The Bengals were ready for the playoffs. The Raiders were not.

The Bengals’ composure (and some questionable reffing) lifted Cincinnati to its first playoff win since 1991.

The reason the Cincinnati Bengals beat the Las Vegas Raiders, 26-19, for their first playoff win since 1990 was simple. The Bengals were ready for the moment. The Raiders were not.

Cincinnati, behind Joe Burrow, showed up crisp. Las Vegas came into the game rattled. The Raiders committed three penalties in the first quarter alone. Derek Carr, making his playoff debut eight years into his NFL career, gave up an early fumble because his offensive coordinator galaxy brained his way into a scheme where he blocked Trey Hendrickson — the Bengals’ all-time single-season sack leader — with a tight end:

One drive later he was sacked inches away from a safety because Peyton Barber, a player in his sixth season as a pro, forgot how kickoffs worked, cost his team 38 yards of field position, and inspired this truly honest and relatable reaction from teammate Tyron Johnson.

This would be unacceptable for any team. It’s especially egregious for Vegas, led by interim head coach Rich Bisaccia … who was the team’s special teams coordinator before stepping into the position Jon Gruden vacated earlier in the year. These mistakes dug the kind of hole that can be overcome against the Miami Dolphins, but not a revived Bengal team.

That fumble/field position combination led directly to six Cincinnati points in a game where the Raiders eventually had the ball deep in Bengal territory trailing by seven. Those mistakes proved to be the difference between winning in regulation with a Daniel Carlson chip shot field goal as time expired and extending the Raiders’ playoff win drought to 19 years.

Standing at the eye of the storm in Cincinnati was Burrow. The second-year pro was also making his playoff debut, but he was also the same guy who threw for 956 yards and TWELVE TOUCHDOWNS in two College Football Playoff games while leading an LSU team coached by Ed Orgeron (since fired) to a national title. He proved that early on his home field.

Maybe that throw is a bad example. Burrow’s touchdown came after an inadvertent whistle should have blown the ball dead. Instead, we’ll have to defer to this threaded needle to tight end CJ Uzomah:

Or his other first half touchdown pass, also into a tight window, also to Uzomah:

Uzomah got the tough throws, but Burrow’s gameplan was simple. He rode the guy likely to be 2021’s offensive rookie of the year — the same wideout who hauled in nine catches for 221 yards and two touchdowns in LSU’s national championship game win over Clemson. Ja’Marr Chase finished his day with 12 targets — 35 percent of Burrow’s throws — nine catches and 116 yards. He also had three carries and 23 yards on the ground.

Carr, for his part, was perfectly fine as a playoff quarterback Saturday. He just wasn’t special enough to overcome the talent gap (and, let’s be honest, one horrible officiating mistake) between the two teams. He finished his day with 310 yards, a touchdown, and a desperation interception near the goal line on the Raiders’ final offensive play of the day.

Ultimately, his performance was more about the throws he didn’t make — like this third-and-4 incompletion that forced the Raiders to settle for a field goal on their opening drive.

He was also undone by the mistakes that defined the first quarter. Three different members of his offensive line got flagged for holding in a drive that started at the Las Vegas 27, covered 87 yards of total offense (and a pass interference penalty) but still ended in a field goal. While that unit came together for what could have been a game-winning drive, four incomplete passes kept the Raiders out of the end zone and ended a three-decade playoff win drought in Cincinnati.

The Bengals played composed early in their Wild Card matchup. The Raiders made mistakes that proved fatal. That was the difference between a win and a loss in Cincinnati. Now we get to see what Burrow can do with a little official postseason experience under his belt in the Divisional Round.

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