Cincinnati Bengals Midterm Report Card
The bad
The high yardage, however, has not resulted in points. This is the reason for the grade. Cincinnati has managed just 20.9 points per game this season, a tie for 20th in the league. The Bengals were last in red zone efficiency, but have moved up to 19th after converting all of its trips over the last two games.
The Achilles’ heel of the offense has been poor offensive line play. Dalton has been sacked 25 times in eight games. That’s five more than all of last season and four more than 2014.
Defense: D+
The Bengals own the 28th ranked defense and Paul Guenther has been under fire. Cincinnati is 26th vs. the pass, 24th against the run. They allowed Trevor Siemian to throw four touchdowns in his first road start, were picked apart by Tom Brady, and let Kirk Cousins have a career-day (458 yards) last week at Wembley Stadium.
Cincinnati quietly has 16 sacks this season. But in losses to Pittsburgh, Denver, Dallas, and New England, the pass rush was practically invisible. Pro Bowlers Carlos Dunlap and Geno Atkins have combined for 8.5 sacks.
The Bengals have 10 takeaways, putting them in a six-way tie for 11th in the NFL.
First-year Bengal Karlos Dansby leads the team with 54 tackles but has been abysmal in pass coverage. Vontaze Burfict has 39 tackles in five games since returning from a suspension but has been a shell of his former self while tacking on an additional fine.
Cincinnati has favorable matchups on defense over the next four games, though. Each of its next four opponents ranks in the bottom half in total offense:
- NYG: 24th
- BUF: 17th
- BAL: 27th
- PHI: 29th
The Bengals added depth to the defensive line. They brought back veteran Wallace Gilberry who was released by Detroit earlier this season.