The 20-21 season for the Bengals offense had some bright spots that we hope become the type of play we see from this team every week. Last year was the second season with Zac Taylor and offensive coordinator, Brian Callahan and the offense did not have a huge increase in points produced from year one to two. The offense finished 29th in points scored and 26th in total yards last season. Those are two categories you do not want to see your team towards the bottom if you want to be a contender. The offense was 29th in passing yards last season and 24th in rushing yards. The passing yards per game took the biggest drop of all these stats, part of that has to do with Joe Burrow being injured for a good portion of the season. The passing yards could have also dropped from the poor play on the offensive line that we watched last season. Whichever QB was in at the time seemed to always be on the run, making it difficult to successfully execute in the passing game.
Looking towards the 2021 season there is some good news for this Bengals offense. First and foremost, Joe Burrow is healthy! Burrow has looked good in all the activities he has participated in training camp leading into the start of this season so far. Now in his second season with Callahan, Burrow should start to feel more comfortable in the offense as the season progresses.
The skill guys for the Bengals are some of the top in the NFL. The Bengals are finally back to the point where it feels like they have a three-headed monster at the WR position, just as they did back when it was A.J. Green, Marvin Jones, and Mohamed Sanu. With the addition of their 1st round draft pick, Ja’Marr Chase, it is going to be tough for teams to key in one one specific receiver when the Bengals have Chase, Boyd, and Higgins all on the field at the same time. The connection between Chase and Burrow in the NFL can be special if they replicate what they did at the college level. In Burrow’s last season at LSU Burrow and Chase connected 84 times for 1785 yards and 20 touchdowns. 20 touchdowns for ONE wide receiver on his own is almost unfathomable. Then, you shift to the backfield and have to note that the Bengals still have a top 10 running back in the league with Joe Mixon. Mixon only played in 6 games last season and was on pace to hit the 1000 yard mark for the 3rd season in a row. The part that intrigued me the most about Mixon’s 6 games last season was that not only was he on track for another 1000 yard season, but he was on pace to have the most receiving yards in his career too. Those 6 games Mixon played in last season were all still while Burrow was healthy. The increase in Mixon’s contribution in the passing game tells me Burrow has a high level of trust with his running back. This years RB2 will not be Giovani Bernard, who is now with the Bucs, but it will be a combination of Samaje Perine and Chris Evans. Both will get their opportunities moving forward to give Mixon a rest throughout the game. Evans had an outstanding preseason and looks like he could be the number two guy out of the backfield by the end of the season.
The main question on every Cincinnati Bengals fans mind, “How will the offensive line be this year?” The overall perspective of the line is plain and simple, they have to be better this season. Before the injury, Burrow was on the run all season long. Play after play it felt like he was running for his life or taking a big hit trying to throw the ball away. The good news here is that I do think the line will be much improved. The offensive line is returning three of their five starters from last season including Xavier Su’a-Filo who was on the IR for a part of last season. Four starters are returning when counting Quinton Spain who started 8 games after joining midway through the season. Jonah Williams at left tackle continues to get better and better each season and that is saying something because Williams is already really damn good. The time has come that the Bengals have finally moved on from Bobby Hart at right tackle. This move has needed to happen for a few years now. Outside of the 2018 season, Bobby has been subpar from what was expected out of him and it will now be Riley Reiff taking over the spot at right tackle. The return I am most excited for on this offensive line/skill position is C.J. Uzomah. Uzomah had a season ending injury in the second game of the season. He is one of the most versatile players on the team with his ability to block well and get open. With C.J. in the lineup it allows the Bengals to open up the run game with his route running skills, so the defense cannot just throw 7 in the box and stop the run. I am looking forward to Uzomah having a tremendous season and excited to see this whole offensive line put together week 1.
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The Bengals offense is going to take a huge leap in the 2021 season. Between Burrow, the three headed monster at wide receiver, Mixon in the backfield, an improved offensive line and the versatile C.J. Uzomah I think this offense has the potential to be a top 10 offense. 17 games of airing it out is going to be fun to watch.
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