The cat (or in this case the Bengal tiger) has been let out of the bag, and you can't contain him now. Cincinnati Bengals rookie running back Chase Brown got a taste of freedom in the Bengals' running back rotation, and he needs more.
In his first chance of extended playing time, Brown carried the ball nine times for 61 yards against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Monday Night Football.
He looked exactly as advertised, and the Bengals' offense was better for it. It cannot stop here.
Cincinnati took a risk this offseason at running back. They allowed Samaje Perine to leave via free agency. Their efforts to replace him were re-signing Trayveon Williams, a fifth-year player who's more often used as a kickoff returner nowadays, and waiting until the fifth round of the NFL Draft to select Brown, an experienced runner out of Illinois with well over 600 carries already on his resume.
The duo of Williams and Brown was not trusted to share the load with Joe Mixon during the first half of the season. As a result, Mixon's usage was far too high, and his efficiency wasn't good enough. The Bengals were either running Mixon into the dirt, or not running at all due to ineffectiveness.
Monday night was the start of a needed shift. The Bengals found immediate success running the ball against Jacksonville, and they wasted no time involving Brown in the mix. While Mixon handled the tough yardage situations, which led to two touchdowns near the goal-line, Brown was given a variety of concepts to work with and provide the juice Cincinnati's rushing attack needed.
A week after rushing the ball into a brick wall eight times, Brown and Mixon racked up 129 yards on 28 carries. That will help in winning games.
Cincinnati may not have the luxury of calling that many run plays against some of their upcoming opponents to close the season out, but the split between Brown and Mixon needs to stay tight going forward. Brown brings a new and explosive dimension to the offense, and allows Mixon to be fresh in scenarios where his power running is needed.
The Bengals' overtime victory over the Jags was the start of an exciting new partnership in the backfield, one that only needs to be expanded. Check out the video breakdown below of Brown's best runs against the Jags:
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