This is merely a fans perspective but the age old run the ball and play defense and try to create turnovers is certainly a great recipe; one often not achieved. I wanted to write down my thoughts on what I think the Bengals need in order to beat the Chargers today.
Short Third Downs for the Offense
The Bengals are notorious for running on first down for a short gain, an incomplete pass on second and then a third and long not completed. Add in a penalty or a second run for no gain and it is the 2019 Bengals all over again. Andy Dalton was never afforded great third down situations and I suspect this will also be a Burrow challenge. The Bengals either need to get better intermediate passing going early or get the yards that we pay Joe Mixon to get per carry early.
Linebacker Baptism by Fire
Besides OL the linebacker group is our biggest question mark. We haven’t heard squat about Logan Wilson and how he progressed through camp. Josh Bynes sounds ready to anchor the middle but even he has never had this large of a roll in his tenure. Pratt has hopefully got better and his trajectory was moving in the right direction at the end of last season. Linebackers need to tackle and hopefully Vonn Bell and DJ Reader were a big enough addition to help against the Chargers. This will be a great early test to see what this new rotation can do.
Mind the Gap
Losing Atkins hurts no matter how deep we added to DT this offseason. I would anticipate that they are going to move Hubbard inside on blitzing plays and go with Lawson/Dunlap and Hubbard/Daniels to get pressure on Tyrod. We have a Ferrari front four when Atkins is healthy but this means that either Dunlap or Hubbard are going to get the double-team treatment. The other must get pressure and seal the edge so that Tyrod cannot take off.
The OL Must Prove us Wrong
We all wanted Hart gone or at least Johnson to start over him. Billy Price looks like a bust and is a backup. Jonah Williams has a lot of hope but is really a rookie. The DE’s of the Chargers are on joke and this will be a huge test for this OL to keep Burrow alive. They must keep penalties down and at least give Burrow enough room to escape and extend plays. Mixon could rush for 2,000 yards if he had a good OL; they need to give him 90-100 tomorrow to help Burrow’s passing out.
Take Risks
We know the Bengals are not going to win the Super Bowl this year (but next year and the next 9 at least). Taylor needs to make risky calls on 4th down, short yardage, timeouts, challenges and trusting in Joe. Basically all of the things that Marvin Lewis wasn’t good at. Put confidence in this team and they will reward you; maybe not every time but enough.
I know I have not been this excited since Carson Palmer was drafted (for the record I still hate Palmer). I am counting down the hours until kickoff and can’t wait to see everyone online cheering on our boys. Who Dey!