Three wins, three losses, and at least three problems exist for the Cincinnati Bengals entering their bye week. 

Despite winning three out of their last four games, the Bengals have dealt with troubles that stem from their 0-2 start. Joe Burrow has gotten healthier, Ja'Marr Chase and the pass rush have awoken, and shades of the 2022 Bengals have appeared since then. But more needs to change in order for this season to not fall off the rails.   

The harsh reality is that not every problem can be solved completely midseason. Some issues are simply a lack of personnel that can only be properly addressed in the offseason. This franchise still doesn't fancy itself trading draft picks for players at the deadline. But coaching tweaks and great players playing up to their level? Those are evolutions that can occur during the break.



How the Bengals solve or mitigate these issues will greatly determine if a playoff run is possible.

Three Problems Bengals Must Address During Bye Week

Tee Higgins and Joe Burrow’s connection

Cincinnati’s passing game is almost entirely Ja’Marr Chase at the moment, which would likely be the case if Higgins just hasn’t played up to this point. Higgins has played in five games, but his impact has only been felt in one.

Outside of his impressive Week 2 showing when he hauled in 89 yards and two touchdowns, Higgins has just six receptions in for 60 yards on 23 targets in the four other games he's started. That's a reception percentage of 26.1%! Not even the caveat of him being limited in a couple of those games takes away the egregiousness of that stat line.

This offense cannot function properly if its second best receiver is a non-factor. The Bengals have been used to getting negligible production from the run game and their tight ends, but Higgins underwhelming so consistently is a new and worrisome development. Part of that comes down to the quarterback as well. How early Joe Burrow gets Higgins going with staple plays can have an impact on how the rest of the day unfolds.

Both players have dealt with injuries that clearly affected their play. A week to rest and reset is the only hope for this 2020 NFL Draft duo to get back on the same page. 

Scheme diversity in the run game

A better passing game should net a more efficient run game, but there isn't just one ailment whenever Burrow hands the ball off. Joe Mixon has displayed power and vision this year, but a lack of explosion and missed tackles forced have his efficiency in irrelevant territory. His blocking is about average at best, and this is only heightened due to defenses having to key in on a limited number of concepts. 

In short, the run game is predictable. It features almost exclusively inside runs out of shotgun and the pistol. Mixon is tasked with running straight into a cloud of dust for the sake of four or five yards at best. Even those outcomes barely move the needle. 

The solution? Start going under center more often, and not just to run the ball. Handoffs from under center can lead to a plethora of more outside and power concepts that defenses will have to account for, and play action calls are also more effective in these formations, which can help solve their explosive plays problem.



The more a defense has to think pre-snap, the quicker it has to react at the snap. Right now, it's just meeting Mixon downhill every single time. Mixon could also stand to be rotated out of the game more often as well. He's accounted for 106 of the 126 total attempts from Bengals' running backs. 

Quality of play from reserve defensive tackles

This is one of those offseason issues. The Bengals did virtually nothing to address their defensive tackle depth prior to the season. Zach Carter, Josh Tupou, and Jay Tufele were locked in as the backups behind DJ Reader and B.J. Hill. The trio is, quite simply, not good.

Providing a pass rush? Carter has five pressures on 89 opportunities and a win rate of just 6.0%. Stopping the run? Tupou has one run stop in 53 snaps and twice as many missed tackles. Tufele can hardly see the field at all and has been inactive for as many weeks as he's played.

Whenever Reader and Hill are off the field, the middle of the Bengals' defensive line becomes a massive liability in both phases. Carter's second-year leap looks to be a myth and Tupou very much is at the end of his playing days as a seventh-year player pushing 30 years of age. 

If the Bengals were to unexpectedly be aggressive at the trade deadline, this is where their defense needs the biggest boost.   

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The Bengals will eventually need to start fast one of these years, but having to make quick adjustments in the heart of the season has become synonymous with this locker room and coaching staff. It's become an expectation.

Will their luck run out against a daunting second-half schedule? Not if these issues get the patchwork they need.

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