More Vikings vs Bengals
Take 2: Vikings vs. Bengals http://insider.espn.go.com/nfl/features/take2?gameId=250918004 from ESPN Insider
By Scouts, Inc.
Minnesota at Cincinnati Matchups
Tuesday, our scouts filed their advance advance scouting report on this week's matchup between the Vikings and Bengals. Now they're back with a second look.
The Vikings utilized a lot of three-man defensive fronts last week. They brought DT Kevin Williams, normally more of a three-technique player that lines up over the guard, down over the nose over the center. With Kenechi Udeze and Lance Johnstone playing defensive end Keith Newman came in at linebacker in this 3-3-5 personnel package. Newman was used as a downhill attacking player both versus run and pass. In the first half against Tampa Bay, he was a disruptive force shooting gaps in the running game and pressuring QB Brian Griese in the passing game.
• A key player in the matchup of the Bengals' offense against the Vikings' defense is Minnesota FS Darren Sharper. Sharper is one of the best safeties in the league at reading both the drop of the quarterback and his eyes. He is also a bit of a gambler that is always looking to jump routes aggressively. That's exactly what he did last week intercepting an intermediate route in the hash area and returning it 88 yards for a touchdown. The Bengals throw the ball very effectively in the intermediate areas in the middle of the field so QB Carson Palmer must account for Sharper.
A key element to watch in this matchup is how much the Vikings attack with blitz. Last week the Vikings' defense was very aggressive fueled by a high percentage of blitzes. Playing against an inexperienced Buccaneers' offensive line, Minnesota's pressure created problems for Tampa Bay's protection schemes. The Bengals' offensive line is much more experienced and quite frankly better than Tampa Bay's offensive line. Also keep in mind that unlike the Buccaneers, the Bengals are an intermediate to downfield passing team that has explosive ability at receiver.
• One potentially problematic element for the Vikings' defense that showed itself a number of times against the Buccaneers was the alignment confusion that came in response to Tampa Bay's shifting and motioning. There were times the Vikings could not get aligned properly before the snap. We expect to see the Bengals use a greater percentage of shifting and motion early to determine if the Vikings' defense has corrected their communication and alignment problems. It is evident that defenses must defend the entire field against the Bengals' offense. They stretch the field with their route combinations. Palmer can make any throw with accuracy including the deep out and he's also an excellent seam thrower. This is not an offense in which the defensive corners can squat and sit on routes. It will be very interesting to see how Viking DCs Fred Smoot and Antoine Winfield line up against the Bengals wide receivers as a result.
• Minnesota's inability to run the football is a reason for concern. The interior offensive line, especially OC Cory Withrow and RG Marcus Johnson, who was eventually benched, did not play well. And a careful study of RB Michael Bennett shows that he is not a drive sustaining, move-the-chains kind of runner who can consistently get you two or three yards when nothing is there. Right now, this is a running game that lacks consistency and that's putting too much pressure on QB Daunte Culpepper to convert in long-yardage situations.
• Minnesota's fourth corner, Ralph Brown, is a liability in coverage. Last week against the Bucs, Brown was matched up against WR Joey Galloway and was easily beaten on a go route for 36 yards. The Bengals go four deep at wide receiver with Chad Johnson, TJ Houshmanzadeh, Kelley Washington and Kevin Walter, so expect to see a number of four-wide packages to get Brown on the field.
• The running game is the foundation of the Bengals offense and the staple running play is called "Power Z search." It's a power run to the tight end side of the formation with a guard pulling and FB Jeremi Johnson leading to the point of attack. The "Z search" part of the equation has the "Z" or strong-side wide receiver, normally Houshmanzadeh, in motion tight to the formation to search out the eighth defender in the box. It's a physical inside run and Rudi Johnson is a strong runner with excellent vision, balance and body lean. Unlike the Vikings' Bennett, Johnson is a drive sustainer that helps keep an offense in manageable down and distance situations.
• One thing we would expect to see more of beginning this week against the Vikings is Johnson and Chris Perry in the game at the same time but not necessarily in the backfield together. Last week against the Browns, the few times that Johnson and Perry were on the field together Perry aligned in the slot and the Browns walked a linebacker out over him. If the Vikings defend this formation the same way, the Bengals have two matchups they feel good about: Perry, an excellent receiver, working against the Vikings linebackers who struggle in pass coverage. The second is the six on six blocking matchup in the box when Cincinnati runs the ball.
• One thing to look for in this matchup is the Vikings covering Bengals OC Rich Braham and OCs Eric Steinbach and Bobbie Williams with defensive linemen. This forces all three offensive linemen to block one-on-one. The matchup the Vikings will be looking to get is DT Kevin Williams, perhaps the best pass rushing defensive tackle in the NFL, working against Bobbie Williams. Bobbie Williams does not react well to quickness and speed, which is exactly what Kevin Williams brings to the table.
Special TeamsVikings rookie Chris Kluwe made the most of his debut, averaging 54.3 yards on four punts. His leg strength is excellent but at times he out-kicked his coverage and the Minnesota allowed an average of almost 12 yards per punt return. With that said, Bengals PR Keiwan Ratliff does not have great speed and the Vikings could have more success in coverage this week. After five years in Chicago, PK Paul Edinger had a good start to his career in Minnesota, connecting on both of his field goal attempts including one from 53 yards out.
Cincinnati PK Shayne Graham handled the kickoff duties and all field goal attempts after coming back from a preseason groin injury last week. He showed good leg strength reaching the end zone on kickoffs multiple times and he was accurate as well converting both field goal attempts from 23 and 32 yards.
Matchups•
Cincinnati ROG Bobbie Williams vs. Minnesota UT Kevin Williams•
Minnesota RB Michael Bennett vs. Cincinnati MLB Odell Thurman•
Cincinnati WR Chad Johnson vs. Minnesota DC Fred Smoot•
Minnesota TE Jermaine Wiggins vs. Cincinnati SS Kevin Kaesviharn•
Cincinnati FB Jeremi Johnson vs. Minnesota MLB Sam Cowart
Scouts' Edge:The play of the offensive line has to improve if Minnesota is to win this game and head coach Mike Tice will make sure that gets done. Tice is a former offensive line coach that knows how to get the most out of that unit and look for him to iron out many of the problems that plagued the front five last week. With better seams to run through and more time to find the open man, the ground game will be more productive and Culpepper will make more big plays. More importantly, the Vikings will be able to sustain longer drives that keep the defense rested. Cincinnati's offensive line is better than the one Minnesota faced last week and it will have some problems stopping the run. However, the Vikings have the playmakers up front to get to Palmer when he drops back to pass and look for them to pressure him into making some costly mistakes that produce stalled drives and/or turnovers.Prediction: Vikings 28, Bengals 24
By Scouts, Inc.
Minnesota at Cincinnati Matchups
Tuesday, our scouts filed their advance advance scouting report on this week's matchup between the Vikings and Bengals. Now they're back with a second look.
The Vikings utilized a lot of three-man defensive fronts last week. They brought DT Kevin Williams, normally more of a three-technique player that lines up over the guard, down over the nose over the center. With Kenechi Udeze and Lance Johnstone playing defensive end Keith Newman came in at linebacker in this 3-3-5 personnel package. Newman was used as a downhill attacking player both versus run and pass. In the first half against Tampa Bay, he was a disruptive force shooting gaps in the running game and pressuring QB Brian Griese in the passing game.
• A key player in the matchup of the Bengals' offense against the Vikings' defense is Minnesota FS Darren Sharper. Sharper is one of the best safeties in the league at reading both the drop of the quarterback and his eyes. He is also a bit of a gambler that is always looking to jump routes aggressively. That's exactly what he did last week intercepting an intermediate route in the hash area and returning it 88 yards for a touchdown. The Bengals throw the ball very effectively in the intermediate areas in the middle of the field so QB Carson Palmer must account for Sharper.
A key element to watch in this matchup is how much the Vikings attack with blitz. Last week the Vikings' defense was very aggressive fueled by a high percentage of blitzes. Playing against an inexperienced Buccaneers' offensive line, Minnesota's pressure created problems for Tampa Bay's protection schemes. The Bengals' offensive line is much more experienced and quite frankly better than Tampa Bay's offensive line. Also keep in mind that unlike the Buccaneers, the Bengals are an intermediate to downfield passing team that has explosive ability at receiver.
• One potentially problematic element for the Vikings' defense that showed itself a number of times against the Buccaneers was the alignment confusion that came in response to Tampa Bay's shifting and motioning. There were times the Vikings could not get aligned properly before the snap. We expect to see the Bengals use a greater percentage of shifting and motion early to determine if the Vikings' defense has corrected their communication and alignment problems. It is evident that defenses must defend the entire field against the Bengals' offense. They stretch the field with their route combinations. Palmer can make any throw with accuracy including the deep out and he's also an excellent seam thrower. This is not an offense in which the defensive corners can squat and sit on routes. It will be very interesting to see how Viking DCs Fred Smoot and Antoine Winfield line up against the Bengals wide receivers as a result.
• Minnesota's inability to run the football is a reason for concern. The interior offensive line, especially OC Cory Withrow and RG Marcus Johnson, who was eventually benched, did not play well. And a careful study of RB Michael Bennett shows that he is not a drive sustaining, move-the-chains kind of runner who can consistently get you two or three yards when nothing is there. Right now, this is a running game that lacks consistency and that's putting too much pressure on QB Daunte Culpepper to convert in long-yardage situations.
• Minnesota's fourth corner, Ralph Brown, is a liability in coverage. Last week against the Bucs, Brown was matched up against WR Joey Galloway and was easily beaten on a go route for 36 yards. The Bengals go four deep at wide receiver with Chad Johnson, TJ Houshmanzadeh, Kelley Washington and Kevin Walter, so expect to see a number of four-wide packages to get Brown on the field.
• The running game is the foundation of the Bengals offense and the staple running play is called "Power Z search." It's a power run to the tight end side of the formation with a guard pulling and FB Jeremi Johnson leading to the point of attack. The "Z search" part of the equation has the "Z" or strong-side wide receiver, normally Houshmanzadeh, in motion tight to the formation to search out the eighth defender in the box. It's a physical inside run and Rudi Johnson is a strong runner with excellent vision, balance and body lean. Unlike the Vikings' Bennett, Johnson is a drive sustainer that helps keep an offense in manageable down and distance situations.
• One thing we would expect to see more of beginning this week against the Vikings is Johnson and Chris Perry in the game at the same time but not necessarily in the backfield together. Last week against the Browns, the few times that Johnson and Perry were on the field together Perry aligned in the slot and the Browns walked a linebacker out over him. If the Vikings defend this formation the same way, the Bengals have two matchups they feel good about: Perry, an excellent receiver, working against the Vikings linebackers who struggle in pass coverage. The second is the six on six blocking matchup in the box when Cincinnati runs the ball.
• One thing to look for in this matchup is the Vikings covering Bengals OC Rich Braham and OCs Eric Steinbach and Bobbie Williams with defensive linemen. This forces all three offensive linemen to block one-on-one. The matchup the Vikings will be looking to get is DT Kevin Williams, perhaps the best pass rushing defensive tackle in the NFL, working against Bobbie Williams. Bobbie Williams does not react well to quickness and speed, which is exactly what Kevin Williams brings to the table.
Special TeamsVikings rookie Chris Kluwe made the most of his debut, averaging 54.3 yards on four punts. His leg strength is excellent but at times he out-kicked his coverage and the Minnesota allowed an average of almost 12 yards per punt return. With that said, Bengals PR Keiwan Ratliff does not have great speed and the Vikings could have more success in coverage this week. After five years in Chicago, PK Paul Edinger had a good start to his career in Minnesota, connecting on both of his field goal attempts including one from 53 yards out.
Cincinnati PK Shayne Graham handled the kickoff duties and all field goal attempts after coming back from a preseason groin injury last week. He showed good leg strength reaching the end zone on kickoffs multiple times and he was accurate as well converting both field goal attempts from 23 and 32 yards.
Matchups•
Cincinnati ROG Bobbie Williams vs. Minnesota UT Kevin Williams•
Minnesota RB Michael Bennett vs. Cincinnati MLB Odell Thurman•
Cincinnati WR Chad Johnson vs. Minnesota DC Fred Smoot•
Minnesota TE Jermaine Wiggins vs. Cincinnati SS Kevin Kaesviharn•
Cincinnati FB Jeremi Johnson vs. Minnesota MLB Sam Cowart
Scouts' Edge:The play of the offensive line has to improve if Minnesota is to win this game and head coach Mike Tice will make sure that gets done. Tice is a former offensive line coach that knows how to get the most out of that unit and look for him to iron out many of the problems that plagued the front five last week. With better seams to run through and more time to find the open man, the ground game will be more productive and Culpepper will make more big plays. More importantly, the Vikings will be able to sustain longer drives that keep the defense rested. Cincinnati's offensive line is better than the one Minnesota faced last week and it will have some problems stopping the run. However, the Vikings have the playmakers up front to get to Palmer when he drops back to pass and look for them to pressure him into making some costly mistakes that produce stalled drives and/or turnovers.Prediction: Vikings 28, Bengals 24
posted by Stew at 12:53 PM
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