Cincinnati Bengals Two-Point Conversion: Running Rough, Despite Win Over New Orleans Saints
What the Cincinnati Bengals have done is commendable. To start the season off a disappointing 0-2 and to battle back to a 3-3 record shows exactly how much fight they have and that they are still out to compete in an extremely competitive AFC. However, we haven't seen the Bengals play their best football yet and there's something we can all point to that isn't at the same level as it was last season.
They Have To Get Joe Mixon Going...
Joe Mixon was a pivotal part of the Bengals' success last season. He was the NFL's third leading rusher last season with 1,205 yards on 292 attempts (4.13 yards per carry) and 13 touchdowns. This season Mixons game-high of 82 yards and that came with 27 attempts - an average of 3.04 yards per carry.
Dating back to the 2021 regular season, Mixon has now gone 11 consecutive games without reaching the 100-yard mark, which is a career high. His previous career high was 10 straight games and those were the first 10 games of his NFL career,
You can point to the early struggles of the offensive line as part of the issue for Mixon, but he ran for over 1,200 yards last season with a line as bad, if not worse. The opportunities have been there but the production has not. If the Bengals are going to reach their full offensive potential, Mixon has to start producing at a higher level than he has been. Averaging almost a full yard per carry less than last season—4.1 yards per carry versus 3.3 yards per carry—and he's currently on pace to finish with a career low in average.
If teams were stacking the box to prevent Mixon from getting going, they would be exploited in the passing game with Ja'Marr Chase, Tee Higgins, Tyler Boyd, and emerging threat Hayden Hurst. Something is off with Mixon and it needs to change.
...But A Favorable Stretch Is On The Horizon
The Bengals' next four opponents are the Atlanta Falcons, Cleveland Browns, Carolina Panthers, and Pittsburgh Steelers. Those teams are currently ranked 9th, 24th, 26th, and 18th respectively in rushing yards allowed per game and all four are allowing over 100 rush yards per game. Those teams rank 19th, 30th, 24th, and 23rd in scoring defense, respectively and all of them are allowing at least 22 points per game.
If the Bengals and Mixon are going to get the run game right, it will begin with this stretch. Having a healthy Higgins back in the mix will also help open things back up in the passing game against four very beatable defenses.
One can easily make the case that with a healthy Higgins, the Bengals would have beat the Ravens and would currently be sitting at 4-2. Unfortunately, he wasn't healthy, but appears to be on track to return to his early season self.
Mixon is still one of the most talented backs in the NFL, but like a basketball player that gets cold and just needs a layup to see the ball go in the hoop to get back on track, Mixon needs that breakout game to kick things back into high gear again. That breakout is coming sooner than later - guaranteed.
Extra Point
An odd and interesting fact; the two teams that the Steelers have beat this season are the Bengals and Buccaneers. The Bucs and Bengals [both 3-3] have yet to win a game in the same week this season.
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