Biggest Takeaways from Cincinnati Bengals' Week 15 Win
The Cincinnati Bengals secured a playoff berth in Week 15 with a 24-14 win against the San Francisco 49ers, but there isn't much celebrating going on in the Queen City.
Win or not, Cincinnati struggled against a four-win opponent, failing to make notable headway on the offensive side of the ball and needing a gargantuan effort from the defense to escape.
The struggles in various areas would be the reason why Marvin Lewis had to cheer up his team after the win, according to ESPN.com's Coley Harvey: "Marvin Lewis said there were very few smiles in the locker room right after the game. There was 'lacking euphoria.' He joked he had to remind them to enjoy the playoff berth. He says they're focused on what's next (division and No. 2 seed)."
Clearly the Bengals understand there is much to improve upon in the coming weeks while gunning for a top seed in the AFC. Before the team begins to prepare for a high-profile showdown with the Denver Broncos, here's a look at the top takeaways from the win against San Francisco.
Backfield Play Must Improve
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The offensive line might have struggled, but the Bengals still need more from Jeremy Hill and Giovani Bernard.
Bernard got the start Sunday and finished with 14 carries for 33 yards, good for a 2.4 per-carry average. Hill didn't sniff the field in the first quarter before finishing with 19 carries for 31 yards. That gave him a 1.9 average, though he did rush for two short scores.
Road contest or not, these numbers came against a team that entered the contest ranked among the league's worst in defending the rush; Cleveland even went to town on the 49ers the week prior.
In other words, it was an uncharacteristic performance from the Bengals in an area of supposed strength. If it happens against better teams while AJ McCarron sits under center, things could get ugly for Cincinnati.
Ditto for the Offensive Line
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It's been a long time since anyone has seen the Cincinnati offensive line get whipped as thoroughly as it did last weekend.
Not only did the miserable outing hurt a running game that was supposed to carry offense, but it got AJ McCarron sacked four times and limited the offense.
According to Harvey, Andrew Whitworth came up with one explanation for the struggles: "Quick add re: #Bengals' woeful 1.9 YPC rushing average. Andrew Whitworth credited 49ers with giving defensive looks they hadn't much used this year."
Again, this doesn't happen often. But Cincinnati has a short amount of time to figure this out and not the most endearing stretch before the playoffs. Denver awaits, and then it's a clash with a Baltimore team that knows the Bengals well and wants to play spoiler.
Carlos Dunlap Is out of His Mind
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That's a good thing, folks.
Dunlap terrorized the 49ers all day long, recording three tackles, delivering one quarterback hit, forcing a fumble and returning it more than 20 yards and blocking a field goal, which gives him two blocks over his last three games.
For those counting, Dunlap now sits on 10.5 sacks this year with a pair of forced fumbles.
Though he won't see his name in the national spotlight as much as say, Geno Atkins, Dunlap is one of the players who make the Bengals click on a weekly basis.
When his team needs him most with the offense struggling, it's clear Dunlap is up to task. His unit looks like it will need to do the heavy lifting the rest of the season.
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Bengals Smart to Rest Key Players
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Lost in the struggles the Bengals experienced in San Francisco is the fact the team wasn't close to full strength.
Without safety George Iloka and tight end Tyler Eifert, not to mention Andy Dalton and others, the Bengals made the executive decision to not play A.J. Green for a full game, either.
Paul Dehner Jr. of the Cincinnati Enquirer shared Marvin Lewis' perspective: "Lewis: plan was to get Green out with back injury so didn’t re-injure."
Green finished with just one catch for 37 yards. Against a beatable opponent, why not save the best players for later? Meanwhile, guys such as Marvin Jones (four catches, 89 yards) and Tyler Kroft (three catches, 31 yards and a score) stepped into the void and did what they could.
After a historic start to the season, Cincinnati has the luxury to combat the injury bug more than most teams can.
Bengals Can Win with McCarron, Pt. 2
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This was a topic we touched on last week during the panic-stricken aftermath of Dalton's injury.
It proved correct too, as the Bengals were not at full strength but still took care of business against the 49ers via a 15-of-21 line for 192 yards and a score from McCarron.
After, McCarron proved adept in the leadership role by saying how the entire team felt, according to Harvey: "AJ McCarron echoes a lot of Bengals in saying the execution could've been better Sunday. He's optimistic offense can build off this with another week of reps together. He said he had a few butterflies before his first career start."
Sans Eifert and (mostly) Green, McCarron did what the Bengals asked him to do—don't turn over the football and execute the offense. Given the shaky nature of the offensive line, it's easy to say he passed with flying colors.
It gets tougher for McCarron and Co. next week in Denver, where the training wheels will have to come off. With the areas needing improvement being well defined and their quarterback shaking off the first-start butterflies, there's no reason to think the team can't go to Denver and be competitive for a full four frames.
Stats courtesy of NFL.com. All advanced metrics courtesy of Pro Football Focus.
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