Week 5 (SNF): Bengals @ Ravens

[AMPHAR]

To be honest until Joe Burrow can sit there and start taking the yards given.  D-coordinators are not going to change and the griping about scheme or whatever will be futile.    As the clips are coming out:

Burrow isn't playing bad.   He just isn't playing elite.      His Int once again on first down should have been checked down take your easy 5 yard gain and move on to 2nd and 5.    Clean pocket.

Then the line that is playing better but I wouldn't say great absolutely has to punish teams for playing coverage.    Otherwise the ticket to the playoffs is relying on Defense.

 

 

[ArmyBengal]

It's all pretty much whatever.  They have shit to fix.
Lets win on Sunday.

[Stripes]

Burrow checked it down pretty often in Baltimore. Sometimes I wonder about the play design, because those checkdowns were often of the most hopeless variety (running backs or Hurst near the line of scrimmage with little chance to advance the ball significantly). This is the kind of stuff where Tyler Boyd should be feasting.

[AMPHAR]

1 hour ago, Stripes said:

Burrow checked it down pretty often in Baltimore. Sometimes I wonder about the play design, because those checkdowns were often of the most hopeless variety (running backs or Hurst near the line of scrimmage with little chance to advance the ball significantly). This is the kind of stuff where Tyler Boyd should be feasting.

Disagree (checking down part).  Burrow took a sack.   Next two drives checked it down to Hurst and resulted in punts.    Then after the INT.   Checking it down was quite effective as they didn't punt the rest of the game.   Post Int:

1st drive - running game carried it. With a big play to Thomas.  TD

2nd drive - Check downs to Perine.  He caught 3 passes.  This got them a shot at the endzone but ultimately a FG.

3rd drive - Burrow passed on checking it down,  INT

4th drive - Check downs to Boyd, Hurst, and Perine creating first downs.    They got Chase 1 v. 1 down and got the PI.  They got stopped on the goal line

5th and final drive - TD.   Some good runs, but a lot of short passes. 

 

That's it once they started to take what the D gave them they had to punt twice.   The lone exception was throwing into coverage vs. two targets open underneath.

IMO, the Bengals need to have mindset to damage defenses like this until they change.   Throwing into coverage or taking sacks will only encourage them to play more coverage because the Bengals are proving to be their own worse enemy on offense.