Post by 77bengal on Jan 13, 2022 4:33:18 GMT -5
As I posted a few weeks ago after the Bengals had been upset a couple of times during the regular season, this team is headed for its first Super Bowl victory and the most dangerous team lying between them and that Lombardi may be the Raiders. The last time we played them, it was a close game into the fourth quarter until the Bengals pulled away. However, the Bengals are a much better team now then they were back then. The Raiders have also improved, but not nearly as much as the Bengals.
Derek Carr isn't even in the conversation when comparing other QB's to Burrow plus Burrow possesses the greatest WR trio in the league and a top five RB in Mixon. The Bengals are legit.
In order for the Bengals to win this game, they need the offense to score a lot of points throughout the game. If they do this one thing, they will win even if the Bengal D only plays average. Other than solely relying on their juggernaut of an offense to win this game, here's what the Bengals need to do as a team to get a victory.
1) Don't turn the ball over. If the Bengals end the game with zero turnovers, they'll win.
2) Get an early two score lead. This will force the Raiders to put the game in Derek Carrs hands and this will allow the Bengals to tee off on him.
3) Take DE Maxx Crosby out of the game. Double him up every snap with a combo of an OT and a TE (CJ) or two OT's. Help OT Jonah Williams with double-teaming Owasu or chipping him with a RB out of the backfield.
4) Focus on stopping the run. Make the Raiders offense one dimensional. Clog all lanes, STAY HOME(!) and get up field.
5) Take TE Mike Waller and TE Foster Moreau out of the game. Assign a defensive player or two to mug either one of them for 60 minutes. Allowing these two to run freely in the middle of the field will allow Las Vegas to move the chains especially on those critical third down situations.
6) Be prepared for a lot of play action passes, miss direction runs/plays, end arounds and trick plays. The Raiders aren't as good as the Bengals, so I have little doubt that they're going to reach into their bag of tricks in order to even things up. The Bengals should not over pursue. They need to stay home and fill in all cut back lanes. By staying home, the Bengals will have a much better chance of making any play action passes, misdirection runs/plays, end arounds and trick plays, etc., blow right up in the Raiders faces.
7) Watch for screens. Get as many Bengals inside the Raider screen bubble as possible.
8) Keep JD Reader right in front of Carr just as the team did vs. Lamar Jackson. This will keep Carr from scrambling as much and he won't have wide open windows to throw from. By keeping him in the pocket, this will also allow the Bengal D-linemen a fraction of a second longer to pressure and/or sack him.
9). Do not commit any penalties. When these teams last met, the Raiders committed a lot of penalties to keep a few Bengal drives alive. I doubt the Raiders do the same this time around. Therefore, it's extremely important that the Bengals play smart football and not be caught holding, false starting (Do you hear me Isaiah Prince?) or committing any other type of penalty.
10) Do not miss tackles! The Bengals need to work on tackling throughout their week of practice leading up to this game. They simply miss too many tackles and this can't happen in the playoffs. Break down and allow the ball carrier to come to you and then wrap and crush the lower half of the ball carrier. Gang tackle through every whistle.
11) Work on getting turnovers. Punching the ball, stripping the ball and picking the ball will turn this game into a blowout. Take some chances to get some interceptions. For example, if a CB has help over the top on a third and short, the CB should take one less step back and jump the route. A pick six on a Carr pass could set a tone that the Raiders won't be able to overcome.
12) Fool the Raiders. Do not allow the Raiders to have a good idea of what the Bengals are doing from play to play on offense nor on defense. Keep them guessing all day. Just don't get too cutesy and away from what you do best. Turnabout is fair play.
13) Run up the score. This is a playoff game, so the Bengals need to secure this win ASAP by scoring as many points as possible - early and often. This will only help the Bengals with all of their upcoming opponents by instilling a bit of fear into opposing defenses. Plus it better prepares each offensive player to do this for the remainder of the season. Pile on!!!
14) Bootleg. If the opportunity presents itself, have Burrow bootleg the ball. Just make sure he slides or runs out of bounds! QB's running the ball for multiple first downs in games demoralizes defenses. Use it!
I know that's quite a list, but if most of the above works out in the Bengals favor, they'll blow the Raiders and the rest of their opponents away.
My prediction: Bengals 42, Raiders 17. We have Joe Burrow. They don't.
Derek Carr isn't even in the conversation when comparing other QB's to Burrow plus Burrow possesses the greatest WR trio in the league and a top five RB in Mixon. The Bengals are legit.
In order for the Bengals to win this game, they need the offense to score a lot of points throughout the game. If they do this one thing, they will win even if the Bengal D only plays average. Other than solely relying on their juggernaut of an offense to win this game, here's what the Bengals need to do as a team to get a victory.
1) Don't turn the ball over. If the Bengals end the game with zero turnovers, they'll win.
2) Get an early two score lead. This will force the Raiders to put the game in Derek Carrs hands and this will allow the Bengals to tee off on him.
3) Take DE Maxx Crosby out of the game. Double him up every snap with a combo of an OT and a TE (CJ) or two OT's. Help OT Jonah Williams with double-teaming Owasu or chipping him with a RB out of the backfield.
4) Focus on stopping the run. Make the Raiders offense one dimensional. Clog all lanes, STAY HOME(!) and get up field.
5) Take TE Mike Waller and TE Foster Moreau out of the game. Assign a defensive player or two to mug either one of them for 60 minutes. Allowing these two to run freely in the middle of the field will allow Las Vegas to move the chains especially on those critical third down situations.
6) Be prepared for a lot of play action passes, miss direction runs/plays, end arounds and trick plays. The Raiders aren't as good as the Bengals, so I have little doubt that they're going to reach into their bag of tricks in order to even things up. The Bengals should not over pursue. They need to stay home and fill in all cut back lanes. By staying home, the Bengals will have a much better chance of making any play action passes, misdirection runs/plays, end arounds and trick plays, etc., blow right up in the Raiders faces.
7) Watch for screens. Get as many Bengals inside the Raider screen bubble as possible.
8) Keep JD Reader right in front of Carr just as the team did vs. Lamar Jackson. This will keep Carr from scrambling as much and he won't have wide open windows to throw from. By keeping him in the pocket, this will also allow the Bengal D-linemen a fraction of a second longer to pressure and/or sack him.
9). Do not commit any penalties. When these teams last met, the Raiders committed a lot of penalties to keep a few Bengal drives alive. I doubt the Raiders do the same this time around. Therefore, it's extremely important that the Bengals play smart football and not be caught holding, false starting (Do you hear me Isaiah Prince?) or committing any other type of penalty.
10) Do not miss tackles! The Bengals need to work on tackling throughout their week of practice leading up to this game. They simply miss too many tackles and this can't happen in the playoffs. Break down and allow the ball carrier to come to you and then wrap and crush the lower half of the ball carrier. Gang tackle through every whistle.
11) Work on getting turnovers. Punching the ball, stripping the ball and picking the ball will turn this game into a blowout. Take some chances to get some interceptions. For example, if a CB has help over the top on a third and short, the CB should take one less step back and jump the route. A pick six on a Carr pass could set a tone that the Raiders won't be able to overcome.
12) Fool the Raiders. Do not allow the Raiders to have a good idea of what the Bengals are doing from play to play on offense nor on defense. Keep them guessing all day. Just don't get too cutesy and away from what you do best. Turnabout is fair play.
13) Run up the score. This is a playoff game, so the Bengals need to secure this win ASAP by scoring as many points as possible - early and often. This will only help the Bengals with all of their upcoming opponents by instilling a bit of fear into opposing defenses. Plus it better prepares each offensive player to do this for the remainder of the season. Pile on!!!
14) Bootleg. If the opportunity presents itself, have Burrow bootleg the ball. Just make sure he slides or runs out of bounds! QB's running the ball for multiple first downs in games demoralizes defenses. Use it!
I know that's quite a list, but if most of the above works out in the Bengals favor, they'll blow the Raiders and the rest of their opponents away.
My prediction: Bengals 42, Raiders 17. We have Joe Burrow. They don't.