The Cincinnati Bengals’ offense looked good in the first half of Week 16. Joe Burrow is finding a rhythm, Ja’Marr Chase is off to a hot start, and Tee Higgins has a touchdown in his return from injury. But not every offensive weapon for Cincinnati is having a great game. RB Chase Brown had a quiet first half as the Bengals hold a three-point lead at halftime.
Chase Brown’s Quiet Start
Brown hasn’t been impactful in the first half of Week 16. It’s not his fault, as the Bengals’ passing game is on fire. Brown has five carries for 22 yards. He is the leading rusher for Cincinnati, but more can be expected from Brown.
Samaje Perine rushed for a touchdown in the first half and has four carries of his own. Brown will be relied on by fantasy managers, and seeing his lack of involvement and the Perine touchdown, managers will be hoping that Brown turns it around in the second half.
And Brown did just that. On the opening drive of the second half for Cincinnati, thanks to a fumble by Miami, the Bengals found themselves with good field position. Brown rushed for five yards on one carry and finished off the drive with a nine-yard touchdown catch.
Brown is the 18th-ranked running back in PFSN’s RB Impact metric with an impact score of 77.8. He was off to a slow start, but has found a rhythm over the last nine weeks. He’s been very productive and playing like the breakout player from 2024.
The Bengals look like the offensive force that many fans expected them to be at the start of the season. Their defense is doing better, but the damage had already been done. Burrow’s injury was too much to overcome despite looking like a much-improved team in his return.
Burrow has been sensational against Miami. He has 221 yards and two touchdowns while completing 19 of 25 passes in the early third quarter.
Fantasy managers will be remembering this second half from Brown. Add another touchdown to his tally because he punched in his second of the third quarter on a 12-yard rush. From a slow game into a potential game-winning week, Brown’s turnaround will be pivotal for many fantasy managers.
Beyond fantasy, the defensive takeaways and Brown’s touchdowns helped to extend the Cincinnati lead to three scores and likely put the game out of reach for the Dolphins to manufacture a comeback.
Editor’s Note: This is a breaking news story and will be updated throughout the day as more information becomes available.
