Cincinnati Bengals Prodigal Right Tackle Struggles in First Game During Week 3 Shootout

Even though they lost the game, the Cincinnati Bengals offensive strength was on full display against the Washington Commanders on Monday Night Football.  On just 60 plays, Cincinnati amassed 436 yards of total offense in the contest in a game that was completely decided on the offensive side of the ball.  That is a healthy average of 7.3 yards per play throughout the game where quarterback Joe Burrow looked like a Most Valuable Player candidate.  Unfortunately, this wasn’t a perfect game otherwise the franchise would’ve been able to come out on top.

Cincinnati Bengals First Round Pick Struggled in First Game

Of the things to go wrong on the offensive side of the ball, chief amongst them was the demoralizing knee injury to starting right tackle Trent Brown.  Brown went to brace his left knee for impact but unfortunately, the former Pro Bowler suffered a torn meniscus during the play and will be unavailable for the remainder of the season.  After Brown left the field, the team’s exciting rookie Amarius Mims entered for his first taste of first-team football at the professional level.

Immense Confidence From the Talented Rookie

While Mims played fairly well for the most part, there were two plays that will ruin his grade for the first game of his career.  On one play, Mims overset to the outset and allowed defensive end Dorance Armstrong an open lane on the inside to get to the quarterback essentially untouched for the sack.  On another play, Mims overcorrected and gave Armstrong a sharp corner to apply pressure on Burrow.  Both mistakes were fairly understandable as this was obviously a dramatic step up in Mims career.

Meanwhile Bengals 1st rd T Amarius Mims … 😬 https://t.co/d8YjOeE38W pic.twitter.com/zgugaFHa3u

— Mitchell Tischler (@Mitch_Tischler) September 24, 2024

In his first regular season game in the NFL, Pro Football Focus gave Mims a fairly weak score mostly related to those two mistakes.  Mims was given an overall score of 47.7 with a pass blocking grade of 55.4 and a run blocking grade of 38.8.  All three of those scores were the worst among Cincinnati’s offensive linemen during the game.  In Mims 27 pass blocking attempts, he gave up two pressures for an overall pass blocking efficiency of 93%.  That number will certainly have to be higher next game for Mims to live up to expectations as the team’s 18th overall pick during the 2024 NFL Draft.

In a realistic approach, Mims gave up two pressures in this game to a defense that doesn’t bolster a premier pass rusher.  In a competitive AFC North, virtually every team has a marquee pass rusher that will undoubtedly line up over Mims in an effort to get an easier matchup.  Granted, Mims two errors were more mental mistakes than physical weaknesses, it will be a significant test to see how Mims handles this week’s matchup against the Carolina Panthers and their relatively weak pass rush.  If Mims plays well this week, it would be another good acclimation game before he goes up against players like T.J. Watt or Myles Garrett.

Amarius Mims is ready to go for his first NFL start at RT this Sunday. He’s also got a healthy chip for the teams that took a tackle over him. “If your confidence level is not high in this game, you will not be good.” pic.twitter.com/bDsJwueBga

— Mike Petraglia (@Trags) September 25, 2024

Amarius Mims is ready to go for his first NFL start at RT this Sunday. He’s also got a healthy chip for the teams that took a tackle over him. “If your confidence level is not high in this game, you will not be good.” pic.twitter.com/bDsJwueBga

— Mike Petraglia (@Trags) September 25, 2024

In an interview with the team, Mims went off on a tirade about the value of confidence at the professional level and when you’re going against elite players, that is critical.   The most important thing to remember regarding Mims’ weak opening display is that he was thrown into the game halfway through with the expectation to play consistently.  It is a difficult task to be asked to step in after you didn’t prepare for the starting role and be expected to play 100%.  If Mims suffers another mediocre performance against Carolina, then the fanbase will have an excuse to panic.

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