The Cincinnati Bengals came up short against the Denver Broncos on Sunday, 29-17. They are 1-2 with a loss to their most hated divisional rival. It’s not exactly the position we’d hoped for heading into a Week 4 matchup with the Miami Dolphins. But there are still bits of good news that we’ve seen in this first part of the season. And bits of bad news. And bits that are uglier than the thought of either Trump or Hillary running the country. We’ll get to ’em all!
Here are our takeaways from the Week 3 matchup between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Denver Broncos.
Cincinnati Bengals: The Good
CB Dre Kirkpatrick and DE Margus Hunt are playing well. Through 3 games, Kirkpatrick has intercepted a pass and defended 3 others. Hunt set the tone for himself in Week 1 when he blocked a huge field goal against the Jets. He has since blocked another kick, defended 2 passes, and generally started to make a nuisance of himself to opposing offenses.
Cincinnati Bengals: The Bad
The offensive line isn’t stepping up. The Cincinnati Bengals are ranked 26th in the NFL in rushing, averaging only 82.3 yards per game. They allowed 7 sacks on QB Andy Dalton against New York. Center Russell Bodine has struggled. OT Cedric Ogbuehi is going through some growing pains in his first season as a starter (although he’s showing promise). And since he’s in a contract year, it wouldn’t hurt guard Kevin Zeitler to show more consistency.
The offseason offensive departures have hurt. Take this one with a grain of salt if you will. The Bengals have the 7th best passing attack in the league. How could they not, with a 5-time Pro Bowl wide receiver and a quarterback who changes his clothes in a phone booth? But imagine how unstoppable it could be if they still had 2nd and 3rd receivers Marvin Jones and Mohamed Sanu, along with offensive coordinator-turned-Cleveland-head-coach Hue Jackson.
Cincinnati Bengals: The Ugly
Referees. We hate them. In case you’re just tuning in to this blog, find out why by checking out our recaps of what happened against the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Denver Broncos.
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