ANALYSIS: 5 takeaways from Bengals’ win over Cowboys

After three other failed attempts to break the fourth-quarter stalemate, they got the job done this time -- on Burrow’s short pass that Ja’Marr Chase turned into a 40-yard touchdown for a 27-20 win over the Cowboys at AT&T Stadium.

Here are five takeaways from the win:

1. ‘Luck went our way’

With a third straight drive ending in a punt that would have left Dallas about two minutes to win the game, it seemed like the same old story for the Bengals. They had been down that path before only to see the defense unable to get the necessary stop at the end.

Instead, former Bengals linebacker Nick Vigil blocked Ryan Rehkow’s punt, and Dallas cornerback Amani Oruwariye touched the ball but couldn’t grab it as players swarmed. Njongmeta, the Bengals’ undrafted rookie linebacker, chased it down and made the play.

“I guess luck went our way,” Bengals coach Zac Taylor said in his postgame press conference.

Three plays later, Chase was in the endzone, and the defense held on for the final minute to seal the win. Cincinnati had lost seven games by a touchdown or less, including three straight games. The Bengals are now 2-7 in one-score games.

2. Big day for Chase

Chase had the first and last touchdowns of the day for Cincinnati, and he did just about everything else the Bengals needed in between. He revealed this week he had the “Triple Crown” written on one of his Post-It Note goals for this season, and after his performance Monday with 177 yards and two touchdowns on 14 catches, he leads all three statistical categories.

The 2021 first-round draft pick entered the week trailing in receptions, but is now at 93 for the season and six catches up on Raiders tight end Brock Bowers. Chase also surpassed Justin Jefferson in receiving yards (1,319 to 1,1170) after the former LSU teammate overtook him Sunday, and he now has 15 touchdowns to make it a six-touchdown lead over Commanders’ receiver Terry McLaurin.

Chase also made history with his first catch of the day when he became the first player to have at least 80 receptions, 1,000 receiving yards and seven receiving touchdowns in each of his first four seasons.

Burrow said in his post-game press conference that Chase is “worth every penny” of the contract extension he is seeking, and he remains confident a deal gets done to keep him in Cincinnati long term. Tee Higgins didn’t have a memorable game, finishing with two catches for 23 yards, but Burrow also said Monday night he was going to do everything he could to make sure the Bengals retain Higgins as well.

3. Defense steps up

Dallas got the ball back with 61 seconds left, and the Cincinnati defense made sure the lead held this time. Trey Hendrickson got a sack on second down, and two incomplete passes after that sealed the win.

The Cowboys’ 20 points were the least by an opponent since Oct. 20 when the Bengals beat the Browns 21-14 in their only other win in a one-score game. Cincinnati had surrendered 34 points or more in four of the last five games since then.

The first drives of each half were the only ones the Bengals really struggled on, as Dallas scored 14 points on 17 plays across those series and managed just six points on 42 plays across all other drives. The Cowboys punted four times, including three three-and-outs, the final drive ended in a turnover on downs with 19 seconds left and the other stop for Cincinnati’s defense came on a Geno Stone interception.

Stone picked off Rush in the redzone on the second drive, after Cam Taylor-Britt tipped the pass.

4. Mims continues to shine

Taylor said this week rookie Amarius Mims was going to have another chance to show what he’s made of matching up against Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons, and he passed the test. Mims didn’t allow a sack, and in 13 “true pass set” opportunities to block, Mims allowed just one hurry and no hits.

His four pressures allowed (two hurries and two hits) for the game came outside of the subset of passing plays that Pro Football Focus considers “true pass sets,” a subset of passing plays that do not include screen passes, play action passes, or rollout plays, since all of those would affect a player’s ability to get to the quarterback outside of the player’s control and the way an offensive lineman impacts those plays are different.

Burrow was sacked twice, but not by Parsons and not because of Mims, who has quietly had a standout rookie season.

Parsons leads the Cowboys with 6.5 sacks this season, despite missing four games due to injury, and surprisingly, he still lined up on Mims’ side, despite clear concerns on Cincinnati’s left side with Orlando Brown Jr. inactive because of a leg injury. Cody Ford moved back to left tackle, and Cordell Volson was back at left guard after losing his job last week when Brown came back from a three-game absence and Ford kicked inside.

5. Other notable performances

Chase Brown got off to a slow start in the running game but crossed 100 yards from scrimmage for the fifth time this season thanks to what ended up being a pretty balanced night for himself. He finished with 58 yards rushing on 14 carries but added six catches for 65 yards and a key touchdown in the second quarter that helped Cincinnati take a lead into halftime.

The Bengals were counting on him to bring more explosives to the running game this season with Joe Mixon’s departure, and he’s delivered as a versatile weapon out of the backfield. His ability in the passing game was a bit of an unknown after being a workhorse carrying the ball in college, but he showed glimpses last year and accentuated his improvement with a burst for a 19-yard touchdown capped by elite tiptoeing ability down the sideline.

Defensive end Joseph Ossai recorded a sack for the third straight game, as the Bengals continue to find more from their pass rushers outside of Hendrickson. He also had one hit and one hurry. Cincinnati still needs more, but that’s a start.

Stone, who has been under fire recently after the worst three-game stretch of his season, posted a team-high and season-best 81.1 defensive grade from PFF.com. He now has two interceptions, coming off a seven-pick 2023 campaign with Baltimore.

New kicker Cade York, filling in for injured Evan McPherson, was perfect on his two field goals and three PATs. He hadn’t made a field goal in an NFL game since 2022 – after sitting on practice squads last year and missing his only two attempts in the 2024 opener with Washington.