Wow! Not sure there is any other way to describe the
emotional roller coaster of Sunday that left me feeling more emotionally
unstable than a Kardashian. There were moments during the game which gave me
flashbacks of the Bungle days of the 1990s/early 2000’s and had me questioning
my dedication to this team. And then there were moments when I had visions of
the Super Bowl hey days of the 80’s. Basically the Bengals turned my TV into
Bill and Ted’s time warp machine on Sunday and took me through 3 decades of
memories in one 4 hour stretch. Exciting, frustrating, exhilarating, disturbing
and uplifting all at the same time. When Dalton took the final knee, I felt
like I needed a cigarette and a bath!
The Good
The Start – The
past two weeks I have been complaining about how slow and unprepared the
Bengals have looked at the beginning of the game. Well, Sunday they did not
have an issue coming out fast. The Bengals took the opening kickoff and drove
80 yards in 10 plays, facing a 3rd down just once – that is efficiency
and good preparation. If that wasn’t good enough, they recovered the ensuing
kickoff at the Denver 5 yard line and punched it in a play later. Less than 6
minutes into the game, the Bengals had a 14-0 lead on the Packers and it looked
as if the Bengals had a stranglehold on the game before it really had even begun.
The Defense – If
you had questions about this Bengals defense, Sunday should have answered any
questions you had. Make no mistake, this is a championship caliber defense.
Yes, the Packers had 399 yards of offense, but keep in mind that is 83 yards
less than their average (482.5). The Bengals forced Rodgers into 2 INTs for the
first time in 3 years, they held him to just 1 TD, a 56.7% completion (his
lowest since week 12 of 2012), 244 yards passing (his lowest since week 14 of
2012), a 33.3 QBR (his lowest since week 14 of 2012), and just a 64.5 Rating (his
lowest rating since the 2010 NFC Conference Championship – 55.4). The success
the Packers had in the run game was surprising, but the Bengals were clearly
playing to stop Rodgers and were daring the Packers to beat them running the
ball. Take away the 51 yard run, and the Bengals kept the Packers RBs to 107
yards on 26 carries (4.1 ypc), not great, but not terrible. The defense came up
huge when needed. During the stretch when the Bengals turned the ball over on 4
straight possessions, the defense yielded just 3 FGs, despite all 4 TOs occurring
in the Bengals territory. They also stuffed Franklin on a 4th and 1
try, forcing a fumble and returning it for a TD. Despite the Packers 30
unanswered points, this defense shut down Rodgers and kept the offense in the
game long enough to win it.
Coverage Teams/Kevin
Huber – The Bengals recovered a muffed kickoff return at the GB 5 yard line
and Huber limited to the dangerous GB punt returners to 0 returns – forcing 4
fair catches, 2 inside the 15 yard line.
Big Plays on Defense
– Aaron Rodgers last threw 2 INTs against the Bears in the 2010 NFC Conference
Championship game – that was 38 games ago! The Bengals also had 4 sacks, 4
other QB hits, stopped the Packers on a huge 4th and 1 on a play which
they forced a fumble and returned it for the game winning TD. Not a bad day at
the office.
Rey Maualuga – I
do enough banging on Rey when he messes up, but when he plays well, I will be
the first to say so – and Sunday, Rey played well. His stats were nothing
outstanding (8 tackles and 1 big hit on Qaurless), but Rey played a solid game
and was in on the forced fumble on 4th and 1.
Gio – Good things
happen when this guy touches the ball. 10 carries for 50 yards (5.0 ypc) and 4
catches for 49 yards (12.3 ypc) for a total of 14 touches for 99 yards (7+
yards per touch)….oh yeah, and a TD. For the first time all year, Gio had more
touches than BJGE and it worked out well. I still think Gio should have 15-20
touches per game, but 14 is pretty good.
Michael Johnson –
7 tackles, 1.5 sacks, 1 forced fumble, 4 QB hits and batted down the final pass
of the game to secure the victory. That is a damn good day at the office. It is
going to be tough for the Bengals not to re-sign this guy.
The #2 WR – When was
the last time the Bengals got more production from their #2 WRs than they did
from Green? Probably never. On Sunday, they got 7 catches for 106 yards from
Sanu and Jones, compared to just 9 catches for 80 yards from Green, Gresham and
Eifert combined. If for no other reason, this is big because it shows future
opponents that they have to account for Jones and Sanu as well as Green,
Gresham and Eifert. Jones, Sanu and Bernard accounted for 55% of Dalton’s
completions (11) and 66% percent of his yards (155 of 235), showing that the
Bengals can win even without huge games from Green, Gresham and Eifert.
The Bad
Dalton – 20/28,
235 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT and a 105.5 Rating looks like a pretty good day at the
office, but the numbers do not tell the whole picture. Up 14-0 with less than a
minute left in the 1st quarter and this Bengals defense (2 Packers
possessions, two 3 and outs), the game should be essentially over as long as
the offense can simply protect the ball. Dalton did anything but. On 3rd
and 7 with less than a minute left, Dalton threw a terrible pass along the
sideline that was picked off at the Bengals 26, already in FG range. The
defense held the Packers to 3 yards and forced a FG. Then, after back-to-back
drives ending with fumbles (1 returned for a TD), Dalton, on 3rd and
8, tried to stay alive in the pocket only to get the ball stripped at his own
25, resulting in a FG to cut the Bengals lead to 1 (14-13), completely wiping
out a 14 point lead in just about 15 minutes, and transferring all momentum to
the Packers.
BJGE – 10 carries
for just 29 yards now gives BJGE 129 yards on 46 carries (2.8 ypc). While he
does have 2 TDs, BJGE has for the most part, been very ineffective in 2013. And
while you have to give Clay Matthews credit for one hell of a play, BJGE had a
fumble on 3rd and 1 that was returned for a TD and really swung the
game to GB. For a guy who “never fumbles,” BJGE now has 4 fumbles in 18 games
as a Bengal.
The Refs – As I
said last week, I hate “Blame the Refs” guy, but these refs were terrible
again. The personal flag on Reggie Nelson was not only a terrible call, it was
a textbook hit and is exactly what the NFL is asking defensive players to do. Shoulder
to shoulder hit. What was worse, the penalty came on a 3rd down
where the Bengals had stopped the Packers. Instead, the drive was extended and
the Packers capitalized with a TD – a call that could have easily lost the
Bengals the game. Is there any player who has been penalized more for textbook
hits than Reggie Nelson (remember the hit on Dez Bryant last year)? I would not
want to be a defensive player in the NFL today – I understand the need for safety,
but it is getting to the point where defensive players cannot hit a guy without
being flagged and/or fined.
The Run Defense –
Given the game plan of the Bengals was certainly to focus on Rodgers and force
GB to try and win with the run, I am not overly concerned about the 182 yards
surrendered on the ground. Emphasis on “overly.” I still do not like that a
team with a weak O-Line and a 3rd string rookie RB racked up 182
yards on the ground.
Protection – While
some of the pressure on Dalton is a result of Dalton holding the ball too long,
4 sacks is too many, and often times, Dalton did not have a clean pocket to
throw from.
AJ Green Breaking up
INTs – I love AJ Green and no one is better at making amazing catches than
AJ Green. There is also no one worse at breaking up INTs than Green. All 3 of
Dalton’s INTs have come on throws to Green. One was a perfect throw that Green
dropped, the other 2 were poor throws by Dalton – however, both INTs could have
been prevented with a little effort from Green. When Green sees a bad throw
that could be picked, he has to become a DB and do anything possible to prevent
the INT. An offensive PI is much better than a pick. The INT on Sunday was
Dalton’s fault, but AJ Green could have, and has to, break that pass up.
Gresham – Few
guys have dawned stripes and frustrated me more than Jermaine Gresham. You see
flashes of greatness and then you see careless blocking and ball security which
inevitably leads to blown up run plays or fumbles and a perplexed looking
Jermaine Gresham trying to make an argument that he was down before the fumble.
Nope Jermaine, just try and hold onto that ball buddy.
Lack of Use of the
TEs – After how effective the 2 TE sets have been, and given the fact that
I felt the 2 TE set would be super effective against the Packers, I was
surprised to see the Bengals only use it about 50% of the time. I was
especially surprised to see Eifert in on only 54% of the snaps yesterday –
especially after his big game last Monday night.
James Harrison – I
liked the Harrison signing if for no other reason than giving the defense an
attitude and some swagger, but that can’t happen if he is never in the game…and
he essentially isn’t. On Sunday, Harrison played just 5 of the 81 snaps (6%)
and when he is in, they are dropping him into coverage instead of rushing the
passer. I just don’t see what purpose Harrison serves if he isn’t going to
play, and when he does play, they have him cover instead of rush? Can you
believe you would ever hear me sticking up for James Harrison? What has this
world come to?
The Ugly
Turnovers – 4 straight
possessions ending in turnovers. Seemingly an impossible feat, but the Bengals
pulled it off. They even managed to bookend the 4 straight turnovers with two 3
and outs. For the Bengals to win that game on Sunday was amazing. Nonetheless,
the Bengals have to get the turnovers under control. You cannot turn the ball
over 4 times and expect to win. The Bengals now have games of 3, 0 and 4
turnovers. To be 2-1 with that stat is nothing short of amazing.
Nugent’s Day –
Long FGs are not Nugent’s specialty, but extra points have to be converted.
Having the extra point blocked (though not necessarily Nugent’s fault) is
inexcusable. That could have been huge as it left the Bengals down 3 instead of
2 - meaning a FG would only tie the game rather than win it. Lucky for the
Bengals, it turned out not be a big deal, but it could have been. The missed 52
yard FG is also concerning. 52 yards is by no means a “give me” but it is a
distance where the Bengals should be able to feel somewhat confident in their ability
to convert. Unfortunately, Nugent converts just 37.5% from 50+ (6/16) - you
would like to see that number a little closer to 50%. Nugent’s 52 yarder yesterday
never even had a chance. Oh yeah, just for good measure he decided to put a
kickoff out of bounds to give the ball to GB at their own 40 yard line.
Adam Jones Arrested
Again – Can anyone put a damper on a big win like Jones and his run-ins with
the law? Talk to anyone who knows Jones and you will hear that he is a great
guy and the arrest are just not the guy they know. Fair enough, but he now has
been arrested at least 8 times (4 as a Bengal), and while some of them are
minor the volume is the issue. Is a disorderly conduct a big deal? By itself,
no. When you have a history like Jones, it is. Following what was his best game
of the year, Jones gets arrested….oh by the way, Jones is due in court in 2
weeks for his previous arrest. The problem is, on the field, the Bengals need
Jones. However, with his history, he will likely be suspended for his latest run-ins
and at what point does his lack of self-control off the field no longer become
worth it. If it were me making the decisions, Jones would be given a birthday
gift tomorrow….his walking papers.
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