The Green Bay Packers (3-1-1) dominated early and had to scratch and claw late, but Matt LaFleur’s team got a big play late from Jordan Love and Matthew Golden and escaped the Cincinnati Bengals’ upset bid, winning 27-18 on Sunday at Lambeau Field.
Clinging to a 6-point lead and facing third-and-long, Love bought time to his left and found Golden open for 31 yards and a huge conversion with 2:31 left. The Packers finished the drive with a field goal, the game’s final points.
Here is an instant analysis of the Packers’ win over the Bengals in Week 6:
Final score: Packers 27, Bengals 18
It was over when…
Lucas Havrisik connected on a 39-yard field goal, extending the lead to nine points late in the fourth quarter, and Evan McPherson missed his 56-yarder wide right with under a minute to go.
Game balls
Key stat
The Packers rushed for 153 yards, including a season-best output from Josh Jacobs and a few key scrambles from Jordan Love. Jacobs averaged 5.2 yards per carry, and four different players had a run of at least six yards. The run game is finally starting to gain traction.
Deciding factor
The Packers didn’t have a catastrophic special teams mistake for the first time since Week 2. Lucas Havrisik was perfect on kicks in relief for Brandon McManus, while Bengals kicker Evan McPherson missed two field goal attempts over 55 yards.
Jordan Love watch
Love threw a regrettable interception in the red zone to end the first drive, but he was otherwise efficient, completing 19 of 26 passes for 259 yards and a touchdown. He averaged 10.0 yards per attempt and had a passer rating of 101.3 despite the early pick. Love found completions of over 20 yards to Romeo Doubs, Matthew Golden, Josh Jacobs and Tucker Kraft. In the fourth quarter, Love’s big throw to Golden helped seal the deal. The Packers had only one three-and-out and then scored on three straight possessions in the second half.
Play of the game
This game could have been a real nail-biter late without Love’s third-down conversion to Golden on 3rd-and-9 with 2:32 left. The explosive play moved the chains, set up a score and helped the Packers survive.
Injury updates
Lukas Van Ness needed to be carted off the sideline after suffering a foot injury, receiver Dontayvion Wicks exited with an ankle injury, and defensive back Javon Bullard was evaluated for a concussion.
What’s next
The Packers are headed back on the road. Matt LaFleur’s team will go to Arizona to face the Cardinals — who lost 31-27 to the Indianapolis Colts earlier — next Sunday. The Cardinals were without quarterback Kyler Murray and receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. left with a concussion, so injury updates will be important next week.
This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: Instant analysis of Packers’ 27-18 win over Bengals in Week 6
Reporting by Zach Kruse, Packers Wire / Packers Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
