CincyJungle listed 7 winners and 3 losers from the preseason game against the Giants, and, besides for the offensive line's struggles, it's good news for the outlook of this team!

WINNERS

Quote:Offensive guard Cordell Volson: All eyes were on this rookie offensive guard with most of the starters sitting tonight. This was his golden opportunity to show he has surpassed Jackson Carman in the left guard competition while last season’s second round pick was out with a positive COVID result.

Volson did not disappoint. He even got to face the starting defensive line for the Giants. He had a couple of ugly plays, but for the most part, you didn’t notice him in pass protection, and he opened running lanes. We should see him seriously considered for the starting spot at left guard.

Like I mentioned that I thought he would, Volson stepped up and helped solidify himself! Also, like I said, I hope this Volson and Carmen both keep pushing each other.

Quote:Safety Dax Hill: No surprise here. Hill popped in Week 1 of the preseason, and he only built off of it this week. He managed to make an incredible stop in open space that led to a turnover on downs the very next play, and he brought in his first interception diving for a tipped pass. He continues to show how much of a steal the Bengals got in Round 1.

Like I said in the Bates thread, Hill is a playmaker and I'm very impressed with his play. At this point, I'm tired of Bates and I hope we can pull off the tag and trade and maybe help improve the offensive line?

Quote:Wide receiver Kendric Pryor and Kwamie Lassiter II: Pryor was the human highlight reel from Week 1. He managed to show off how well he makes contested catches again this week with some amazing grabs.

Lassiter led the team in catches (7) and yards (91) on the night. He was able to create separation fairly easily, and his only down moment was dropping a 2-point conversion late in the fourth quarter. He made up for that with a clutch catch on the final drive to get them into Giants territory.

Lassiter impressed me last week and, besides for that drop, he continued to impress me this week.

I was impressed with Pryor's route running that I noticed.

It's nice to have so many weapons for Burrow to throw to!

Quote:Quarterback Brandon Allen: Allen missed most of the Week 1 outing with a concussion. He came out and did as well as he could with all the penalties holding the offense back.

I was satisfied with Allen's play and it's nice to have insurance if Burrow would need to come out for a few plays.

Quote:Defensive line depth: We once again saw the likes of Joseph Ossai, Cam Sample and Zac Carter make a number of plays. These guys will see the field during the regular season. They were getting penetration, and making hustle plays on screens. They weren’t perfect, but they give plenty of excitement for how well of a rotation this team will have on the defensive line.

Sample made a play or two that made me take notice and then I was SHOCKED by Carter and it's giving me hope that we might have found a guy that can develop into a good player!

Quote:Punter Drue Chrisman: Chrisman was the only one of the punter to actually punt in this game. He did a very good job with a 48.5 yard average on his three punts. He also ran down a returner on one of his kicks.

Whatever.

LOSERS

Quote:Offensive lineman Jackson Carman: After having a really terrible outing in Week 1, he got to watch Volson do very well in his absence. This is a battle that will likely be an ongoing one, so Carman can potentially try and make his way back from this. However, he will have to play the best football we have seen him play yet to make up any ground next week.

It's unfortunate but glad Volson took advantage and hopefully Carman comes back hard and they both push each other to improve.

Quote:Offensive line depth: Penalties were still a huge issue this week. It seemed like early and often, we were seeing holding penalties calling back any sort of big play. You can argue they were facing the starters on the Giants defense, but this is the talent level they will see if they have to fill in for a starter. In fact, they will probably face better. We just have to hope the starters stay healthy this year.

Yeah. I thought they looked better as the game went on and the Giants were playing players that weren't as good, but the starters worry me, so having no depth also scares me.

Quote:Punter Kevin Huber: Things aren’t looking good for the longest tenured Bengal. He didn’t kick a single punt, and he rotated with Chrisman as the holder for Evan McPherson. We will have to see how things shake out in the coming weeks, but it seems like Cincinnati is favoring the young guy currently.

Oh well.

I liked what I saw from some guys but the o-line just still scares the shit out of me.

There was one play early in the game where the defense rushed ONE guy and got to the QB (or made him rush the throw. I forget but I mentioned it in the game day thread.)

Winner

Clay Johnston…he was a tackling machine tonight

Loser

Tyler Shelvin…. He just can’t move except when someone breathes on him

Honorable mention loser
Khalid Kareem…played ok but now has a hamstring problem.

I really liked what I saw of a lot of dudes.

But hard to not agree with Pally's thought of Clay Johnston, damn that dude gives his all. I don't even know how
many tackles he had... 20 or something including ST's. Stanley Morgan should of had a TD on Offense if Brandon
Allen knew how to throw a football. ADG is looking like the stud I thought. Gunter had a nice pass deflection.

Noah Spence is a winner in this game, was getting pressure a lot. Shelvin sucks cut him and grab somebody else.

Raymond Johnson looked good from what I saw.

Kendrick Pryor I want to stay here, Mike Thomas see yah.

Trent Taylor also needs to be here. We might not need to grab a vet WR for WR4 afterall. I also like Lassiter.

I am missing somebody, oh I think we are hiding Plitt for the PS and cutting Allen and keeping Browning if we are
smart. No way do you play Allen that much without playing Browning and especially Plitt at the most important
backup position imaginable behind our best player.

I see what the coaches are doing, they are testing the entire team to see how they can hold up and don't give 2
shits about a win or loss in a meaningless pre-season. Actually is pretty genius. I don't want to be like the Ravens
and hold the Preseason win record LMAO!!!

I was trying to pay attention to Corners and I saw:

Winners

Allan George
Jalen Davis

George was great with tight coverage, sticking to his guy like glue. And of course Jalen Davis was in the Giant's QB face blitzing from the Nickel a few times and showed dynamic play in general. He was pretty strong last offseason IIRC as well.

Loser
Delonte Hood

It seemed like every time something bad happened, number 37 was there letting a player break out of his tackle or being a step too short to do any good. He's young yet so maybe he'll get a look from another team eventually but for now I'd say cut him lose to give someone else reps in the final pre-season game.

None of the tight ends jumped out at you either. That final TE spot could go to someone from the street

Winner: Dax Hill.... Big time

Loser: Jessie Bates.... Whatever smidgen of leverage he thought he had continues to dissapear further and further into an abyss from which there is no return.

Winner Runner-Up: Von Bell.... Who is looking like the S who should get an extension at this point.

Winners
-Dax Hill. He plays as advertised.
-Trent Taylor. What’s not to like about him.

Losers
-B. Allen. He is just so dang mehhh

Kendric Pryor

Each week Jessie Bates is get more and more expendable.

Thought Volson was really solid tonight other than that one counter play where he collided with another lineman(not sure who's fault that one was) and missed a blitzer and letting them rush in at Allen uncontested. Everyone other than Volson on the offensive line was sloppy. Too many penalties.

Clay Johnston was a man possessed out there. 20 tackles, eye popping. Tackling as a whole from everyone defensively was good last night.

(08-22-2022, 09:29 AM)AlphaBengal Wrote: Each week Jessie Bates is get more and more expendable.

Thought Volson was really solid tonight other than that one counter play where he collided with another lineman(not sure who's fault that one was) and missed a blitzer and letting them rush in at Allen uncontested. Everyone other than Volson on the offensive line was sloppy. Too many penalties.

Clay Johnston was a man possessed out there. 20 tackles, eye popping. Tackling as a whole from everyone defensively was good last night.

Missed the second half (especially 4th Q), didn't you?

Also, Adeniji played well for the entire night and outside of the Penalites, D'Ante Smith played exceptionally as well.

Depth looks a bit better, after last night.

I would mostly agree with Cincy Jungle's winners and losers, but here's where I differ:

Volson may have looked like the best OL out there, but that's not necessarily singing his praises. There's still quite a few things he messed up on and needs improving. He's by no means a "good" option to start at LG...yet at least.

Brandon Allen is not good. At all.
Most of the passes he was completing weren't going beyond 5 yards down the field.
Anything beyond that was inconsistent at best in regard to accuracy.

While I thought Lassiter and Pryor did ok against backups, they aren't good enough to fill in if Higgins or Chase is hurt.
And Mike Thomas is just flat out bad as an offensive player.
I really hope it doesn't come to needing any of these backup WRs to play a significant amount of offensive snaps in a game.

Allen George might hear his name called as the last DB spot on the roster this year.

Barring the Bengals keeping 5 safeties or Bates not playing, I don't think Tycen Anderson makes the roster this year.
The other Mike Thomas has outplayed him to earn the backup SS role. And Hill will be the backup FS if Bates returns.

(08-22-2022, 02:25 AM)Nate (formerly eliminate08) Wrote: ... Kendrick Pryor I want to stay here ...
Trent Taylor also needs to be here. We might not need to grab a vet WR for WR4 afterall. I also like Lassiter.

I am missing somebody, oh I think we are hiding Plitt for the PS and cutting Allen and keeping Browning if we are
smart. 

I agree with all these points. Taylor seems have very sure hands. I don't know how he does on blocking downfield (the good WRs can all block), but he seems to catch everything thrown near him.

I thought Lassiter hurt his case when he dropped a wide open, easy pass in the end zone. When you are a free agent on a team rich in WR talent, you don't have much room for error. But he likely will be playing somewhere if not the Bengals.

(08-22-2022, 09:37 AM)Truck_1_0_1_ Wrote: Missed the second half (especially 4th Q), didn't you?

Also, Adeniji played well for the entire night and outside of the Penalites, D'Ante Smith played exceptionally as well.

Depth looks a bit better, after last night.

When the announcers for the opposing team make a point of highlighting that a member of the Bengals offensive line had three holding penalties, as D'Ante Smith had, it's generally not a very good game for that player. I don't know how legitimate the calls were, but three, and big ones at that, is pretty significant. And the officials don't catch all of the holding.

(08-22-2022, 09:57 AM)Nepa Wrote: When the announcers for the opposing team make a point of highlighting that a member of the Bengals offensive line had three holding penalties, as D'Ante Smith had, it's generally not a very good game for that player. I don't know how legitimate the calls were, but three, and big ones at that, is pretty significant. And the officials don't catch all of the holding.

I had high hopes for D'Ante, but last night showed me the kid still needs a lot of work. He did look a lot bigger than I suspected and I still believe he has the tools. But the best tools in the world are useless if you don't know how to use them.

I hope whatever is up with  La'el gets resolved quickly. 

Pryor caught like 4 balls for 28 yards.

All in scrub time with 3rd stringers and ps

He wouldn’t even make the bears 53 man

(08-22-2022, 09:57 AM)Nepa Wrote: When the announcers for the opposing team make a point of highlighting that a member of the Bengals offensive line had three holding penalties, as D'Ante Smith had, it's generally not a very good game for that player. I don't know how legitimate the calls were, but three, and big ones at that, is pretty significant. And the officials don't catch all of the holding.

(08-22-2022, 10:01 AM)bfine32 Wrote: I had high hopes for D'Ante, but last night showed me the kid still needs a lot of work. He did look a lot bigger than I suspected and I still believe he has the tools. But the best tools in the world are useless if you don't know how to use them.

I hope whatever is up with  La'el gets resolved quickly. 

Smith, along with Adeniji, looked bad last night.
I didn't see Gaillard doing much of anything.
Trey Hill was up and down from what I saw.

As a whole, the entire OL depth is pretty bad.
And starting LG isn't going to be that good either.

(08-22-2022, 02:25 AM)Nate (formerly eliminate08) Wrote: I am missing somebody, oh I think we are hiding Plitt for the PS and cutting Allen and keeping Browning if we are
smart. No way do you play Allen that much without playing Browning and especially Plitt at the most important
backup position imaginable behind our best player.

I see what the coaches are doing, they are testing the entire team to see how they can hold up and don't give 2
shits about a win or loss in a meaningless pre-season. Actually is pretty genius. I don't want to be like the Ravens
and hold the Preseason win record LMAO!!!

When I watch a pre-season game, the last thing I'm concerned about is the scoreboard. Who cares? I want to watch specific players and don't care one iota about the score. 

Brandon Allen just needs to go. He can't hit his receivers at all. I was thinking "well maybe it's because he's playing with the bad receivers, then Browning and Plitt come in and start taking things downfield. To my eye test, both Browning and Plitt are playing better than Allen. They gave Allen extra reps at the start of the 2nd half to "further evaluate" him, I hope that means they are having doubts about him. 

(08-22-2022, 09:57 AM)Nepa Wrote: When the announcers for the opposing team make a point of highlighting that a member of the Bengals offensive line had three holding penalties, as D'Ante Smith had, it's generally not a very good game for that player. I don't know how legitimate the calls were, but three, and big ones at that, is pretty significant. And the officials don't catch all of the holding.

At least one holding I think the 1st looked a little suspect to me. He was pushing his guy down field and it really looked like good blocking to me. After how bad Adeniji looked last week at LT to how much better he looked I would say it was a decent 1st showing for D'Ante and hopefully he'll keep making strides.

(08-22-2022, 12:23 AM)BFritz21 Wrote: I was satisfied with Allen's play and it's nice to have insurance if Burrow would need to come out for a few plays.

Ummmm, were we watching the same game? Allen was HORRIBLE last night. Only reason he didn't throw any INTs was he was throwing balls NO ONE could catch. Dude seriously needs to go play QB somewhere else.

(08-22-2022, 10:08 AM)Sled21 Wrote: Brandon Allen just needs to go. He can't hit his receivers at all. I was thinking "well maybe it's because he's playing with the bad receivers, then Browning and Plitt come in and start taking things downfield. To my eye test, both Browning and Plitt are playing better than Allen. They gave Allen extra reps at the start of the 2nd half to "further evaluate" him, I hope that means they are having doubts about him. 

Oh, I hope this is true.

I get the desire of having a competent, veteran backup in case of a Burrow injury, but Allen is anything but competitive. If he sees the field due to a Burrow injury, we ain't winning the game. and if we ain't winning the game with Allen, might as well give Plitt a chance to see if he can grow into a competent backup QB (or more).