Dan Quinn noticed something very early in Monday’s game against Cincinnati that he really liked.
The Bengals came out swinging, only needing six plays to go 71 yards on their first possession for a quick 7-0 lead.
“Early on, going for it on 4th down to extend our first drive, to go down and get points,” Quinn said, something that he thought was important Monday. “Cincinnati came down and scored right away. For us to come back and go right down and get points was like, ‘Hey man, we are about this fight today too.'”
Quinn said the execution and scoring on the Commanders first possession was saying, “We are here to bring it as well. And we’re going to be aggressive and take our chances when they come up. So, I’d say the way that the guys got ready, assuming there was going to be some third and fourth downs that we had to go nail. That would be one for me right off the get-go.”
Indeed, the Commanders were successful on five of nine third downs, and even more significantly, they were successful all three times they went for it on the fourth down.
The Bengals went up and down the field all night on Washington. They did not have to punt either, like the Commanders. Cincinnati outrushed Washington 124-108 and outgained them in passing, too, 312-248.
On the defensive side, perhaps the difference in the game was that the Bengals outgained the Commanders 7.3-6.2 in yards per play. Twice, the Commanders’ defense inside the red zone forced the Bengals to kick field goals. Instead of a possible 14 points, the Bengals came away with only 6 points.
Thus, the Commanders came away with their second win of 2024.
