We ask about the Bengals’ getting the ball much more often to Ja’Marr Chase, the state of their defense, and more.
On Sunday, the Cleveland Browns take on the Cincinnati Bengals. To help preview a few topics from the Chiefs’ perspective, we reached out to Anthony Cosenza from Cincy Jungle and exchanged five questions with him.
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Chris: “In their last seven games, the Bengals are allowing an average of 31 points per game. I know their defense wasn’t exactly sharp to begin with, but has it gotten worse?”
Anthony: “Yes and no. The defense showed MAJOR issues against more quality opponents and quarterbacks in the stretch you mentioned, with guys like Jalen Hurts, Lamar Jackson, Russell Wilson and Justin Herbert all having big days. Some of the points allowed are misleading in a way, though, as there have been a few turnovers for scores on the Bengals’ offense, as well as “garbage time scores” late in contests.
Cincinnati’s has seemingly turned a little bit of a corner the last couple of weeks, forcing more turnovers and even some for scores. Geno Stone and Cam Taylor-Britt are playing better of late and Lou Anarumo is finally putting guys like Mike Hilton back into alignments where they can be successful. However, with the two-game winning streak they are currently on, it’s been against Cooper Rush and Will Levis/Mason Rudolph, so the uptick might be more fool’s gold.”
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Chris: “Up through the last time these two teams met, Ja’Marr Chase was averaging 6 targets per game, and only had double digit targets once. In the last 7 games, Chase is averaging 13 targets per game (with a lot of productivity along the way). Were there any circumstances that led up to he and Joe Burrow connecting a lot more lately?”
Anthony: “Great question. Part of those ebbs and flows likely had to do with Tee Higgins in and out of the lineup with injuries. The other is just the trust that Burrow has in Chase and how these two are on a historic pace this season. The team clearly doesn’t trust rookie third-round pick, Jermaine Burton, at all, Andrei Iosivas has had nice moments, but remains inconsistent and Higgins is great, but has had injury issues.”
Chris: “Are there any injuries differences from the previous Browns vs. Bengals game compared to this week?”
Anthony: “One difference is that running back Chase Brown is seemingly finding a nice groove as the go-to back and an all-around weapon. Another, as I mentioned earlier, is the Bengals’ defense becoming more of a big play (and still allowing a bunch of them, too) unit, which is helping to pull their weight at least a little bit. Cincinnati’s offensive and defensive lines are more banged up this time around, though, which is definitely worrisome.”
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Chris: “Do you believe the Bengals have a realistic shot at making the postseason?”
Anthony: “They need a lot of help, but, more importantly, they need to take care of their own business. Zac Taylor has never had an easy time with the Browns, regardless of the quarterback, Denver is scrappy (their next opponent), and then who knows if Pittsburgh will be playing a bunch of starters in the final week with the playoffs/division seemingly wrapped up?
However, this is the time of year Burrow and Co. usually turn things on and play their best ball. No. 9 is already having his best statistical year ever (and one by a Bengals quarterback), so they’ve got that and Chase’s own historic season going for them. If they do make it in, their defense will likely be the thing preventing them from making a run, but I know teams like Pittsburgh, Baltimore, Buffalo and Kansas City wouldn’t like facing this offense. Even though Cincinnati lost to three of those teams this regular season, they had a hell of a time getting those wins.”
Chris: “The Browns are early underdogs against the Bengals on Sunday (Browns +7 as of this question, per FanDuel Sportsbook). Who would you pick against the spread?”
Anthony: “This one is hard for me to predict because of the wild cards that are the Bengals’ defense and the Browns’ changes on offense. Cincinnati covered the spread on the road last week in Tennessee, so I guess I’ll very reluctantly say they’ll do it again at home this week, but divisional games and ‘The Battle of Ohio’ makes me very uneasy going that route.”
Thanks again to Anthony for taking the time to answer my questions.