Daijahn Anthony costs Bengals with big penalties

The Cincinnati Bengals let another win slip away against the Kansas City Chiefs, partly because of a rough fourth quarter from rookie safety Daijahn Anthony.

Anthony took a pair of costly penalties in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s 26-25 Chiefs win, both of which hurt the Bengals badly. The first came late in the third quarter, when he was called for illegal contact against Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce. The penalty nullified what would have been a Cincinnati interception.

Daijahn Anthony was called for Illegal Contact on Travis Kelce… thoughts ⁉️ pic.twitter.com/HJimbRpcV5

— SM Highlights (@SMHighlights1) September 15, 2024

The Bengals wound up intercepting Patrick Mahomes later on the same drive anyway, so while costly, that flag did not wind up hurting the Bengals. However, Anthony was called for pass interference when he challenged Rashee Rice on a do-or-die 4th and 16 in the final minute. The flag set the Chiefs up on the edge of field goal range, and Harrison Butker hit a 51-yarder to give the Chiefs a 26-25 win.

THE CHIEFS GET A HUGE DEFENSIVE PASS INTERFERENCE CALL.

Thoughts on the contact? pic.twitter.com/IebUOrjDkv

— Arye Pulli (@AryePulli) September 15, 2024

Had the Chiefs failed to convert on that play, the game would have effectively been over with the Bengals up 25-23.

The pass interference call looked pretty clear. Anthony simply got there too early, making for a fairly straightforward flag. However, it capped off a performance that could certainly be described as undisciplined.

Anthony was a seventh-round pick out of Ole Miss in April’s draft. It is absolutely fair to question why he was even on the field in that spot instead of second-year pro Jordan Battle, who is at least a bit more seasoned. Perhaps Battle winds up making the same mistake, but putting a seventh-round rookie in that spot just two weeks into the new season seems a bit excessive.

With the loss, the Bengals are now 0-2. They almost backed up their trash talk from during the week, but instead, they will have some serious questions to answer about how this one got away from them.