Keys for the Bengals to end the season with a victory over Browns

6 days ago 2

The Cincinnati Bengals host the Cleveland Browns in the Week 18 season finale at Paycor Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. and the game will be broadcast on CBS/Local 12 (WKRC-TV).

Cincinnati (6-10) is coming off a 37-14 win over the Arizona Cardinals and Cleveland (4-12) is coming off a 13-6 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Both teams are eliminated from the playoffs. The Bengals have now missed the playoffs for three straight seasons.

Browns defensive end Myles Garrett can break the NFL single-season record for sacks (22.5) with one sack.

Here are the keys to a Bengals victory:

Ja'Marr Chase said his goal this week is have 10 receptions in a game against the Cleveland Browns for the first time in his career.

Let it fly one last time

Bengals wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase has never had 10 or more catches in a game against the Browns. When that stat was mentioned during Chase's weekly press conference he said that he'll make it his goal to change that this week against the Browns.

The Bengals' offense has been one of the best in the league the past three weeks. Head coach Zac Taylor, quarterback Joe Burrow and Chase all reiterated the importance of winning to end the season and the best way to do that is to put up plenty of points.

Force Shedeur Sanders to make mistakes

Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders has shown improvement in the back half of the season since getting the starting nod over Dillon Gabriel earlier in the year.

The Bengals' defense was opportunistic in nabbing two interceptions in the Week 1 win and will need a similar effort to sweep the season series. Forcing Sanders to make errors in the passing game would go a long way toward helping Cincinnati win the turnover battle and eventually the game.

The Bengals need to keep Myles Garrett, celebrating a sack in Week 10, off Joe Burrow to get the quarterback to the offseason healthy.

Head into the offseason healthy

Quarterback Joe Burrow was emphatic that if he was healthy he was going to play, regardless of whether the Bengals were competing for a playoff spot. Since his return, and the subsequent postseason elimination, Burrow's health and potential for another injury has been discussed ad nauseum on sports talk radio.

Keeping Burrow upright and healthy against Garrett and the Browns' defense is a priority as is avoiding injuries to any other key players on the roster.

It's the final game of another lost season and while everyone in the organization wants to win, heading into the offseason healthy would be a secondary win.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Keys for the Bengals to end the season with victory over Browns

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