Coming off of what some would consider a dominant performance over the Atlanta Falcons, the Cincinnati Bengals head up to Cleveland to face the Browns. 

 Last Sunday, Joe Burrow threw for a remarkable 481 yards, 3 touchdowns, and even more impressive, a completion percentage of 81%. 

Ja’Marr Chase caught 8 balls for 130 yards and 2 touchdowns. Tyler Boyd had multiple jaw-dropping plays throughout the day, catching 8 balls for 155 yards and one touchdown.

Tee Higgins had a less productive day, but he still had 5 catches for 93 yards. In the running game, however, Joe Mixon only managed to pick up 58 yards on 17 carries, one touchdown, and a yards-per-carry average of 3.4 yards.

Despite the off-the-charts quality of the passing game displayed by the Bengals, many fans and commentators have concerns because of the horrible secondary they faced on Sunday.

Falcons cornerback AJ Terrell was injured early in the game as well as safety, Jaylinn Hawkins who was injured in the second half. Even going into this game the Falcons had secondary issues, missing cornerback Casey Hayward.

Browns cornerback Denzel Ward is still in concussion protocol, if he is unable to play on Monday, the Brown’s secondary will be missing a key piece.

In the Browns’ week 7 loss against the Ravens, backup quarterback, Jacoby Brissett looked good. He completed 22 of his 27 passes, with an average of 9.7 yards per attempt. He did not finish the day with a touchdown but he did have 258 yards and no interceptions.

Browns running back, Nick Chubb rushed for 91 yards on 16 attempts with one touchdown. The running game produced the only offensive touchdown for the Browns.

The Bengals’ run defense will be tested on Monday. One of the issues with the run defense has been injuries to key defensive players like DJ Reader, and Logan Wilson. 

In Reader’s absence, guys like BJ Hill, Joseph Ossai, Zach Carter, and Jay Tufele have held down the fort. While Akeem Davis-Gaither and Germaine Pratt have held strong at the linebacker position.

Also in week 7 against the Falcons, edge rusher Trey Hendrickson came off the field injured. Luckily for Cincinnati, coach Zach Taylor is hopeful that both Wilson and Hendrickson will play on Monday.

As the Bengals and Ravens are tied for the top of the AFC North, a win over the Browns may help the Bengals take the top of the north and advance to 5-3. However, the Browns will be thirsty for a win as they have been losers in 4 straight and are currently at 2-5, tied for last in the north with the Steelers.