The Bengals have the worst rushing attack in the entire NFL over the past four weeks, based on expected points added per play and rushing success rate.

Their rushing success rate over the last four weeks is 19.2%. New England is next closest at 30.5%.

The Bengals have always had to play behind the sticks because they can’t pass the ball. More than 80% of the time, they put themselves in a worse situation after running with the ball. It is insane to consider this an offense. The offense has always worked and they are 2-2 in this span because the quarterback rose above his surroundings and saved them from late damage. Joe Burrow is 4th in the EPA + CPOE composite rankings despite being thrust into mostly messy situations the last four weeks. Just last week, Burrow turned in a 99th percentile performance on 3rd and 4th downs, where he converted 75% of those performances despite averaging over six yards to go. However, with that said, any quarterback could use a functional running game to help him and avoid the pass rush.

Let’s take a look at the film and see why this racing game was so bad:

Power racing game

Over the past two seasons, the Bengals have relied more on a power play. They will use pullers on counter and power concepts with the other linemen trying to get vertical travel. Let’s see why this doesn’t work:

Contrary to what one might believe, this piece is almost a success. There’s a great block from right tackle Amarius Mims here to knock down the playside 3-technique and climb to the second level. This allows right guard Alex Cappa to easily take over. The goal is for left guard Cordell Volson to kick late in the game and for left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. to lead through the gap between Volson and Cappa. The problem is that the hole is too small. Volson’s kickout block generated no movement so the play didn’t work. They try to make the most of it by bouncing outside but it takes too long and security is there to back them up.

This is a similar concept, although this time they emphasize the tight end. The first set was a GT meter with a reading to hold the rear end long enough for it to work. It didn’t work. Now the Bengals run the GY counter with the back tackle sealing off the back end. It still doesn’t work for them.

Despite tricky timing, the playside double team does its job to generate vertical movement. The left tackle is also able to get a piece from linebacker Mike on this play. The kickout block is good enough that there is a hole for the tight end to wrap up and pass as well. The problem here is that the tight end is crushed by linebacker Will. The Will not only fills this hole, but also makes the stop. Both plays also start with an orbit move that had an effect on the linebackers on the first play but here it does nothing.

Power was just as poorly managed as against the Eagles. Again, this is pretty close to a successfully blocked game. Everything at the point of attack actually works on this play. The double team was enough and the right guard’s initial strike works as well. There is a hole for the left guard to pass through. The center back block is the problem in this play. When you do a back block, the worst thing that can happen is that defender crosses your face. Center Ted Karras gets angry on this play and it ruins everything. His aim point, hat placement and hand upfield were all exploited by the defender. He should pass his helmet to the other side with a strong hand upstream.

This isn’t an easy block to do on a 4i, but that’s why the left tackle helps initially. Volson also breathes at the second level, so maybe it doesn’t matter in the end, but that back block is why it looks like a complete mess. This ruined the game beyond repair because the rear reads its extractor. He doesn’t know the play will be dead until he sees the center pushed back into the hole. While there is room for potential reduction, this is not part of reading the final document.

It’s power again. How is it almost November and the guys are still missing homework? There’s a good block from Volson and a sufficient double team from Cody Ford and Drew Sample. It doesn’t appear that the moving tight end thought the defensive end was doubling. Instead of kicking out the standing linebacker, he runs into his own guys. The right guard should be shooting and leading between the down block and the double team, but instead he just drives to the tight end. Now there’s an unblocked linebacker sitting in that hole. Eventually, the left tackle breaks away and tries to get a piece of him, but it’s a fruitless effort. All they needed on this play was two yards. They would have had it if the extractors got to the right places.

Running backs aren’t making the most of their opportunities

The offensive line stunk on all those blocks and power plays, but that’s not the only problem in this putrid running game. Running backs should also be blamed for missed opportunities.

This is an iso concept with Sample leading to linebacker Mike. The blocking isn’t phenomenal on his part, but there’s enough that the back has room to lower his shoulder and step forward just to his right. Instead, Zack Moss makes a confusing jump that goes nowhere that stops all his momentum and he’s tackled for no gain. Not only is iso a quickly degrading concept, but it is also the low red zone. You have to play fast and finish forward. There is no explanation on this concept or in this situation to stop all momentum and do a jump cut to the back of your offensive line. There is a reading on this part and it is to the left or right of the iso block.

This concept of a long trap is well blocked! Volson makes an effective kickout, Sample makes an effective second-level block, and it should be Chase Brown one-on-one with the safety. Instead of heading north and gaining yards, Brown rebounds and gains nothing. He had the opportunity to confront a security guard and ended up in traffic. Sample’s leverage told him a rebound wouldn’t work, but instead of trusting his blocks, Brown trusted his athleticism. It didn’t work.

The Bengals only needed two yards for a first down on this inside zone play. The defensive line is tilted toward the play side, so this will be reduced. The problem is that Brown has gone too far. It looked like his best bet on this play was Volson’s B gap to the left, but instead he’s trying to cut it down completely. Consecutive examples of too much East-West flight and not enough North-South flight from it. There will likely be a linebacker capable of making a play on Brown if he cuts him behind Volson, but these backs need to be able to either make that man miss or finish up front and gain two yards. It’s not hard to see why both running backs averaged less than -1 rushing yards compared to expectations per carry.

General thoughts

So what’s the problem? Is it blocking? The backs? The diagram? I would say everything is a problem right now. The blocking is terrible enough on some plays that no one can do anything as a ball carrier. They could improve their interior offensive line, either in terms of athleticism or ability to move defenders. Most players simply play for advantageous stalemates when blocking one-on-one, but you need to be athletic enough to get to these positions in time. They use many concepts that are supposed to exploit the strengths of these linemen. It’s not working and they need to play better.

The backs also need to play better because there are examples that have nothing to do with the offensive line. They don’t make anyone miss, they miss openings and they don’t end up making contact. These are the three most important aspects of running back’s game. If they don’t want to make anyone miss out, they need to at least start moving forward through contact and taking what’s there. There are running backs on the street who can do this job.

The scheme has also been a bit predictable in the running game. The only thing the Bengals do with the tight end move is a kickout block. This was fine in Weeks 1-4 when the team was figuring out if it worked, but it’s Week 8. Now they need to have plays that work from this look. Split the inside zone in the opposite direction, a Y slide RPO or a naked Y slide guard to bluff that block and get the tight end in the open field, play the action from that look, etc.

The idea is moving into half-baked territory, which is sad because it was a really good idea at the start of the season. They just never built anything off of that to attack defenses that cheat in favor of movement. The entire unit has been a travesty these last four weeks and it’s put more and more on Burrow’s shoulders to bail them out. They don’t need to have one of the best running games in the entire NFL, but can they at least be functional?

To learn more about the Bengals, subscribe to our YouTube channel and watch the video below:

Make sure to bookmark BengalsTalk.com for the latest Bengals newsexclusive interviews, film clips and much more!

—–

Join the over 48,000 Bengals fans who subscribe to us on YouTube.

Follow us on Twitter: @BengalsTalkSI

Like our Facebook page

Follow on TikTok