Setting the Stage
Both teams lost/both teams are considered near the bottom of the 32 NFL teams. Bengs were thumped 27 - 3 by the Steelers. Cards fell prey to the Seahawks 27 - 10. CW holds that, if the Cards only managed to win a few games, one of the teams they'b beat would be Cincy. (Note - other (more superstitious) Card fans prefer to not to raise the issue & avoid jinxing the team by talking about it). Bengs are coming off a short week (having played Steelers on Monday night).
Cincy's Last Game
Bengals posted first points with a 3 yd field goal by Bullock in the 1Q, but Steelers came back with 27 unanswered points to win in dominating fashion 27 - 3. Pittsburgh ran a lot of short offensive plays, mauch of it out of the Wildcat.
First Quarter
Cin FG - Bullock - 28 Yds- Cincy 3 - Steelers 0
First Quarter Score - Cincy 3 - Steelers 0
Second Quarter
Pit TD - Connor - 21 yds - pass from Rudolph- Steelers 7 - Cincy 3
Pit FG - Boswell - 29 yds - Steelers 10 - Cincy 3
2nd Quarter Score - Steelers 10 - Cincy 3
3rd Quarter
Pit TD - Samuels - 2 yd run -Steelers 17 - Cincy 3
Pit - TD - D Johnson - 43 yd pass from Rudolph - Steelers 24 - Cincy 3
3rd Quarter Score - Steelers 24 - Cincy 3
Fourth Quarter
Pitt - FG - 49 yds - Boswell - Steelers 27 - Cincy 3
Final Score - Steelers 27 - Cincy 3
Cincy in a Nutshell
They have trouble generating much offense or protecting Andy Dalton (sacked 8 times vs. Steelers). Their top receivers are either sidelined or extremely banged up.
Quarterbacks
QB ...14 Dalton...05 Finley...07 Dolegala
Running Backs
RB....28 Mixon...25 Bernard...32 T Williams...34 Perine
FB...44 Bellore
Wide Receivers
WR...11 Ross III...18 AJ Green.
WR ..83 Boyd... 12 Erickson
WR...19 A Tate...15 Willis
Tight Ends
TE...87 Uzomah...85 Eifert....89 Sample...82 C Carter...xx Vannett
Offensive Line
LT...77 C Glenn..71 A Smith
LG..60 Jordan...64 Jerry
OC...66 Hopkins...53 Price
RG..67 Miller...62 Redmond
RT...68 Hart
Cardinal Defense
Defensive Interior Line
LDE - 97 Z Allen...90 Bullard...91 Dogbe
NT - 98 Peters, 92 Kerr
RDE - 95 Gunter, 93 McDonald
Linebackers
SAM - 55 C Jones, 50 Reed
ILB - 43 Reddick, 59 Walker
MLB - 58 Hicks, 42 Gardeck...47 Z Turner
WILL - 56 Suggs, 54 Marsh Jr
Defensive Backs
RCB - 33 Murphy...27 K Peterson
LCB - 20 Brock...25 C Jones,
SS - 35 D Thompson...38 Banjo
FS - 32 Baker...38 J Thompson... 28 C Washington... 40 Tillman*
Cincy Passing Attack vs. Cardinal Pass Defense
Dalton spent most of the Steeler game under heavy duress. He was sacked 8 times and intercepted once and fumbled away the ball another time. Dalton completed21 of 37 passes for 171 yds. Tyler Boyd was held to three completions & 33 yds. AJ Green (ankle) is out. RossII left the game in the 3Q with a shoulder injury. Cincy QBs have been sacked 19 times in 4 games. Top Cincy receiver vs. Steelers was Bernard (4 catches for 16 yards)
Cards cut Swearinger. Banjo or either of the two Thompson will compete for the job opening. Memo to K Kingsbury - Rudolph is an "air raid QB." Memo to V Josepth. TE Nick Vannett (picked up in a trade with Seattle) caught 2 passes for 28 yds.
Key Matchups - Cincy O-line vs. C Jones, &T Suggs. Vannett vs. D Thompson
Matchup: Cincy Rushing Attack vs. Cardinal Run Defense
Mixon gained 62 yds on 15 carries vs. Steelers. His backup (Bernard) only had one carry. Caardinal run defenders have gotten pushed around for most of the season
Key Matchups - Mixon vs. Hicks
Cardinal Offense
Still trying to figure out who they are. There are flashes of brilliance but just as many plays that turn into drive-killers. I think many Cardinal loyalists are waiting for that "break-thru moment. Will it be this Sunday? Or not?
Quarterbacks
01 Murray, 07 Hundley
Running Back
31 D Johnson, 29 Edmonds, 37 Foster
Wide Receivers
WR - 11 Fitzgerald...89 Isabella,
WR - 19 KS Johnson
WR -
16 Sherfield...12 Cooper
Tight Ends
TE - 85 Clay, 87 M Williams
Offensive Line
LT- ...74 Humphries...66 Miles,
LG - 67 Pugh
OC- 53 Shipley, 52 Cole
RG- 64 Sweezy, 65 Gailliard.
RT - 71 J Murray...79 J Mills...78 Toth
Cincy Defense
Front four looks as though they could be quite formidable under the right circumstances, but the Bengal depth chart appears to be devoid of very many impact players.
Defensive Line
LDE....96 Dunlap...72 Wynn
NT...99 Billings...91 Tupou...95 Wren
DT...97 Atkins...98 Glagsow
RDE...94 Hubbard...58 Lawson...93 A Brown
Linebackers
LB....59 Vigil...50 Evans...55 Reynolds
LB...52 P Brown..57 Pratt
NCB...23 Webb...29 McRae
Defensive Backs
CB....27 Kirkpatrick...26 Mabin
CB....22 Jackson II...20 McTyer
S......36 S Williams...42 Fejedelem
S......30 Bates II...40 B Wilson
Matchup: Cardinal Passing Attack vs. Cincy Pass Defense
Cincy pass defense allowed Mason Rudolph to throw for 229 yards and 2 TDs on Monday night. Rudolph completed 24 of 28 passes - mostly quick hitters.
Cards rank #21 in passing yardage (234.2 YPG). Cincy ranks #17th in passing yardage allowed
Key Matchups:
K Murray and the Cardinal OL vs. Dunlap and Hubbard. FItz and KS Johnson vs. Kirkpatrick and Jackson II. D Johnson vs. Bates II
Matchup: Cardinal Running Attack vs. Cincy Run Defense
Pittsburgh ran a lot of plays out of the Wildcat formation. Jaylen Samuels ran for 26 yds and a TD, while catching 8 passes for 57 yards. Plays were mostly dink 'n dunk, and Cincy couldn't stop them. Cards rank #23rd in rushing yardage (92.0 YPG). Cincy ranks #27 in running yds allowed.
Key Matchups
D Johnson vs. Cincy Front Four.
Special Teams
Lee sat out Sunday's game and was replaced by Winslow. Gonzalez missed 2 make-able FGs.. Kirk was injured and may or may not be out for the rest of the season. Pharoah Cooper has returned.
Cincy Special Teams
K .04 Bullock
P ..... 10 Huber
H 10 Huber
LS 46 Harris
KR ..12 Erickson
PR 12 Erickson
Cardinals Special Teams
P - ...02 Lee....09 Winslow
K- ....05 Gonzalez
H - ...02 Lee
LS - 46 Brewer
KR - 12 Cooper
PR - 12 Cooper
Matchup Cincy Special Teams vs. Cardinal Special Teams
Cards seem to have an edge in kicking/ punting
Key Matchups
Despite his transgressions, we still like Gonzalez over Bullock...Huber figures to be better than an injured Lee or backup Winslow...Dunno much about Erickson, but like Cooper in the return game.
Coaching / Intangibles
HC Zac Taylor...OC Brian Callahan...DC Lou Anarumo...ST Darrin Simmomns. Like Kingsbury, a relatively young top gun and staff. And like K2 is finding his way in the early stages.
How to Beat Bengals
This may be one of the few games we play where - if we keep mistakes to a minimum, keep our heads down and rely on an overall edge in talent - we should beat these guys. But both teams are young, and "you never know." |
