membengal Posted November 12, 2009 Report Share Posted November 12, 2009 Let's try this again. The article is courtesy of haironfire:From FootballOutsiders....11 Nov 2009Cover-3: From Out of Nowhereby Doug FarrarCincinnati's Offensive LineBaltimore Ravens 7 at Cincinnati Bengals 17The Bengals will run some effective zone concepts; blasting a guard or two upfield to help with the second level. They’ll also send linemen pulling in space and go with straight man-on-man drive-blocking. However, the fact that they ranked at or near the bottom of the league in every blocking stat we tabulate implies that perhaps they should pick a method and stick with it.That's what I wrote about the Cincinnati offensive line in a preseason analysis of all 32 NFL lines. That Bengals 2008 line was simply rancid, finishing last in the NFL in Adjusted Line Yards and Stuffed rank, 31st in 10+ Yards, and 30th in Power Success. As we said in the Football Outsiders Almanac, the Bengals' line may have been the single worst unit in the league last season. As we also said in this year's Almanac, teams spending at least 1200 points on the Draft Value Chart on the offensive line in the draft tend to see a significant improvement in Offensive DVOA. The Bengals selected Andre Smith with the sixth overall pick, but he hasn't played a down this season due to an extended contract holdout, weight issues, and a foot injury. When Smith is ready, the team will risk upsetting the continuity of what has become one of the NFL's surprise tales of 2009. Absent their marquee pick, Cincinnati's put together a line that is primed for the power running of Cedric Benson, and the explosive passing game led by Carson Palmer, and they did it with relative no-names and patch jobs. The Bengals have moved up to 17th in ALY, 11th in Power and Stuffed, and 20th in 10+ Yards. I asked Rob Weintraub, FO's reigning Bengals fan, about the reasons for the upswing in performance: "There are several factors, first and foremost being a massive upgrade in attitude and cohesiveness. Cincy made a major push toward accentuating the power running game -- part of an overall trend toward upping the physicality of the team, a much-needed quality in the AFC North. Kyle Cook at center is a massive upgrade over Eric Ghiacuic, who was shoved backwards on a consistent basis. Andrew Whitworth is a natural guard, but he stepped in last year when Levi Jones proved immobile, and was a work in progress. Now he is a solid left tackle."The Bengals frequently use six-man lines, with Dennis Roland coming in as a third tackle. Roland was so good in that role he has taken the starting right tackle job from Anthony Collins. His improvement on a technical level has been amazing. The injury in the preseason to tight end Ben Utecht was something of a blessing in disguise. Utecht was a blocking liability. Now J.P. Foschi and Daniel Coats are the tight ends. They add punch to the run game and wind up staying in to block in many passing sets -- fortunately, the Bengals have good receivers that can get open without tight ends influencing the safeties. And don't underestimate the impact of fullback Jeremi Johnson -- out all last year with an injury, which forced Coats to play fullback. Johnson is no longer a receiving threat, but he can hammer linebackers."And lest we forget a certain number-one pick who has yet to hit the field ..."The Bengals mirrored Baltimore's predilection for unbalanced and reinforced lines from their first play from scrimmage. On a Cedric Benson run up the middle for a one-yard loss, Whitworth lined up outside Collins, and Roland outside Whitworth. The Ravens brought five to the line for the first time three plays later, as the Bengals had first-and-10 from their own 39. Out of an I-formation, Cincy's line executed a nice zone slide as Palmer handed off to Benson. As Whitworth rode the right end out of the play and Cook slid over to take Kelly Gregg, both guards -- Even Mathis and Bobbie Williams -- took to the second level to deal with Ray Lewis. Jeremi Johnson rambled out left to take linebacker Tavares Gooden out as Benson headed left, and Benson was able to jump out of the scrum to gain 12 yards before he was tackled by Domonique Foxworth and Dawan Landry in the secondary. The Bengals could execute power runs against the third-best defense in Adjusted Line Yards, and they weren't done proving it. Whitworth headed back to the right side on the next play, with Foschi motioning to the left as an H-back in an intriguing max-protect concept, but an awkward handoff from Palmer to Benson negated any potential positive gain. As far as pass protection, It was the little things they did that impressed me on the first drive -- sliding left in run looks so that Palmer could roll out right, and leaving the tight end to take care of any leaking defenders, or using Benson to take care of the extra man on an overload. These sound like very basic concepts, but when you're recovering from having the worst line in football, they show up on tape as graphic improvements. Where the pass blocking really showed up in the stats was when the Ravens blitzed and went away from their more successful zone coverage. The defensive pass interference penalty on Fabian Washington with 4:31 left in the first quarter was a perfect example. The Bengals went for it on fourth-and-2 from the Baltimore 39, lining up in shotgun, single-back. The Ravens brought five to the line and added Ray Lewis and Dannell Ellerbe on a dual A-gap blitz. This particular blitz is a featured component of the Baltimore defense -- Rex Ryan brought it to New York and has Bart Scott and David Harris doing it all the time -- but it was dampened on this play by some very strong pass-blocking. As Lewis and Ellerbe hit the line, Cook and Mathis moved right to win the leverage advantage, wiping both 'backers out of the play. At the same time, Whitworth was busy negating Trevor Pryce, and the slide worked again. Palmer moved slightly back and to his left, and had a completely clean pocket. The Bengals had three receivers to the right, forcing man-on-man matchups, and Washington had two choices as Chad Ochocinco blew right by him on a stutter-go -- either hand-check like crazy, or wave bye-bye. The penalty put the Bengals at the Baltimore 15, but it was the pass protection that forced the issue for the Ravens. Stripped of their ability to bring consistent pressure with fewer defenders, they had to compromise with their iffy man coverage abilities. Cincinnati was also creative with extra blockers, using a lot of tight end or fullback motion to H-back to add power in running plays. The Ravens learned that blitzing this Bengals team was an open invitation for Benson to gash them for more yardage. With 4:26 left in the first half and the ball on their own 46, the Bengals went single-back, with Jeremi Johnson motioning from outside right to left H-back pre-snap. Baltimore had a straight 5-2-4 with off coverage. Lewis and Landry started for the center just as soon as Johnson settled two yards behind Whitworth. At the snap, Mathis pushed Lewis out to the right because Cook was able to hand Gregg off and out of the play. Benson had a perfect lane when he got the ball, as Whitworth drove Pryce out to the left and Foschi rode Jarret Johnson out the same way. Benson hit the gas down that particular highway for a 15-yard gain.It's typical to think of teams with great passing games and previously ineffective power blocking as "finesse", but any opponent harboring that assumption about the current Bengals is making a very big mistake. This is as much a power team as any AFC North bully could be, with its stacked lines and inside running, and the schematic variations tell the story of a line with great confidence and continuity. If the Bengals capitalize on their hot start down the stretch, the line will be a major factor -- with or without Andre Smith. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
membengal Posted November 12, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 12, 2009 What's most interesting to me about this is the last two years there have been some huge complaints on this board about Paul Alexander's coaching of the line and the Bengals' drafting at o-line.To those who complained long and loud about that, and you know who you are, what say you to this article and the improvement (vast) that the line has had this year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pidge Posted November 12, 2009 Report Share Posted November 12, 2009 What's most interesting to me about this is the last two years there have been some huge complaints on this board about Paul Alexander's coaching of the line and the Bengals' drafting at o-line.To those who complained long and loud about that, and you know who you are, what say you to this article and the improvement (vast) that the line has had this year.I didn't even know the name of the line coach until last yr, I know next to nothing about line play (or the rest of the game for that matter) but it was obvious it sucked last yr. I suppose it was a case of 'you can't polish a turd.' He's brought together a bunch of low draft rnd picks, undrafted rookies and rejects from other teams and moulded them into a formidable unit in both phases of the game.This is all without the #6 overall draft pick. Hell, right now, I wouldn't bet against him turning Shirley into a good G in a couple of yrs.As for complaints about drafting linemen, I'm not sure that is Alexander's area of responsibility, outside of giving his educated opinion as to which players to go for in the draft. So those complaints might be valid still. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HairOnFire Posted November 12, 2009 Report Share Posted November 12, 2009 I suppose it was a case of 'you can't polish a turd.' By all accounts that's exactly what it was said he couldn't do. For example, Kid Steakhouse has written about a million stupid posts claiming Alexander couldn't develope anyone who wasn't a 1st or 2nd round draft pick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
COB Posted November 13, 2009 Report Share Posted November 13, 2009 Anyone who would start Trampled-Check for a full season has earned doubts about his competency. He's erased those doubts this year, though. I've never seen a center get abused in the NFL like I saw Guichack get abused last year. He was just getting run over by guys who weighed 60 lbs less than him. I think he's out of the league now. Straight from starter in the AFC North to the street? During his prime? This year Paul Alexander is doing a great job coaching the line. Last year? By any measure he was a momumental failure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HairOnFire Posted November 13, 2009 Report Share Posted November 13, 2009 So, am I the only Bengal fan who thinks Kyle Cook might be the Bengals most important player this week? Granted, he wasn't horrible in the first game, but I think it's fair to say it was his worst game to date. So how much better might he look after facing the Steelers odd scheme and vaunted X-cross blitz? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pidge Posted November 13, 2009 Report Share Posted November 13, 2009 I agree Hair. Big big game for Cook. With the injury to the washisface DE, they'll try to get QB pressure up the middle. I really hope Mathis is back too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cincyhokie Posted November 13, 2009 Report Share Posted November 13, 2009 I agree Hair. Big big game for Cook. With the injury to the washisface DE, they'll try to get QB pressure up the middle. I really hope Mathis is back too.Doubt Mathis will play if he does in fact have a high ankle sprain. I expect Livings to start in his place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pidge Posted November 13, 2009 Report Share Posted November 13, 2009 I agree Hair. Big big game for Cook. With the injury to the washisface DE, they'll try to get QB pressure up the middle. I really hope Mathis is back too.Doubt Mathis will play if he does in fact have a high ankle sprain. I expect Livings to start in his place.Well Livings is a great substitute but damn about Mathis. We still have enough to deal with the Steelers either way. This is a game where having a reliable TE could be huge for the quick passes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
membengal Posted November 13, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 13, 2009 Anyone who would start Trampled-Check for a full season has earned doubts about his competency. He's erased those doubts this year, though. I've never seen a center get abused in the NFL like I saw Guichack get abused last year. He was just getting run over by guys who weighed 60 lbs less than him. I think he's out of the league now. Straight from starter in the AFC North to the street? During his prime? This year Paul Alexander is doing a great job coaching the line. Last year? By any measure he was a momumental failure.Except...they didn't want to in 2008. By every account, including from Cook's own mouth on Bengalsline earlier this season, he was supposed to be working in early last year, and broke his foot in a freak accident during warm-ups early in the year.Sometimes...it might actually be bad luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baraka Posted November 13, 2009 Report Share Posted November 13, 2009 quite a day around here.nice find hair. during the off-season i got abused for saying that alexander was well regarded around the league. it's nearly impossible to overstate the importance of the squads o-line play. ced deserves all the credit he's getting, but without those nasty hogs up front he would not be enjoying the same success. here's to pummeling the steelers into submission this weekend. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
COB Posted November 13, 2009 Report Share Posted November 13, 2009 Sometimes...it might actually be bad luck.Agreed. I've always felt there was a lot of luck involved in the NFL. We had good drafts for years, but some bad luck set us back at time when we weren't deep enough to survive it. Everyone wanted to pile on the Bengals personnel dept, but who could have foreseen some of those career-ending injuries? No one. Someone deserves the "credit" for the worst season of NFL centering ever. Maybe Alexander wasn't allowed to bring any free agents in for a look? Whatever happened, that shouldn't have happened. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HoosierCat Posted November 13, 2009 Report Share Posted November 13, 2009 Yeah, I saw that piece yesterday. On the other side of the ball, there's this, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
COB Posted November 13, 2009 Report Share Posted November 13, 2009 there's this, too.Man, I read that and had a flashback to stats class. Pretty horrifying. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HoosierCat Posted November 13, 2009 Report Share Posted November 13, 2009 there's this, too.Man, I read that and had a flashback to stats class. Pretty horrifying.Guess I won't bother directing you to the forbes piece about how Carson is the 8th most clutch QB in the league then... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
COB Posted November 13, 2009 Report Share Posted November 13, 2009 Guess I won't bother directing you to the forbes piece about how Carson is the 8th most clutch QB in the league then... 8th? I guess it's true what they say about statistics then. Because based on this season I'd put him in the top 3. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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