+4.4

[cincygrad]

From the insider on Carson, those closest to him were pushing him to relent (yes, even his wife) after they hired Gruden, but Carson didn't want to. He'd never come under any circumstance.

Fitzgerald has been hampered with a hamstring injury (2 different ones) since the 2nd week of the season. He's almost been a decoy all season.

It probably doesn't matter anyway.... The only pass play that can consistently work in that offense is a quick hitch. That's about the amount of time that line allows. I read on PFT today that the last 13 lineman they drafted are NOT actively starting on the team. OUCH!

 

[bengaldoug]

ReFo: Bengals @ Lions, Week 7

Thomas Maney | October 21, 2013






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This competitive, back and forth matchup came down to the wire where it was decided in The Third Phase. Detroit was backed up near its own end zone with less than a minute remaining and looking to get to overtime when Sam Martin shanked a 28 yard punt. That mistake put the Bengals in great field position, which they took advantage of, setting up the game winning 54 yard field goal by Mike Nugent.

Fortunately the loss wasn’t too much of a setback for the Lions, as they remain right in the thick of the NFC North race – and with major injuries to both Chicago and to a lesser extent Green Bay, they appear to be set up well going into the second half of the season. Conversely the Bengals grinded out a tough road victory and are two up in their division. We’ll see if they can extend their winning streak to four games after consecutive 27-24 victories in the last two weeks.

Cincinnati – Three Performances of Note

Dominant Dunlap

Carlos Dunlap continues to be one of the more underrated defenders in the league. After missing a tackle on Reggie Bush early in the game, he was dominant in collecting seven hurries and two hits. He put his inside move on display at both 8:45 of the first quarter and 8:28 of the third quarter, getting past his blocker in less than three seconds for a hit and hurry. Showing variety later in the game, he picked up a pressure to the outside of LaAdrian Waddle on consecutive fourth quarter plays to flush Matt Stafford and end a Lion drive. As good as Dunlap was rushing the passer, perhaps his best play of the game doesn’t even show up in his +3.2 overall grade; he broke through to block a Detroit field goal late in the second quarter – those potential three points turned out to be the difference in the game.

Dalton Delights

The Bengals have often won in spite of their third year quarterback, but in this game they won because of the play of Andy Dalton. His +4.4 was among the three or four highest grades we’ve ever given him, as he completed 70.6% of his passes (80.6% if you ignore drops, throwaways and batted passes) with a whopping 10.9 YPA. On the few plays that Detroit brought extra rushers, Dalton was even better with a 15.2 YPA and perfect quarterback rating. An underthrow allowed the defender to recover to attempt a tackle on his 82 yard touchdown pass to AJ Green, but he was money the rest of the way with just one negatively graded throw (4Q, 10:31), and some really impressive ones (2Q 0:46, 3Q 10:49 for example). Dalton had his best game of the season by far going downfield completing 11 of his 13 attempts over 10 yards in the air. However, he’s still struggling throwing to the left side of the field at intermediate distances – he was 0-for-1 in this game and has completed just 25% of his passes there this season.

Nevertheless, if he can play like this more often, the Bengals are going to be scary with a great defense and one of PFF’s highest graded offensive lines at the moment; the group is second in Pass Blocking Efficiency and allowed pressure on just 25% of passing plays in this game – only two QBs faced pressure at a lower rate this week.

Guard Trouble at the POA

While the Bengals had a great day through the air, they struggled on the ground, averaging just 3.2 yards per carry against a stout Lion front. Among the four players grading at -1.0 or worse in run blocking were guards Clint Boling and Kevin Zeitler, surprising given that both have fared well at the point of attack this season. In Boling’s case, he opened the game with a nice outside seal of Nick Fairley (1Q, 11:54), but from that point on he was bested on a number of plays by Fairley and a few others in Detroit’s front seven. At right guard Zeitler had a bit more trouble facing Ndamukong Suh (and at 3Q, 2:02 it was Stephen Tulloch who got him), but as was the case with his teammate, there was nothing too egregious. Fortunately for the Bengals, they won’t face too many more lines as good as the Lions this season, so a bounce back should be in order – especially after the team’s close win in this game.

Detroit – Three Performances of Note

Calvin’s Catch

It must be nice for the Lions to have an uncoverable athletic freak of nature, a player whom they can turn to in times of need. That’s exactly what they did at 12:10 of the fourth quarter; down seven and facing a 3rd-and-18, Matt Stafford did what any sensible quarterback would do in that situation: chuck the ball 50 yards into triple coverage in the end zone. So Calvin Johnson rewarded him for that decision by making an unbelievable leaping catch between three defenders to tie the game. Both safeties Reggie Nelson and George Iloka had decent position on the play, but there was little they could do there (short of pass interference), as Johnson turned what would be an inadvisable throw for most QBs into a 50 yard touchdown. Unfortunately for the Lions, that play wasn’t enough as Stafford was otherwise off target for much of the game and was unable to move the offense late in the fourth quarter.

Taylor Makes his Case

Though he’s played sparingly this season, rookie Devin Taylor’s played well in a couple of his games – he notched a +2.5 in only 12 snaps in Week 4, and in this game he graded at +2.3 in just 14 snaps. Among the plays he made was a pressure at 11:01 of the second quarter, when he bulled one of our highest-graded tackles, Andrew Whitworth into Dalton, though he was able to complete the pass on the play. Taylor’s best work was done as a run defender, though, where he compiled two stops in just five snaps on running plays. On both tackles, he took advantage of matchups against smaller defenders – Tyler Eifert at 10:20 of the second quarter, and Mohammed Sanu (4Q, 3:10), making the Bengals pay for not putting a lineman on him on both occasions.

Blocking Struggles on the Edge

While the Lions are getting great production out of Johnson, they aren’t getting much out of tight end Brandon Pettigrew, who’s continued his struggles from last year through seven games. He showed up early with the team’s first touchdown, but didn’t make much of an impact as a receiver after that. Pettigrew finished with just 7 yards gained on three catches and 46 routes run, though it could have been more if not for a third quarter drop. Run blocking was an issue as well, as Dunlap proved too much for Pettigrew on a number of occasions, particularly when the tight end pulled (e.g., 1Q 9:32 and 1:25). While Reggie Bush was caught dancing a little too much at times, he didn’t get much help from his blockers, particularly Pettigrew. Bush averaged just 2.5 yards per carry, despite forcing six missed tackles – and over half of his yards came after contact.

Game Notes

- Stafford faced pressure on 43.1% of his drop backs – the fifth-highest rate this week and third-highest of the Sunday games.

- Cincinnati averaged 5.2 yards per carry on six runs through the A-gaps, but gained just 1.8 YPC on runs to other gaps.

- Taylor Mays’ +2.0 was his best grade of the season, as he allowed just one of five passes to be completed with two pass defenses.

PFF Game Ball

Dalton gets the nod for leading his team to their fifth win of the season

 

[Restore the Roar]

Thanks for posting Doug

 

[CrashDavisSports]

ReFo: Bengals @ Lions, Week 7

Thomas Maney | October 21, 2013






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This competitive, back and forth matchup came down to the wire where it was decided in The Third Phase. Detroit was backed up near its own end zone with less than a minute remaining and looking to get to overtime when Sam Martin shanked a 28 yard punt. That mistake put the Bengals in great field position, which they took advantage of, setting up the game winning 54 yard field goal by Mike Nugent.

Fortunately the loss wasn’t too much of a setback for the Lions, as they remain right in the thick of the NFC North race – and with major injuries to both Chicago and to a lesser extent Green Bay, they appear to be set up well going into the second half of the season. Conversely the Bengals grinded out a tough road victory and are two up in their division. We’ll see if they can extend their winning streak to four games after consecutive 27-24 victories in the last two weeks.

Cincinnati – Three Performances of Note

Dominant Dunlap

Carlos Dunlap continues to be one of the more underrated defenders in the league. After missing a tackle on Reggie Bush early in the game, he was dominant in collecting seven hurries and two hits. He put his inside move on display at both 8:45 of the first quarter and 8:28 of the third quarter, getting past his blocker in less than three seconds for a hit and hurry. Showing variety later in the game, he picked up a pressure to the outside of LaAdrian Waddle on consecutive fourth quarter plays to flush Matt Stafford and end a Lion drive. As good as Dunlap was rushing the passer, perhaps his best play of the game doesn’t even show up in his +3.2 overall grade; he broke through to block a Detroit field goal late in the second quarter – those potential three points turned out to be the difference in the game.

Dalton Delights

The Bengals have often won in spite of their third year quarterback, but in this game they won because of the play of Andy Dalton. His +4.4 was among the three or four highest grades we’ve ever given him, as he completed 70.6% of his passes (80.6% if you ignore drops, throwaways and batted passes) with a whopping 10.9 YPA. On the few plays that Detroit brought extra rushers, Dalton was even better with a 15.2 YPA and perfect quarterback rating. An underthrow allowed the defender to recover to attempt a tackle on his 82 yard touchdown pass to AJ Green, but he was money the rest of the way with just one negatively graded throw (4Q, 10:31), and some really impressive ones (2Q 0:46, 3Q 10:49 for example). Dalton had his best game of the season by far going downfield completing 11 of his 13 attempts over 10 yards in the air. However, he’s still struggling throwing to the left side of the field at intermediate distances – he was 0-for-1 in this game and has completed just 25% of his passes there this season.

Nevertheless, if he can play like this more often, the Bengals are going to be scary with a great defense and one of PFF’s highest graded offensive lines at the moment; the group is second in Pass Blocking Efficiency and allowed pressure on just 25% of passing plays in this game – only two QBs faced pressure at a lower rate this week.

Guard Trouble at the POA

While the Bengals had a great day through the air, they struggled on the ground, averaging just 3.2 yards per carry against a stout Lion front. Among the four players grading at -1.0 or worse in run blocking were guards Clint Boling and Kevin Zeitler, surprising given that both have fared well at the point of attack this season. In Boling’s case, he opened the game with a nice outside seal of Nick Fairley (1Q, 11:54), but from that point on he was bested on a number of plays by Fairley and a few others in Detroit’s front seven. At right guard Zeitler had a bit more trouble facing Ndamukong Suh (and at 3Q, 2:02 it was Stephen Tulloch who got him), but as was the case with his teammate, there was nothing too egregious. Fortunately for the Bengals, they won’t face too many more lines as good as the Lions this season, so a bounce back should be in order – especially after the team’s close win in this game.

Detroit – Three Performances of Note

Calvin’s Catch

It must be nice for the Lions to have an uncoverable athletic freak of nature, a player whom they can turn to in times of need. That’s exactly what they did at 12:10 of the fourth quarter; down seven and facing a 3rd-and-18, Matt Stafford did what any sensible quarterback would do in that situation: chuck the ball 50 yards into triple coverage in the end zone. So Calvin Johnson rewarded him for that decision by making an unbelievable leaping catch between three defenders to tie the game. Both safeties Reggie Nelson and George Iloka had decent position on the play, but there was little they could do there (short of pass interference), as Johnson turned what would be an inadvisable throw for most QBs into a 50 yard touchdown. Unfortunately for the Lions, that play wasn’t enough as Stafford was otherwise off target for much of the game and was unable to move the offense late in the fourth quarter.

Taylor Makes his Case

Though he’s played sparingly this season, rookie Devin Taylor’s played well in a couple of his games – he notched a +2.5 in only 12 snaps in Week 4, and in this game he graded at +2.3 in just 14 snaps. Among the plays he made was a pressure at 11:01 of the second quarter, when he bulled one of our highest-graded tackles, Andrew Whitworth into Dalton, though he was able to complete the pass on the play. Taylor’s best work was done as a run defender, though, where he compiled two stops in just five snaps on running plays. On both tackles, he took advantage of matchups against smaller defenders – Tyler Eifert at 10:20 of the second quarter, and Mohammed Sanu (4Q, 3:10), making the Bengals pay for not putting a lineman on him on both occasions.

Blocking Struggles on the Edge

While the Lions are getting great production out of Johnson, they aren’t getting much out of tight end Brandon Pettigrew, who’s continued his struggles from last year through seven games. He showed up early with the team’s first touchdown, but didn’t make much of an impact as a receiver after that. Pettigrew finished with just 7 yards gained on three catches and 46 routes run, though it could have been more if not for a third quarter drop. Run blocking was an issue as well, as Dunlap proved too much for Pettigrew on a number of occasions, particularly when the tight end pulled (e.g., 1Q 9:32 and 1:25). While Reggie Bush was caught dancing a little too much at times, he didn’t get much help from his blockers, particularly Pettigrew. Bush averaged just 2.5 yards per carry, despite forcing six missed tackles – and over half of his yards came after contact.

Game Notes

- Stafford faced pressure on 43.1% of his drop backs – the fifth-highest rate this week and third-highest of the Sunday games.

- Cincinnati averaged 5.2 yards per carry on six runs through the A-gaps, but gained just 1.8 YPC on runs to other gaps.

- Taylor Mays’ +2.0 was his best grade of the season, as he allowed just one of five passes to be completed with two pass defenses.

PFF Game Ball

Dalton gets the nod for leading his team to their fifth win of the season

He misused the word "whom". I see he must be a professional writer. lol Just teasing, sort of.

 

[bengaldoug]

He misused the word "whom". I see he must be a professional writer. lol Just teasing, sort of.

Proper grammar, and sometimes even spelling, have gone out the door in the internet age.

 

[flamingrey]

The "whom" is fine. To be proper, the sentence should be written "a player to whom they can turn in times of need." The "to" is technically out of place.

 

[cincygrad]

The "whom" is fine. To be proper, the sentence should be written "a player to whom they can turn in times of need." The "to" is technically out of place.

You bitches just been served some grammar....and stuff.

 

[CrashDavisSports]

You bitches just been served some grammar....and stuff.

Since the word "to" is out of place, the word "whom" is not okay, not at all.

In order to use "whom" in a sentence it must following a preposition, and since it did not, it was not okay to use it. In his sentence he properly used the word "to" when saying they would "turn to". So the "to" was properly used, the for "whom" was not.

 

[cincygrad]

Uh oh.... Someone got served back. You know what that means.

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_qShAZg2Zw]It's on! - YouTube[/ame]

 

[CrashDavisSports]

Uh oh.... Someone got served back. You know what that means.

It's on! - YouTube

My spelling, typing, grammar all suck. That is why I am not a professional writer. However, I do expect more from professional writers getting paid to do so. Just saying. I can just see a retort coming regarding my grammar, spelling, etc. So I wanted to lay that out on the table before being a message board grammar Nazi.

 

[cincygrad]

People that run websites that provide useful content are not required to be professional writers..... If the content is useful, good writing is a plus but it certainly is not a requirement.

The line is a little more blurry for traditional news sources -- You sort of expect a higher brand in some realms of journalism - Even in sports journalism. On the other hand, I think this isn't always the case either..... Take, for example, Peter King - You can poke grammar holes through almost any weekly MMQB article from the past 5 years.

 

[CrashDavisSports]

People that run websites that provide useful content are not required to be professional writers..... If the content is useful, good writing is a plus but it certainly is not a requirement.

The line is a little more blurry for traditional news sources -- You sort of expect a higher brand in some realms of journalism - Even in sports journalism. On the other hand, I think this isn't always the case either..... Take, for example, Peter King - You can poke grammar holes through almost any weekly MMQB article from the past 5 years.

Someone needs an assistant who majored in language then. Notice how I properly used the word "who" in this sentence? lol

 

[flamingrey]

Since the word "to" is out of place, the word "whom" is not okay, not at all.

In order to use "whom" in a sentence it must following a preposition, and since it did not, it was not okay to use it. In his sentence he properly used the word "to" when saying they would "turn to". So the "to" was properly used, the for "whom" was not.

No it does not have to follow a preposition. It often does, but is not always the case.

e.g. "Whom did he visit".

A general rule is to not end a sentence with a preposition. While the "to" is not the end of the sentence, it could be taken as such since it's followed by a prepositional phrase (or whatever they call it). It's not incorrect, just not technically "proper".

 

[CrashDavisSports]

People that run websites that provide useful content are not required to be professional writers..... If the content is useful, good writing is a plus but it certainly is not a requirement.

The line is a little more blurry for traditional news sources -- You sort of expect a higher brand in some realms of journalism - Even in sports journalism. On the other hand, I think this isn't always the case either..... Take, for example, Peter King - You can poke grammar holes through almost any weekly MMQB article from the past 5 years.

The only reason I find this a bit troubling, is that most news is gathered from the Internet now a days. The Internet is taking over for a lot of tv, radio and newspaper journalism. So if this is going to be the standard, because the Internet is not required to be written as well as the previous media, the world is on its steep decline.

Can you imagine a world of jwil and myself writing on professional websites because we have good ideas but can't put it together the way the English language was meant to be. No offense Jwil, as I am sure you are capable of writing very intelligently. I am just speaking to our Internet personas and the way we interact with other people on this message board, haha.

 

[flamingrey]

FWIW, Dalton's number has been dropped to a still solid +2.9.

 

[bengaldoug]

Seems like he often loses in the edited grade. Still his best of the season, and the only really positive grade since the opener.

 

[Cincyfan78]

from P-Doc with Marvin Jones on why it seems Andy has excelled the past few weeks:

Jones said he believed it owed to Dalton’s extra study time. Dalton was at PBS on the players’ off day (Tuesday), Jones said. He sat in on wide receiver meetings, too. Already a quick study, Dalton seems to be walking the extra mile. It has showed lately.

Nice to see that he knows he needs to do more, and is doing all he can. Maybe this explains why he's starting to feel more comfortable with those throws at 10+ knowing the WR route better, and knowing the WR's and talking to them in meetings about what they see and what they like to do on certain coverages.

Surely, something that a lot of people say could have been done earlier, but whatever it takes.

 

[cincygrad]

from P-Doc with Marvin Jones on why it seems Andy has excelled the past few weeks:

Jones said he believed it owed to Dalton’s extra study time. Dalton was at PBS on the players’ off day (Tuesday), Jones said. He sat in on wide receiver meetings, too. Already a quick study, Dalton seems to be walking the extra mile. It has showed lately.

Nice to see that he knows he needs to do more, and is doing all he can. Maybe this explains why he's starting to feel more comfortable with those throws at 10+ knowing the WR route better, and knowing the WR's and talking to them in meetings about what they see and what they like to do on certain coverages.

Surely, something that a lot of people say could have been done earlier, but whatever it takes.

I'm just happy to hear that Jordan let him to go work on Tuesday -- That's normally pilate day in the Dalton household.

 

[Cincyfan78]

I'm just happy to hear that Jordan let him to go work on Tuesday -- That's normally pilate day in the Dalton household.

Hey, don't knock it. THat stuff is important. If he's going to take sacks, he'd better be able to be gumby while getting piled on.

 

[cincygrad]

Hey, don't knock it. THat stuff is important. If he's going to take sacks, he'd better be able to be gumby while getting piled on.

That's what she said.