To Jeff Schwartz
FOX Sports NFL Analyst
through two weeks NFL Season, bengals They seem to pretend that transit protection doesn’t matter. This was a problem with many last season and apparently has not been fixed.
They seem to believe that the late-season success that led to their Super Bowl appearance will carry over into this new year, as they added some offensive line pieces in Bengals uniforms.
As is often the case in soccer, there is rarely just one reason why a particular play, scheme, or other thing that happens during the game works or doesn’t work. The Bengals’ lack of offensive success (his 24th in expected extra points) is a result of his inadequate offensive line pass protection, both individually and as a group.
Quarterback Joe Burrow, who famously said, “I have a good sack,” shares some of the blame when he was knocked behind the line. I charged him for 5 sacks out of the sacks. He has been holding the ball too much for his passes for home runs, and this was a very successful approach for him last season.
This is something successful young quarterbacks can struggle with by waiting a little longer to throw the ball on the field (Patrick Mahomes is another recent example). Barrow never wants to take his throws easy, short his passes that can lead to long runs.
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Cincinnati’s attack staff has also denied that these problems exist. Looking at the Bengals offense, there are too many pitching options down the field and Burrow has to stay in the pocket longer than he should. However, when the Bengals call the concept of paths on short routes, they come up with them. Ja’Marr Chase stood out in the slot against the Cowboys or when he was running the route over the ball. The offense doesn’t do that often enough.
With very little movement in the pocket, the burrow can be moved without fear of being attacked. Piracy is rare. It’s a way to neutralize pass rushes and find easy completions. The Bengals’ coaching staff apparently underestimated that the prep team would slow Cincinnati’s offense this offseason. A win meant everyone had extra time to prepare for the Bengals.
Also contributing to the lack of offensive success is the quarterback. He’s not playing confidently in his pocket. Even with clean pockets, burrows will try to get the ball down quickly. If he doesn’t have the ball, he tacks and runs or finds a way to escape.
Burrow’s eyes often drop to the top of the drop when they smell the pressure and aren’t going to reset to find open receiving options. It comes from his belief that he would find a helmet on his chest.
The hardest thing about getting out of an offensive slump is not knowing where the next breakdown will occur. If you have one offensive lineman in distress, he can enlist the help of a tight end to plan, return chips, and slide offensive lines.
But if both tackles (much better than they played) are off and beaten, other than getting the ball out quickly or giving both help, there is no way to fix it. Finding creative solutions is difficult.
If the tackle holds up well, the guard is hit. How do you find that solution? All five of his linemen may hold up well, but now Tight his end is being smashed. Burrow doesn’t pull the trigger, although he’s given plenty of time in one snap. it just goes on. Awareness of these issues should be reflected in the game plan and the quarterback’s sense of urgency.
Let’s get down to Dallas’ Sack review. We’ll start with the final sack, as it best represents all of the Bengals’ problems.
First, the Bengals have broken individual pass protection on light tackles. La’el Collins runs his ball off late against Micah Parsons and tries to strike across his body with his inside hand. It’s bad technique and Parsons can use that arm to spin off and gather steam to put pressure on Burrow.
Barrow has an open option at the tight end, but turns it down. After he starts scrambling, he has time to reset his legs and find an open Tyler Boyd encroaching inside, but Burrow’s process is speeding up. has been crushing every game. This rep ends with him being fired. Turn up the volume for more info.
The first sack of the game is similar to the last sack. Burrow is very uncomfortable in his pocket the moment he stops reading under pressure. Again, right tackle Collins set up a terrible pass against Parsons.
A second sack can be secured to the coaching staff. A choice to keep tight ends blocking defensive ends. In an ideal world, the tight end would hold the defensive end long enough for the left tackle to execute a cell run before popping out to help. it won’t happen.
Offensive lines are great here, but it’s worth pointing out some poor techniques for getting the big picture. This is a play action pass. The right guard and right tackle are the front line that sells action. Both are using normal path protection set. It’s not good for two veterans to use this technique in this situation.
Sack 3 is on the right guard. he just gets beaten up. But when you feel pressure from the blind side, you can see Burrow start to speed up the process.
Sack 4 is a coverage sack, which again emphasizes the quickness of Barrow’s pockets.
Finally, the fifth sack is on the “three-step drop” from Shotgun. The ball should run out quickly. A good example of how neither Burrow nor the coaching staff emphasize removing the ball as soon as it is called! Just throw flat and get yards.
The Bengals need to improve their pass protection if they are to come close to the success they had last season. The sooner the better.
Jeff Schwartz played eight seasons in the NFL for five different teams. He started his three seasons at right tackle for the University of Oregon and was his All-Pac-12 selection for the second team. He’s an NFL analyst for FOX Sports. follow him on twitter @Jeff Schwartz.
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