Who will the Bengals Passing Offense Target in Carolina?

The Bengals finish Week 2 ranked 17th in Passing offense with 494 yards, add on 6 touchdowns, and only 1 interception. Andy Dalton has been using all of his targets, who will we see the Bengals release on the Panthers in Week 3?

Andy Dalton has been targeting his favorite weapon, AJ Green, the most through two games with 17 targets with a 135.0 Passer Rating when targeted. Green has a receiving grade of 73.9, which is leading the Bengals per PFF. I expect this to continue in the coming weeks, but let’s look to see who else could get involved.

Tyler Boyd is the second leading receiver going into Week 3 with 9 catches for 117 yards and 1 TD on 14 targets.  Boyd is the only other player with double-digit targets along with 122.9 Passer Rating when targeted and a receiving grade of 66.6, per PFF.

Joe Mixon is going to be out for 2 to 4 weeks so expect to Giovani Bernard to get more looks by Dalton and hopefully fill Mixon’s shoes, which he should be able to do just fine with his previous starting experience. Bernard has caught all 5 of his targets in limited playing time for only 26 yards, but Bill Lazor will try to get Gio more involved in the passing game against a tough Carolina Defense. Tra Carson and Mark Walton are going to get some reps on Sunday, but I expect them to be limited in the passing game.

The tight ends have all seen around the same amount of playing time through two games. I expect Eifert to continue to get increased snaps, especially in the red zone, as he is finally getting to 100% heath-wise. Uzomah is making an effort to take the number two tight end spot, putting up 107.5 passer rating on his 5 targets with a couple key catches and blocks last week versus the Ravens. Tyler Kroft has been decent in the first two weeks with 3 catches on 3 targets, but if Uzomah is able to limit the drops from last season then it will be his job to lose. Kroft does have a higher receiving grade than Uzomah with 64.1 compared to 56.5, per PFF. The Bengals like using Uzomah more as a blocker than Kroft and he has shown that as well, with grades of 78.6 for run blocking and 79.2 for pass blocking, per PFF.

There is some talk about John Ross disappointing so far this season, but I don’t see it that way. The Bengals do have a lot of weapons on this team, and each one isn’t going to produce every game. Bill Lazor is going to get Ross involved more throughout the season, but when Green is playing like he was last Thursday there isn’t much to complain about for this offense. I would have liked the Bengals to take a deep shot to Ross in the first two games, but I do expect them to target him down field very soon. Ross, with the slow start, has 2 catches for 11 yards on 6 targets.

Yes, you do expect more out of the number 9 overall pick, but we have the luxury to be patient with him and allow him to adjust to the pace of the game. The team has put up 34 points in back to back games and the offense is producing and until it’s not, let’s cool it on the negative talk about John Ross.

Andy Dalton hasn’t been lighting up the league like Patrick Mahomes, but he has been doing his part to lead the Bengals to a 2-0 start for the first time since 2015. Dalton has a PFF passing grade of 71.8 while being 7th in the league in Passer Rating (108.5). He’s also tied for 3rd in passing touchdowns with 6. He has also only been sacked twice, compared to 8 sacks after two games last season. The offensive line is reducing the amount of pressure on Dalton, and he is able to get the ball out quickly to his receivers.

The Bengals have a tough task going into Carolina this Sunday. The defense has lived up to the hype with forcing turnovers and getting to the Quarterback after two weeks. The offense is going to pick up where they left off if they want to come out of Bank of America Stadium with a win.