Fantasy Football Preview Week 3: Cincinnati Bengals at Carolina Panthers
Cincinnati Bengals (1-1) at Carolina Panthers (0-2)
Sunday, September 26th, 2010
1:00pm EST kickoff
Current line: Cincinnati by 3
After a disappointing start to the season from quarterback Matt Moore, the Carolina Panthers turn to rookie Jimmy Clausen in Week 3 in an attempt to salvage the season.
Cincinnati is coming off a big division win over Baltimore and will look to make it two wins in a row in its quest for back-to-back AFC North titles.
On to the fantasy predictions...
Cincinnati Bengals: Passing Game
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The Ocho and T.O. Show got off to a great opening act in Week 1 as the Bengals torched the Patriots through the air as Carson Palmer threw for 345 yards.
Unfortunately, the show took an intermission in Week 2’s divisional matchup with the Baltimore Ravens. Palmer struggled, throwing for just 167 yards and no touchdowns.
If the Bengals hope to get their passing game back on track, they will need to attack a Panthers secondary that has already allowed a league-worst five passing touchdowns.
Opposing quarterbacks have thrown for a 91.6 quarterback rating against the Panthers’ 14th-ranked pass defense, so the Bengals, who currently rank eighth in passing offense, have the slight advantage in this Sunday’s contest.
There is certainly something to be said about the Bengals needing to pass significantly more during their game against the Patriots because they were down so many scores early in the game. When the Bengals were in a closer game with the Ravens, they did not pass nearly as often, and the final statistics showed it.
With the Bengals expected to beat the Panthers, there is a good possibility that this game will be closer to the number of passes thrown in Week 2 than what they threw in Week 1.
Cincinnati Bengals: Running Game
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Running back Cedric Benson has had trouble getting things going so far in this young season, but that doesn’t mean that there are knocks on the door to replace him with Bernard Scott quite yet.
Benson is coming off the best season in his career in which he ran for 1,251 yards, and there is certainly still a chance for him to get things going.
It’s hard to really blame Benson for his lack of production in Week 1 against the Patriots, given that his team was down multiple scores throughout most of the game.
Then in Week 2, a matchup with the Baltimore Ravens is never a walk in the park—Benson got the ball eight more times in that game, but the Ravens held him to under 3.5 yards per attempt.
In this week’s game, the Bengals will likely be leaning more heavily on Benson and the running game, as they should be able to handle the Jimmy Clausen-led Panther offense.
If that does happen, the Bengals should be able to get off to an early lead, which usually means more running from the offense to control the clock and less of a need to pass the ball for big chunks of yardage.
The Panthers are currently holding opposing running backs to just 3.0 yards per carry and have only allowed one touchdown on the ground in this young season, but the Bengals’ rushing attack is certainly more difficult to stop than the Buccaneers’, which they shut down in Week 2.
Cincinnati Bengals: Fantasy Projections
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Carson Palmer: 185 yards passing / 1 TD / 1 INT
Cedric Benson: 75 yards rushing / 2 TD / 10 yards receiving
Bernard Scott: 35 yards rushing / 0 TD / 10 yards receiving
Chad Ochocinco: 70 yards receiving / 0 TD
Terrell Owens: 40 yards receiving / 1 TD
Jordan Shipley: 25 yards receiving / 0 TD
Jermaine Gresham: 20 yards receiving / 0 TD
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Carolina Panthers: Passing Game
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An 0-2 start is not what head coach John Fox had in mind when he started this season with games at home against the Giants and on the road against the Buccaneers—but that’s what he has.
Disappointed in the play of starting quarterback Matt Moore, who has already thrown four interceptions this season and fumbled the ball repeatedly as well, Fox will turn to rookie quarterback Jimmy Clausen out of Notre Dame to lead his team in Week 3.
Clausen, who stepped in in Week 2 to replace Moore after his slow start, will get his first start this Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals. Clausen was the third quarterback selected (behind Sam Bradford and Tim Tebow) in this year’s NFL draft and was expected by many to be the quarterback of the future—but the future is now.
He hasn’t had much time to work with the first team offense, so we have to expect some growing pains early in this quarterback transition, but Clausen does have the talent to make it as a quarterback in the NFL.
Unfortunately for Clausen, he will be facing a Cincinnati Bengals secondary that looked to be on a completely new level of excellence against the Baltimore Ravens in Week 2.
After getting embarrassed by Tom Brady and the Patriots in Week 1, the Bengals secondary, led by stud cornerbacks Leon Hall and Johnathan Joseph, completely shut down Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco and his trio of receivers.
With Steve Smith and a host of under-achieving receivers beside him, Clausen does not have anywhere near the firepower at the receiver position that the Ravens do—and that could smell trouble, as the Bengals will certainly drop plenty of coverage in Smith’s direction.
It will be up to Clausen to find other receivers to get the ball to while taking advantage of the defense when they do leave Smith in single coverage, which likely won’t be very often.
Carolina Panthers: Running Game
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Running the ball will need to be the key to the Panthers’ offense, as it has been for a few years now, if they want a chance to win this game.
With a rookie quarterback under center and perhaps the best duo of running backs in the league, the Panthers have no choice but to try to wear down the Bengals’ defensive line by pounding the ball at them all day.
Ranked third in the NFL in rushing in 2009 and 2008, it’s not hard to see why the Panthers feel confident in putting Jimmy Clausen in their starting lineup. Running backs DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart are a lethal combination who can run around, over, and through defenses on any play.
The biggest problem at the moment is that without the passing game clicking at the pace that the Panthers hoped, defenses have been able to key in on the running game and shut down both Williams and Stewart. The Panthers currently rank 16th in the NFL with 208 yards rushing in their first two contests, but that number needs to expand dramatically if they want a chance to beat the Bengals this week.
The Bengals' run defense is currently ranked 15th in the league, having allowed 227 yards on the ground through the first two games of the season. But the glaring statistic that is missed by that number is that they are currently allowing an average of 4.9 yards per carry.
If they don’t do a better job of containing the Panthers’ running backs, this game could be a lot closer than many experts are predicting, and Williams and Stewart could be in for monster fantasy days.
Carolina Panthers: Fantasy Projections
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Jimmy Clausen: 145 yards passing / 1 TD / 2 INT
DeAngelo Williams: 95 yards rushing / 1 TD / 10 yards receiving
Jonathan Stewart: 45 yards receiving / 0 TD
Steve Smith: 70 yards receiving / 0 TD
Dante Rosario: 20 yards receiving / 1 TD
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