Well, that was fun.
The Detroit Lions are now 4-1, defeating the struggling Cincinnati Bengals by a final score of 37-24. Things got a bit hairy in the fourth quarter thanks to the offense having not taken advantage of a few takeaways generated by the defense, but in the end, Detroit managed to dominate on the road.
There were a lot of great things that came out of this contest, while there were a few players that stuck out for all the wrong reasons despite the victory.
5 winners (and 2 losers) from Lions' dominant win over Bengals
Winner: Aidan Hutchinson
Hutchinson is fully, completely, all the way back. He finished up this game with one official sack and a strip on it, but he could've had another had his safety not been wiped out due to Terrion Arnold's penalty woes (more on that in a bit). Hutchinson was everywhere in this one, providing some excellent run stop defense in addition to forcing Jake Browning out of the pocket a ton.
Winner: Rock Ya-Sin
The Lions are officially in "next man up" mode, with Ya-Sin asked to start after D.J. Reed was added to the IR this past week. He looked solid, picking up two pass breakups and three tackles. While he was dealing with some cramping issues later in the game, he had already pieced together a great showing before those issues started popping up. He's a shoo-in to get the start next week against Kansas City if Khalil Dorsey (and, if Arnold) can't go.
Winner: David Montgomery
What a homecoming for Montgomery. He finished up the game with one passing score, one rushing score, and a team-high 64 rushing yards total. The former Cincinnati football star managed to show out with the Lions and front of his sister, who was able to see him live in person at home for the first time in his NFL career. Nothing was spoiled for him, and that makes him a winner in this one.
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Winner: Isaac TeSlaa
The rookie finally has a normal touchdown on the books. TeSlaa had a receiving score late down the stretch for Detroit in a key moment of the game, which marked his first touchdown reception between preseason and the regular season that featured two hands on the ball instead of one.
If Kalif Raymond is unable to go in Week 6 after suffering a scary neck injury during a punt return, expect TeSlaa to continue to get further incorporated into this Lions offense.
Loser: Giovanni Manu
It would be one thing if Manu, thrust into a starting role after Taylor Decker was ruled out for this game very suddenly, was only dealing with Trey Hendrickson all afternoon. It would have explained his inability to protect Goff in the pocket greatly. But, it was the entire Cincinnati defensive line getting in on the action against the second year tackle.
Manu needs to prove he's been worth the Lions' investment, and this game was a huge test of that. He failed it, unfortunately, with Goff suffering four sacks in the game. The last sack could've been dangerous. Detroit has to trust that Manu can clean it up against the Chiefs in Week 6, or, they have to start picking up the phone to call around for some help at the spot.
Loser: Terrion Arnold
While Arnold did post two clutch pass breakups during the game after drawing a penalty that erased a Hutchinson sack and safety, he was shaky all game due to those penalty woes plaguing him. He just kept goofing up against Ja'Marr Chase, and then eventually had to leave the game early with a shoulder injury, adding literal insult to injury.
Arnold is being looked to as a leader in this cornerback room as the only remaining healthy CB at this early juncture in the season. If he's out, expect to see some interesting competition to replace him between Amik Robertson, Ya-Sin, or even Dorsey once he's back from injury. He has not proven to be safe from any roster shakeups so far.