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You’re Not Mad at Zac Taylor’s Playcalling

October 11, 2022 Taylor Cornell Leave a Comment

You’re not mad at Zac Taylor’s playcalling. At least, you probably shouldn’t be. What a preposterous thing to say, right? An offense of Joe Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins, Tyler Boyd, and Joe Mixon, among others, is averaging just 21.6 points per game. They rank 22nd in the league in yards per game. They have 12 drives that were three-and-outs through their first five games. The offense has not been good in 2022, at least not consistently. And as the fanbase reacts to another close loss to a divisional opponent in Week 5, the cries for Coach to relinquish his playcalling duties grow even louder. But you’re wrong.

The Progress

While the offense has fallen short of expectations so far, that does not mean there have not been meaningful changes and progress from last year. For a team that converted just 26.0% of their short yardage situations last year (0-3 yards to go), they have seen a substantial improvement in that area, now converting at a 34.5% clip which is good for 2nd in the league. 

Additionally, we have seen Ja’Marr taking more snaps from the slot this year. Chase saw 26 targets from the slot across 17 regular season games in 2021. That number is already up to 17 slot targets through five games this year, according to SIS. We have also seen Ja’Marr motion into the backfield and receive both targets and carries from that alignment. These efforts to get Chase moved around the formation and get space are not always successful plays, but the process is there.

Even in-season, we have seen Zac Taylor’s playcalling evolve. In Week 2, 72% of the snaps from under center were run plays, including an astounding 15/17 in the second half. In Week 5, Joe Burrow only took 7 snaps from under center, with four runs (including a sneak) and three pass attempts. The predictability of going under center on every first down and running wide zone has dissipated and given way to more shotgun handoffs. 

Beyond just the shift to more shotgun snaps, even for running plays, we have seen Zac Taylor attempt more gadget plays to ignite the offense. In Week 4, Tyler Boyd’s 23-yard completion to Ja’Marr Chase converted a key third down on a drive that ultimately ended in three points and gave Cincinnati the lead. In Week 5, the ‘Philly Special’ had an unspectacular result, but it DID display some outside the box thinking from Taylor. 

Week 5 also showed a change in playcalling to quick passes to get the ball into the hands of your playmakers and let them run after the catch. After totaling eight screen passes in Weeks 1-4, Coach Taylor dialed up six screens in Week 5 alone. And again, while the results were not explosive, they showed a willingness to try new ways to get the ball out and stay ahead of the chains.

The Player Execution

While Zac Taylor hasn’t been perfect by any means, the player execution has left a lot to be desired as well. Let’s start with the running game. To kick off the season, Joe Mixon was one of seven running backs in NFL history to have at least 80 carries and average fewer than 2.7 YPC in his team’s first 4 games. While the volume was there, the efficiency clearly was not. Mixon has struggled getting consistent yardage, ranking fourth-worst in the league in Rushing Yards Over Expectation. Not only has he not gained the yardage blocked for him, he rarely makes defenders miss to get the extra yards. Mixon ranks dead last in PFF’s Elusive Rating among running backs with at least 50 carries, meaning he rarely forces any missed tackles. While playcalling can certainly impact a running back, Mixon hasn’t done much to help himself.

Joe Burrow also has started a bit slow out of the gates. In addition to the five turnovers in Week 1, Joe has at times held the ball far too long, resulting in sacks. At other times he has rushed to his checkdown and missed open receivers. And in Week 5, he had three passes batted down at the line of scrimmage. Burrow should only become more comfortable as the season progresses and the offensive line continues to gel, but thus far we have seen some uncharacteristic mistakes from Joe that have contributed to the offensive woes.

Here’s Your Problem

A Head Coach bears the brunt of the responsibility when the team underachieves, and usually doesn’t receive enough praise when the team overachieves. That comes with the territory. But the outcry over Taylor’s playcalling after Week 5 are simply overblown. You are upset with the results, but blaming the process. If you separate the two, you can see how the process is improving. Improving season over season, week to week. The results are inconsistent and until the offense clicks more often than not, it will remain a pain point for fans. Does Zac Taylor lack situational awareness at times? Certainly. But situational awareness is also separate from playcalling. If we trust the process is moving in the right direction and believe in the players to clean up their execution, we should expect the results to follow shortly thereafter.

Opinion, Statistics Bengals, Cincinnati Bengals, play calling, Zac Taylor

Joe Mixon was the first Bengal to do what?

July 9, 2019 Nate Mallon Leave a Comment

RB Joe Mixon lead the AFC in rushing yards in 2018 and was the first AFC rushing leader in Bengals history in his first season as the starter.

Statistics AFC, Bengals, Joe Mixon

Pacing Bengals Stats After 4 Games

October 2, 2017 Nate Mallon Leave a Comment

The Bengals have finished the first quarter of the regular season with a 1-3 record after struggling offensively during the first few games against the Ravens and Texans, but after making a change at offensive coordinator from Ken Zampese to Bill Lazor, the offense has played much better the past 2 games against the Packers and Browns.

Below are player stats after 4 games and the pace they are currently on for the season.

Andy Dalton has currently thrown for 892 yards, 6 TD’s and 4 INT’s while completing over 66% of his passes, he has also been sacked 14 times through 4 games. Dalton is currently on pace to finish the season with 3,568 yards, 24 TD’s and 16 INT’s. Let’s hope the Bengals offensive line shows improvement with regards to pass protection as they are on pace to give up 56 sacks this season, that would be 15 more than they allowed in 2016.

The Bengals have 3 running backs with more than 80 yards rushing. Joe Mixon leads the team with 136 yards rushing on 52 carries, Giovani Bernard has 89 yards on 18 carries and Jeremy Hill rounds out the trio with 82 yards on 25 attempts. Mixon is on pace to finish the season with 544 yards rushing on 208 carries but I expect to see improvement on his current average of 2.6 yards per carry. Bernard is on pace to finish with 356 yards on 72 carries and Hill is on pace to finish with 332 yards on 100 attempts. Bernard also has 8 receptions for 134 yards along with 2 receiving TD’s and Mixon has 11 receptions for another 78 yards.

The best offensive player on the team is without a doubt WR A.J. Green. Green currently leads the team 25 receptions for 315 yards receiving and 2 TD’s which would put him on pace to finish the season with 100 receptions, 1,260 yards and 8 TD’s. Bernard and Mixon are the 2nd and 4th leading receivers on the team at the moment but TE Tyler Kroft has displayed a Tyler Eifert-like presence at times and has 10 receptions, 101 yards and 2 TD’s. Brandon Lafell has also had 10 catches for 76 yards.

When it comes to the defense 2nd year LB Nick Vigil is currently leading the Bengals with 34 tackles, he also has 1 sack and 1 INT. The Bengals pass rush has shown improvement this season so far and veteran DT Geno Atkins has 3 of the teams 12 sacks so far. Rookie LB Carl Lawson has 2.5 sacks and has shown the ability to provide consistent pressure on opposing QB’s when on the field. CB Darqueze Dennard also has 2 sacks and backup DE Chris Smith who the Bengals traded for in the offseason from the Jacksonville Jaguars has 1.5 QB sacks.

Statistics A.J. Green, Andy Dalton, Bengals, Brandon LaFell, Carl Lawson, darqueze dennard, Geno Atkins, Giovani Bernard, jeremy hill, Joe Mixon, Nick Vigil, Tyler Kroft

Dalton and Green: Where They’ll Rank in Cincinnati Bengals History

July 17, 2017 Chris Russell 1 Comment

Andy Dalton and AJ Green are among the most talked-about members of this year’s Cincinnati Bengals. Each is entering his seventh season in the pros. Both already rank among the most productive Bengals in history at their respective positions.

So where will they be when their done? Hope we don’t shock the heck out of you, but it should be at the top. What should shock you, though, is how much faster they’ll achieve some records than the other guys did.

 

Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton

Dalton ranks fourth in Cincinnati Bengals’ history in yards, completions, attempts, and touchdowns. In each category, the guys above him are Ken Anderson, Boomer Esiason and Carson Palmer (they are in that order, too, except for completions, where Palmer leads Esiason by a mere nine completions). That means this is a good apples-to-apples comparison of where Dalton is relative to the Big Three.

Anderson and Boomer played 15 and 13 years in the NFL, respectively. Palmer was only here for six seasons. Dalton has also played six, and he’s hot on everyone’s cleats. The short tenure is to Dalton’s advantage. He has several years to go in a pass-happy NFL era; an opportunity that Anderson and Boomer did not enjoy.

Dalton needs only 105 completions to jump to second place in that category, and only 481 yards and 13 TDs to get to third place on those two lists. Both should happen in the first half of this season. From there, the sky – and Ken Anderson – are the limits. Put another way, by 2018, this Dalton will own more passing records than Patrick Swayze’s Dalton owned all those mullet drunks in Road House.

 

Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver AJ Green

Of the two of them, Green is higher up on the charts than Dalton. Most of that is because of his skill, physical tools, and work ethic. The other part is being the No. 1 receiver on a team that hasn’t otherwise seen a standout WR since Chad Johnson/Ochocinco/Johnson/WTF-his-name-is. Green has thrived in the role, amassing 7,135 yards in six years to rank 2nd all-time. It took J/O/J/WTF a decade to pile up 10,783 yards. So don’t be surprised if Green, who is averaging 1,189 yards per season, moves into first place sometime during 2020 – less than 10 years into the league (with a few more to go after that).

Green currently ranks fourth in team history in receptions (481) and touchdowns (49). But he’s ahead of the curve, as it took Carl Pickens (530) and T.J. Houshmandzadeh (507) seven years to accumulate their reception totals. Even with a subpar 60-catch season, Green will take over the No. 2 spot this year – which means he’ll get there sooner than that if he puts up his typical numbers.

Green best scoring years were in 2012 and 2013 when he hauled in 11 TD catches each. It might be asking a little much for him to record 18 scoring receptions this season. But if he pulls it off, he’ll snatch the all-time team record from Ochocinco in three fewer years … which includes his injury-shortened 2016 campaign.

So sit back and get excited, Cincinnati Bengals’ fans. You’re about to witness history.

Predictions, Statistics AJ Green, Andy Dalton, Boomer Esiason, Carl Pickens, Carson Palmer, Cincinnati Bengals, Ken Anderson, NFL, Patrick Swayze, Road House, T.J. Houshmandzadeh

The Green-o-meter Update ~ 9 Down, 7 To Go

November 19, 2016 Nate Mallon Leave a Comment

ajgreen-compressor
So most Bengals fans are aware of the fact that WR A.J. Green is having a career year thus far in 2016 and is on pace to shatter a few Bengals single season records for both receptions and receiving yards. Green is also in the ball park for the NFL single season record for receiving yards in a season.

We will make weekly updates to the Green-o-meter each week from here on out to track Greens projected progress for these records.

Bengals single season reception record: 112 – T.J. Houshmandzadeh (2007)

Bengals single season receiving yards record: 1,440 – Chad Johnson (2007)

c_johnson1

NFL single season reception record: 143 – Marvin Harrison (IND – 2002)

NFL single season receiving yards record: 1,964 – Calvin Johnson (DET – 2012)

A.J. Greens current stats: 66 receptions, 964 receiving yards, 4 TD’s

A.J. Greens projected 2016 stats based on current pace aka THE GREEN-O-METER: 117 receptions, 1,714 yards, 7 TD’s

Predictions, Statistics A.J. Green, Bengals, Calvin Johnson, chad johnson, Green-o-meter, Marvin Harrison, T.J. Houshmandzadeh

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