Battle of Ohio: Post-Game Thoughts
So, the Bengals have embarrassed themselves two weeks in a row. After an absolute thrashing of the Ravens in Baltimore in Week 7, the Bengals have had back-to-back subpar performances in games they should have won. We thought it was bad against the Jets in Week 8; what we didn’t realize was that the Jets game was only a letdown by the defense. The offense still put up 31 points, which is enough to win in most weeks. And the Jet game was explainable enough: they had had three straight games on the road, which has only happened 57 times for a team in NFL history, and only 7 times in NFL history has a team swept those road games.
But Week 9 offers no excuses. We saw a letdown by the offense AND the defense. And I was absolutely infuriated after that game, and wanted to put my thoughts into writing. But I thought it best to sleep on it first. As that game heads further into the rearview mirror, here are my observations:
Joe Burrow has to be better. Period. He can’t keep throwing these boneheaded picks. He did it in the Jets game, and he did it again to start the game against Cleveland after marching down the field. Although Ja’Marr Chase is amazing, he’s got to stop locking onto him every play.
Chase has to be better, too. He dropped 2-3 sure touchdowns against the Browns, and also had a costly fumble. Your job as a wide receiver is to catch and hang onto the football. Pretty simple.
Tyler Boyd needs more targets. It’s inexcusable that he got only two targets in a game where Myles Garrett and the Browns defensive tackles were getting quick pressure on Burrow, the Bengals didn’t adjust by calling for more quick stuff over the middle with Boyd. I’m not sure if that falls at the feet of Brian Callahan in developing the game plan, Zac Taylor in calling the plays, Burrow in making his reads, or Boyd just not getting open. But it just seems odd that they essentially ignored Boyd in this game - and he’s really not been a big part of the offense this entire season. That needs to change.
I am still of the belief that Zac Taylor is in over his head. First time head coaches should not also be first time play-callers. This team would be better positioned for success if they had a former head coach in one of the coordinator roles.
Speaking of coordinators: I’ve long been a defender of Lou Anarumo, but no longer. If you can’t stop Mike White, and you get embarrassed by the (injured) Baker Mayfield-led Browns, you just can’t hack it in this league. He’s not quite as bad as Teryl Austin, but it’s close. There’s an amazing cast of talent on this defense, and he’s unable to maximize it.
Where are you, DJ Reader? Make a play.
That goes double for Jessie Bates. The guy has done nothing this year to show he deserves the massive contract he covets. And he’s reverted to his rookie form where he showed a complete inability to tackle. They should tag him this offseason if he won’t sign a reasonable deal, and let him walk in 2023 if he doesn’t start playing like a Pro Bowler again.
Trey Hendrickson has been amazing. I questioned the signing when it was made, but the dude has justified his contract. He’s seemingly always in the backfield.
This team’s biggest weakness on defense is at corner. Trae Waynes is an absolute thief, and they need to cut him next year and spend that money on improvements elsewhere. If a top flight corner isn’t available, they need to spend their first round pick on a corner. It’s a good defensive draft at the top.
Eli Apple is not a starting-caliber NFL cornerback. It’s baffling that this guy was a top ten pick, but it explains why he’s an NFL journeyman in his mid-20s. He gives up at least one big play every game.
The offensive line is allowing too much pressure on Burrow. They’re better than last year, and they’ve cut down on penalties significantly from last year, but they’re still not where they need to be.
The running game has been solid despite the team’s sputtering the last two weeks. Joe Mixon finally looks healthy, and runs hard. Samaje Perine is an ideal backup, and that dude just fights for yards.
Although there was some consternation that a fifth round pick was “too high” for a kicker, Evan McPherson has completely justified his draft status. He’s going to be on this team for a decade, and you really can’t ask for more than that out of a fifth round pick.
But while we’re on the kicking game… how do you get a delay of game on a PAT? I don’t think I’ve ever seen that happen before. Completely inexcusable.
The bye couldn’t be coming at a better time for this team. They need some time to reevaluate what they’re doing - especially on defense - and also need to figure out ways to get Tyler Boyd and Tee Higgins more involved on offense. They’ve got to have an answer when teams take away Ja’Marr Chase.
They’re sitting at 5-4. Most Bengals fans, before the season, would have considered an overall record of 9-8 a success. That’s still attainable, and the playoffs are still within reach. It’s a really weird, wide open AFC - the presumptive favorite Kansas City Chiefs are sputtering, the Buffalo Bills only scored 6 points in Week 9 against the Jacksonville Jaguars, and the Titans, despite a strong record, are likely to tail off without the Big Dog. The Bengals really need to come away with a road win against the Raiders in Week 11, which should be attainable since the Raiders are playing on a (somewhat) short week, as they’re on Sunday Night Football in Week 10. And then they need to smack around the Steelers at home in Week 12. They’ve got a tough home date against Justin Herbert and the Chargers in Week 13, but then have back-to-back winnable games against the Niners and Broncos in Weeks 14 and 15. The final three games of the season are brutal, with games against the Ravens, Chiefs, and Browns. If you want to make the playoffs, you probably need your 9 or 10 wins before Week 16.