(dead to me ) Bengals game thread cause no one else did

[Cincyfan78]

I agree with that. Plus, as you said, shotgun formation allows Joe to see, holy shit, this guy is unblocked, I need to move or get rid of the ball now. At least throw near the feet of his RB somewhere. Joe just excels when he sees how the defense is moving once the snap occurs. He is smart enough to know where the mismatch is. But when he turns his back and has to do a play action from under center, he loses focus on the defense and how his WR's routes are progressing. Plus, he may have missed his perfect throwing window in that secondary as he is trying to get back.

I am not saying it can't be run once in a while but it should be limited. At least with straight passing drop backs from under center he is looking up and out at the defense, his head is not turned. Even though there is a lot of motion in that progression of the throw, he is looking at the defense. What sucks is when he is in the middle of a deep drop back, there is an all out blitz and he is having to throw off his back foot to get rid of the ball. From shotgun, the ball is back quickly and he can immediately step forward and throw with authority if need be.

I don't know. If we didn't have a spread offense QB, and we were more of an under center type QB like Dalton where you need to totally keep the defense honest to opening throwing lanes for him, I wouldn't be opposed to the style offense they are trying to run right now. I think you keep the defense on their heels at all times. Spread formation, shotgun, no huddle (not hurry up offense), keep the RB in to help block, run or slide out for a screen at all times. He is your QB's safety blanket. In this style offense a great pass blocking RB, with great hands and some quicks for draws, is t he ideal back...al la Gio. Which is why Evans is ideal for this style offense if he can be a really good pass blocker. Mixon is just not the ideal back for our offense. I would definitely let Mixon walk at the end of his contract to free up that cash and focus more on keeping the oline beefed up so you can run that spread with less blockers.

The only thing I will say is - the more you feature Mixon, the more you should feature PA. It's that immediate "freeze" that will give Burrow an extra second, or two, to find that WR, or allow that WR to run a deeper post route, fly route, or get open. It also works to open up the intermediate routes when you are running it well, fake the handoff, and those LB's take 2-3 steps towards the LOS - now that 8-10 yard route opens up.

If the Bengals are going to be true spread, and only feature Mixon in a more minimal rushing role, I think you can get away with just dropping back and passing (either form center or Shotgun). But, if Mixon is running it well, it is only going to serve to help protect Burrow and open up a few more routes by throwing in more PA plays.

 

[CrashDavisSports]

The only thing I will say is - the more you feature Mixon, the more you should feature PA. It's that immediate "freeze" that will give Burrow an extra second, or two, to find that WR, or allow that WR to run a deeper post route, fly route, or get open. It also works to open up the intermediate routes when you are running it well, fake the handoff, and those LB's take 2-3 steps towards the LOS - now that 8-10 yard route opens up.

If the Bengals are going to be true spread, and only feature Mixon in a more minimal rushing role, I think you can get away with just dropping back and passing (either form center or Shotgun). But, if Mixon is running it well, it is only going to serve to help protect Burrow and open up a few more routes by throwing in more PA plays.

We'll have to see.

 

[DanBengalfan]

running game doing well today.

Pittsburgh running game is the best thing they got going as well.

not sure what happened with Chicago, except that our coach was a moron.