Bengals vs. Buccaneers: Complete Week 13 Preview for Cincinnati

Things continue to slowly fall into place for the Cincinnati Bengals as they head to Tampa Bay for a Week 13 encounter with the Buccaneers.

Cincinnati has now put a nightmarish Thursday Night Football performance against Cleveland to bed by way of a two-game winning streak on the road that has the team slightly ahead of Baltimore and Pittsburgh in the division.

All Cincinnati has to do now before a brutal stretch to end the season is cap off a three-game road tilt by taking care of business against the two-win Buccaneers.

The first year of Lovie Smith's tenure as coach has gone awry in Florida, but the Buccaneers have some explosive elements on offense that can easily make a game of Sunday's encounter if the Bengals overlook it in favor of a looming showdown with Pittsburgh.

Within, let's take a look at all of the pertinent details surrounding the contest.

Week 12 Recap

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Although they certainly had some help, the Cincinnati Bengals looked strong in most facets last week in a 22-13 win over the Houston Texans.

Defensively, the Bengals were strong by allowing just 64 yards on the ground, but much of the unit's success against the pass can be attributed to a woeful performance by Ryan Mallett, who was making his second start of the season.

Andy Dalton threw for 233 yards with a touchdown and an interception, but the latter was returned for a touchdown (although a blatant offsides flag was never thrown). Jeremy Hill once again handled the load and ran for 87 yards and a score.

It was an overall solid performance from the Bengals. The team held the ball for more than 39 minutes and flags were not an issue, although some questionable officiating certainly makes it seem that way.

In tandem with a win the week prior in New Orleans, the Week 12 result shows that the Bengals are finally getting a dab of that consistency that has been so elusive since Week 3.

All that remains is to build on the positives and take care of business in a game the team should win.

News and Notes

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The Rey Difference

One underrated element of the Cincinnati Bengals' recent run of strong form?

The return of maligned linebacker Rey Maualuga.

Defensively, the performance of the unit as a whole has dramatically improved since the former USC star returned from injury. As ESPN.com's Coley Harvey captures, it even happened weeks before most would have predicted:

"

Marvin Lewis says Rey Maualuga returned from the hamstring injury 3-4 weeks faster than he expected him to. Credits how he's worked #Bengals

— Coley Harvey (@ColeyHarvey) November 26, 2014"

"A few times when [Maualuga] wasn't there, it was kind of hectic in terms of, well, I don't know, we just didn't have the composure," safety George Iloka said, per Harvey. "But when vets like him and playmakers like Vontaze are in there, it's like everything is going to be OK no matter what happens." 

Make no mistake, the Bengals still miss Vontaze Burfict in a big way. He is likely to miss another contest while recovering from an injury, but if the past two games and comments from the team are any indication, the unit will be just fine with Maualuga in the fold. 

Andre Smith Done for Year

The Bengals will have to move on without right tackle Andre Smith, as the injury-riddled campaign for the former Alabama star came to a close this week with the news that he suffered a season-ending arm injury in Houston last weekend. 

Smith was having an up-and-down campaign with spotty participation due to injuries. Last week's game was his return to action after a brief hiatus, but he left the field after blocking J.J. Watt. NFL Network's Albert Breer shared the news:

"

Bengals announce that they've place Andre Smith on IR, signed journeyman OT Jamon Meredith.

— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) November 25, 2014"

The Bengals will now turn to backup Marshall Newhouse, who was signed this past offseason after Anthony Collins signed on with Tampa Bay.

Speaking of Collins, his and another player's name weigh heavily on the minds of the Bengals this weekend.

Reunion with Familiar Faces

It was a matter of time before the Bengals were going to experience an exodus of talent due to the sound roster building the front office has done over the years.

That started in earnest last offseason when Collins and defensive end Michael Johnson signed on with the Buccaneers during Tampa Bay's free-agency spending frenzy. Bengals coach Marvin Lewis has been keen on talking about his former players this week, as illustrated by Ira Kaufman of The Tampa Tribune:

"

They were great guys for us and they were guys who grew up here and helped us and did a lot of great things here. We were happy for them and I think that's why the NFL system is so good — guys have an opportunity to test the market and see what happens. Both guys chose to move on and we would have loved to have had them back here. When they were with us, they busted their tails.

"

Collins is certainly a name the Bengals could use up front at this juncture, and the same certainly applies to the freakishly athletic Johnson, especially with replacement Margus Hunt yet to blossom.

Regardless, old meets new for the Bengals Sunday in a battle with plenty of connections.

Injury Report

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Player	Position	Injury Status
Vontaze Burfict	LB	Questionable
Mohamed Sanu	WR	Questionable

*All injury reports are from ESPN.com. This slide will be updated when the official report is released.

At first glance, it appears that the Cincinnati Bengals are the healthiest they have been all season.

While partially true, keep in mind that the team just lost right tackle Andre Smith for the season. The offense can do without Mohamed Sanu for a game against a team like Tampa Bay, and perhaps Vontaze Burfict, too.

Better to rest up and be healthy for impending AFC North showdowns closer to the end of the season.

X-Factor and Matchups to Watch

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Terence Newman, Bengals Corners vs. Mike Evans

For the Cincinnati Bengals to prevail on the road Sunday, another strong performance by a veteran secondary is a must against a pair of quality wideouts in Vincent Jackson and Mike Evans.

The latter is a rookie who is one of the hottest names in the league overall at the moment. Evans leads the Buccaneers in receiving and over the course of his last four games has a minimum of 124 receiving yards in three contests and six total touchdowns.

Few have been able to stop Evans this season, although the Bengals have done relatively well against wide receivers overall.

Still, if Evans can rip off another big game, it will only cause a negative ripple effect for the Bengals. That means less of a pass rush, which means less help for a line that has had trouble generating its own pressure this season.

Newman seems good for surrendering a few big plays each time out, so if Evans can capitalize where others have not, the Bengals will be in some trouble.

Jeremy Hill vs. Tampa Bay Defense

Last week, rookie Jeremy Hill saw the most carries of any back despite it being the return of Giovani Bernard.

Hill has more than earned the work, too, rushing for a minimum of 150 yards in two of his last four games and scoring three times. The former LSU standout is the ideal bruising back the Bengals like to trot out on every down and pound defenses into submission.

Against Tampa Bay, which just allowed 89 yards and two scores to Chicago's Matt Forte, Hill's efficiency with each carry will decide whether the Buccaneers will be forced to play honest. It will not only open things up in the passing game, but make the life of Bernard easier, too.

Tampa Bay ranks 20th against the rush, so if Hill is anything close to his usual self as of late, the rookie should be in for another big performance.

X-Factor of the Week: Marshall Newhouse

The weight of the world is now placed on right tackle Marshall Newhouse, who will fill in for Andre Smith the rest of the season.

Newhouse has struggled mightily this season and ranks as the No. 63 overall tackle in the league at Pro Football Focus (subscription required) on a list that ranks 79 players. Per the data, Newhouse has played 287 snaps and been flagged four times and allowed one sack, three hits and eight hurries.

He is going to be asked to do more than ever Sunday, too.

"It's a heck of a responsibility for Marshall, the tackles here are asked to do a lot," left tackle Andrew Whitworth said, per Paul Dehner Jr. of Cincinnati.com. "He's going to be blocking a lot of one-on-one. That's a big responsibility but he can do it."

Newhouse will have to deal with a talented line that gets a lot of attention in the middle thanks to Clinton McDonald and Gerald McCoy but has plenty of talent on the edges as well thanks to players such as Jacquies Smith (four sacks).

If Newhouse cannot up his play in a hurry, Andy Dalton is going to be under pressure and make tough mistakes that will make a winnable game a loss in a hurry.

Prediction

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The Cincinnati Bengals stand in a strong position to make it three consecutive wins on the road. 

Tampa Bay simply does not tout the same level of talent that can run with the Bengals for a four full frames.

Now, this can be a close contest if Andy Dalton is under pressure all day and makes some tough mistakes, but more likely is his ability to fire off quick-hitting plays to the likes of A.J. Green or his talented backs for big gains.

The improving defense has a relatively easy assignment as well so long as the line plays disciplined gap control and the rest of the unit continues to forget about tackle issues that hurt the team earlier in the season.

Baltimore, a team Cincinnati swept this season, went to Tampa Bay earlier this year and got a 48-17 win. This one should not be as ugly, but it speaks to the talent differential on the field come Sunday.

Prediction: Bengals 28, Buccaneers 20

Note: Stats courtesy of NFL.com. All advanced metrics via Pro Football Focus (subscription required).