Want a quick summation of Monday night's matchup between the Cincinnati Bengals and Denver Broncos? Here you go: One-sided. There was little doubt in this prime-time affair as the Broncos rolled over Cincinnati, 28-3, to claw to 2-2 on the season, while the offense -- mainly Bo Nix -- enjoyed a bounce-back performance after a sluggish start to the season.
Speaking of sluggish, using that to describe the Bengals offense would do a disservice to the world itself. Initially, it looked as if Cincinnati would give themselves a puncher's chance in this game, despite coming into it as a 7.5-point underdog. It took the opening possession and moved all the way down inside the Denver 10-yard line before settling for a field goal and an early lead. However, that'd be the last time they'd enter Broncos territory for the rest of the night. At no point after that opening drive did Cincinnati cross the 50-yard line, resulting in another demoralizing defeat where the Joe Burrow-less offense floundered.
Jake Browning completed 14 of his 25 passes for 125 yards in the losing effort. The Bengals quarterback, who entered Week 4 with a NFL-high five interceptions, didn't commit a turnover in this game, but that was largely due to conservative pass attempts.
As for the other quarterback in the game in Nix, it was a different story entirely. The second-year QB had his best performance of the season, completing 29 of his 42 throw for 326 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. This could be the outing that rights the ship and spells the chatter about a sophomore slump.
The rout was on after the Broncos forced a three-and-out of the Bengals offense and quickly regained possession with just under a minute left in the first half. At that point, Nix uncorked a couple of impressive passes into tight windows. First, he found Marvin Mims Jr. on a third-and-10 throw for 28 yards to push Denver into Cincinnati territory. The dagger, however, came four plays later when Nix fired a laser over the middle to Courtland Sutton, who made an acrobatic catch to extend the lead to three scores just before halftime.
Sutton finished his night with five catches for 81 yards and that score.
Nix didn't look his best through the first three weeks of the regular season, to the point where uncomfortable conversations about a possible sophomore slump were starting to bubble to the surface.
For at least one week, however, he eased those concerns with a strong showing Monday night. Nix finished with three total touchdowns (two passing and one rushing) while completing nearly 70% of his passes. Beyond the box score, he looked much closer to the quarterback who led Denver to the playoffs last season than the one we saw to start 2025. He consistently fit the ball into tight windows and logged five completions of 20 or more yards in the win. His numbers could've been even bigger if not for five drops by his pass-catchers.
In general, those worrying about Nix can exhale -- for now. But it wasn't a perfect outing for the second-year quarterback. His lone blemish was a costly one: an end-zone interception. The turnovers need to subside, as he's now thrown four interceptions this season, a rate that isn't sustainable if Denver wants to make another playoff push.
Don't let Marvin Mims Jr. get hot. The Broncos receiver emerged at the tail end of last season as a key catalyst in Denver's postseason surge. Before Monday night, though, he'd been quiet in 2025, totaling just six catches for 40 yards and a touchdown through three games. That changed in this win. Mims hauled in all six of his targets for 69 yards and added a 16-yard rushing touchdown to his stat line. If Denver keeps scheming ways to get the ball into his hands, the payoff could be an even more explosive offense moving forward.
The conversation around Cincinnati's offensive struggles will naturally gravitate toward the quarterback position. And while that's certainly part of the problem, it goes deeper than Jake Browning. The Bengals repeatedly shot themselves in the foot with mistakes that had little to do with QB play. They committed 11 accepted penalties -- six on offense (mostly on the offensive line), one on defense and four on special teams. That's undisciplined football, and it falls squarely on head coach Zac Taylor. On top of that, the defense couldn't get off the field, allowing Denver to rack up 512 yards of total offense. The issues extend well beyond the deficiencies under center.
While Cincinnati's 0-2 mark with Browning as the starter isn't entirely on him, it hasn't been good for the veteran quarterback, either. As noted above, he avoided throwing an interception in this game, but that was largely because he rarely took risks pushing the ball downfield. On the few occasions he did, his sideline attempts often sailed out of bounds. Browning also struggled to get the ball to his elite receivers: Tee Higgins managed just one catch after the opening drive, while Ja'Marr Chase caught five of eight targets but for only 23 yards, most of them around the line of scrimmage. When you can't consistently cross midfield, it raises serious questions about whether this quarterback is the right one for the job.
The Denver Broncos finally have an individual 100-yard rusher in the Sean Payton era. With less than six minutes to play in regulation, J.K. Dobbins topped 100 yards on the night. This Payton's 38th game as head coach of the Broncos, and the last 100-yard rusher for the franchise was Latavius Murray.
Yes, the Broncos have three sacks and six quarterback hits, but it goes beyond that. Jake Browning has no time to throw before pressure arrives and can barely set his feet. Denver's pass rushers are having a field day against this Bengals offensive line.
Cincinnati is currently logging just 3.4 yards per play, has registered 102 total yards, and has converted just two of its eight third-down opportunities. It's slipping away from them really fast.
Bo Nix responded well after throwing an end zone interception. He fit the football into a tight window for Marvin Mims Jr. to get Denver in field goal range, but they didn't settle there. Nix again fit the ball into a tight window, connecting with Courtland Sutton for a 20-yard touchdown, giving Denver the 21-3 lead at the break.
This is exactly what Cincinnati needed. The defense made two tremendous defensive stops that erased the Broncos' attempt to add to their lead. First, Dax Hill made a fantastic tackle of R.J. Harvey, who took a direct snap near the goal line and couldn't get the edge for a touchdown. On the very next play, the Broncos elected to keep the offense on the field, and Bo Nix's pass was picked off by Demetrius Knight.
Cincinnati has had seven penalties accepted for 45 yards. There's still eight minutes left to play in the first half ...
It's been a relatively quiet start to the season for Marvin Mims Jr., but he is making his presence felt in this matchup. Mims took a handoff 16 yards for a touchdown to extend Denver's lead. At the end of last season, we saw the Broncos unlock MIms, who scored six times over their final seven games of the regular season. If this is the game where he gets rolling again, this Denver offense is going to be even more explosive.
The story of the first half could arguably be Denver's success on third down. They've moved the chains on four of their five situations, including that 19-yard pass to Courtland Sutton.
Already, the Bengals have been called for four penalties for 25 yards. All of them feel like they've come at the worst possible time, too.
One of the storylines we discussed pregame was whether or not this could be a get-right spot for Bo Nix. Well, he may be on his way to fulfilling that. Denver's QB did a little bit of everything on their first scoring drive of the night. Rolling out to his right, he ripped off a chunk play with a 26-yard gain to tight end Adam Trautman that got them near the red zone. Then, Nix called his own number for a 6-yard rushing score on third down. That was his first rushing touchdown of the season.
With one quarter nearly in the books, Nix has completed three of his five passes for 43 yards, while adding nine yards and a score on the ground.
I didn't agree with that false start penalty called on Ted Karras on that fourth-down attempt, but the center position is currently in the crosshairs of NFL officials. Just last night, we saw Green Bay's center get called for a false start as well. It's a point of emphasis this season.
Offensively, the Broncos continue to look a bit disjointed. Bo Nix needed to burn a timeout because the play clock was running out after they were slow to get out of the huddle. That was the "highlight" of the three-and-out opening drive. Now, the defense is giving a free pass for the Bengals offense to move down the field thanks to penalties.
Cincinnati got the ball to begin the game, and Jake Browning largely looked solid on the opening possession. The Bengals QB orchestrated a 12-play, 62-yard drive that featured a great throw and catch to Tee Higgins on a third-and-6 situation from midfield. The offense knocked on the door and advanced to the Denver 8, but couldn't punch it in and settled for a field goal. One notable development was Chase Brown looking much more efficient on the ground, carrying the ball three times for 12 yards.
It's no secret that Bo Nix has struggled through the first month, and it's gotten to the point where the phrase "sophomore slump" has been whispered about. His completion percentage and passer rating are both lower than it was during his full rookie season to this point, and he has thrown three interceptions with just five passing touchdowns. While he's put together middling results, facing this Bengals defense could be just what the doctor ordered. Last week, the Bengals let Carson Wentz complete 14 of his 20 throws for 173 yards and two touchdowns.
As much as the conversation will center around Jake Browning, he'd be in a much more favorable spot if the Bengals could get any semblance of a rushing attack going. Entering Week 4, Chase Brown has rushed 47 times and logged just 93 yards. That 2.0 yards per carry average is the second-fewest by any player through three games since 1950. Coming into tonight, Denver is allowing 4.2 yards per carry, which ranks in the middle of the league.
While Cincinnati may seem to be in the most disarray, it's the Broncos who come into this game under .500 at 1-2. They are coming off back-to-back losses on a field goal as time expired. The first was a quirky leverage penalty that allowed the Colts to net a game-winner, and the second was a 43-yarder from the Chargers last week. They are currently a 7.5-point favorite, so the oddsmakers don't believe this should be a field goal game, which should be music to Denver's ears.
Cincinnati is coming off its largest loss (38 points) in franchise history with its 48-10 defeat at the hands of the Minnesota Vikings. Of course, this was their first full game without Joe Burrow, and Jake Browning struggled filling in. He'll need to keep his turnovers (five interceptions this season) in order for the Bengals to pull off the upset.
