Postseason run defense

[*TheLeonardLeap*]

(01-11-2022, 03:47 PM)JaggedJimmyJay Wrote: Preliminary disclaimer: none of this has any bearing on Saturday's game against the Raiders. I am aware. Nonetheless, it's a bit of a bugaboo that sticks in my brain and something I would love to exorcise beyond just "no playoff win since Jan 1991".

2009 Bengals
AFC North champs at 10-6
7th against the run at 98.3 yards per game
T7th in yards per carry allowed (3.9)
Wild card game vs. Jets:
Shonn Greene and Thomas Jones combined for 36 carries for 169 yards (4.7 ypc)

2011 Bengals
AFC wild card at 9-7
10th against the run at 104.7 yards per game
T8th in yards per carry allowed (3.9)
Wild card at Texans:
Arian Foster and Ben Tate combined for 33 carries for 190 yards (5.8 ypc)

2012 Bengals
AFC wild card at 10-6
12th against the run at 107.2 yards per game
T12th in yards per carry allowed (4.1)
Wild card at Texans:
Arian Foster had 32 carries for 140 yards (4.4 ypc)

2013 Bengals
AFC North champs at 11-5
5th against the run at 96.5 yards per game
T16th in yards per carry allowed (4.0)
Wild card vs. Chargers:
Ronnie Brown, Danny Woodhead, and Ryan Matthews combine for 36 carries for 183 yards (5.1 ypc)

2014 Bengals
AFC wild card at 10-5-1
20th against the run at 116.3 yards per game
T18th in yards per carry allowed (4.2)
Wild card at Colts:
Daniel Herron and Zurlon Tipton combined for 23 carries for 96 yards (4.2 ypc)

2015 Bengals
AFC North champs at 12-4
7th against the run at 92.3 yards per game
T23rd in yards per carry allowed (4.3)
Wild card vs. Steelers:
Jordan Todman and Fitzgerald Toussaint combined for 28 carries for 123 yards (4.4 ypc)

For each wild card game, I only featured yards rushing from actual running backs. I didn't include quarterbacks or wide receivers on reverses etc, because I don't think that's a standard notion of "run defense". However, if they're included, the Colts and Steelers games get worse.

For the Bengals of Marvin Lewis and Mike Zimmer/Paul Guenther, this problem was epidemic. It was, as far as I am concerned, the most confusing and disappointing trend of the 2010s playoff period. Even when the Bengals were a good run-stopping team, they completely shat the bed in the playoff game over and over against the run. This absolutely cannot be allowed to happen in Saturday's game, especially with the temperature and weather situated to facilitate a run-heavy game. The Raiders are probably going to lean heavily on Josh Jacobs, and we cannot afford a performance resembling anything above in this post.

2021 Bengals
AFC North champs at 10-7
5th against the run at 102.5 yards per game
T15th in yards per carry allowed (4.3)

2009 Jets: 1st Rushing Offense
2011 Texans: 2nd Rushing Offense
2012 Texans: 8th Rushing Offense

Those were just really good rushing teams. The worst of the three (2012) had a 1,424 yard Arian Foster season. At some point the lack of talent of the individual players on the defense couldn't be hidden (Chris Crocker vs Arian Foster, ugh).

I have always said that the 2013-2015 seasons were the true disappointments. (Even the 2013 game was against the 13th ranked rush offense and a 1,255 yard Ryan Matthews.) I just think wrapping all 6 of them together is bad. Doubly so since 2014 and 2015 were Guenther who went on to show he was just holding together Zimmer defenses the best he could.

Imagine the 2009 & 2011-2013 seasons with Zimmer at DC if the Bengals had gone out and spent on FA like they did for Lou. Replace the Tank Johnsons, Pat Sims, Chris Crockers, Michael Johnsons, etc... with Hendrickson, Ogunjobi, Bell, and Reader and just imagine.