Dawgs By Nature
Battle of Ohio will have Joe Burrow, Trey Hendrickson has key pieces
Road trip is over and the Cleveland Browns will look to get back on track (in some capacity) as the team will come home after going winless on their road trip and against the NFC East. The season isn’t technically over but it’s trending that way. Cleveland will begin conference/division play as they will play host to in-state rival, the Cincinnati Bengals.
Going into the season (similar to the Browns), the Cincinnati Bengals had playoff aspirations with a sprinkle of Super Bowl hopes. Seven weeks into the season, the team hasn’t lived up to the expectations. 2-4, some will say that the team is underachieving but in reality, the Bengals aren’t nearly as strong as they were in previous years. Some will attribute that to not replacing key stars that left in free agency (safety Jessie Bates and defensive tackle DJ Reader are the noticeable ones).
Offensively, the unit is still talented. Quarterback Joe Burrow has been playing exceptionally, wide receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins will always cause issues, running back Chase Brown has emerged as a solid running back and tight end Mike Gesicki is a contributor to consider. Wide receiver Andrei Iosivias is someone to look out for.
As far as the offensive line goes, it’s been fine but overall this is a top 10 unit in the NFL.
Defensively? Different story. The unit hasn’t been great this season in any capacity. Defensive end Trey Hendrickson is the star on the defensive line but the rest of the room doesn’t promote a ton of confidence. The unit has talent but there isn’t another star alongside that group. Linebackers Logan Wilson and Germaine Pratt have been decent at best but the secondary has been an issue for most, if not the entire season. There is some talent overall but it’s nowhere near what it was in years prior.
Here are the 3 players to watch for who could ruin Nick Chubb’s return in Cleveland:
RB Chase Brown
The Bengals might have found someone in Chase Brown. Brown, who the team drafted last year in the 5th round, has started to emerge as the lead back in Cincinnati. Brown is the best running back and he has been for quite some time now as he is now starting to see his usage go up:
Brown has good vision, burst and acceleration and has the ability to generate explosive plays if given the opportunity. Cleveland’s run defense has been up and down this season, they were able to keep Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley in check last week but Brown is someone who can create explosives on the ground.
QB Joe Burrow
Obviously!
Lost in the Bengals slow start to the season, quarterback Joe Burrow has been playing well. Burrow is a top 5 quarterback in this league and the Bengals giving him the contract is justified.
As far as passing goes, we all know how good...
