While it's hard to brag about a win over a 4-10 team, this was a gut-check game for a Bengals team facing a lot of adversity due to injuries to several key players. The most obvious of which is the injury to Andy Dalton, whose broken thumb paved the way for AJ McCarron to make his first NFL start.
Not only did McCarron play well in leading Cincinnati to a win, but he became the first Alabama quarterback to start and win an NFL game since Jeff Rutledge led the New York Giants to a 20-17 win over the Philadelphia Eagles in the 1987 season.