Chargers vs. Bengals: Full Cincinnati Game Preview
It's back-to-back encounters with teams that call the West Coast home for the Cincinnati Bengals to begin the new season.
After exorcising some black and silver demons last week with a win in Oakland, the Bengals next welcome the San Diego Chargers to town for one of the most interesting matchups of Week 2.
The Bengals look great—and healthy—after pasting the Raiders, but the Chargers look much the same thanks to Philip Rivers under center, a handful of potent weapons and a defense with the ability to shut down Calvin Johnson.
Within, let's break down everything there is to know about this AFC clash as coach Marvin Lewis and the Bengals hunt for their second consecutive 2-0 start.
Viewing Info
Location: Paul Brown Stadium in Cincinnati
Date: Sunday, September 20
Time: 1 p.m. ET
TV: CBS
Week 1 Results and Recap
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AFC North Standings
In a very literal sense, Week 1 couldn't have gone any better for the Bengals.
Not only did every AFC North team outside of the Queen City lose, but the Bengals were dominance personified. Andy Dalton played mistake-free football, Jeremy Hill ran for two scores, Tyler Eifert broke out with nine grabs for 104 yards and two scores and the offensive line didn't give up a sack in the face of a formidable rush.
On defense, the unit forced two sacks and an interception, held Oakland to a per-carry average of 3.9 and held hyped rookie Amari Cooper to five grabs for 47 yards on nine targets.
In other words, the perfect start.
News and Notes
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Adam Jones Escapes Suspension
By now, those who know anything about the Bengals know all about Adam Jones' scuffle with Cooper last weekend, which many figured would result in a suspension.
Instead, the league hit Jones with a $35,000 fine. He offered his thoughts on the matter, per ESPN.com's Coley Harvey: "It's way too much. $35,000 is a lot of money for a guy out playing football. But it is what it is. I'll appeal and if it gets appealed, hey [good]. If it doesn't, I guess I donated to somebody's college fund this year."
Agree or not, it's good news for the Bengals, as the team needs its top corner ready to go against a pass-first offense featuring Keenan Allen, Stevie Johnson and others. Expect Lewis to have the Bengals more under control, too.
Just Like Last Year
So the Bengals are 1-0 and must now return home to take on an elite quarterback and a high-flying offense capable of doing serious damage every time it has the football.
Sound familiar?
It does for defensive coordinator Paul Guenther, who wants his players to play like they did this time last season in a 24-10 win against the Atlanta Falcons after a season-opening win in Baltimore.
"I told them if you want to know what I wanted our defense looking like, it would be that game," Guenther said, per Harvey. "How we flew to the ball, we mixed our looks up, we stopped the run, we got after the passer. That's what I want it eventually to look like every Sunday."
In that contest, Cincinnati's defense picked off Matt Ryan three times and was the main reason the Bengals were able to escape with a win despite losing A.J. Green to an injury early in the contest.
Staying healthy is perhaps a more important goal than anything Sunday, but it sure doesn't hurt to look at a great past scenario and build on it.
A.J. Green Admits Faults
Part of the reason Eifert stood out so much last week as one of the NFL's top breakout players?
Green dropped a touchdown pass early in the game. It didn't hurt the team, and Green went on to catch five out of eight targets, but it's the lone hiccup he's focusing on this week.
"I can't be dropping touchdowns," Green said, per Harvey. "Drops happen, but I've got to do my best not to let that happen. I've just got to keep playing and that's what I did. I had some catches after that. I played well after that."
Drops have been Green's biggest issue for a while now. It's good, then, that it reared up again in an impressive win, and it's something he's working to address. San Diego is the sort of team the Bengals cannot afford to suffer such mistakes against.
Latest Injury News
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Nothing much here, folks.
| Player | Position | Status |
| Vontaze Burfict | LB | Out |
All Injury information courtesy of ESPN.com.
The topper on a great win to start the season? The Bengals emerged quite healthy from the affair.
Michael Johnson made his return from injury after missing most of the preseason and looked fine against the Raiders. Otherwise, there weren't any injury storylines to watch in the first place.
Vontaze Burfict will be back sooner than later, but the unit didn't seem to suffer much in the team's first game.
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Key Matchups
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Leon Hall, Others vs. Stevie Johnson
The Chargers had one of the league's most noteworthy breakout players on the field last week when they took down the Detroit Lions 33-28.
Johnson joined San Diego this past offseason on an underrated transaction and developed a nice rapport with Rivers in training camp. The connection came to life against Detroit, as Johnson caught all six of his targets for 82 yards and a score.
Allen is the main threat the Bengals will need to deal with, of course. Last week, he caught 15 of 17 targets for 166 yards. Some may remember tight end Ladarius Green scored when the Chargers bounced the Bengals from the playoffs a few years back.
In all likelihood, the Bengals can put a clamp on Allen most downs, but Johnson is trickier. He makes Leon Hall's life in the slot difficult, and if he breaks free to move the chains consistently, it would be the difference in the contest.
Cincinnati Bengals Line vs. the World
Tackle Andrew Whitworth and Co. did an outstanding job against Aldon Smith and Khalil Mack last week, but the tough tests don't stop there.
This week, the line has to deal with elite pass-rusher Melvin Ingram, as well as sneaky Defensive Rookie of the Year candidate Kyle Emanuel, a fifth-round pick who has one sack and two tackles for loss after a preseason in which he recorded two sacks in three games.
Quick-hitting plays to weapons like Eifert won't work if Dalton is under pressure most of the day, so keep a close eye on whether the Bengals can win their battles on the edges. The interior of San Diego's unit isn't anything to scoff at either, not with Corey Liuget and Sean Lissemore capable players in any scenario.
With an emphasis on Russell Bodine (weak preseason) and Andre Smith (coming back from injury), keep a close eye on those tasked with protecting Dalton.
Matchup X-Factors
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Chargers X-Factor of the Week: Ladarius Green
With Antonio Gates still suspended, Green figures to see the bulk of the workload Sunday when Rivers is spamming the ball to Allen.
Historically, over the past few seasons, the Bengals have been miserable at covering tight ends. It didn't show last week because Oakland doesn't have a capable starter who can take a game over and the starting quarterback left the game early with an injury.
San Diego has Green, though, who has hurt the Bengals in the past. If he breaks open over the middle or in the red zone, it's a game-changing factor.
While not a household name yet by any means, a depleted linebacking corps and safeties also concerned with capable wideouts look like exploitable options for the Chargers. If Rivers defers to his tight end early and often, the Chargers might have an avenue to a victory.
Bengals X-Factor of the Week: Jeremy Hill
Last week, the X-Factor was Eifert, and things worked out just fine. Oakland didn't have an answer for him. Most teams might not.
This week, though, the Bengals encounter a defense that held Megatron to two catches for 39 yards and picked off Matthew Stafford twice. What the Lions could do, however, was run the ball well—rookie Ameer Abdullah picked up 50 yards and a score on seven carries.
In other words, this week is all about Hill. If he can pick up solid chunks on most of his carries, it keeps the clock ticking and Rivers off the field. If not, Dalton will need to force the ball into tight windows in what could divulge into a shootout.
Cincinnati is at its best when it runs with success. It's the top formula for the team this weekend.
Prediction: Cincinnati 24, San Diego 20
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A healthy Bengals team has the ammunition to take down the Chargers.
It comes down to execution, really. The defense might have problems stopping San Diego's wealth of weapons, but the defensive line looks back to full form and can apply enough pressure to disrupt Rivers' timing and derail drives, if not force turnovers.
Offense is a bit trickier. San Diego shut down Megatron and most receivers of note last week, but what Detroit didn't have was someone like Eifert—or a back like Hill. Eifert in the middle of the field will force San Diego out of its brackets and open things up for others, but especially for Hill.
Look for Hill to post another monster game in a grind-it-out affair as Lewis defers to the ground game to carry the team.
Prediction: Cincinnati 24, San Diego 20
Stats courtesy of NFL.com and are accurate as of September 16. All advanced metrics courtesy of Pro Football Focus.
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