Bengals Crush Cardinals to Extend Late-Season Surge

Ja'Marr Chase and the Bengals were unstoppable today as they cruised past the Cardinals 37 - 14.

Last week was Joe Burrow’s first taste of professional football after being eliminated from playoff contention, and he responded by having one of his best games in a blowout of the Miami Dolphins on the road.  How would Burrow follow up that performance against the Arizona Cardinals in a return to Cincinnati?  The results were similarly excellent.

The Bengals outclassed their opponent for the second straight week, dusting off the Cardinals 37 - 14 seven days after demolishing the Dolphins 45 - 21.  The Bengals have won their past two games by a combined 47 points.  It’s a stunning reversal of fortune from the beginning of the season, when the Bengals were getting their teeth kicked in by the Minnesota Vikings and Denver Broncos.  It’s too late for the Bengals to make any dent in the playoff picture, but with nothing else to play for, they’re at least succeeding in playing for pride.

For the second straight week, the Bengals were able to sub Burrow out of the game early and give Joe Flacco some snaps with the game well in hand.  They eventually subbed out most of the defensive starters too.  This was a proper ass-kicking, complete with the Cardinals scoring a shameful touchdown late in the fourth quarter against backups to cut the margin to 24.  You read that correctly: the Cardinals managed to score just once against the Bengals starting defense.

The Bengals continued their late-season defensive surge with their best defensive performance of the season against the Cardinals on Sunday.  Sure, the Cardinals offense was a mess, but that hardly diminishes the performance of a Bengals defense that couldn’t be counted on to make a stop against even the lowliest of offenses early in the season.  Outside of the Cardinals touchdown drive on their second possession of the game, the Bengals defense was thoroughly dominant.  After the Cardinals tied the game 7 - 7, they gained exactly three yards on their next five possessions.  They had one first down over almost 30 minutes of game time – and this was against the Cincinnati Bengals defense!

It was the true coming out party for a host of Bengals defenders.  Cornerback DJ Turner continued his stellar play on the outside and contributed to Cardinals top receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. finishing with zero catches on just a single target, while Turner’s counterpart on the other side Dax Hill continued his own late-season rise, breaking up three passes on the day.  Rookie defensive end Shemar Stewart picked up his first career sack and added a tackle for a loss, while Bengals defenders added three more sacks, including another by Myles Murphy, who now has three sacks, four tackles for a loss and a fumble recovery in his last three games.

As great as the defense played, it’s the offense, though, that will be the story of the game, not least because backup offensive tackle Cody Ford had the play of the day with a 21-yard catch-and-run in the third quarter in which the 6-3, 345 lbs. lineman displayed strong hands, light feet, and outstanding tackle-breaking ability.  He did it on his birthday too.  A few weeks ago, Burrow insinuated he might not be having fun playing football – I can’t imagine that’s been the case the last two Sundays.

While Ford’s rumbling reception was most noteworthy, he was just one of an incredible eleven Bengals receivers who caught a pass in today’s game, nine of which caught a pass from Burrow.  Ja’Marr Chase, fresh off another Pro Bowl selection, his fifth in five years in the NFL, led the way with seven receptions, two of which were touchdowns.  Tee Higgins and Andrei Iosivas both added four receptions, with Higgins grabbing a 39-yarder at the start of the second half.

It was Chase Brown, however, who really shined in this contest.  He finished with 101 yards on the ground and an additional 40 yards receiving, giving him 141 scrimmage yards on the day, his highest output of the season and the eighth time he’s surpassed 100 scrimmage yards this season.  He now sits just 53 rushing yards from his first 1,000 yard rushing season of his career as he’s quickly become one of the league’s most dangerous two-way backs, with his fantastic speed and elusiveness when running and receiving.

For those who are in the camp that the Bengals should be tanking to end their season for better draft positioning, this was not a game for you.  The Bengals, if anything, did the Cardinals a favor, as with the loss the Cardinals remained at three wins with an outside shot of securing the top pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.  The Bengals, meanwhile, will have to settle for yet another mid-first-round pick, and the Bengals haven’t exactly been masterful at evaluating that area of the draft recently.

Still, wins in the NFL are hard and precious.  Whether the playoffs are a reality or not, the Bengals should be trying to win because that’s the expectation.  One draft pick is not changing this franchise’s fortunes overnight.  There’s not another Joe Burrow walking into the building in 2026, and the Bengals have to be doing everything they can to keep Burrow from walking out.  Adding a promising rookie won’t fix anything, but instilling a culture of high-effort and pride at the end of this season might.

This win doesn’t rinse the bad taste of the 2025 season out of any Bengals fan’s mouth, but it’s more evidence that better days could (and should) be on the horizon.  The 2025 season – with all its irony, the now-infamous 2 - 0 start, another crushing Joe Burrow injury, familiarly catastrophic defense, and predictable pass protection breakdowns in the most critical moments – is almost mercifully over, but the Bengals are at least giving us something to cheer for at the end.  It’s never fun saying “wait til next year,” but the way the Bengals are playing down the stretch at least gives hope that next year might actually be different.