Bengals vs. Colts: Full Report Card Grades for Cincinnati
This time the Cincinnati Bengals did not need five quarters to come to a miserable conclusion—Andy Dalton and Co. were shut out at the hands of the Indianapolis Colts 27-0 in a performance that will immediately take fans back to the dreadful '90s.
The Bengals continued their post-bye slump by managing just 135 total yards of offense and a 1-of-13 mark on third downs while allowing 506 total yards to Andrew Luck and the Colts.
Dalton and the offense never really got moving until the game was decided. The calls were uninspired, and the effort, sans A.J. Green or not, was lacking.
Carlos Dunlap and the defense turned in a much better effort, although a 39:43 time of possession on the same field as Luck, while down starting linebackers and corners, is bad news for any unit.
As the team licks its wounds in an effort to prepare for a visit from the Baltimore Ravens, let's dish out some grades.
Quarterback: C
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Andy Dalton helped his Cincinnati Bengals to orchestrate one of the worst offensive performances in recent memory in the first half of Sunday's encounter with the Indianapolis Colts.
To be fair, Dalton was mostly accurate and saw his numbers suffer thanks to numerous drops and questionable calls from the coaching staff.
Michael David Smith of ProFootballTalk.com put it best:
"Bengals didn't get a first down until the final minute of the first half, and then only because of a Colts penalty for contact with a ref.
— Michael David Smith (@MichaelDavSmith) October 19, 2014"
Dalton could have made better reads on certain throws, so there is still plenty of blame that rests on his shoulders.
By the end of the day, he finished with a 18-of-38 line with 126 yards. That's it.
Dalton cannot be expected to do it all on his own. It is not how this team was built—hence the performance Sunday.
Grade: C
Running Back: C
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This seems to be a developing trend for the Cincinnati Bengals—it is difficult to throw a ton of blame on Giovani Bernard and rookie Jeremy Hill when they are given few chances to contribute.
In the first half against the Indianapolis Colts, Bernard received just five carries, which went for 12 yards. Hill had just two totes.
Things did not change much in the second half, which is a tad more understandable with the team playing from behind.
Bernard finished with 17 yards on seven carries for a 2.4 per-carry average. Hill found room for all of 15 yards on just four carries.
The backs cannot help that they were suddenly not part of the game plan. A miserable performance from the line certainly did not help.
Grade: C
Wide Receiver and Tight End: D
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Much of the cause for frustration Sunday in Indianapolis for the Cincinnati Bengals came via their receiving corps.
Without A.J. Green, Mohamed Sanu struggled with several drops in the first half. Tight end Jermaine Gresham was curiously the focal point of the offense, but by halftime he had five catches for just 10 yards.
How desperate were things? Recently signed Greg Little was even thrown in the game at one point. He quickly dropped a surefire chain-moving grab.
Cincinnati.com's Paul Dehner Jr. hits the nail on the head:
"There's a reason some players are on the street.
— Paul Dehner Jr. (@pauldehnerjr) October 19, 2014"
Sanu never improved and wound up with three grabs for 54 yards. Gresham caught a team-high 10 passes—to finish with 48 yards. Back Giovani Bernard was used sparingly after getting destroyed on a pass attempt in the second quarter. He finished with a pair of catches for negative yardage on five targets.
Grade: D
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Offensive Line: D
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The Cincinnati Bengals offensive line got starting right guard Kevin Zeitler back for Sunday's contest against the Indianapolis Colts, but it sure was hard to tell.
In the first half the Bengals averaged 1.5 yards per carry. Dalton was rushed more than a few times and was sacked once. Right tackle Andre Smith was hit with a notable penalty.
By the end of the day, Dalton had been sacked three times, and the team had rushed for just 32 yards on a miserable 2.7 per-carry average. Smith found himself the subject of another notable flag late in the contest with his team in the red zone—not that it mattered at that point.
As the reason the ground game struggled and Dalton was rushed a number of times, the unit needs to find itself once more after some lineup changes.
Grade: D
Defensive Line: B
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Sporadic may be the best way to describe the outing by the Cincinnati Bengals defensive line Sunday.
Carlos Dunlap was his usual self—and then some—in the first half.
Dunlap forced a key fumble by Ahmad Bradshaw in the first quarter to deny the Colts a minimum of three points. He was then in the right place at the right time to recover a fumble in the second frame.
He had help from some surprising places too, as Jay Morrison of Cox Media Group points out:
"Good pressure from Devon Still on that second down incompletion by Luck. #Bengals will need a lot more of that.
— Jay Morrison (@JayMorrisonCMG) October 19, 2014"
But as a whole, it was another negative performance for the front four. Pressure without additional help was few and far between, which hurt the secondary. The Colts were able to rush for 171 total yards and a score on a 5.0 per-carry average.
These issues start in the trenches. Some big plays from Dunlap save the grade, but a notable lack of a push is a serious cause for concern with no true answer.
Grade: B
Linebacker: D
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This is a difficult gray area for the Cincinnati Bengals.
Vontaze Burfict left Sunday's encounter with the Indianapolis Colts with yet another injury, meaning the team was down its best defensive player and most of its starters at linebacker.
Vincent Rey showed well with 16 total tackles to lead the team, while Jayson DiManche was somewhat productive with seven tackles. Taylor Mays was asked to help out at the position, while rookie Marquis Flowers did what he could.
As one can probably glean from that list of names, though, the overall play was not very good. The Colts were able to run up those aforementioned gaudy rushing totals and tight ends ran wild yet again, as Coby Fleener and Dwayne Allen combined for seven catches for 116 yards and a touchdown.
Whether it was flat-out running into their own players or being in the wrong position to make plays, the linebackers had a rough outing Sunday. Until it gets healthy, the unit may continue to turn in such performances.
Grade: D
Secondary: C
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Things were bad for the Cincinnati Bengals secondary from the start Sunday.
Veteran leader Leon Hall was beat badly a few times in coverage by Indianapolis Colts wideout T.Y. Hilton in the first half. He then left the game with an injury, further placing stress on a position that will simply struggle if it has to spend too much time in coverage.
There were good plays at times. Adam Jones was once again making an impact, this time with a notable big hit to break up a chain-moving grab. Safety Reggie Nelson finished with nine total tackles for the second-best mark on the team.
For a unit with experienced veterans at the top and two former first-round picks as depth, though, much more is expected at this point. While surely hurt by extended time in coverage thanks to the lack of a consistent rush in front of it, Hall and the rest of the secondary have some major work to do in the coming weeks.
Grade: C
Special Teams: A
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It is clearly a rough day for any NFL team when the best player turns out to be the punter.
Such is the case for the Cincinnati Bengals, as punter Kevin Huber put in the most quality work of any player. Paul Dehner Jr. of Cincinnati.com painted the picture well enough early in the second half:
"Kevin Huber just equalled his career high for punts in a game 1:19 into the second half.
— Paul Dehner Jr. (@pauldehnerjr) October 19, 2014"
Huber finished with 11 punts for a whopping 558 total yards on a 50.7 average.
The unit also did some great work on coverage of those kicks, although kick returns were about as ho-hum as everything else on the day, with the exception being a 38-yard kick return by Adam Jones in garbage time.
Grade: A
Coaching: F
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Injuries are one thing, but the extent of the issues the Cincinnati Bengals suffered in Indianapolis Sunday fall directly on the shoulders of coach Marvin Lewis and his staff.
Hue Jackson's offense was the biggest issue. The run plays were uninspired, the passing routes were run short of a first-down marker and the spread-it-around attack was nowhere to be found.
Bleacher Report's Andrea Hangst put it best:
"Hey Bengals. The offense CANNOT run through Gresham. Where the heck is Gio???
— Andrea Hangst (@FBALL_Andrea) October 19, 2014"
The unit finished with a 1-of-13 mark on third downs and 135 total yards to Indianapolis' 506.
To the defense's credit, it did all it could to keep the team in the game. Andrew Luck is one of the league's best, and 39 minutes on the field with him would see most defenses yield more points. There are major issues, yes, but Paul Guenther gets a pass given the situation and wealth of injuries.
Grade: F
Final Grades
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| Positional Unit | Overall Grade |
| QB | C |
| RB | C |
| WR/TE | D |
| OL | D |
| DL | B |
| LB | D |
| Secondary | C |
| Special Teams | A |
| Coaching | F |
| Cumulative Grade | D |
This has a similar feel to last week, right?
Some credit has to go to the Indianapolis Colts—the team came prepared to counter whatever the hobbled Cincinnati Bengals could throw their way.
Still, here we are again with another case of the Bengals living up to their reputation against quality opposition. ESPN.com's Coley Harvey put it best:
"What a Jekyll and Hyde year this has been for the #Bengals. Looked like world beaters in the first three games, now look like bottom feeders
— Coley Harvey (@ColeyHarvey) October 19, 2014"
The schedule was kind to the Bengals to start the season. This stretch, along with injury luck, not so much. It is back to the drawing board for an injured team faced with two divisional encounters in its next three games.
All stats and info courtesy of ESPN.com unless otherwise specified.
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