What We Saw: Week 3

The What We Saw team recaps everything you missed from Week 3

Ben Brown
What We Saw 2 Years Ago
Series Navigation
Introduction
Steelers @ Browns
Saints @ Panthers
Texans @ Bears
Chiefs @ Colts
Bills @ Dolphins
Lions @ Vikings
Ravens @ Patriots
Bengals @ Jets
Raiders @ Titans
Eagles @ Commanders
Jaguars @ Chargers
Rams @ Cardinals
Falcons @ Seahawks
Packers @ Buccaneers
49ers @ Broncos
Cowboys @ Giants

Bengals @ Jets

Final Score: Bengals 27, Jets 12

Senior Writer: Benjamin Haller (@benjaminhaller1 on Twitter)

 

A trip to the Meadowlands provided an opportunity for the Cincinnati Bengals to improve upon a rough start to the season – the AFC Champions have been a shadow of the offense Joe Burrow and company balled out in last year, starting 0-2 after some horrendous issues with the offensive line and penalties. It’s been the opposite for the New York Jets, with veteran Joe Flacco sitting pretty as the league’s third top passer coming into this contest. The main reason for that unexpected statistic has been the exciting young receiving room for the Jets, with first round rookie Garrett Wilson announcing his potential in the sensational comeback win over the Browns in Week 2.

An entertaining first quarter saw the Bengals jump out to a 14-6 lead with Burrow shaking off pressure to throw two touchdown passes – the first was thanks to Burrow extending the play and finding Samaje Perine at the goal line; the second was all about Tyler Boyd protecting the ball and making the most of some poor tackling from the Jets. Boyd secured the catch and waited for the contact before bursting away for a huge 56-yard score.

 

The Jets couldn’t find the big play to open up the field in response and consistently had to settle for long field goals from Greg Zuerlin. Wilson also went down with a worrying injury in the second quarter and was questionable to return. He did come back into the game but looked a little limited after getting the wind knocked out of him. When the Jets did try to force the ball further downfield, the Bengals defense was waiting for it – linebacker Logan Wilson making an excellent play in coverage to pick off Flacco.

 

The second half was the worst half of football I have seen in sometime. It involved two turnovers on downs, two fumbles, an interception and a missed field goal as the Bengals just about closed out the victory. Ja’Marr Chase made up for an early fumble by scoring the only touchdown of the second half, and Jessie Bates went up to grab a tipped ball for Flacco’s second interception of the game to settle things late on.

 

All in all it was a much-needed win for the embattled Bengals and even though it wasn’t pretty and by no means are there offensive line issues over. Their fans will be breathing a sigh of relief before celebrating like Tyler Boyd.

 

Cincinnati Bengals

 

Quarterback

 

Joe Burrow: 23/36, 275 Yards, 3 TD | 5 Carries, -1 Yards

 

The underlying footnote that Joe Burrow papered over in 2021 was that he was the most sacked quarterback in the league. Over the first two games, he also holds the same unwanted accolade. The offensive line isn’t doing him any favors and that was the case again today. There were also a couple of delay of game penalties on third down that hampered his rhythm too. However, the stat line is pretty good in terms of fantasy and it looks much better than it was. After four interceptions in Week 1, this was the second turnover free performance in a row, which is promising further.

He was impressive as ever when given time to throw and he threw eight completions in an incisive 11-play, 75-yard touchdown drive that also included a lovely throw to Tee Higgins that the receiver just failed to bring in with two feet down. This lovely throw to move the chains was an example of the composure and confidence Burrow possesses.

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Burrow twice failed to hit the end zone prior to half time with throws to Chase. The first throw was initially called a completion but overturned on review. The second was a throwaway screen after another delay of game on third down after the Bengals had turned the ball over at the Jets own 25-yard line. Burrow was nearly picked in this series too with a tipped pass aimed at rarely used tight end Hayden Hurst. There were too many missed opportunities like that in this game.

 

Burrow was only sacked twice but faced pressure all afternoon from a much-improved Jets defensive front. Burrow was glad to see Quinnen Williams leave the game with an injury in the second half after the defensive superstar crushed him on this play in the first half.

 

Burrow has had a slow start but this fantasy showing will appease managers for now. There are still questions about just how explosive this offense can be in 2022 – it looks a long way short from last year’s production.

 

Running Back

 

Samaje Perine: 9 Carries, 47 Yards | 2 Targets, 2 Receptions, 14 Yards, TD

Joe Mixon: 12 Carries, 24 Yards | 7 Targets, 3 Receptions, 14 Yards

Chris Evans: 1 Target, 1 Reception, 4 Yards

 

Despite a positive game script the Bengals could not get anything going on the ground as the Jets defensive front dominated the line of scrimmage. Joe Mixon had just eight carries for 13 yards in the first half with three runs for negative yardage, and it didn’t improve much in the second half with the Bengals limited in time of possession. It was Chase not Mixon given the opportunity to convert a fourth down and short deep in Jets territory in the second half. That was stuffed.

It was quite alarming that Samaje Perine out-touched Mixon on the ground and saw five more targets in the air as the Bengals all but abandoned running the ball after the half. Perine had the majority of his touches on a tedious clock-chewing drive in the fourth quarter as the Bengals looked to preserve Mixon for future workloads. Perine was also the beneficiary of a broken play on the first drive of the game in the end zone – the former Washington back staying relevant and nabbing a short throw for a receiving score to put his team ahead.

 

Mixon is clearly the lead back for the Bengals and fantasy managers should not read too much into Perine’s extra usage today. It was only to run down the clock in a decided game.

 

Wide Receiver/Tight End

 

Tyler Boyd: 5 Targets, 4 Receptions, 105 Yards, TD

Tee Higgins: 7 Targets, 5 Receptions, 93 Yards

Ja’Marr Chase: 10 Targets, 6 Receptions, 29 Yards, TD | 2 Carries, Fumble (Lost)

Mitchell Wilcox: 1 Target, 1 Reception, 9 Yards

Hayden Hurst: 2 Targets, 1 Reception, 7 Yards

 

It has been a subdued start to the season for the emphatic Ja’Marr Chase, who has also made his fair share of mistakes over the first few weeks. An early fumble on a basic slant out of the slot didn’t help matters. Luckily for Chase, the Jets couldn’t punish the mishap.

 

Chase was given special attention by the Jets’ first round corner Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner, who batted away a couple of intended balls for Chase, one off of a deep ball from Burrow that would have put the Bengals in the red zone and resulted in a huge gain.

 

Chase also juggled a catch on the goal line after Burrow did well to keep the play going. It was the type of error that we just did not see in his rookie year.

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Still, inevitably the Jets young corner Gardner made a rookie error and failed to track Chase in the red zone early in the third quarter. Chase took advantage and hauled in his second touchdown of the year.

 

Higgins and Boyd showed better execution throughout the afternoon with Chase seemingly off of his game. Higgins in particular made a number of key grabs in contested situations. He also received a big hit midway through the second quarter that easily could have ruled him out the rest of the game. The big receiver returned to the game on the next drive thankfully.

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Boyd was shown three of his five targets on the day in the first drive, this included the touchdown pass called back on a penalty. Despite his big play for the touchdown in the second quarter, Boyd had only one other grab of significance – after Flacco had coughed the ball up on the first drive of the second half, Burrow setup the Bengals second touchdown drive of the game thanks to this nice play which Boyd took inside the 10-yard line. It was a productive day for the so-called “third receiver” in Cincy.

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New York Jets

 

Quarterback

 

Joe Flacco: 28/52, 285 Yards 2 INT | 2 Fumbles (Lost)

 

Sorry Jets fans, but this is a Trey Hendrickson appreciation section! Joe Flacco will be having nightmares for a few days on the back of this sensational pass-rushing performance from Hendrickson, who had three sacks on the day, two resulting in fumbles recovered by the Bengals. He was crucial in deciding the contest right after the half as this strip sack forced a fumble and the Bengals recovered to turn it into an offensive touchdown on the next series. Look at those moves from the big defensive end.

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Hendrickson put the nail in Flacco’s coffin late in the fourth quarter as he once again impressively beat left tackle George Fant on the outside and forced another fumble and turnover. A vicious, dominant performance.

https://gfycat.com/honoreduncommoneuropeanpolecat

 

The Flacco experience has been better than expected in the first few weeks but this was a crash back down to earth in the most emphatic fashion. His 4.40 fantasy points (in Yahoo! leagues) will likely see him finish 32 out of 32 in fantasy scoring at the position this week. It was a rough outing with the veteran failing to deal with pressure from all sides for most of the contest.

 

Running Back

 

Breece Hall: 8 Carries, 39 Yards | 11 Targets, 6 Receptions, 53 Yards

Michael Carter: 11 Carries, 39 Yards | 2 Targets, 1 Reception, 7 Yards

 

With the Jets turning over the ball four times and quickly going behind by two possessions to start the second half, the run game was limited to short passes out of the backfield for the most park. In this committee situation that suited rookie Breece Hall, who came out with a respectable score (especially in PPR leagues) thanks to those dump offs.  But like the first two weeks these two backs are heavily reliant on a touchdown to boost their value. The Jets are not going to be in many positive game scripts. Hall had some nice plays but also made some rookie errors. This drop on third down was a killer – he needs to bring these in and move the chains for his team. He’ll keep getting plenty of action though so fantasy managers should not worry, just hope he develops as the season goes on.

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Michael Carter handled most of the early down work in the first half before disappearing in favor of Hall after the break. Hall’s best run came in the fourth quarter as he patiently waited for a land before exploding through for a 16-yard gain, the longest run by either team in the contest.

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Wide Receiver/Tight End

 

Tyler Conklin: 8 Targets, 8 Receptions, 84 Yards

Garrett Wilson: 10 Targets, 6 Receptions, 60 Yards

Elijah Moore: 10 Targets, 4 Receptions, 49 Yards

Corey Davis: 5 Targets, 2 Receptions, 27 Yards

C.J. Uzomah: 1 Target, 1 Reception, 5 Yards

Braxton Berrios: 1 Carry, 0 Yards | 1 Target

 

After a promising couple of weeks, Garrett Wilson suffered a scare in this one after taking a hit to the ribs that looked to have knocked him out of the game. Wilson went up for a high pass from Flacco and did well to hang onto the ball after Jessie Bates walloped him in the ribs from the side. He returned to the game in the next series, however he did looked a little limited in the second half.

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Despite the injury Wilson was productive alongside Elijah Moore and Corey Davis as the focal point of the three-headed monster through the air in this offense. Wilson saw 10 targets, as did Moore with Davis only seeing a disappointing five targets. The difference was that Wilson was targeted when they needed to move the chains. He had a key third down grab early on that exhibited all the skills he brings to this team.

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Without Zach Wilson under centre, Moore has become an appendix in this Jets offense – the only way he was fantasy relevant today was due to Flacco attempting 52 passes when playing from behind. Moore failed to convert a third down pass in the first half and earned half his yardage over two catches in garbage time. He has great route running ability and this nice sideline grab shows how he can create separation and make plays. The Jets need to hit him on intermediate to deeper routes way more.

https://gfycat.com/obviousleankangaroo

 

The surprise tight end in the league this year is Tyler Conklin. The former Minnesota Viking flashed his ability when given the chance down the stretch in 2021, and his blocking is outstanding. Conklin caught all his eight targets for 84 yards and led the team in yardage. Given that most of these were cheap yards toward the end of the game doesn’t really matter as it shows he is a factor in the offense. He now has 24 targets through three games and sits as the fantasy TE8. He is a nice waiver wire add going into next week’s tilt against the Steelers as he is only 21% rostered in Yahoo! leagues.

The big fantasy disappointment on the day was Corey Davis, who had at least 77 yards over the first two contests as well as a touchdown. Davis was hardly involved in this one, with most of his yards coming on one catch in the third quarter with the Jets down big. It was a nice grab though. Again, an underused weapon. Footnote – Davis had a late 15-yard penalty for unsportsmanlike behaviour on third down which angered the coaching staff. Not ideal.

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Series Navigation
Introduction
Steelers @ Browns
Saints @ Panthers
Texans @ Bears
Chiefs @ Colts
Bills @ Dolphins
Lions @ Vikings
Ravens @ Patriots
Bengals @ Jets
Raiders @ Titans
Eagles @ Commanders
Jaguars @ Chargers
Rams @ Cardinals
Falcons @ Seahawks
Packers @ Buccaneers
49ers @ Broncos
Cowboys @ Giants

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