta kept possession.
Khalil Herbert: 1 Carry, 7 Yards | 3 Targets, 2 Receptions, 2 Yards
Herbert gave Bijan a breather on the third-quarter touchdown drive and picked up 7 yards on his only carry. His two catches went for 2 yards combined. With Brian Robinson Jr. on IR, Herbert is the handcuff. Three touches should tell you about all you need to know about starting him while Bijan’s healthy.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Drake London: 5 Targets, 5 Receptions, 68 Yards
I had London lined up for a top-12 finish. Five targets when you’re chasing the Bengals for most of the game? Come on. London caught all five, including gains of 21 and 14 on the drive that got Atlanta down to the Cincinnati 10. He also drew two pass interference flags that put the Falcons at the 1, and they scored both times. My fantasy app remains unmoved by his contributions. London played well enough to have a much bigger day if Atlanta had sent a few more passes his way.
Kyle Pitts: 5 Targets, 3 Receptions, 23 Yards
Notes
I had Pitts just outside my top 12 in what was supposed to be a good matchup. For a minute, it looked like he’d get there. He had a 19-yard catch to move the chains before halftime and a 15-yarder that would’ve gotten Atlanta out from inside its own 5 in the fourth. Both came back. I spent more time watching the officials walk off yardage than I did watching Pitts rack it up.
Missed Opportunities
- A hold erased the 19-yarder, and Jahan Dotson‘s illegal shift wiped out the 15-yarder.
- Pitts picked up a holding flag of his own on third and two from the Cincinnati 10. Atlanta came away with nothing.
Charlie Woerner: 1 Target, 1 Reception, 1 Yard, 1 TD | 1 Carry, 0 Yards
If you had Woerner catching Atlanta’s only passing touchdown, go ahead and buy a lottery ticket. The blocking tight end caught a 1-yarder on the opening drive for his first career touchdown in his seventh season. Atlanta went back to him from the one in the third with a direct snap, got nowhere and handed it to Bijan on the next play.
Jahan Dotson: 2 Targets, 2 Receptions, 16 Yards
Notes
Dotson got 12 yards on the first offensive snap of the game. Hope you enjoyed it, because he got four the rest of the way.
Missed Opportunities
- His illegal shift erased a Pitts first down with Atlanta backed up at its own 4.
Olamide Zaccheaus: 3 Targets, 1 Reception, 5 Yards
Zachariah Branch was out, Zaccheaus still rotated off for Chris Blair or Beaux Collins on some third downs, and his three targets got him 5 yards. One of those targets came on third-and-5 before halftime and fell incomplete. If you were hoping Branch’s absence would free up enough work to use Zaccheaus, you can go ahead and close that waiver tab.