CINCINNATI, Ohio -- The Detroit Lions are steamrolling the Cincinnati Bengals despite a couple of costly penalties and a turnover in the first half.
Detroit leads 14-3 at halftime.
They started the game with a bang, with the offense going 58 yards on seven plays to open with a touchdown. Lions quarterback Jared Goff went three-for-three for 45 yards on that drive. Goff hit tight end Sam LaPorta for the opening touchdown.
LaPorta is having himself a strong first half in this one, too. He has four catches for 53 yards and the touchdown. LaPorta now has 18 career scores to put him fourth among all tight ends in franchise history.
Star Lions receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown has been busy, with five catches on six targets for 57 yards.
Detroit’s defense responded with its first stop on an opening drive of the game. But it took some extra effort to get there. Aidan Hutchinson had a sack taken off the board by lining up offside. And then safety Kerby Joseph got called for a late hit after throwing Ja’Marr Chase while out of bounds.
They responded with a stop, jumping all over the third-and-15 screen pass to force the punt. And after that point, the defense was all over Jake Browning and the Bengals.
And after Goff lost a fumble via a Trey Hendrickson sack, the defense responded with a three-and-out. Giovanni Manu is starting at left tackle with Taylor Decker out with a shoulder injury. Manu got beat badly by Hendrickson on the strip-sack, with nobody in the backfield or on the line to help him out.
But the defense forced a three-and-out on Cincinnati’s next possession to limit the damage. Goff was sacked twice in the first quarter, ending the team’s streak of three games without a sack.
Kelvin Sheppard’s group even took advantage of a deep punt by Jack Fox, with the Bengals taking over on the 1-yard line. Browning targeted Chase on a jump ball on the first play of the series. But Lions cornerback Amik Robertson went up and made the interception to set up the team’s second score.
It was Robertson’s first interception since joining the Lions, and the fifth of his career. And the takeaway set up a great moment for running back David Montgomery’s return to his hometown.
Montgomery took the direct snap in the wildcat, then threw the touchdown to tight end Brock Wright. The veteran running back was a dual-threat quarterback at Mt. Healthy High School in Cincinnati.
Robertson has been moving from outside cornerback to the slot with D.J. Reed on injured reserve. When Robertson has been in the slot, it’s been Rock-Ya Sin to play outside cornerback. Credit to Ya-Sin, because he had a great third-down pass deflection on a deep shot to Bengals receiver Tee Higgins in the second quarter.
Arnold responded well after his defensive holding penalty negated a safety midway through the second quarter. The second-year cornerback had a pass breakup on back-to-back plays following the penalty. And then All-Pro safety Kerby Joseph came to the rescue, leaping for the interception on another deep ball for Chase.
Joseph has been battling through knee injuries since training camp. But he’s continued to play at a high level, with three picks across five games.
Joseph’s 20 career interceptions put him alone with Hall of Famer Ed Reed as the only safeties since 2000 to have that many interceptions through their first four seasons.
The Bengals were able to get their most successful drive going of the first half to end the second quarter, though. They hadn’t had a drive go for more than 26 yards until that point. But the Bengals finished the half with a 10-play 65-yard drive, leading to a 50-yard field goal to avoid the shutout.
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