Cincinnati Bengals head coach Zac Taylor should be celebrated for his ability to evolve the offense, boost the running game, and facilitate the success of aging quarterback Joe Flacco after an in-season trade.
Unfortunately, Taylor's system has often put the injured man Flacco replaced, Joe Burrow, in harm's way. Combine that with a bad defense, and it's no surprise the Bengals are 3-6.
Although the pass protection unit has improved since Flacco's arrival, that group struggled quite a lot in Week 7's 33-31 thrilling win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. Sunday's rematch requires Taylor to tailor his approach differently to ensure Flacco stays upright and avoids aggravating the sprained AC joint in his right throwing shoulder.
Zac Taylor must come up with a better game plan for Steelers superstar Cameron Heyward
Not that stopping an All-Pro like Cameron Heyward is an easy task for any opponent, but when you've got a statuesque quarterback in Flacco, it becomes all the more important to protect him.
Thank goodness Flacco is quick to diagnose a defense and has proven plenty capable of distributing the ball to Ja'Marr Chase, Tee Higgins, and the other Bengals weapons. That said, Heyward had his way in Week 7 with Cincinnati's o-line, registering four total tackles and a half-sack on six QB pressures, per PFF.
At 36 years old, it's flat-out unbelievable what Heyward is doing at such a grueling, physically punishing position. Dominant as Aaron Donald was, he was ready to retire after a 10-year run.
Heyward is still going plenty strong in Year 15, at age 36, ranking as PFF's No. 1 interior defensive lineman. Bengals guards Dalton Risner and Jalen Rivers got worked the last time out versus Pittsburgh and Heyward, too, letting up a combined eight pressures.
Rookie third-round pick Dylan Fairchild is back from injury, however, and will be the left guard for the foreseeable future. Why the Bengals are being stubborn by sticking with Rivers, when Risner is a far superior player, is beyond me. But that's neither here nor there.
Seems like an easy adjustment for Taylor to just swap in Risner for Rivers. Assuming he doesn't do that, though, Taylor needs to find a way to guard against Heyward making an impact far better.
I would say just go heavy personnel, dial up some max protection play-action shots to Chase and Higgins, keep tight ends in to block in pass sets often, and otherwise get the ball out of Flacco's hands ASAP. Hopefully the running game is still good in the wake of Samaje Perine's ankle injury, too.
Cincinnati is playing with fire. Flacco is 40 years old and couldn't lift his arm before lighting up the Bears for 470 yards through the air in Week 9. The bye came at a great time, but one hit is all it takes for Flacco (and the Bengals' season) to be in serious peril.
Cameron Heyward has to be licking his chops. You can bet Taylor has lost sleep this week trying to scheme up a way to even somewhat limit him.