Bengals Week 4 PFF Recap: 3 stats to know
Every week, win or lose, we'll dive into the premium stats from Pro Football Focus and identify three stats to know from the previous Cincinnati Bengals game. For the second time in a month of football, the Bengals got embarrassed on both sides of the ball on the road. It was the kind of loss […]
Every week, win or lose, we'll dive into the premium stats from Pro Football Focus and identify three stats to know from the previous Cincinnati Bengals game.
For the second time in a month of football, the Bengals got embarrassed on both sides of the ball on the road. It was the kind of loss that has everyone asking the same questions, and failing to come up with any acceptable answers. But there were a couple bright spots to highlight.
Let's see what the advanced stats had to say about the Bengals' Week 4 performance.
WR Ja'Marr Chase: 3.33 yards per route run over the middle
Chase isn't literally "always f*cking open" like he says he is, but he's pretty damn close to being Waffle House or as Chad Johnson proclaimed himself, 7/11. No. 1 for Cincinnati continues to be their biggest bright spot despite having yet to find the end zone, but he did find more separation and yards on in-breaking routes in Tennessee.
Joe Burrow was three-for-three targeting Chase on slants and ins against the Titans, leading to 30 total yards and two first downs. Just one of Chase's eight targets found the artificial turf in Nashville.
RB Joe Mixon: 61% of rushing yards came before contact
The Bengals' run game showed steady improvement against the Titans, and better blocking in front of Mixon was the biggest reason as to why. 41 of his 67 yards on the ground came before contact (61%), which is his current season high and the highest percentage since Week 5 of last season.
On the subject of improved blocking, look no further than left guard Cordell Volson's run block grade of 92.0, the second-highest mark for all guards this past week. He was paving the way all afternoon when given the chance.
Bengals secondary: Eight missed tackles
Now the ugly part. Defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo counted 12 missed tackles for his defense. Pff counted 14. Either number is egregiously too high. Multiple defensive issues simultaneously happening can compound extremely fast. The defensive line getting blown out of gaps combined with cornerbacks and safeties alike taking bad angles and not wrapping up leads to the several explosive plays Cincinnati allowed.
We've pointed out slot cornerback Mike Hilton earlier this year, and we need to do so once more. He's already up to eight missed tackles through four games. He missed a total of nine all last season, including the playoffs. He whiffed three times against the Titans.
Bengals bring back fan favorite to their practice squad
A familiar face returns to Cincinnati.
