Frankie: the Bengals are scared to be who they want to be

MACON, Ga. — When asked 11 days before the season started what he wanted the Bengals offensive identity to be, quarterback Joe Burrow didn’t hesitate. He said he wanted the offense to throw the ball really far down the field to their horses on the outside.

Here we are two weeks into the season, and Burrow has attempted ONE pass of 30 yards or more. ONE. And that was down the middle of the field… resulting in an interception.

Here’s the reality: Joe Burrow does not look like himself right now. He is not 100 percent right now. He does not look confident, he looks unsure of himself. And when your leader looks like all of the above, it rubs off on everybody. It rubs off on Zac Taylor’s playcalling, it rubs off on the wide receivers (did you see that photo of Chase, Higgins and Boyd sitting on the bench?) Chase was staring up at the scoreboard, Boyd was staring off into space and Higgins was sitting dejected. When your leader isn’t himself and looks rattled, it affects the playcalling, the mood of the team and overall play on the field.

The reality is this: the Bengals are scared to be who they want to be offensively. They’re scared to push the ball down the field and take the top off a defense. They’re scared to have their best players take over a game. They’re scared to do what helped them sweep BOTH Pittsburgh and Baltimore last year, beat Kansas City twice in four weeks in January, withstand nine sacks against Tennessee and very nearly bring a Lombardi Trophy back to Cincinnati.

Let’s go over the receivers (those horses) the Bengals have.
Ja’Marr Chase: reigning Offensive Rookie of the Year
Tee Higgins: topped 1,000 yards in just his second season and had two touchdowns in the Super Bowl
Tyler Boyd: Mr. Dependable, veteran of the room
And don’t forget about Joe Mixon: topped 1,200 yards last year

And, yet, yesterday through the first half, against a depleted Cowboys defense, BOTH Higgins and Boyd did not have a target in the first half. That is asanine. And in case you’re wondering, Mixon had just seven rushing yards in the first half. SEVEN.

Chase was okay yesterday. But the reigning offensive rookie of the year needs to be more than just “okay.”

The question of what’s wrong with the Bengals offense conjures a variety of answers. The first we place go to is the offensive line, which has allowed 13 sacks through two games. Then we go to playcalling. It hasn’t been good. Zac Taylor is not the same page with Joe Burrow, or maybe vise versa (I’m taking the former, though, for now). There’s miscommunications all over the place, there’s no clear gameplan, there’s no urgency, there’s no anything from an offense that last year produced a 4,000-yard passer, a 1,000-yard rusher and two 1,000-yard receivers last year en route to the Super Bowl.

What identified the Bengals last year is completely absent two games into this season. It all starts with Burrow. When your leader of the franchise doesn’t look like his fearless self, it affects Zac Taylor’s playcalling, it affects the wide receivers’ confidence, it affects the entire team. Heck the Bengals only have two sacks through two games and just one takeaway.

The season isn’t over yet, but it’s in dire straits. If the Bengals don’t recapture their identity that led them to an AFC North title last year, this season is going to go downhill really fast. You can say it starts with the offensive line. You can say it starts with Zac Taylor. I’m putting it on Burrow. He’s got to get his confidence back. Until he does, expect more performances like the first two games going forward.