TAMPA \u2013 There aren\u2019t too many teams that fall behind Tom Brady 17-0 in his house and live to tell about it. As a matter of fact, before Sunday, they didn\u2019t exist. <\/p>\n
What the Bengals accomplished in their 34-23 comeback win Sunday over the Buccaneers defied all logic and wisdom. And that is what makes this team so fun to watch. <\/p>\n
The Bengals were totally out of sorts in the first half. Joe Burrow had no rhythm. The Bengals were already down Trey Hendrickson and Mike Hilton on defense. They lost their other bookend defensive edge in the first quarter when Sam Hubbard went out with a strained left calf. <\/p>\n
Tom Brady threw two touchdown passes in the first half and the Bengals trailed 17-3 at the half. <\/p>\n
With Brady getting the ball to start the second half, this is when he usually puts the foot to the gas and it\u2019s good night. But these Bengals were about to pull the plug, with some self-destructive help from the Bucs. <\/p>\n
The Bengals defense stopped the Bucs one yard shy on third down. A three-and-out. But with a twist. The Bucs decided to get cute and fool the Bengals with a fake to Gio Bernard on the punt. It failed and the Bengals took over on downs at the Tampa Bay 16. <\/p>\n
The Bengals would settle for a field goal, but the momentum was beginning to shift. <\/p>\n
The next four times Tampa had the ball, they would incredibly turn the ball over to the Bengals in Bucs territory. The Bengals would convert those four turnovers into 21 points and a 17-0 deficit had magically turned into a 27-17 lead. <\/p>\n
No, the Bengals didn\u2019t have Hendrickson, Hubbard or Hilton Sunday. They lost another corner when Cam Taylor-Britt went out with a left shoulder injury in the third quarter. <\/p>\n
But they did have Germaine Pratt, DJ Reader, B.J. Hill, Joseph Ossai and Tre Flowers. <\/p>\n
All of them made huge plays in the second half and with the help of Josh Tupou, Jay Tufele and even Allan George holding the fort, the Bengals pulled out their most improbable win over a Super Bowl champion quarterback since taking down Patrick Mahomes in the AFC Championship 11 months ago at Arrowhead. <\/p>\n
\u201cThere are a lot of smart guys in this locker room, a lot of guys who care about football, who are gritty,\u201d Reader told me. \u201cThey love the game, they love what goes into the game, and they want to be great. That\u2019s the biggest thing I can say about this team. There are a lot of guys who want to be great. They want to search for knowledge, and search for everything. So, it is a blessing to be around a bunch of guys like that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI just thought they did a great job stepping up in the second half \u2013 all the guys. I saw Jay Tufele in the backfield, Tre Flowers picking off passes, I saw AG (Akeem Davis-Gaither) making plays, Eli Apple \u2013 so really, guys just stepped up at every position and this is the type of year where you\u2019re going to lose some guys,\u201d Zac Taylor said. \u201cSo, guys need to step up and keep the team going, and I saw a lot of that across the board from a lot of our players through all three phases.\u201d<\/p>\n
These Bengals have a habit of doing things that haven\u2019t been seen. No team had ever beaten Patrick Mahomes when trailing 21-3 in his building. No team had ever beaten Tom Brady when down 17 in Tom\u2019s house. But that\u2019s what makes the current Bengal version so intriguing and interesting to watch. <\/p>\n
“Something you don’t really see in this league, especially from one of the best quarterbacks you’ve ever seen.” said Jessie Bates. <\/p>\n
\n"Something you don't really see in this league, especially from one of the best quarterbacks you've ever seen." Jessie Bates on Bengals forcing 4 second half turnovers from Tom Brady pic.twitter.com\/z6fB0INL47<\/a><\/p>\n
— Mike Petraglia (@Trags) December 19, 2022<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n