Rosenthal's predictions for sneaky-good offenses in 2020

[*SHRacerX*]

(07-10-2020, 10:54 AM)SunsetBengal Wrote: Clever selection you chose for demonstration purposes.  I believe that was our boy, Trae Waynes that got toasted on that play. 

But yeah, that's the sort of thing that we've been hoping to see on a somewhat regular basis, since Ross was drafted.

When we did see it with Ross, they were almost always a bit underthrown.  Now, some of that could be attributed to a lack of a pocket to step up in to, but there were several times where Ross came back for the ball, and then turned back upfield.  

With respect to Tate, who seems to be a bit of a firestarter around here, remember that it was ZT's first year with all the players.  He didn't know (nor did we, really) what we had in Tate.  After determining his strengths, I could see a package where Tate is used both in Red Zone and 3rd down scenarios.  I am not trying to say Tate would be the primary receiver, but routes could be designed where he is placed according to his strengths.  Although he gets torn down for his speed, and catch %, I think he has shown in most recent history that he has incredible catch radius and very good hands.  

Ross was used primarily to stretch the field and take the proverbial top off the defense.  This may seem like a waste of a #9 overall pick (especially considering Mahommes was #10....ouch), but I think ZT showed he planned on using more of Ross last year and before injuries (again), it seemed to be working.  I have said many times that we have only had a handful of games where both Ross and Green were on the field.  If memory serves, they went 5-1 in those games and the defense was pathetic.  

Spreading out teams and attacking with multiple threats has been a staple for a few teams that have very cerebral QBs that can make quick decisions and also have the pocket awareness to maneuver around until someone breaks free.  Green Bay with Rogers and New Orleans with Brees are the first two to come to mind.  I believe the Bruce Arians offense was the same way with pitt, AZ, and now Tampa.  He needed a more cerebral QB.  

I don't mean to make it sound like Dalton wasn't a very cerebral QB, as he was, but the years of poor protection of late got him a little antsy and he would get the ball out quickly.  The offense was kind of designed for it since the line play was so poor.  But Dalton tended to always bail to his right and half the field disappeared from broken plays.

Enter Joe Burrow.  The guy flat out attacks the middle of the field.  Wherever there is a weakness, he will attack it.  He is so adept at moving in the pocket while keeping his eyes downfield.  I, frankly, have not seen the likes of what he did in college....ever.  It wasn't some gimmick run-and-shoot type offense, it was an NFL style, 0 man protection and he flat out dominated teams that no one else could solve.  He is the straw that is going to stir the drink.  

They have weapons, they have the QB, and they have massive improvements on all levels of the defense.  The only question I (and so many) have is:  Can the offensive line hold up?  I am going to say yes, as it will help them by having more four man fronts to defend with the number of targets going out in a pattern.  I have full faith in the coaching staff.  People may question why, but I feel like the adjustments and improvements we saw down the stretch last year WITHOUT improvements in personnel earned my respect.  

Who Dey, my friends.  The universe might have thrown us a pandemic, but the Bengals are ready to roll.