Bengals vs. Rams score, takeaways: Joe Burrow, Ja'Marr Chase rediscover magic as Cincinnati earns first win

The Bengals get into the win column for the first time in 2023

Exhale, Cincinnati. For the first time this season, the Bengals have found themselves in the win column thanks to a 19-16 victory over the Los Angeles Rams to wrap up Week 3. 

All throughout the week and leading up to kickoff, the major question was whether or not Joe Burrow would suit up in this game due to the calf injury that's plagued him dating back to the early days of training camp. Burrow gutted it out, and while he was clearly less than 100%, he was able to string enough plays together to muster enough points to win. He finished with 259 yards through the air on 26-for-49 passing and one interception. He was finally able to unlock Ja'Marr Chase, who enjoyed his best game of the year by catching 12 passes for 141 yards. 

While it was an encouraging step for the offense, it was the defense that was truly the MVP of the night for Cincinnati. 

The unit largely shut down Matthew Stafford and the Rams on Monday night, and it was particularly strong on third down and in the red zone, where it effectively left L.A. zero wiggle room. On the night, the Rams were unable to move the chains on 10 of their 11 third-down situations. The Bengals were also able to create turnovers, with linebacker Logan Wilson notching two interceptions.  

Stafford completed 54.5% of his passes in the loss for 269 yards, one touchdown and two picks. 

For a more detailed breakdown of how this game unfolded, check out our takeaways below.

Why the Bengals won

Credit needs to be given to the Cincinnati defense before we highlight the play on offense. Defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo kept the Los Angeles offense spinning Monday night and constantly kept them out of rhythm. It was a brick wall in the red zone and on third down and was able to apply plenty of pressure on Stafford, taking him down for six sacks and 10 total quarterback hits. Logan Wilson also created two interceptions on the night. That ability to create turnovers, give the offense short fields and, most importantly, keep L.A. out of the end zone were vitally important on a night where Burrow was clearly not at full strength. 

Speaking of Burrow, he was able to manage the game fine as he continues to deal with his calf injury. The biggest development was that he finally got in sync with Ja'Marr Chase, who had his best game of the season so far. In fact, his 12 receptions were a career-high, so that is certainly an encouraging sign for this team's prospects going forward. 

Specifically in this game, Chase came up extremely clutch on their lone touchdown drive of the night that helped them claim the lead in the second half. On a third-and-10 play from the Rams 44-yard line, Burrow connected with Burrow for a 13-yard reception that helped keep the drive alive. Four plays later, Joe Mixon barreled into the end zone to go up, 13-9. From that point on, the Bengals did not surrender the lead. 

Why the Rams lost

It was a downright awful night for Los Angeles' situational offense. It began the game 0-10 on third down and made its lone conversion for the game on its final play. At that point, the Rams were praying for an onside kick to keep their hopes alive, so for 99% of the night they couldn't move the chains. That spilled into the red zone, where they started 0-3 and, again, their only conversion came on the final play of the night for them with the game effectively over outside of a successful onside kick. Those results in such key aspects of the game will simply not translate to wins. While this is a bad night for any team, it's pretty shocking the Rams were the guilty party here. Coming into Week 3, L.A. was leading the NFL in red zone touchdown rate (83.3%) and on third down (58.1%). 

Additionally, there were some head-scratching moments by head coach Sean McVay while they tried getting back into this game late. Instead of going for it on a fourth-and-5 from his own 30-yard-line down 10, McVay elected to punt the ball away with 6:09 left in the fourth quarter. That allowed Cincinnati to chew 2:28 off the clock before punting back to the offense. 

Then, he made the curious decision to call a run play on first-and-goal from the Bengals 3-yard line with 1:35 left in regulation, which ended up burning valuable time off the clock. While it wasn't the nail in the coffin, it was strange clock management by McVay down the stretch that didn't exactly set his team up for success. 

Turning point

There were a couple of points in this game that swung the pendulum in the direction of a Bengals victory. However, Trey Hendrickson coming up with a third-down sack of Matthew Stafford might have been the spark that lit the wick. The game was still knotted up at six, and the Rams had put together a solid drive coming out of halftime that looked like it was going to result in a touchdown. However, on a third-and-6 attempt from the Bengals 17-yard line, Hendrickson was able to take down Stafford and force Los Angeles to settle for a field goal. 

The momentum off that defensive stop carried over to the offense, which then marched 75 yards down the field to score the game's first touchdown and go up by four. 

Play of the game

There weren't too many jaw-dropping plays to come out of this game. With that said, Ahkello Witherspoon's fourth-quarter interception off Joe Burrow will certainly draw rave reviews during film study. At the time, Los Angeles still trailed the Bengals by just a touchdown, but Cincinnati was marching down the field and threatening to extend its lead. After Joe Mixon converted a fourth-and-1 run to move the chains and bring the Bengals to the L.A. 37-yard line, Burrow dropped back and targeted wideout Tyler Boyd. It was at this point Witherspoon was able to essentially collide with Boyd just as the ball was arriving and rip it away for the interception with one hand.

Unfortunately for the Rams, they couldn't take advantage of the turnover, as the offense went three-and-out on the ensuing possession. 

What's next

From here, the Bengals will begin a two-game road trip starting with a matchup in Nashville against the Tennessee Titans in Week 4. As for the Rams, they'll be in Indianapolis for a matchup with the Colts.  

[Sep 25, 2023 at 11:25 pm ET · Bryan DeArdo]

Bengals scoop on the onside kick, and Cincinnati will get its first win of 2023. 

[Sep 25, 2023 at 11:22 pm ET · Bryan DeArdo]

Atwell scores as the Rams have trimmed their deficit to one score. Onside kick upcoming. 

[Sep 25, 2023 at 11:17 pm ET · Bryan DeArdo]

Stafford slides for a first down on fourth-and-3 and the Rams are in FG range with 2:20 left. ... He's sacked on Hubbard on the next play, however, and the Rams are now out of FG range at the 2-minute warning. 

[Sep 25, 2023 at 11:13 pm ET · Bryan DeArdo]

Rams defense forces a quick punt, but LA's offense only has 3:44 to work with. 

[Sep 25, 2023 at 11:09 pm ET · Bryan DeArdo]

Surprisingly, the Rams put on fourth down with just over six minutes left. Barring a turnover, the Bengals appear to be on the verge of their first win of the season. Expect more work from Mixon on this drive. 

[Sep 25, 2023 at 11:03 pm ET · Bryan DeArdo]

McPherson hits his fourth FG of the night to extend the Bengals lead to 19-7. Big FG as the Rams now need two scores in the final 7:13. Burrow is 26 of 49 for 259 yards. Just as importantly, he's only been sacked twice and doesn't appear to be any worse for wear. 

[Sep 25, 2023 at 10:58 pm ET · Bryan DeArdo]

Back to back sacks forces the Rams to punt immediately after Witherspoon's pick. Bengals will start this drive at the Rams' 41-yard-line. 

So far tonight, the Bengals defense has forced two turnovers, has sacked Stafford five times and have held LA to 0-3 red zone efficiency.