The Indianapolis Colts outplayed the Cincinnati Bengals on the road for three quarters in Paul Brown Stadium on Sunday, however the final quarter of play, and ultimately the win, went to the home team. Trailing 23-17 with 6:58 left in the fourth quarter, Bengals’ Carlos Dunlap intercepted Colts quarterback Jacoby Brissett and returned it 16 yards for the pick-six. Kicker Randy Bullock then nailed what would be the game-winning PAT.
Brissett and company totaled just 36 yards on their next two offensive drives, leading to zero points and their sixth tally in the loss column. Unlike Brissett, Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton kept the ball away from the opposing team, as he completed 17-of-29 passes for 243 yards and two touchdowns.
Bengals running back Joe Mixon didn’t do much with the ball on the ground, but he did haul in three passes for 91 yards, including a 67-yard catch and run. With that, we give you our PFF exclusive takeaways from the contest for each team.
Top 5 Grades:
DT Geno Atkins, 93.9 overall grade
S George Iloka, 86.4 overall grade
DE Carlos Dunlap, 80.4 overall grade
CB Darqueze Dennard, 79.5 overall grade
WR Josh Malone, 77.3 overall grade
Performances of Note:
WR Josh Malone, 77.3 overall grade
In only his second career game, Malone made his impact felt. He saw the field for 20 snaps and caught two of his three targets for 35 yards. His performance was highlighted by a 25-yard diving post-route touchdown.
RB Joe Mixon, 41.1 overall grade
After complaining about his touches a week ago, we saw the good and the bad from Mixon this week. His 67-yard screen route was electric, but he would fumble the rock on his very next catch. On 11 carries, he failed to break a single tackle.
DT Geno Atkins, 93.9 overall grade
It was another monstrous performance from Atkins. He registered a sack and six other hurries on the day to go along with four stops in the run game. On the final fourth down of the game, Atkins got the critical pressure to force an errant throw.
S George Iloka, 86.4 overall grade
It was a complete performance from Iloka, who graded above average versus both run and pass. He registered two stops on the day and only allowed one completion on two targets for 17 yards.
Top 5 Grades:
TE Jack Doyle, 88.3 overall grade
QB Jacoby Brissett, 84.5 overall grade
DT Johnathan Hankins, 82.9 overall grade
DT Al Woods, 82.6 overall grade
S Darius Butler, 80.5 overall grade
Performances of Note:
TE Jack Doyle, 88.3 overall grade
It was a complete day for the Colts tight end, as he not only made his presence felt as a receiver, but earned a solid 75.1 run-blocking grade as well. He was targeted 13 times and hauled in 12 for 121 yards and a touchdown.
RG Le'Raven Clark, 31.5 overall grade
The offensive line held up fairly well given the assignment, yielding pressure on 15 of QB Jacoby Brissett's 44 dropbacks, but Clark was an issue before he was benched. He allowed a sack and a hit while whiffing on multiple blocks in the run game.
DT Johnathan Hankins, 82.9 overall grade
The stat sheet may not reflect it, but Hankins was the key to the Colts run defense in this one. He didn't record a single tackle all day long, but blew up multiple runs that others cleaned up.
S T.J. Green, 77.9 overall grade
Believe it or not, the 77.9 overall grade for Green is actually a career high. In 29 snaps, Green recorded two stops. It was an encouraging performance for the much-maligned second-rounder from 2016.
PFF Game Ball: Geno Atkins, DT
*Grades are subject to change upon review
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