Giving up 6.5 yards per rush, and missing a LOT of tackles I still worry about the state of the Bengals and I still don't think they are at the level we expected from them this season. I don't know why they can't stop the run all the sudden, the only thing I can blame is the poor tackling in the secondary. Battle needs to be starting over that scrub from the Rams I know that much.

The offensive line will face a huge task slowing down Seattle this week, and they have 2 elite corners to slow down Jamar Chase. We still don't know if Tee Higgings will be playing either.

The Bengals looked much better. Burrow looked much better, able to move around, he was shifty in the pocket, making some plays open up and making some runs even. The run game is still lacking, but they need to keep the commitment to the run to keep the defense honest. They finally used the play action to open up the play book and throw the ball down the field like I have been begging for all season.

Hopefully they match up well with Seattle but I just don't know about this game.

3-3 at the bye right now seems like a blessing and I don't know if they can do it. I hope so.

Who Dey

(10-10-2023, 07:32 PM)KyBengalfan94 Wrote: Giving up 6.5 yards per rush, and missing a LOT of tackles I still worry about the state of the Bengals and I still don't think they are at the level we expected from them this season.  I don't know why they can't stop the run all the sudden, the only thing I can blame is the poor tackling in the secondary.  Battle needs to be starting over that scrub from the Rams I know that much.

The offensive line will face a huge task slowing down Seattle this week, and they have 2 elite corners to slow down Jamar Chase.  We still don't know if Tee Higgings will be playing either.

The Bengals looked much better.  Burrow looked much better, able to move around, he was shifty in the pocket, making some plays open up and making some runs even.  The run game is still lacking, but they need to keep the commitment to the run to keep the defense honest.  They finally used the play action to open up the play book and throw the ball down the field like I have been begging for all season.

Hopefully they match up well with Seattle but I just don't know about this game.  

3-3 at the bye right now seems like a blessing and I don't know if they can do it.  I hope so.

Who Dey

To bolded, if the run got to the secondary, two levels of defense already had chances to make a tackle..

(10-10-2023, 07:32 PM)KyBengalfan94 Wrote: Giving up 6.5 yards per rush, and missing a LOT of tackles I still worry about the state of the Bengals and I still don't think they are at the level we expected from them this season.  I don't know why they can't stop the run all the sudden, the only thing I can blame is the poor tackling in the secondary.  Battle needs to be starting over that scrub from the Rams I know that much.

Battle needs to process much faster and his game speed is a serious question.

(10-10-2023, 07:48 PM)SunsetBengal Wrote: To bolded, if the run got to the secondary, two levels of defense already had chances to make a tackle..

Well, the d line hasn't been great at stopping the run either but I saw a lot of missed tackles from the secondary.  Nick Scott missed so many he was benched.  

We are really missing Bates and Bell

In regards to this game, I give the Bengals a solid 70-some % chance of winning, so I'm fairly confident they will win.

Now even though I was once a THREE time back-to-back-to-back Pick Em champ on the old Bengals board, there is a small chance I am wrong.

(10-10-2023, 07:58 PM)KyBengalfan94 Wrote: Well, the d line hasn't been great at stopping the run either but I saw a lot of missed tackles from the secondary.  Nick Scott missed so many he was benched.  

We are really missing Bates and Bell

If a team is relying on the members of the secondary to stop the run, something else in front of them has serious problems. If you and I see it, you can be sure that Coach Lou sees it, and is likely doing his best to remedy the situation.  I mean, it's not like the team is going to get rid of anyone in the front seven right now and sign some super hero, uber high salary guys to come stop the leak..

But yes, Nick Scott has turned out just like I thought that he would, a place holder until Jordan Battle gets up to speed. 

(10-10-2023, 08:10 PM)SunsetBengal Wrote: If a team is relying on the members of the secondary to stop the run, something else in front of them has serious problems. If you and I see it, you can be sure that Coach Lou sees it, and is likely doing his best to remedy the situation.  I mean, it's not like the team is going to bet rid of anyone in the front seven right now and sign some super hero, uber high salary guys to come stop the leak..

But yes, Nick Scott has turned out just like I thought that he would, a place holder until Jordan Battle gets up to speed. 

Oh I totally agree with you there. I don't know what's up with the D tackles but Reader is not the run stopper he was and teams are taking advantage. I see a lot of runs bouncing to the outside of tackles beating us especially against Cleveland. All the Browns had to do was run to the left and they had 5 to 8 yard gain.

Seattle offense is going to be tough... they can run some Ravens type sets and then turnaround and beat you deep with their trio of talent WR's.

Defense has their work out for them and they have to figure out how to tackle. To me it seems like they are not taking correct routes to the ball carrier.

All I know is I hope Burrow is truly back because it's time the offense starts carrying the team. That's what he was paid for. We let two key members of the defense go in preparation to pay Burrow and Chase. Time to perform!

(10-10-2023, 08:17 PM)KyBengalfan94 Wrote: Oh I totally agree with you there.  I don't know what's up with the D tackles but Reader is not the run stopper he was and teams are taking advantage.  I see a lot of runs bouncing to the outside of tackles beating us especially against Cleveland.  All the Browns had to do was run to the left and they had 5 to 8 yard gain.

I can't pin the tail on just Reader, I've watched him doing his job too many times this season.  If he get's double teamed, that's what he's supposed to command.  The rest of the DL and LBs might be a bit overly focused on pass rush to transition to basic run mentality as quickly as they need to be doing.

I just think we are really hurting in the secondary. Dax Hill has flashed some amazing speed and skills, but Nick Scott is trash. I think Battle is going to be a great player eventually but that takes time. Turner missed some tackles, CTB is solid, Awuzie was out so that doesn't help.

This defense is really missing Jessie Bates and Von Bell. I was so disappointed when the Bengals let them both walk

I think in addition to Burrow continuing to develop and get healthy it’s time for Tyler Boyd to also have an impact game. You can bet the Seahawks are going to be keying on Chase and doing all they can to take him away and Boyd could get some good looks, especially if Higgins is out.

On defense though it’s going to be another really tough test against some very good running backs. If they don’t correct those missed tackles then it could get ugly.

Mostly I just want to see the Bengals string together back to back solid games.

The defense issues against the run have not been power related - getting blown back off the line. Rather it is tackling and getting burned by cutbacks and deception plays. So the issue is more one of backside contain and edge setting than anything else. coverage wise our secondary got burnt once on a flat out blown coverage and Battle had one play where he was single high in the end zone - not something he has experience doing.

Offensively our line should do its job pass protecting just fine. Seattle's sack numbers are for 4 games 11 sacks against the Giants and 5 (IIRC) against the other three opponents. Coverage wise they rank 31st in the league in pass yards per game surrendered. They do rank 6th in the league in run defense so running well will be a challenge. So in theory expect another Burrow 40+ drop back game with them using the pass as a run proxy while looking to take the top off whenever possible.

(10-10-2023, 08:10 PM)SunsetBengal Wrote: If a team is relying on the members of the secondary to stop the run, something else in front of them has serious problems. If you and I see it, you can be sure that Coach Lou sees it, and is likely doing his best to remedy the situation.  I mean, it's not like the team is going to get rid of anyone in the front seven right now and sign some super hero, uber high salary guys to come stop the leak..

But yes, Nick Scott has turned out just like I thought that he would, a place holder until Jordan Battle gets up to speed. 

I honestly don't know why the front 7 is so bad at stopping the run now, as they are the exact same as last year.
If Reader and/or Hubbard were out, I would better understand.

Feels more like it's with the called defensive plays than anything else, but transparently I haven't watched the defense that closely to see if they are just getting bullied by the opposing OL.

(10-11-2023, 01:20 PM)ochocincos Wrote: I honestly don't know why the front 7 is so bad at stopping the run now, as they are the exact same as last year.
If Reader and/or Hubbard were out, I would better understand.

Feels more like it's with the called defensive plays than anything else, but transparently I haven't watched the defense that closely to see if they are just getting bullied by the opposing OL.

Our Dline outside of Reader and Hubbard has been bad at stopping the run. All DTs seem to have taken a step back (at best none forward) this year. 

(10-11-2023, 01:20 PM)ochocincos Wrote: I honestly don't know why the front 7 is so bad at stopping the run now, as they are the exact same as last year.
If Reader and/or Hubbard were out, I would better understand.

Feels more like it's with the called defensive plays than anything else, but transparently I haven't watched the defense that closely to see if they are just getting bullied by the opposing OL.

Having Vonn Bell the previous 3 seasons allowed the Bengals to be much more effective in the 2 LB base defense.  In three seasons with the Bengals, Bell had 288 tackles and 9 takeaways.

(10-10-2023, 07:32 PM)KyBengalfan94 Wrote: Giving up 6.5 yards per rush, and missing a LOT of tackles I still worry about the state of the Bengals and I still don't think they are at the level we expected from them this season.  I don't know why they can't stop the run all the sudden, the only thing I can blame is the poor tackling in the secondary.  Battle needs to be starting over that scrub from the Rams I know that much.

The offensive line will face a huge task slowing down Seattle this week, and they have 2 elite corners to slow down Jamar Chase.  We still don't know if Tee Higgings will be playing either.

The Bengals looked much better.  Burrow looked much better, able to move around, he was shifty in the pocket, making some plays open up and making some runs even.  The run game is still lacking, but they need to keep the commitment to the run to keep the defense honest.  They finally used the play action to open up the play book and throw the ball down the field like I have been begging for all season.

Hopefully they match up well with Seattle but I just don't know about this game.  

3-3 at the bye right now seems like a blessing and I don't know if they can do it.  I hope so.

Who Dey

Cincinnati has been using play-action all season and have likely been looking to push the ball down the field all season. It just hasn't been there or Burrow hasn't felt comfortable throwing it. 

(10-10-2023, 07:32 PM)KyBengalfan94 Wrote: Giving up 6.5 yards per rush, and missing a LOT of tackles I still worry about the state of the Bengals and I still don't think they are at the level we expected from them this season.  I don't know why they can't stop the run all the sudden, the only thing I can blame is the poor tackling in the secondary.  Battle needs to be starting over that scrub from the Rams I know that much.

The offensive line will face a huge task slowing down Seattle this week, and they have 2 elite corners to slow down Jamar Chase.  We still don't know if Tee Higgings will be playing either.

The Bengals looked much better.  Burrow looked much better, able to move around, he was shifty in the pocket, making some plays open up and making some runs even.  The run game is still lacking, but they need to keep the commitment to the run to keep the defense honest.  They finally used the play action to open up the play book and throw the ball down the field like I have been begging for all season.

Hopefully they match up well with Seattle but I just don't know about this game.  

3-3 at the bye right now seems like a blessing and I don't know if they can do it.  I hope so.

Who Dey

The Seahawks are 3-1 for a reason, but they haven't played a QB like what we saw play against the Cardinals or a WR like what Chase is 
right now. Our Defense expected more pass once we were up big and that big run by Moore was a great misdirection play in desperation.

I think it will be a tough game against a vet QB in Geno Smith and some good RB's that Seattle has. DK Metcalf might get some big plays
but I expect us to hit him good with our Safeties and CTB and frustrate him. I think we can pull this one out if Burrow is getting better in 
health and his mind like he is showing. We also know now that we have a good backup WR/PR in Velveeta which is awesome and gives 
Defenses another thing to think about if Tee cannot go.

As far as elite Corners go, I haven't seen it with Seattle. They have the names, but they have played against running teams for the most
part and are one of the worst teams against the pass. We will see against a passing Offense with a recovering Burrow at the helm.

(10-10-2023, 08:58 PM)KyBengalfan94 Wrote: I just think we are really hurting in the secondary.  Dax Hill has flashed some amazing speed and skills, but Nick Scott is trash.  I think Battle is going to be a great player eventually but that takes time.  Turner missed some tackles, CTB is solid, Awuzie was out so that doesn't help.

This defense is really missing Jessie Bates and Von Bell.  I was so disappointed when the Bengals let them both walk

The inability to stop the run is not on the secondary rather the front 7.  Tacking on the other hand has been bad at all levels.

Facing Chubb, Lamar, and Henry 3 of the first 5 games of the season is no easy task. Especially when you have a young secondary and two replacement safties.

This defense will continue to gel. At the end of the season if they are still getting decimated by the run, then I'll worry.

(10-12-2023, 09:35 AM)WeezyBengal Wrote: Facing Chubb, Lamar, and Henry 3 of the first 5 games of the season is no easy task. Especially when you have a young secondary and two replacement safties.

This defense will continue to gel. At the end of the season if they are still getting decimated by the run, then I'll worry.

The bengals actually gave up more YPC against the Rams and Cardinals than against the three mentioned.

Browns - 5.15 YPC
Ravens - 4.8 YPC
Rams - 5.46 YPC
Titans - 5.24 YPC
Cardinals - 6.45 YPC