Game Preview, Week 3: Washington at Cincinnati
September 21, 2024
by Steve Thomas
Washington got back on track last week in their week 2 matchup, even if it was against the lowly Giants. A win is a win. This week’s opponent, the Bengals, are 0 – 2 but had the misfortune of facing the reigning Super Bowl champs in week 2. They are certainly at least a somewhat better opponent than New York. Washington did make some strides last week, at least on offense, so it’s reasonable to think that they might just be able to do that again. We’ll see. Certainly, this game will be a noticeably more difficult battle and the Bengals will be in no mood to go 0 – 3 against a team that had the second overall pick in the draft. This game should be an interesting battle. Our game preview is below.
Game time & location: Monday, September 23, 2024, 8:15 p.m. ET, Paycor Stadium, Cincinnati, Ohio; Gates open 4:15 p.m. ET.
Television: ABC
Television announcers: Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit, Holly Rowe
TV broadcast map: Click here
DC-area radio: BIG-100 (WBIG FM)
Washington radio network: Click here
Bengals radio network: Click here
Satellite radio: SiriusXM: 88 (national broad.); SiriusXM: 228 (Wash. broad.); internet: 831
Washington roster: Click here
Washington depth chart: Click here
Bengals roster: Click here
Bengals depth chart: Click here
All-time head-to-head record vs Bengals: 5 – 5 – 1 (last 5: 1 – 3 – 1)
Last meeting: W, November 22, 2020, 20 – 9
Early odds: Bengals, -7.5
3 KEYS TO THE GAME
Overcome Washington’s bad history in national prime-time games
It isn’t exactly a revelation to say that Washington has a . . . less than stellar history in Monday and Thursday night games. Of course, this iteration of the team doesn’t necessary need to follow the past, but I have a hard time believing that that won’t be in the back of everyone’s minds. In order to have a chance at winning this game, Washington needs to overcome its past and play at peak performance.
Control Cincinnati’s mid to deep passing game
In other words, don’t let Ja’Marr Chase take over this game. Washington’s secondary isn’t very good; they’ll need to play a solid zone system in order to control the Bengals’ group of talented receivers. That is absolutely critical for Washington’s chances to stay in this game and maybe ever get a win. This does not mean significant amount of man and/or press man coverage – they simply don’t have the talent to do that against qualities receiving corps like Cincinnati. This is a major key to this game – Washington needs to be willing to give up short completions in order to keep from surrendering mid and long range passes.
Rely on the running game
The best way to stop the Bengals’ offense is to keep them off the field. Washington made major strides in its running game last week, even if it was against the lowly New York Giants. Washington’s 215 rushing yard performance was their best rushing game since 2021 – ironically, also against the Giants in week 18. Look for Washington to attempt to use Brian Robinson and Austin Ekeler at the same frequency as they did last week. A solid rushing game is going to be essential to victory on Monday night.
3 KEY MATCHUPS
Benjamin St-Juste vs Ja’Marr Chase
This matchup might end up being a little rough for Washington. St-Juste will likely be the primary corner on Chase for much of this game. St-Juste has some talent, but the idea that he is a good matchup for one of the best young wide receivers in the game is a bit of stretch. St-Juste needs to be smart and play in a conservative manner. The basic plan needs to be to limit Chase’s damage. Let him have underneath balls, don’t make breaks on the ball, and don’t play press-man coverage. Chase is going to get his catches; the trick for St-Juste is to play smart and limit the big plays by using a conservative style of play.
Cornelius Lucas and/or Brandon Coleman vs. Trey Hendrickson
These two players have been splitting carries the past two week at a rate of approximately 70% for Lucas and 30% for Coleman. Both of them collectively are faced with a major task this week, as their opponent is an elite pass rusher who had 17.5 sacks last year. Hendrickson is the type of player who can give Jayden Daniels his first real dose of NFL reality. Keep an eye out on this matchup and how well Lucas and Coleman do in keeping Hendrickson out of the backfield and away from Daniels.
Believe it or not, so far in the season, Gesicki is actually the Bengals’ leading receiver. For his part, Luvu has had stretches of quality play over the past two weeks and is going to have a quality battle against Gesicki. Watch out for how well Luvu does to limit Gesicki’s effectiveness on Monday night.
OFFICIAL INJURY REPORT (as of Saturday (active roster only)) (starters in bold)
LP – limited practice FP – full practice DNP – did not practice
NIR – not injury related Q – questionable O – out
D – doubtful
| Washington | Bengals |
| DE C. Ferrell, knee; Thurs: DNP; Fri: LP; Sat: DNP; game: O | DT B.J. Hill, hamstring; Thurs: DNP; Fri; DNP; Sat: DNP; game: D |
| CB E. Forbes Jr, thumb; Thurs: DNP; Fri: LP; Sat: LP; game: Q | TE T. Hudson, knee; Thurs: DNP; Fri: DNP; Sat: DNP; game: O |
| DT J. Newton, foot/NIR (rest); Thurs: DNP; Fri: LP; Sat: LP | DT S. Rankin, hamstring; Thurs: DNP; Fri: DNP; Sat: DNP; game: O |
| DE D. Armstrong, chest; Thurs: LP; Fri: LP; Sat: FP | S V. Bell, back; Thurs; LP; Fri: DNP; Sat: DNP; game: Q |
| TE Z. Ertz, NIF (rest); Thurs: LP; Fri: FP; Sat: FP | TE M. Gesicki, calf; Thurs; LP; Fri: LP; Sat: FP |
| S Q. Martin, hamstring; Thurs: LP; Fri: FP; Sat: FP | WR T. Higgins, hamstring; Thurs: LP; Fri: LP; Sat: FP |
| CB B. St-Juste; Thurs; groin; Fri: LP; Sat: FP | DT K. Jenkins, thumb; Thurs: LP; Fri: LP; Sat: FP; game: Q |
| T B. Coleman, ankle; Thurs: FP; Fri: FP; Sat: FP | T A. Mims, pectoral; Thurs: LP; Fri: FP; Sat: FP |
| QB J. Burrow, right wrist; Thurs: FP; Fri: FP; Sat: FP |
Steve’s Prediction
This game is most likely going to get ugly. Monday night against a good team with an uber-talented receiver is a recipe for a big loss. Washington loses 31 – 10.