Bengals vs. Cardinals: Full Cincinnati Game Preview
Fresh off their first loss of the season, the Cincinnati Bengals turn around on a short week to encounter a guy by the name of Carson Palmer and his Arizona Cardinals on the Week 11 edition of Sunday Night Football.
The Bengals took a loss at the hands of the Houston Texans on Monday Night Football while the offense struggled to get anything going, but many might still consider Cincinnati's trip to the desert as the headline act of the week.
Forget the Palmer-Bengals storyline for a moment and consider that some suggest the matchup could be a Super Bowl preview.
It's an interesting thought for two of the league's best teams. Within, let's take a look at everything to know surrounding the contest.
Week 10 Results and Recap
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AFC North Standings
Cincinnati Bengals (8-1)
Pittsburgh Steelers (6-4)
Baltimore Ravens (2-7)
Cleveland Browns (2-8)
The aforementioned loss for the Bengals was a torrid 10-6 home affair in which the offense never got all the pieces working properly at once.
In the first half, Andy Dalton was sluggish at best, misfiring on throws down the field when asked to look that way instead of quick-hitting plays to the outside. To his credit, he recovered in the second half, but Tyler Eifert wound up dropping three passes and A.J. Green coughed up a fumble on a potential game-winning drive to end the contest.
The performance marred a strong showing from the Cincinnati defense, which held the Texans to 82 rushing yards and kept the passing game in check, the exception a seemingly inevitable DeAndre Hopkins touchdown.
Regardless, the loss doesn't ruin the team's divisional chances with Baltimore and Cleveland being nonfactors. The exception is a red-hot Pittsburgh team, but the Bengals already own one victory against the Steelers this year.
News and Notes
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Dalton Confident Going Into Tough Matchup
A few days removed from a sluggish performance from his offense, Dalton doesn't sound too rattled.
Maybe he should be, though, because Patrick Peterson and the Cardinals lead the NFL in interceptions with 14. Despite this, Dalton gave the media a strong impression this week, according to ESPN.com's Coley Harvey:
"Andy Dalton has a noticeable pep in his step today as he talks to media for the first time since Monday night. Noticeably relaxed. Re: Arizona's NFL-leading 14-INT secondary, he says: "they've been tight in coverage, balls get tipped in the area and they rally around in and intercept the ball."
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Confidence and resiliency have been a theme around the Bengals this season, so it's no shock the team continues to show such traits, even after its first loss.
Long story short, Dalton continues to lead by example this year.
Mike Brown Speaks on Palmer
The most exhaustive storyline going into the showdown?
Arizona's Palmer, who forced his way out of Cincinnati via trade in what was a rather brutal breakup featuring a retirement, a standoff and what many consider quite a lopsided eventual trade.
Despite this, Bengals owner Mike Brown made a point to stress that there are no hard feelings on his side, as he told FoxSports.com's Alex Marvez in an interview this week.
"I like Carson Palmer personally," Brown said. "I did when he was here. I regret it broke apart the way it did. I don't want him to beat us any more than he wants us to beat him. I'm sure that will be in the back of his mind. But other than that, I wish him well."
The sentimental feelings are nice, but it won't halt the storyline, and it certainly won't have an impact on gameday. It's nice to know, at least, that the once secretive owner is willing to talk about such an issue.
Palmer and Others Speak
Palmer, on the other hand, hasn't said much about the situation.
ESPN's Ed Werder revealed this on Twitter by dropping a quote from wideout Larry Fitzgerald: "He hadn't said a word, but we want to play well for him."
Even if Palmer came out and said the game means nothing to him, it's clear his teammates want to go out and get a win for more than just their playoff aspirations.
Luckily for everyone, Paul Dehner Jr. of the Cincinnati Enquirer captured a quote from Palmer: "It’s not just another game. I’m not going to bore you with that. There is definitely a lot on this one for me in particular."
Given the fact Palmer's in the middle of an epic tear, that shouldn't be too hard. But more on that soon.
Latest Injury News
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Vontaze Burfict (LP)
Vontaze Burfict's been an injury question mark over the course of the past year, but this looks like nothing more than the Bengals giving him Wednesday off.
Carlos Dunlap (LP)
No worries with Carlos Dunlap, either, as he and some other veterans usually get light Wednesday sessions.
Leon Hall (LP)
Like the above two names, losing Leon Hall would hurt the Bengals, but so far his limited action Wednesday doesn't suggest anything to worry about.
Adam Jones (DNP)
Adam Jones left last week's game briefly with a shoulder issue, but unless he continues to miss practices, this isn't anything to worry about. He returned to last week's game.
Pat Sims (DNP)
Pat Sims put on a great performance last week and is likely getting a bit of veteran's time off.
Andre Smith (LP)
Andre Smith is the team's biggest injury concern after taking last week off with a concussion. A limited showing in practice is actually an upgrade.
Andrew Whitworth (DNP)
Andrew Whitworth takes every Wednesday off.
Shawn Williams (LP)
Shawn Williams is nursing a knee ailment, but it isn't anything that should hold him out of the rest of the week's practices.
- DNP: Did not practice
- LP: Limited in practice
- FP: Full practice
Courtesy of Bengals.com.
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Key Matchups
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Cincinnati Running Backs vs. Arizona Linebackers
If there's a way to slow Palmer and the Cardinals, it's by controlling the pace of the game on the ground.
In fact, opposing running backs put on a show in Arizona's two losses. In Week 4, St. Louis' Todd Gurley rushed 19 times for 146 yards. Week 6 saw Pittsburgh's Le'Veon Bell amass 88 yards on 24 carries.
Cincinnati has the talent to pull off a similar feat thanks to Jeremy Hill and Giovani Bernard, but the coaching staff actually has to commit to the approach. In the loss to the Texans, the two combined for just 15 carries while Dalton attempted 38 passes.
If the Bengals come out with a run-first approach, both Hill and Bernard will need to break off runs into the second and third levels of the defense to put the offense in good third-down scenarios. Easier said than done, but it's clearly the recipe against the Cardinals.
Cincinnati Secondary vs. Arizona Wideouts
Adam Jones and the Cincinnati secondary put on a show against Houston, breaking up several key passes and keeping the Monday contest from getting out of hand.
Yet that accomplishment pales in comparison to what the secondary must do on the road against the Arizona offense, a unit touting both Larry Fitzgerald and Michael Floyd.
Both wideouts are big-bodied players who are nearly impossible to contain for an entire game. Fitzgerald has inhaled 65 of 85 targets for 836 yards and seven scores, while Floyd is averaging 16 yards per catch and has five scores on just 27 catches.
If Jones, Dre Kirkpatrick and others cannot play physically at the line and give the rush time to get to Palmer, it's going to be hard for the Bengals to stay in the game.
Matchup X-Factors
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Cardinals' X-Factor of the Week: Carson Palmer
When it comes right down to it, Arizona's ability to pull off a home win Sunday leans on Palmer, who has completed 64 percent of his passes with 23 touchdowns to seven interceptions this year.
He's going to need to get the ball out fast against Cincinnati and make smart decisions. His interception numbers look great, but the lone time he tossed two came in the loss to the Steelers. In the loss to the Rams, he mustered just 7.65 yards per attempt.
Long story short, Palmer's decision-making and ability to push the ball down the field instead of dumping it off against press coverage will go a long way toward deciding the contest.
If Palmer can get in a rhythm, his wealth of weapons could feast at home. If not, game-altering mistakes could be on the menu.
Bengals' X-Factor of the Week: Geno Atkins
Cincinnati defensive tackle Geno Atkins had one of his quieter games of what has been an otherwise superb season last Monday, landing his third-worst grade of the season at Pro Football Focus.
In fact, Atkins received his first negative grade of the season as a run defender, something that cannot happen again against an Arizona team led by a rejuvenated Chris Johnson.
Of course, the main point here centers on Atkins' ability to generate interior pressure. If he can do so often, the rather immobile Palmer will have a ticking clock in his head all day and perhaps make mistakes or at the least get flushed to the outside.
The Bengals need Atkins to have one of his better games to shut down the Cardinals.
Prediction: Cincinnati 20, Arizona 17
6 of 6Narratives suggest the Bengals will choke this one away because it's a prime-time affair, especially after the team failed under the national spotlight a few days ago.
In reality, though, the Bengals needed just that—a reality check. The coaching staff will get back to better game plans against Arizona, Eifert won't consistently drop passes and Green won't have a freak fumble on what otherwise should have been a game-winning drive.
On the road, look for the Bengals to employ a ball-control offense. The Arizona defense is good, but doesn't have anyone who can match up with Eifert everywhere on the field.
On defense, Cincinnati will pressure Palmer often and force a few mistakes, although even then the secondary will struggle with Fitzgerald and Floyd.
Look for the Bengals to march down the field late and secure the win after controlling the pace.
Prediction: Cincinnati 20, Arizona 17
Stats courtesy of NFL.com and are accurate as of November 18. All advanced metrics courtesy of Pro Football Focus.
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