Joe Mixon Gives Cincinnati Bengals' O-Line His Game Ball Following Win Over Bills

Cincinnati has won 10-straight games.

Author:
Elise Jesse
Publish date:
Jan 24, 2023 7:58 AM EST

In this story:

Frank Pollack was put into a really tough position as he prepared his patched up offensive line to go to Buffalo and beat the Bills in the Divisional Round. He lost right tackle La’el Collins, right guard Alex Cappa, and left tackle Jonah Williams in less than a month.

Pollack’s biggest message leading into Cincinnati’s bout with the Bills was communication.

“You got three new guys that haven’t played together a whole lot. It’s a loud environment which already makes it difficult with guys who are on the same page," right tackle Hakeem Adeniji said. "That was number one, obviously there’s other things but that was the biggest thing. I feel like we were able to nail that and we were in unison on a lot of the stuff that we were doing and it pays dividends.”

There was a lot of talk about the Bengals' offensive line not being up to the task of keeping Joe Burrow upright. With most of the pressure falling on their shoulders and all eyes on them, Pollack’s group was calm, and executed on the biggest stage of the season thus far. Pollack wasn’t nervous about the task at hand, he knew what type of guys he had filling in for the starters.

In a video released by the Bengals, you could see Pollack talking with his linemen on the sideline near the conclusion of the divisional round battle in Orchard Park.

“Guys I am so f------ proud of you!" he yelled. "You guys balled your asses off. The whole world doubted you guys and you said a big collective f--- you. I love it!”

Pollack established a standard which was set at the start of Cincinnati’s 10 game winning streak. The O-line allowed two or fewer sacks in each win with the exception of the Wild Card round win against Baltimore when Williams exited the game in the second quarter. The team allowed four sacks in their win to advance to the Divisional Round, but they went back to their way of doing things after the blip. Burrow was only sacked once on Sunday.

“To be able to have guys go down and still go out there and play with chemistry with guys that you know you might not have played next to all year a whole lot, but you’re in there playing like you’ve been rolling for awhile that’s just a testament to the leadership we have in the room and how connected we are in the room,” Adeneji said.

The Bengals called on Jackson Carman to step up at left tackle, Max Scharping to step in for Cappa the week prior, and Adeniji to block for Burrow’s right side in Collins' place.

Jackson faced his first significant test of the 2022 season since being drafted by Cincinnati in the second round of the 2021 NFL draft. Pollack hugged No. 79 who was sitting on the bench towards the end of a victory in Buffalo with an emotional, yet ecstatic look on his face. Zac Taylor was happy with what he saw from the young Fairfield product as well.

“His first game playing tackle for us,” Taylor said. "He did a really good job when you put it in that perspective. He was physical, finished. Thought he was confident. That was good to see from Jackson.

"All five players on the offensive line answered the bell allowing just one sack to Buffalo as the team advanced to the AFC Championship, “Joe is one of the premier players in the league, he is such a leader for our team, he does so much for our team, so we want to do our job to let him perform to his best abilities because he’s going to take us where we need to go.”

Burrow deserves a lot of credit for protecting himself on Sunday as well. It’s no secret he gets the ball out quickly, but it’s his ability to spot weaknesses, particularly when the opponent drops into zone that allows him to do it. Burrow’s ability to move through his progressions at a lightning fast rate is a key factor is his ability to remain upright and be the assassin Cincinnati needs in order to win games.

Cincinnati’s pass protection was effective, but so was the run game. The Bengals racked up 172 rushing yards against a Bills defense who ranked fifth in the league in stopping the run. Joe Mixon led all rushers with 20 carries for 105 yards on the ground. It was his first time eclipsing 100 yards since his historic 5-touchdown performance against the Panthers (153 rushing yards in Week 9) in their 42-21 win that started Cincinnati’s 10-game win streak.

Mixon was awarded a game ball from Taylor after the win, but he didn’t keep it. Instead, he gave his game ball to the newly formed offensive line. A group Mixon called a meeting with after the first four weeks of football with an effort to get on the same page. At that point in the season the Bengals sat at 2-2 and have since climbed to 14-4.

As Cincinnati prepares for the AFC Championship, they’re simultaneously preparing for a rivalry. The Bengals have been underestimated in the three previous meetings with Kansas City in Burrow’s young career and each time they’ve come out on the winning side. The Bengals beat the Chiefs six weeks ago, but it will be Mixon’s first time playing against Steve Spagnuolo‘s defense this year.

It could also be Carman, Sharping, and Adeniji’s first time facing their defensive line this season. One thing Cincinnati fans can expect to see, if last week was any indication, it’s that this team will be well prepared and ready to problems solve on the fly.

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