Blocking for the OTHER Joe

[*SHRacerX*]

(07-05-2021, 08:16 PM)TheLeonardLeap Wrote: It is going to be interesting to see the board reaction when "Pollack" isn't the magical cureall word that solves all the Bengals offensive problems that people have been making it for the last 6 months.

The Jets didn't exactly prosper under Pollack.

Mediocre/bad RBs often have 1 year highs that are just never recreated. We've seen it a ton just in the AFCN even. Cedric Benson in 2009, Peyton Hillis in 2010, Jeremy Hill in 2014, Justin Forsett in 2014, Alex Collins in 2017, James Connor in 2018... that's just off the top of my head in the AFCN.

Also worth noting, Mixon has missed multiple games in 3 of his 4 seasons. He's not exactly durable, so even if he does go back to 2018 form, I highly highly doubt that he's a legitimate 2,000 all-purpose yard candidate. In 2018 he was 536 yards shy of that mark and that was his career best. That's not a small amount away. 

Le'Veon Bell was the last guy to go to 2k in the AFCN (in 2014) and only roughly 1 person per year gets there in all of the NFL, with zero repeats since Ray Rice did it in '09 and '11.

Last time I heard someone talk about 2k yards for a Bengals RB was Jeremy Hill heading into the 2015 season "they should give him the ball 30 times a game!"

The Jets improved from 94 yards a game in 2019 to 105.2 per game in 2020, which is 22nd in the NFL.  Not exactly earth-shattering, but a significant improvement under Pollack and their top RB was Frank Gore.  

I am not trying to convey that Pollack arrives and all the Bengal's issues with the rushing attack are eliminated, but I do see the potential for significant improvement for the following reasons:

- Jim Turner is gone
- Joe Mixon is back
- Perine is not someone people look forward to tackling at the end of a game
- The Bengals weren't THAT bad in 2020, despite Mixon being out and having Turner:  Ranked 24th in the league, and averaged 4.1 YPC.
- Significant upgrades on the offensive line from the awful unit that started most of the early games

2,000 all-purpose yards is a crazy season for a single RB, but Mixon IS a legitimate candidate.  Always coming off the field for Gio took away a lot of his receiving potential.  I don't think it is unrealistic to think Mixon could have 50 receptions and 500 yards this upcoming season.  If that happens, and the rushing attack is working with good balance on the offense in general, 1500 rushing yards doesn't seem unfathomable.

Plus, I like that Mixon seems very hungry.  I know it is all talk right now, but he is saying he wants to be the #1 RB in the NFL this year.  I love it and think it is time to really unleash him.