Both teams have already been eliminated from the playoffs, but while the Dolphins have benched Tua Tagovailoa, seemingly for performance, the Bengals are sticking with their best chance to win with Burrow expected to start the final three games.
Here are three things to know about the matchup:
1. When the Bengals are on offense…
Burrow is anxious to bounce back from what he called one of the worst games of his career, which followed a late collapse the previous week at Buffalo when he threw picks on back-to-back plays, including a pick-six.
The Dolphins have been middle-of-the-pack on defense, allowing 23.1 points per game (ranked 16th), and they’ve surrendered 334.6 yards per game (19th), including 202.5 yards passing (13th). They have 34.0 sacks through 14 games, led by linebackers Bradley Chubb (6.5 sacks) and Tyrel Dodson (4.0) and defensive tackle Zach Sieler (4.5).
Linebacker Jordyn Brooks leads with 155 tackles.
Former Steelers safety Minkah Fitzpatrick is banged up now but has 82 tackles, an interception and two fumble recoveries as a nickel corner for the Dolphins.
“Pretty similar scheme (to the Ravens),” Burrow said. “They like to use Minkah kind of like the Ravens use Kyle Hamilton. We’ll see if Minkah ends up playing or not. You always have to be aware of where he’s at. I think their front is very disruptive, explosive, they play well together. Like every week, it’s going to be a challenge.”
Cincinnati averages 22.4 points per game and 314.0 yards of offense, but the running game remains second-to-last with 87.4 rushing yards per game. The passing game remains in the top 10 with 226.6 yards per game.
Tight end Mike Gesicki was a second-round draft pick of the Dolphins in 2018 and had two touchdowns in the overtime thriller against Cincinnati in 2019 and a touchdown in the 2020 matchup as well. He’ll be looking to turn the tables Sunday.
2. When the Bengals are on defense…
The Dolphins are giving rookie Quinn Ewers, a seventh-round pick who played collegiately at Ohio State and Texas, his first NFL start. He’s appeared in just one game, entering in a 31-6 loss at Cleveland on Oct. 19, but attempted just eight passes, completing five for 53 yards. Tagovailoa had struggled with turnovers, throwing 15 interceptions to 20 touchdowns and also losing four of eight fumbles.
Miami, which is scoring 21.1 points per game (ranked 23rd), has leaned more on its running game as the strength on offense, averaging 121.9 rushing yards per game (14th), compared to 181.3 yards passing (26th).
De’Von Achane has 1,186 yards and seven touchdowns on 205 carries. Jaylen Waddle leads the receivers with 838 yards and six touchdowns on 59 catches, while Achane adds 450 yards and four touchdowns on 61 catches.
“They’ve got a really good offense,” Bengals coach Zac Taylor said. “I think that Mike (McDaniel) does a great job with the scheme. I don’t want to call it unique because we’ve seen it over the years with him at different places. But he does a really good job being creative and stressing you in different ways, maybe that some other teams don’t in the run game and not afraid to be very creative with how he does it. … But it’s a very difficult offense regardless of who the quarterback is. They put a lot of stress in the run game. They do a great job getting guys open with a lot of speed in the pass game that can finish on explosive plays. And so it’s a very challenging group to go against.”
Cincinnati is still last in scoring defense (31.2 points allowed) and net defense (403.8 yards allowed).
3. Injuries of note…
The injury reports for both teams were lengthy this week with 14 players from Cincinnati and 15 from Miami listed with issues Wednesday.
Tee Higgins still had “another hurdle to clear” in concussion protocol, as of Friday afternoon, according to Taylor, and was questionable to play Sunday. Joseph Ossai, Kris Jenkins (headed to injured reserve), Noah Fant and Charlie Jones are all out Sunday with ankle injuries.
BJ Hill is good to go despite not practicing most of the week because of his own ankle injury, and Shemar Stewart will play in his return from a knee injury that had him on injured reserve. Everyone else that had been getting treated for ailments were full-go by Thursday.
Miami will be without Fitzpatrick because of a calf injured suffered Monday in a loss to Pittsburgh. Brooks has been out of practices due to a foot and knee injury, defensive back Elijah Campbell was working through ankle and knee injuries. Defensive tackle Kenneth Grant (shoulder), tight end Darren Waller (knee) and kicker Jason Sanders (right hip) were all limited Thursday, and cornerback Isaiah Johnson (knee) was out of practices this week.
NEXT GAME
Who: Cincinnati at Miami
When: 1 p.m. Sunday
Streaming: CBS, Paramount
Radio: 700-AM, 104.7-FM
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