Welp, that was a complete shit show.
The Bengals lose in a frustrating game. Disappointment was inevitable, on the week we go up against one of the best receiving backs in the league and we don’t have Brown or Burfict. Not to mention we also didn’t have Mixon and it looked as if the offensive line decided to take this week off. While this was a sad game that only seemed to be filled with negatives, there were a few positives too. Let’s dive into it!
Negatives
The Defense
The defense was awful. Just absolutely awful. And it wasn’t just one position, everybody sucked. Christian McCaffery made us look like his bitch. I understand that Burfict and Brown are out…. but 184 yards from him alone? I don’t care who’s in at linebacker, that’s unacceptable. Dre Kirkpatrick looked like a dumpster on fire. He was awful.
Panthers offense right now: Drop back, find Dre Kirkpatrick, throw at him.
— Paul Dehner Jr. (@pauldehnerjr) September 23, 2018
Honestly though, that was the story of our defense on Sunday. About every play Kirkpatrick was getting targeted, and every time he allowed the catch. It’s just pathetic. Kirkpatrick made all their wide receivers look like all-pros. He made no adjustments throughout the game. Horrible game from Dre. That was a story we saw far too often last year, and we’re already seeing an inconsistent Dre this year. Something in his play needs to change now.
Also, where the hell was our defensive line? The Panthers offensive line had 3 starters out, and we only get 1 fucking sack. Not great. They didn’t get any help from the linebackers, but that’s not an excuse to play as bad as they did. Carlos Dunlap seemed to be the only defensive lineman who showed up (to be fair, Atkins was doubled team the majority of the game).
HUGE play by the #Bengals’ defense. Carlos Dunlap with the deflection pic.twitter.com/zOxff94QI3
— James Rapien (@JamesRapien) September 23, 2018
Teryl Austin needs to change up his play calling as well. It’s hurting us more than helping us.
John Ross
WTF Ross, what the actual fuck are you doing? Look at this:
Watch Dalton's reaction when he realizes John Ross is bailing on the play pic.twitter.com/aWr1m3Mdw3
— Elite Andy Dalton (@EvilAndyDalton) September 23, 2018
I get you’re going to make mistakes, but giving up on the play? That’s just unacceptable. No excuse. You need to get 110% effort, every single down. Sure, the ball could have been thrown better – but if Ross keeps going, there’s no way that’s an interception. Ross made too many mistakes Sunday. The 1st interception on the comeback route, he should of tried to knock the ball away. He also dropped a deep pass:
Best view of the other deep ball to Ross. These are the ones he's here to catch. pic.twitter.com/xNJDaR28fh
— Goodberry (@JoeGoodberry) September 25, 2018
He just can’t have these issues. I love Ross- but he looked awful against Carolina. On the bright side, he did back the safeties up, and that opened some stuff up for Boyd. But imagine the impact Ross can have once he starts being productive. Defenses will be scared as hell if he can do more than catch 5 yard passes. He will open up the offense so much more, but he has to not have these stupid mistakes before that happens.
Injuries
Yikes guys, did we forget to stretch before the game? There were so many injuries on Sunday. Here’s a list of all the Bengals players who were hurt at some point on Sunday:
- AJ Green
- Giovani Bernard
- Andrew Billings
- Ryan Glasgow
- Carl Lawson
- Tyler Kroft
- Clayton Fejedelem
Yes, I kept count.
All listed happened just during the game. We have other injuries, such as Joe Mixon and Billy Price. Some of the injuries I listed above were smaller injuries, such as cramps. But there were injuries such as Ryan Glasgow’s torn ACL that is going to really hurt the team. The Injury Bug was a huge problem for the Bengals.
Even in losses, there are positives. Let’s try to find them…
Postives
Surviving with injuries
As I just previously said, injuries killed us. I’m not using that to excuse the loss, because the Panthers had plenty of injuries too. However, the Bengals were missing AJ Green and Joe Mixon. Our 2 best offensive players. Green got hurt very early in the 3rd quarter. So missing both Green and Mixon, you’d think our offense would crumble, right?
Surprisingly, it didn’t. Of course we were nowhere near as good, but we were still able to throw together a semi-functional offense. If we would have lost Green last year, we would of been burnt toast. And some of the offensive issues didn’t even happen because if the absence of Green or Mixon – sometimes it was a stupid penalty or missed block. But knowing our offense can still be functional without our 2 main guys is a big positive. That says a lot about Bill Lazor and his ability to adapt to the situation.
Tyler Boyd
We saw Boyd play really well last week, and then we saw him play GREAT this week. Boyd had 6 catches, 132 yards, and a TD. Each week, Boyd is proving more and more that he’s a legit target for us and he’s giving defenses more to worry about. Andy Dalton has always turned to him as a safety blanket, but now he’s starting to become much more than that.
Despite the loss, @Bengals WR Tyler Boyd (@boutdat_23) showed out. Highlights! #CINvsCAR pic.twitter.com/PD1Iy1x8sG
— NFL (@NFL) September 24, 2018
Giovani Bernard
Sure, it wasn’t pretty, but Giovani Bernard had a good game. Bernard had 12 carries, 61 yards, and a TD. He also 5 catches for 25 yards. He was averaging 5.1 yards per touch. It was inconsistent for sure, but he showed that he’s more then capable of taking the load until Mixon gets back. He will be even better when the line decides to block again.
Question
How will we fair against a really talented offense?
It’s no secret that the Falcons have a great offense. The Bengals defense has struggled this year, and when you look at it, they haven’t faced a great offensive test. The Ravens are as average as you can be, and outside of Newton and McCaffery – the Panthers offense isn’t very good.
But this Sunday we’ll find out. The Falcons have a damn good offense. Julio Jones is a top 3 receiver, Coleman is a lot like McCaffery (Freeman is out), Sanu is a great slot receiver, and Calvin Ridley is looking like a young stud. Bengals defense will have to step up against such a powerful offense.
Quick notes
- As I previously mentioned, Glasgow did indeed tear his ACL. Though he wasn’t the flashiest, he was a solid nose tackle. He will miss the rest of the year
- Bengals picked up Adolphus Washington off of the Cowboys practice squad in replacement. He was a 3rd round pick in 2016. He has 3 sacks in 21 games started. Good signing. He fits that nose tackle role that Glasgow played, and can also play some 3 technique.
- Preston Brown should start next Sunday.
- Mixon is practicing, but likely won’t play Sunday
- AJ Green is practicing, and is likely to play Sunday