MRI Provides Good News For Cashmere Wright
If you watched Oprah Winfrey’s big interview with Lance Armstrong on Thursday night, it began with a series of yes/no questions in which Armstrong finally admitted using performance enhancing drugs in all seven of his Tour de France wins.
At the exact same time as the Oprah/Lance interview aired on TV, I was asking Mick Cronin a few yes/no questions on his radio show about Cashmere Wright’s knee injury and status for the Marquette game.
Question: Will Cashmere play on Saturday night?
Coach Cronin: He’s day-to-day. That’s my status by the way. That’s the life of a coach – day-to-day.
Question: Did Cashmere have an MRI on Wednesday?
Coach Cronin: Yes.
Question: Is there any structural damage?
Coach Cronin: No.
The fact that there is no structural damage is the key piece of information. Let’s face it, when Wright was helped off the court in agony on Tuesday after scoring 20 points and dishing out 7 assists in just 22 minutes of playing time, it was impossible not to fear the worst.
“He was headed for an easy 30 (points) and 10 assists which is complete domination of a game,” said Cronin. “You don’t want to see him – or any player – go down, but especially him after what he’s been through. And then factor in that he’s playing the best basketball of his career. For him, (a serious injury) would be tragic, so it was great news that his MRI was negative.”
Ironically, Wright’s most recent injury was to his “good knee.” He’s had three surgical procedures on his left knee after tearing his ACL as a freshman, but sprained his right knee against DePaul. Fortunately, it didn’t take long for Cashmere to realize that it wasn’t as serious as his previous injuries.
“He went out at the 15:20 mark, and at the next time-out, I look up and he’s standing in the huddle and he’s giving me the eye like he wants to go back in the game,” said Cronin. “I would say that it scared him more than anything.”
To make matters worse, Wright was not the only Bearcat to suffer an injury in the game. In the first half, Justin Jackson was taken to the locker room with an injured wrist. X-rays were negative and Jackson returned to action with his wrist heavily taped.
Wright and Jackson did not do much at practice on Thursday and Cronin says he’ll be cautious in determining if either player will be allowed to take court the court on Saturday.
“It’s a long year and we have a lot of games left,” said Cronin. “Hopefully, we’ll have a lot of games in March, so I can tell you that I’m not going to take a risk now for no reason.
“(Cashmere) probably wouldn’t have practiced much anyway to be honest with you. From here on out with our major minute guys, we don’t need to practice a whole lot. Full-speed practice is not much more than an hour, the rest of it would be teaching points, scouting report, shooting, and individual work. That’s something that I believe in a lot, and obviously with Cashmere, he’s had some injuries.
“It’s a little bit different with Justin. He’s got a sprained wrist and he’s stiff. He’s another veteran guy that doesn’t need a lot of practice. So we’ll see how he feels. It’s his right wrist so that’s an issue for free throws, not that he’s shooting a lot of jump shots. But again, you’re not going to risk March for January.”
Since Jackson was able to return to the court after his wrist injury on Tuesday, it seems logical to expect him to play against Marquette.
As for Wright, Coach Cronin loves to quote the end of Rambo: First Blood Part II when Colonel Trautman (Richard Crenna) tries to comfort John Rambo (Sylvester Stallone) before Stallone’s character walks off into the distance as the credits roll.
Colonel Trautman: How will you live John?
Rambo: Day-by-day.
Cronin told reporters that he was “Bill Belichick-ing” them – or not saying much – on all injury-related questions on Thursday, but it appears that Wright’s status is truly TBA for the upcoming games against Marquette and Syracuse.
“We’ll see how he feels on Friday…and Saturday…and Sunday,” said Cronin. “Seriously, I’m not trying to be funny, he is day-to-day.”
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Cronin Deserves Credit For Rebuilding Bearcats
Last year after the Bearcats’ thrilling road win at Villanova, a woman stopped Mick Cronin on his way to the team bus. It was the mother of one of the ‘Nova players and she told Mick how much she appreciated his postgame comments after the Xavier brawl.
A few weeks later, a few of us were having dinner with Coach Cronin during the NCAA tournament when a similar thing happened. This time it was a man who identified himself as a Musketeers fan and he praised Mick for the same thing.
I bring this up now because the Bearcats have dropped three of their last four games and I haven’t received a single e-mail criticizing Coach Cronin. It’s my belief that the way he handled himself after last year’s Xavier game caused many people to look at Mick in a different light and reconsider what he’s accomplished as Cincinnati’s head coach.
“I don’t know because I’m not sure how people look at me,” Mick said when I asked if he agreed. “You know me really well, and I’m concerned with being a great father, a great friend, a good brother, and a good son, but most importantly a great father. (My daughter) Sammy’s opinion of me is the one that matters most.”
Of course, the key for any coach to win over fans is to win games. Cincinnati has increased or equaled its win total in each of the last five seasons, made it to the Big East Tournament championship game for the first time last year, and advanced to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2001.
Simply put, Mick Cronin has successfully rebuilt Bearcat basketball.
“We had to rebuild a winning culture,” said Cronin. “Now the expectation of winning is there and the players are willing to listen, practice appropriately, and give the required effort – I don’t like to say extra effort – the required effort that it takes to win games.”
After starting this season 12-0 and climbing into the Top 10 for the first time since the 2003-04 season, the Bearcats have stumbled over the last two weeks in home losses to New Mexico, St. John’s, and Notre Dame. Scoring was a problem in all three defeats as Cincinnati averaged 55.3 points.
“Offensively, we’re just leaving too much on the table,” said Cronin. “We had seven second half turnovers (against Notre Dame) and they were all unforced. We shot over 50% in the second half, but we didn’t get enough shots off. We have to get ‘tighter’ on offense and the guy with the ball has to slow down so he can make a play. Whether it’s a simple ball reversal, making an assist, or putting the ball in the basket – when we slow down we’re fine.”
It would obviously help if Cincinnati had a reliable low post scorer.
“Would it be nice to have some guy down low that’s a monster that we could throw it to? Sure, but that’s an easy excuse,” Mick told me. “We just have to do a better job of moving the basketball. The key to making shots is taking easy ones. I need to do a better job of coaching our guys so that our passing improves. As our passing improves, we’ll make plenty of shots.”
Additionally, the Bearcats need to get more offense out of their defense. Last year in a 71-55 win over Notre Dame, the ‘Cats had 11 steals. In Monday’s 66-60 loss, UC only managed two steals and 21 deflections (UC’s goal is 40).
“We’re constructed to play in the passing lanes, run up and down, and stay on the attack,” said Cronin. “We need to be on the attack. The key for us is to get into transition.”
At one point last year, the Bearcats lost three straight Big East games to fall to 5-4 in league play. After that, they did not lose back-to-back games for the rest of the season.
There are at least 16 games remaining this season, and Cronin and the ‘Cats will look to get back on the winning track on Saturday at Rutgers.
“When you’re coaching basketball, it’s never as bad as it seems when your team is struggling and it’s never as good as it seems when your team is winning – that’s why you have to watch the film and evaluate,” Mick told me.
“They don’t give away wins in this league. We have to take it as a learning experience and do what we have to do to get better.”
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The Bengals Were — And Are — One Year Away
In his first two NFL seasons, Baltimore’s Joe Flacco won three out of four playoff starts – all on the road.
Pretty incredible right?
Here are Flacco’s stats for those four games: 37-for-85, 471 yards, 1 TD, 4 INT for a passer rating of 45.8. In one of the wins, Joe was 4-for-10, 34 yards, 0 TD, 1 INT for a QB rating of 10.0.
I bring up those stats because it seems to me that the national bash-fest of Andy Dalton after his second subpar playoff game is absurd. The playoff losses in Houston were not strictly Dalton’s fault, just as Flacco clearly didn’t deserve all of the credit for Baltimore’s postseason wins in his first two seasons.
Look, nobody knows for sure if Andy is going to develop into one of the top quarterbacks in the NFL, but I do think that his career if off to an outstanding start – especially when you consider that he inherited a team that was 4-12 the year before he arrived.
“I think Andy is an incredible quarterback,” said Andrew Hawkins. “He is going to continue to progress and continue to get better and he’s going to bring the Bengals a lot of wins and playoff wins for many years to come.”
Going into this season, I thought that the Bengals young nucleus was still one year away from being a championship contender. With a quarterback in his second season, a receiving corps made up mostly of first and second-year guys, and two rookies starting for most of the year at center and right guard, the offense is still developing. But despite their inexperience, the Bengals went 10-6 and ended the franchise’s 30-year draught without consecutive playoff appearances.
“We wanted our season to go further and felt like we had the potential to go further, but it was still a good season,” said Andrew Whitworth. “To make back-to-back playoff appearances is an accomplishment. It’s a young football team with a lot of promise and there’s a lot ahead of us.”
Unlike last season, the Bengals didn’t slide into the playoffs by simply taking advantage of a soft schedule. They beat three teams that finished with winning records (Baltimore, NY Giants, and Washington) and earned their postseason berth by knocking out the Steelers in Pittsburgh in a must-win scenario.
“Going into this season, I told the guys that we really hadn’t beaten anybody in big games,” said Chris Crocker. “We finally got over that hump, but we also gave away games that we should have won.
“The tide is kind of turning in this division. It’s not Pittsburgh and Baltimore anymore; we’re really somebody to reckon with. I feel really good about this team.”
“Everyone is learning and gaining from experience,” said Rey Maualuga. “Last year I thought we were good, and this year we were even better. With the guys coming back next year, who knows what this team can do? ‘Look out,’ I guess. These guys are a team to watch and a team to beat next year.”
The key is to keep getting better from top to bottom. Dalton appeared to regress late in the season, and needs to continue to improve at reading defenses and throwing accurate deep balls. A speedy and shifty compliment to BenJarvus Green-Ellis would be a boost to the running game, and Jermaine Gresham needs to become more consistent to live up to his immense potential at tight end. On defense, there are obvious questions at linebacker and safety that have to be answered, but the key pieces will be back from a unit that was the NFL’s best over the second half of the season. It’s a roster that needs tweaking instead of wholesale changes.
“The truth is there aren’t a lot of teams playing now,” said Whitworth. “Whatever we’re missing, there are a lot of other teams that are missing more.”
A second straight playoff loss in Houston has left a bitter taste in all of our mouths, but it hasn’t changed the way I felt about this team all along: It was – and is – one year away.
“Next year for the season to be a success, we have to go to the playoffs and win a playoff game. That’s how you take the next step,” said Hawkins.
“We have to live and learn from it and keep growing and keep beating on that door until we beat it in,” said Marvin Lewis.
“It’s time to push ourselves further,” said Whitworth. “It’s still going to be a young team, but we’re going to expect a lot of ourselves.”
“The sky’s the limit for this team in 2013,” said Geno Atkins.
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Bengals Fail To Go Green In Playoff Loss To Texans
The Bengals front office and Senior Producer Greg Cosell of NFL Films have something in common: Both had A.J. Green listed as the #1 overall player in the 2011 NFL draft.
“He is unbelievable,” Cosell told me recently. “When you watch him on tape, he’s just a ‘wow’ player. He is so smooth that you lose sight of the fact that he is almost 6’4” and nearly 210 pounds. He moves like a much smaller guy. He’s so smooth and fluid and has such great explosion – to me he’s an absolute joy to watch. He’s my favorite wide receiver to watch.”
But there wasn’t much of Green to see in the first half of Saturday’s 19-13 playoff loss in Houston.
Andy Dalton threw 10 passes in the first 30 minutes and none of them were tossed in the direction of Green. Five were thrown for Jermaine Gresham, three to Marvin Jones, and two to BenJarvus Green-Ellis.
“A couple of times Andy took off and ran when A.J. was the number one target,” said head coach Marvin Lewis. “But he can’t force the ball into coverage. He’s got to read the coverage and throw the ball into the weakness of the coverage. That’s what you want him to do. He can’t give in to ‘Oh A.J. didn’t touch the ball here.’ He’s got to make sure that he’s doing it the way it’s designed.”
“I would love to get the ball on every play but when they double me there are other guys on the team that can make plays,” said Green. “I tried to make plays whenever my number was called but we didn’t make enough as a whole team to come away with a win.”
It was clear that the Bengals coaching staff thought that the Texans defense was vulnerable up the middle and that Gresham would have opportunities, but it’s hard to fathom not throwing to Green at all for a half.
“You have to do what you do,” said my partner on the radio broadcasts Dave Lapham. “You can’t say, ‘OK, they’re playing Cover 2 and Jermaine Gresham is going to be on a linebacker or a nickel defensive back that he can physically dominate.’ Baloney. A.J. Green got you to the dance. I don’t care what the game plan was. You cannot go an entire half without putting the ball in his hands one time.”
To their credit, the Bengals adjusted in the second half as Green was targeted 11 times and caught five passes for 80 yards.
“We want to get the ball to A.J. as much as we can, and in the second half we were able to move him around a little bit and make some plays,” said Lewis.
Unfortunately, the Bengals were not able to connect with Green on a play that would have given them the lead with less than three minutes to go.
On third-and-11 from the Houston 36-yard line, Green blew past Texans cornerback Johnathan Joseph and safety Danieal Manning and was open in the end zone, but Dalton’s heave was beyond A.J.’s grasp.
“I was digging and I laid out, but I couldn’t get a hand on it,” said Green. “We’re both young and that’s something that we need to work on. Our deep balls this whole year weren’t consistent enough. That’s me and him – both parts. That’s the stuff we need to work on in the off-season.
“Football is a game of inches and that’s one thing that we need to get better at. We need to capitalize when plays are presented our way. That’s the next step to being a great team.”
The Bengals made strides in 2012 as they improved their record to 10-6 and made back-to-back playoff appearances for the first time in 30 years. But the season ended exactly where it did one year ago – with a first round playoff loss in Houston.
“We were 3-5 and dug ourselves out of that hole to put ourselves in the playoffs,” said Green. “We won 10 games which is difficult in this league so I feel like we took a step. The next step is to get past the first round.”
“We have to get better,” said Coach Lewis. “We can’t be satisfied with where we are. We’re not going to New Orleans, so we’re not satisfied. We have to push ahead and get better.”
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Bengals Need Dalton To Deliver In Return To Houston
One of my favorite stats about Andy Dalton is that he has thrown 35 touchdowns in the red zone in his NFL career and no interceptions.
That’s spectacular.
But ball security might not be enough to win in the playoffs.
Dalton has been sacked 46 times this season including eight times in the red zone – at least in part because of his reluctance to throw risky passes. Taking care of the football is obviously a good thing. But if the Bengals are going to beat the 12-4 Texans, Andy is going to have to take advantage of his opportunities to make plays.
“I watched all 46 sacks on Tuesday night because I wanted to see if there was any kind of consistency to them,” said analyst Mike Mayock who will call Saturday’s game on NBC. “I’m a big believer that pass protection starts with the quarterback and Andy is a young quarterback who is really concerned about protecting the football. So on the one hand, you applaud that – especially in the red zone – and he hasn’t thrown a red zone interception in his career. But the flip side to that is that I don’t think he rips the ball when he has a chance to rip it. I think what you’re seeing is a really intelligent young guy trying to figure it out, but for my money, right now he’s too far on the conservative side.”
“He’s a perfectionist and if it’s not perfect he’ll choose not to throw it,” said offensive coordinator Jay Gruden. “Sometimes he makes the right decisions and sometimes you’re like, ‘Thrown the dang ball please.’ But he’s got the ball in his hands and only he can see what he sees and the more he sees the route combinations and gets a feel for the defenses and how they’re covering, the better he is going to be. But for 30 starts or whatever it is, I think he’s done pretty darn good.”
If the Bengals can give Dalton time to throw against J.J. Watt (20.5 sacks), Antonio Smith (7 sacks) and the Texans pass rush, there will be opportunities to make big plays. Houston has good cornerbacks in Pro Bowler Johnathan Joseph and Kareem Jackson, but safeties Danieal Manning and Glover Quin have not graded as well.
“The Texans have given up 29 touchdown passes compared to 18 last year,” said beat writer John McClain from the Houston Chronicle. “The only playoff team that’s given up more is Washington with 31. They’ve given up 54 pass plays of at least 20 yards. That is third worst among the playoff teams. It’s not the corners, it’s the safeties. They’ve had injuries and the backup safeties playing in the two-deep have killed them. They have just not played well on the back end in passing situations so I would expect Andy Dalton to be throwing the ball deep to A.J. Green quite a bit.”
“They’re not playing cohesively in the back end,” said Mayock. “My take on Houston is those two pass rushers on the inside make all the difference and when you protect your quarterback you can get into their secondary. I don’t think their secondary when you break them down individually is great. When you get time, you can get into the secondary and without (the injured) Brian Cushing back there, that’s another problem because he’s an athletic linebacker and not having him in that intermediate area is a big deal.”
Unlike Cincinnati’s AFC North rivals Pittsburgh and Baltimore, the Texans are not especially confusing on defense. It’s a straight-forward scheme led by a tremendous player in Watt.
“I’ve never seen anybody in all the years that I’ve covered football have a season like Watt has had,” said McClain. “He has 90 plays – 90 – for zero or negative yards. On running plays alone, he has 24 tackles for loss and 15 tackles for no gain. He’s been involved in nine turnovers, set an NFL record with 16 passes deflected – the only thing he hasn’t done is intercept a pass and return it for a touchdown like he did in the playoffs last season.”
“They have some good blitzes here and there, but basically, they’re going to get after you with their front four and play a lot of man-to-man,” said Gruden. “By the time you can get open down the field, J.J. Watt and company are feasting at the quarterback. They done a great job with it, and the energy level that they play with on every snap is very impressive.”
“Their defense is more ‘Here’s what we do – beat it,’ ” said Dalton. “They have really talented guys up front and do a great job of rushing the passer and they rely on those guys a lot. That allows them to not do as much other stuff because they have a good front.”
Dalton was 2-0 at Reliant Stadium as a Katy Tiger and 1-0 as a TCU Horned Frog. He’s 0-1 as an NFL player in Houston, and Andy looks forward to getting another shot at beating the Texans in their own building.
“I know the stadium, I know the layout, I know all of that kind of stuff,” said Dalton. “Now it’s time for me to get the first win there as a pro.”
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Bengals Postseason Hopes Ride On Dominant Defense
As the defensive coordinator of the Super Bowl champion Baltimore Ravens in 2000, Marvin Lewis was in charge of a unit that surrendered 165 points all season – the fewest ever allowed during a 16-game season.
So was Cincinnati’s defensive performance last Sunday in Pittsburgh reminiscent of the dominant efforts that Lewis directed 12 years ago?
“It was except that we let the other team score a touchdown,” Marvin said with a laugh. “Those guys (in Baltimore) never wanted to let the other team score. But yea, it was a great, great defensive day.”
It was the latest in a string of them.
Over the past seven games, the Bengals defense has allowed an average of 272.3 yards and 12.1 points – both figures would lead the NFL if they were season totals.
“I have a lot of confidence in these guys and the way that we’re playing,” said defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer. “I feel like if we continue to play the way we’re playing and do things right, I think we have a chance to go up against anybody and put up a great performance. But we have to go out each and every week and do what we’re supposed to do. Right now we’ve been on a hot streak and I hope it continues.”
Is it a defensive that gives the Bengals a shot to beat anybody that they will face in the postseason?
“We have to keep playing soundly, but to answer your question simply, yes it does,” said Lewis. “We’re doing a great job of taking away what we feel are the offensive strengths and making the other team work into their weaknesses a little bit more. I think that’s a key to playing great defense down the stretch. Our players are cerebrally recognizing what’s important and they’re working on that during the week as the game plan unfolds.”
Of course it helps to have a wrecking ball in the middle named Geno Atkins.
With 2.5 sacks against the Steelers last Sunday, Geno ranks 5th in the NFL with 13 this season. That’s nearly twice as many as the next-best defensive tackle – Ndamukong Suh – who has 7 for Detroit. Suh was the second overall pick and first defensive tackle selected in the 2010 NFL draft. Atkins was chosen with the 120th pick and was the 15th defensive tackle selected.
“Honestly, we targeted Geno in the draft,” said Zimmer. “I’m not saying it was me, but I said, ‘If this guy is there in the fourth round we need to take him.’ At that point in time we were looking for an inside pass rusher. We felt like we had some ends that could rush and if we could get a little bit of an inside pass rush that it would really help. Obviously I didn’t know that he was going to be this good or he would have been drafted a lot higher. I remember in the rookie minicamps and OTAs, some of the offensive players walked over and said, ‘Is this guy going to do this when we get the pads on?’ Geno’s been doing it ever since.”
With Atkins leading the way, the Bengals rank second in the NFL with 47 sacks (one behind Denver). Defensive lineman have accounted for 38 of those sacks – a figure that is better than 23 NFL team totals.
It’s a defensive unit that clearly loves playing for Zimmer and doesn’t want to let him down.
“It makes me feel like I don’t want to let them down either,” said Zimmer. “I want to make sure that I put them in the best position to win each and every week. To make sure that they understand exactly what the other team’s offense is trying to do and how they’re trying to do it. We really have a team concept. We don’t have selfish guys. Geno Atkins is a perfect example. He might have 20 sacks if he was playing on a team that just rushed the passer on every single down. We have guys that want to do things within the framework of the defense and play together. I always talk to them about being a smart defense and playing together with great effort and intensity. Once we can get them to buy into that and not get frustrated because they’re not necessarily making plays, then you have a chance.”
While Atkins is undoubtedly the Bengals’ defensive MVP, Chris Crocker is the unsung hero. The 32-year-old veteran did not join this year’s team until the fourth game of the season and didn’t become the primary strong safety until the eighth game vs. Denver.
Through the Denver game, the Bengals only held one of eight quarterbacks to a passer rating under 90.4 (Jacksonville’s Blaine Gabbert at 78.8) and the average QB rating against Cincinnati was 99.4. Over the past seven games – despite facing the likes of Eli Manning, Carson Palmer, Philip Rivers, Tony Romo, and Ben Roethlisberger – no opponent has managed a passer rating higher than 75.4 vs. Cincinnati, and the average has been 64.9.
“That’s a beautiful thing isn’t it?” said Zimmer. “When we started going into this stretch we talked about how it was going to be the murderer’s row of quarterbacks and our guys have risen to the occasion quite a bit.”
It’s easy to forget that going into last year; the Bengals were coming off of a 4-12 season and were widely expected to be one of the worst teams in the NFL. Instead, the “Andy and A.J.” era has started with back-to-back playoff appearances.
“We have so many young players,” said Lewis. “The quarterback and receiver continue to be at the focal point of things and the fact that we have a lot of young defensive guys that aren’t even seeing the field is really a plus as we go forward. There’s a strong, strong foundation that’s been built and I think that was the key thing when we got started again prior to the 2011 season. We needed to really drill down and lay some pillars and I think we’ve got that done now. Now we continue to build upon it, and every time that we add a guy, it’s a big plus.”
Marvin Lewis won a Super Bowl ring with a Wild Card team a dozen years ago. Perhaps it’s a longshot, but his goal is to do it again over the next month.
“Our goal is to be World Champions and now we’re in it and we have to go forward,” said Lewis. “We’ve got ourselves into the tournament – not exactly where we wanted to be because we wanted to win the division – but we’re in the tournament and that’s all you can ask for at this point.”
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A Look At The Bengals Christmas Present…Not Past
I’d be willing to bet that there’s not a single player in the Bengals locker room that knows that David Shula was once the team’s head coach. Or that Gary Reasons embarrassed him by tugging on his cap on the sideline during a Monday Night Football game.
Additionally, if you made a reference to Gus Frerotte’s left-handed interception or Corey Dillon’s desire to flip burgers to a member of this year’s team you would be greeted with a blank stare.
In other words, the 2012 Bengals have nothing to do with the team’s struggles in previous decades. Perhaps Christmas would be a good time to look at the present instead of the past.
The Bengals are going to playoffs for the third time in the last four years, making them one of only seven teams that can make that claim. The last three drafts alone have produced Geno Atkins, Clint Boling, Andy Dalton, Carlos Dunlap, A.J. Green, Jermaine Gresham, Marvin Jones, Dre Kirkpatrick, Mohamed Sanu, Kevin Zeitler, and others. And after starting the season 3-5 with a four game losing streak, the Bengals have won six of their last seven to make the playoffs for the second straight season.
“It’s big man,” said nine-year veteran Robert Geathers. “For this franchise to do it back-to-back is a stepping stone. We’ve got something to build on.”
“It’s big for us,” said Andy Dalton. “We had to come out and get a win in this one – especially with all of the things that were on the line. It feels great to be where we are right now.”
“I am very, very proud of the Bengals,” said Adam Jones. “I’m happy to be here and it’s been a good ride.”
Last year the Bengals needed help on the final Sunday of the regular season to squeeze into the playoffs, but this year, Cincinnati not only earned a return to the postseason by winning in Pittsburgh but sent the Steelers packing in the process.
“Our young players should never forget this,” said Reggie Nelson. “They’ve been beating us for the last few years and it ought to feel good for our players to get this goal achieved. That’s big when you come into somebody else’s house and win a big football game.”
“These are the games that I live for,” said Jones. “It was probably the most exciting game I ever played. When they played their music going into the fourth quarter, I just got a rush thinking, ‘We’re going to win this sucker and shut the crowd up.’ ”
The win ended the Bengals 29-year streak of not going to the playoffs in consecutive seasons. The next demon to exorcise is to record the franchise’s first playoff win since 1990. Perhaps that won’t happen in the next few weeks, but with Cincinnati’s talented young nucleus, that day is coming soon.
“These guys don’t have doubt in the back of their mind,” said Geathers. “We believe that we can win because we have a lot of good football players on the team. You just have to go out there and get it done.”
“We’re excited to get to the playoffs, but it’s just the beginning,” said Domata Peko.
“We have more football to play,” said Marvin Lewis. “That’s the thing – we set our goals high and we’re going to keep battling.”
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Atkins Actions — Not Words — Speak Volumes
Geno Atkins might be the worst player in the NFL…
…at talking about himself.
For example, if you ask Atkins if he agrees with the widely-held notion that he is currently the best defensive tackle in the NFL, here’s what you get:
“We still have some games left so I can’t agree yet,” Geno told me. “I think it’s an accumulation of the collective effort of my teammates.”
Not exactly a clip and save quote. Fortunately, there is no shortage of people who are willing to sing Atkins’ praises.
“Geno Atkins right now is playing as good as anybody in this league as a defensive tackle,” said Eagles coach Andy Reid.
“He’s definitely up there,” said defensive end Robert Geathers. “He’s so disruptive week in and week out and he’s consistent. That’s the big thing in this league. He’s good in the run game and the passing game so he’s definitely up there near the top.”
“I’ve never seen a defensive tackle take on double teams and make plays like he does,” said linebacker Manny Lawson. “When you look at Geno, he’s running all over the field. He’s around the ball on almost every tackle. What defensive tackle does that?”
“He’s so quick and explosive off the ball,” said Greg Cosell, Senior Producer for NFL Films. “There are times when you watch him where he looks like a running back playing defensive tackle. And he has also shown the ability to get underneath the pads of guards or centers and bull rush. There were a couple of plays that I can remember against Oakland a few weeks ago where he was just unbelievable. I think he’s the best D-tackle in the game right now.”
The data backs that up. Atkins leads all interior linemen in sacks with 10.5, four more than the next-best defensive tackle Detroit’s Ndamukong Suh. So what did it mean to Geno to become the first Bengals player since 2006 to have 10-or-more sacks in a season?
“It’s a good milestone,” said Atkins. “I’ve heard that normally defensive tackles don’t get double digits sacks so it feels pretty good to represent for the D-tackles.”
In truth, Atkins is putting up numbers that are highly unusual for his position. Consider these nuggets from ProFootballFocus.com analyst Sam Monson:
- Already comfortably highest graded DT we’ve had in a season at +65.0, previous best was Kyle Williams at +44.2 in 2010
- In addition to his 10.5 sacks, Geno’s 69 QB pressures are 21 more than the next best DT (Tampa Bay’s Gerald McCoy).
- Only Denver linebacker Von Miller and Miami defensive end Cameron Wake have more total pressures than Atkins. He’s third in the entire NFL and he’s a defensive tackle!
- He records a stop against the run on 10.6% of his run snaps, which trails only Chicago’s Henry Melton among DTs
- Leads all DTs in stops by 10
“Completely mind-bending numbers,” concluded Monson.
My broadcasting partner Dave Lapham doesn’t need stats to judge Atkins’ dominance. Lap says the body language of opposing players that have to block Geno tells you all that you need to know.
“I love watching the first pass set that the opposing guards have to take,” said Lapham. “They study tape all week and probably think, ‘Man, that guy looks pretty quick.’ But when he’s right in front of you when they snap the ball and you have to experience it first-hand…I love watching the guards after that first play because when they turn around and walk back to the huddle you can see their shoulders slump a little bit and they start shaking their heads. I like watching that reaction and it’s almost been every game without exception.”
“There was one game this year – Kansas City I believe – where we were on the field goal block team and the guard that was lined up against me said, ‘Damn, that sucker is strong.’” said Geathers with a laugh. “They’re definitely shocked when they play against him.”
“I just let ‘em know that it’s going to be a long day every time that they go up against me,” said Atkins.
Geno lasted until the fourth round of the 2010 draft because he was considered undersized at 6’1”, 293 pounds. But great quickness, a 550-pound bench press, and a relentless motor have made him one of the most disruptive forces in the NFL.
“His passion for the game and ‘want-to’ is incredible,” said Lawson. “He’s small, he’s quick, he’s explosive, and he has a big heart. He plays with a chip on his shoulder and like he has something to prove.”
“The other team has to come out of the huddle and go, ‘Where’s 97?’” said Lapham. “He’s a force on every snap.”
As for my conversation with Geno, he did say one thing that should make opposing lineman shudder: He thinks he can get even better.
“I just feel like each year I try to improve on the little things,” said Atkins. “I try to look back at what I did in the previous year and ask, ‘What can I do to get better?’”
Aside from talking about himself, there isn’t much.
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Bengals Ditch Script And Dump Eagles
So much for the pregame analysis.
I think most of us expected the Bengals defense – currently number one in the NFL in sacks – to tee off on Philly’s rookie quarterback Nick Foles on Thursday. But it was Andy Dalton who was running for his life all night as he was sacked six times and forced to fumble twice.
“The run blocking was pretty good, but boy, the pass protection was struggle city,” said my broadcasting partner Dave Lapham. “The Eagles were running a lot of twists and stunts and when the Bengals went to help, there was nobody there because of those stunts. It isn’t anything that you don’t see on a weekly basis in the NFL, but you usually don’t see it that much. Once Philadelphia started having success, they went to it again and again and again.”
But the inability to protect Dalton didn’t spell doom thanks to a brilliant performance by the Bengals defense.
With roughly eight minutes to go in the first half, the Eagles had a first-and-goal opportunity at the three yard line and settled for a field goal. Then with 39 seconds left in the half, Philadelphia had a first-and-goal at the two yard line and settled for another field goal.
Instead of taking a 21-10 lead and abundant confidence into the locker room, the Eagles were only up by three points.
“As a defense, we pride ourselves in not letting them score near the goal line,” said Manny Lawson. “That’s a critical area because it can change the momentum of the game. Our guys stepped up and made plays.”
The biggest play of the game came in the third quarter. After the Bengals offense opened the second half with a pair of three-and-outs, Leon Hall came up with his first interception of the year and returned it 44 yards.
“That was huge,” said Reggie Nelson. “We needed that and that’s what playmakers do. Leon is a playmaker and he showed up. That was a big play to get the momentum back because we were kind of dead and that gave us that spark.”
Hall’s interception gave the Bengals a short field and led to an 11-yard touchdown run by Dalton that gave Cincinnati a 17-13 lead. It also opened the floodgates, as the Eagles fumbled three times in the next 2:04, leading to 17 more points.
“It wasn’t a pretty win, but defensively it was very pretty,” said Lapham. “The only thing they didn’t do was get a bunch of sacks. They did get one, but forced several fumbles including one taken for a touchdown … a lot of things went right.”
“We shut them out in the second half and that’s what counts,” said Jones.
What really matters is that the Bengals took a half-game lead over Pittsburgh in the wild card race. If the Steelers lose at Dallas on Sunday and the Jets lose at Tennessee on Monday, Cincinnati could clinch its second straight playoff trip with a win at Pittsburgh next week.
“This wasn’t our best performance but we won the game,” said Jones. “That’s what good teams do.”
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A Memorable Blocked Kick For Josh Brown
Do not – I repeat – do not try this in the backyard.
Kicker Josh Brown, who drilled all four of his field goal attempts in his Bengals debut last week, ranks 29th in NFL history by making 81.159% of his career attempts. But when it comes to kicking a ball at a dude’s head, Brown is a perfect one-for-one.
In the movie Jackass 3D, Brown was hired to take part in a stunt simply called “The Field Goal.”
“It was about two years ago,” said Brown. “I just got a random phone call from my agent who knew somebody who was promoting the movie. Those guys had heard of me because some of them were from the Missouri area and I’m in the northeast corner of Oklahoma.”
If you’re unfamiliar with the Jackass movies, the stars voluntarily subject themselves to bizarre and often painful challenges. Film critic Richard Roeper described the first Jackass film as “a disgusting, repulsive, grotesque spectacle, but it’s also hilarious and provocative.”
In Jackass 3D, a rotund daredevil named Preston Lacy allows Brown to boot a football directly at his face.
“That was a weird request, but I figured if I’m ever going to have a chance to do it legally and get paid for it, I should probably take the opportunity,” said Brown with a laugh. “It really turned out to be a funny part of the movie.”
Judge for yourself.
“He was not wearing a mouth guard and his lower lip absolutely exploded,” said Brown. “I hit him right on the chin and knocked him out. It was probably the best-case scenario for him. Had I hit him in the eyes or directly in the nose, it could have been a bloody, bloody mess. I had to sign several waivers and so did he so that they couldn’t come after me for liability issues.”
Jackass 3D earned more than $170 million at the box office and Brown says he’s frequently asked about his kick more than two years after the film’s release.
“I have a 14-year-old son and his buddies absolutely love it,” Josh told me. “The junior high kids get a big kick out of it.
“I wouldn’t attempt any of the things that they do, but all in all, it was fun to meet those guys. There’s a lot more to them than what you see and they’re just a lot tougher than most people.”
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Dan Hoard
