Offensive Line Rating and Joey Franchise

[*SHRacerX*]

(12-16-2021, 09:04 AM)Wyche Wrote: Again guys, go back and look at the grades the last two seasons. If I remember correctly, we graded as the 32nd ranked unit one year, and 30th another. Now the unit has been as high as 15th, but typically settles in somewhere in the 20s. That's at least a ten point swing. That's improvement.

The deep ball didn't even have time to develop last year, and I don't think Mixon would've sniffed 1000 yards behind what we trotted out there. Fred makes a good point that people are ignoring on that one. Yes, Ja'Marr, but what have defenses been doing lately? Is Joe not finding Tee Higgins deep? Yes, he is, and he's getting a bit more time. He's holding the ball some which leads to a few sacks, and early on, the RBs and TEs were struggling with their assignments causing a few on their own. The last couple of weeks the line has struggled more than most of the season for sure.


This year we're averaging 27.2 ppg, last year was 19.2, 2019 was 17.4.  So no Essex, we weren't scoring nearly as much the last two years.

In summation, the oline is the weak link of the team still, but it isn't as bad as it's been. Hopefully it's a work in progress. I recall a lot of people talking about if the line was just around average, we'd be set. Well, it shows that you need it to be a bit better than average for sustained success, and how important it is to everything, no matter how good your skill guys are.

While I agree with almost everything you have said here, I wonder how much of this offensive line conversation is happening if in the past two weeks:

Chase doesn't turn a sure TD in to an INT and Mixon doesn't fumble a gift TD against the Chargers.

Darius Phillips doesn't fumble away two punt returns.

The team would have won both of those games, I believe.  Maybe you could argue that the Chargers would have fought back, but SF was doing nothing in their amazing run game.  The defense was stuffing them.  

One of the biggest problems with those turnovers wasn't just the momentum letdown and the obvious change of possession, but it put the Bengals in a hole on the scoreboard.  When they fall a couple scores down, the opponent can just tee off on the pass rush and have no responsibility as run defenders.  It happened against the Bears, Browns, Chargers, and the 49ers.  All losses.  

If this team wants to go on a run and win the AFC North, it has to eliminate the dumb mistakes.  They are more than competitive if they don't massively screw it up.  

I have a feeling they play Denver very motivated and then come home and smash Baltimore.  My dream scenario is they then knock off a less-desperate Chiefs team and could actually have the AFC North sewn up before the final game.  That would give them the opportunity to rest their starters (since only one team gets the bye) against the Browns and be in the playoffs with a pseudo bye week.