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Week 4 Game Recap: New England Patriots 34, Cincinnati Bengals 13
What you need to know
| New England Patriots |
Tom Brady threw for another three touchdowns in what is becoming an expected performance for him each time the Patriots take the field. Brady was nothing short of superb once again as New England methodically took apart an overmatched Bengals' defense on the ground and in the air. He got excellent protection from his offense line as Cincinnati seldom got pressure on him. He didn't have to put up big yardage numbers as the running game was very effective and the defense did a good job of containing an explosive Bengals' offense. He finished the game with 231 yards and two of his three touchdowns went to his favorite target, WR Randy Moss. Brady has 13 touchdowns in just four games and seven of those scores have gone to Moss.
Randy Moss had his fourth consecutive game of 100 yards or more this season as he had nine catches for 102 yards in the game. Moss and Brady were especially dangerous in the red zone as they hooked up for touchdown passes of seven and 14 yards in the game. Brady seems to have total trust in Moss and is willing throw the ball in tight spots knowing Moss will get the ball.
RB Sammy Morris filled in for injured starter RB Laurence Maroney, who missed the game with an injured groin. Morris responded by having one of his best games in his career by carrying the ball 21 times for 117 yards and one touchdown. His biggest play of the game came on a 49 yard run to the Bengals' two yard line. Morris would not score on that drive but, added a seven yard touchdown run in the second half. The New England offensive line would open big holes for the running game throughout the contest.
LB Mike Vrabel caught a one yard touchdown pass in the first quarter. Even though Vrabel is a linebacker, he is part of the Patriots offensive goal line package, and the catch was his seventh regular season reception in his career. All of these receptions have gone for touchdowns.
| Cincinnati Bengals |
Carson Palmer did not have a great game as the offense only managed 13 points against a very good Patriots defense. He was unable to make key plays or convert third downs in the second half as the New England secondary did a good job of taking WR Chad Johnson out of the game in the second half. Palmer made some uncharacteristic mistakes as he had two picks in the game, including one toward the end of the first half meant for Johnson. The play appeared to be a miscommunication between quarterback and receiver, and it led to a heated exchange between Palmer and Johnson as they headed to the locker room at halftime.
T.J. Houshmandzadeh had an excellent game catching ten balls for 100 yards and one touchdown. He only had two catches for 12 yards in the first half but, one of them was a one yard touchdown toss from Palmer. Houshmandzadeh became the main target in the second half as the Patriots did a good job of shutting down the other receivers. Johnson finished with 53 yards receiving but, only had only had one catch for 14 yards in the second half.
RB Kenny Watson started for the injured RB Rudi Johnson in the game. As expected, Watson did not have a lot of success on the ground running the ball against the Patriots. He finished the game with 13 carries for 55 yards in the game, but this was in large part due to New England's ability to dominate the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball.
What you ought to know
| QB Tom Brady, Pass: 25 - 32 - 231 - 3 TD / 1 INT, Rush: 2 - -2 - 0 |
Brady and the offense opened the game by spreading out the defense in a four wide receiver set. He led the New England offense down for a field goal on the first drive. After a long run that gave the Patriots the ball near the goal line, Brady got his first touchdown pass by hitting LB Mike Vrabel on a one yard pass. On the Patriots second touchdown drive of the first half, New England pounded the ball on an injury depleted Bengals' defense until they got inside the ten yard line. Brady got his second touchdown pass when he hit WR Randy Moss in the corner of the left end zone on pass he threw up for Moss to go get. He finished the first half 13 for 18 for 105 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception.
Brady and the offense not only scored points in the second half but, controlled the ball much of half by putting together long drives. He topped off the night with his second touchdown pass to WR Randy Moss on 14 yard pass late in the fourth quarter. Brady looked very comfortable in the pocket all game, and it was another stellar performance.
| RB Sammy Morris, Rush: 21 - 117 - 1, Rec: 2 - 15 - 0 (4 targets) |
Morris split carries with RB Kevin Faulk with starter RB Laurence Maroney out with an injury. He carried the ball mostly between the tackles as Faulk was in on mostly passing situations. Morris had a very effective game running the ball as the New England's offensive line dominated the line of the scrimmage. He busted a big play early in the game going 49 yards off the right side and almost scored, but was tackled on the two yard line. Morris would get most of the carries in the first half against an injury depleted Bengals defense who only dressed four healthy linebackers in the game and lost two of them to injuries in the first half. He finished the first half with 13 carries for 98 yards.
Morris' night got better in the third quarter as he had a seven yard touchdown run off the left side as the New England offensive line began to take over the game. He added a nice 18 yard pass reception out of the backfield in the fourth quarter to pad his stats. He would finish the half with only 19 more yards in the second half, but he had real nice numbers as he had most of the carries in Maroney's absence.
| RB Kevin Faulk, Rush: 3 - 22 - 0, Rec: 3 - 39 - 0 (4 targets) |
Faulk started the game for the Patriots with the injury of RB Laurence Maroney, but RB Sammy Morris would get the bulk of the carries in this game. Faulk caught a short pass in the middle of the field and ran for a 23 yard gain on the first drive of the game. He would not get a carry in the first half but did add another reception for eight more yards. Faulk would get a few carries in the second half. He gained 14 yards on his second carry of the game late in the third quarter. He would add another eight yards on two carries and another two more receptions for 16 yards. Faulk's role didn't change much with Maroney out of the line-up.
| RB Heath Evans, Rush: 2 - 1 - 0 |
Evans got two goal lines carries in the first quarter but, was stopped short on each play. They were Evans' only carries in the game.
| RB Laurence Maroney |
Maroney was a last minute scratch from the game with a groin injury after trying to test it out in warm-ups before the game.
| WR Randy Moss, Rec: 9 - 102 - 2 (8 targets) |
The Moss and Brady connection started early in the game as he caught two passes for 23 yards on the first drive of the game. Moss' next pass didn't come until the second quarter but it was a big one. He caught his sixth touchdown of the season on a seven yard pass to the corner of the end zone where QB Tom Brady threw it up and Moss went up to get it. Moss was about six inches taller then the defensive back covering him and he simply went up over him to get the ball. He finished the first half with three receptions for 30 yards.
He remained a big part of the offense in the second half as he added six more catches for 72 more yards. Moss was unstoppable once again in the red zone as Brady hit him on a 14 yard touchdown pass late in the fourth quarter to put the game away. It was Moss' second touchdown pass of the game and his seventh touchdown of the season.
| WR Donte Stallworth, Rec: 4 - 49 - 0 (6 targets) |
Stallworth caught his first pass for 14 yards and a first down in the first quarter. He would add one more pass for five yards in the second quarter. His biggest catch of the game came on a short pass he turned into a 23 yard gain and a first down in the third quarter. He would add one more catch for seven yards in the game. Stallworth was more a complimentary receiver in the game but, he did get six looks in the game.
| WR Wes Welker, Rush: 1 - 27 - 0, Rec: 3 - 22 - 0 (6 targets) |
Welker only had three catches for 22 yards in the first half but, was the most targeted New England receiver in the half getting six balls thrown his way. Welker showed his versatility by having a 27 yard run on a reverse to start the second half. That would be the only time Welker would touch the ball in the second half, as he saw no passes thrown his way in the second half.
| TE Ben Watson, Rec: 2 - 12 - 0 (3 targets) |
Watson only caught one pass for five yards in the first half. He would add another catch for seven yards in the second half.
| PK Stephen Gostkowski 2 - 2 FG, 4 - 4 XP, 10 points |
Gostkowski hit a 31 yard field goal on the first drive of the game for the Patroits. He would have another 36 yard field goal early in the fourth quarter. He also added four extra points, including one that was partially blocked but, still went through the uprights.
| NE Rush Defense |
The Patriots shut down the running game holding the Bengals to only 57 rushing yards on 15 carries.
| NE Pass Defense |
CB Asante Samuel got his first start of the season and made an interception late in the second quarter after the Bengals were driving the ball late in the second quarter. DB Randall Gay also got a late interception in the game. The pass defense held an explosive passing offense to only 234 yards passing and one touchdown. They also added one sack.
| QB Carson Palmer, Pass: 21 - 35 - 234 - 1 TD / 2 INT |
Palmer got off to a very slow start going three for six for 13 yards in the first quarter of the game. The Patriots defense did a good job of disrupting the rhythm of the Bengals' passing game, as Palmer struggled hitting his receivers early. Palmer quickly recovered in the second quarter, after a New England turnover, and he led the offense 35 yards for a score. He hit WR T.J. Houshmandzadeh on a one yard touchdown pass. He threw an interception late in the second half in what looked like a miscommunication between himself and WR Chad Johnson. He and Johnson had a heated exchanged as they exited the field at the end of the first half. He finished the half nine for 13 for 85, one touchdown, and one interception.
Palmer and the offense struggled getting in the end zone in the second half against the Patriots defense. Palmer was little off his game and failed to make plays in the second half when they needed too. New England did give up total of 153 yards and one touchdown to the combination of Johnson and Houshmandzadeh, but did not give up any big plays. Palmer added another 149 passing yards in the second half but, he and the offense had no touchdowns. He added a second interception late in the game.
| RB Kenny Watson, Rush: 13 - 55 - 0, Rec: 2 - 8 - 0 (2 targets) |
Watson started the game for the injured RB Rudi Johnson. He would get all but two carries in the game but did not have a lot success going up against a tough New England run defense. He had eight carries for 27 yards in the first half against a Patriots defense that came in ranked in the top five against the run. His best run of the game came in the third quarter on a 16 yard run where he was able to cut it back up the middle. He would only have 12 more yards in the second half, and two pass receptions for eight yards.
| RB Rudi Johnson |
Johnson did not play in the game because of a hamstring injury. It is the first time in 64 games that he has not suited up.
| WR T.J. Houshmandzadeh, Rush: 1 - -1 - 0, Rec: 10 - 100 - 1 (13 targets) |
Houshmandzadeh was QB Carson Palmer's favorite target in the game and had another good outing against the Patriots. He caught his first pass on a one yard catch over the middle of the end zone for a touchdown. But he only had two catches for 12 yards in the first half. Houshmandzadeh stepped it up in the second half. He caught a 23 yard pass on the right side line in the third quarter to put the ball deep into New England's territory for his longest play of the game. He made a big catch on a fourth and long early in the fourth quarter for a ten yard gain. He would have eight catches for 88 yards in the second half.
| WR Antonio Chatman, Rec: 3 - 28 - 0 (6 targets) |
Chatman was clearly the number three receiver in this game got plenty of looks as WR Chad Johnson and WR T.J. Houshmandzadeh received most of the attention by the Patriots secondary. He finished the game with three catches for 28 yards.
| WR Chad Johnson, Rec: 3 - 53 - 0 (8 targets) |
Johnson's first catch came on a quick out in which he was able to beat the defender and take it 21 yards and he just missed the end zone. He was knocked out of bounds on the one yard line on the play. It would be his longest play of the game and the closest he would get to the end zone the rest of the game. WR T.J. Houshmandzadeh caught a one yard touchdown pass on the next play. He made his prettiest catch on an 18 yard pass when the ball was thrown behind him but, he adjusted in the air and made an exceptional catch. He and QB Carson Palmer seemed to have a communication breakdown on an interception late in the first half. He had a heated exchange with his quarterback on the way to the locker at halftime. He was pretty much a non-factor in the second half as he only had one catch for 14 yards in the second half.
| WR Tab Perry |
Perry did not play in this game because of a hamstring injury he is still nursing.
| TE Reggie Kelly, Rec: 2 - 41 - 0 (4 targets) |
Kelly caught his first pass of the night in the third quarter on 21 yard completion that led to a first down. He would get another big catch for 20 yards in the fourth quarter. He matched his number of catches for the season coming into this game by catching two balls.
| PK Shayne Graham 2 - 2 FG, 1 - 1 XP, 7 points |
Graham hit a 40 yard field goal in the third quarter and hooked in a 48 yard one in the fourth quarter. He added one extra point.
| CIN Rush Defense |
The Bengals only dressed four linebackers for this game because of injury and lost LB Lemar Marshall for the game on the first series of the game with an Achilles injury. When another Bengals' linebacker was knocked out the game, the loss forced them to move rookie S Chinedum Ndukwe into the linebacker spot. The Patriots ran all over the depleted Bengals defense as they racked up 173 total yards rushing and one rushing touchdown.
| CIN Pass Defense |
Leon Hall intercepted QB Tom Brady in the second quarter, but that would be the highlight for the defense. QB Tom Brady had three passing touchdowns and 231 passing yards.
