Ben Baby, ESPN Staff Writer December 5, 2023, 3:07 a.m. ET
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- Ben Baby covers the Cincinnati Bengals for ESPN. He joined the company in July 2019. Before ESPN, he worked for various newspapers in Texas, most recently at The Dallas Morning News, where he covered college sports. He covers the Bengals daily for ESPN.com while also appearing on SportsCenter, ESPN’s NFL shows and ESPN Radio programs. He is a native of Grapevine, Texas and holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of North Texas. He is an adjunct professor of journalism at Southern Methodist University and a member of the Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA).
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Jake Browning doesn’t know when he’ll fully appreciate his performance Monday night.
In the second start of his career, he achieved a historic victory with a 34:31 overtime win against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Replacing the injured Joe Burrow, Browning became the first undrafted player of our time to throw for more than 350 yards and complete 85% of his passes.
His final record: 32 of 37 passes, 354 yards and two total touchdowns, a performance that helped snap the Bengals’ three-game losing streak. And despite his relative inexperience, the feeling of victory was not unfamiliar to him.
“I haven’t played a lot of football, but it’s not like I’m not used to winning,” Browning said. “I have won a lot of games in my career. None of them have been in the NFL to date, which is of course remarkable. I’ve won a lot of football games in my life.”
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Browning won a prep state title at Folsom (Calif.) High and played 53 games in four seasons at the University of Washington before going undrafted in 2019. After the Minnesota Vikings waived him before the 2021 season, he landed with the Bengals and has developed from a practice player to the team’s No. 2 quarterback.
His role became more important when Burrow suffered a season-ending wrist injury in Week 11, which led to Browning making his first career start in Week 12. In a 16-10 loss to Pittsburgh, he was 19 of 26 passing for 227 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
Browning said that while he has sat behind other quarterbacks and processed plays, it’s different when you think about his own experience in the game.
“[I] “I learned a lot from the Pittsburgh game and was able to really focus on some of those things throughout the week of practice,” Browning said. “I think the most important thing is to just get those reps and get another week out of it. And we were able to score points.”
Cincinnati (5-6) also put up a ton of yards — a season-high 491, with 42 of those coming in overtime.
Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins said when Browning hit Ja’Marr Chase with a 76-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter, he realized the Cincinnati quarterback really was in for a big game.
Higgins praised Browning’s performance against the Jaguars (8-4).
“Boy had a hell of a game,” Higgins said. “You guys have been asking about his confidence all week and you all just saw him there. Shit, you can’t ask for anything better than that.”
Browning leaned on Chase throughout the game. Chase finished the game with 11 catches on 12 targets for 149 yards, including his long touchdown reception.
On that play, Chase turned around and said a few words for Jaguars safety Andre Cisco. Before the game, Chase said he told Higgins he was in the mood to make a splash.
“I haven’t played a lot of football but it’s not like I’m not used to winning. I have won many games in my career. None of them have been in the NFL to date, which is of course remarkable. “I have won a lot of football games in my life.
Bengals QB Jake Browning
Bengals QB Jake Browning“I just felt like I was a bad person today,” said Chase, who surpassed the 1,000-yard receiving mark for the third time in as many NFL seasons.
According to ESPN Stats & Information, Chase and Browning threatened the Jacksonville defense as the Bengals suffered a 14-game road loss in prime-time games, the longest in NFL history.
After the game, Bengals coach Zac Taylor said Browning “set the world on fire” and that the performance could have a significant impact on the locker room.
“We can see the intangibles and the preparation he puts in,” Taylor said. “But when he goes out and leads the team the way he did, I think it increases the overall confidence of the team.”
With five games left in the regular season, Cincinnati’s win gives the team a chance to make the playoffs for the third straight year. Four of Cincinnati’s remaining opponents have top quarterbacks dealing with injuries.
Cincinnati was aware of the impact Browning’s big night and road win had on its playoff prospects.
“We’re just one step closer to getting our foot in the door,” Chase said. “And as soon as we enter the door, we should kick it down.”