Since elite quarterback Joe Burrow was drafted with the first overall pick of the 2020 NFL Draft, the Cincinnati Bengals have struggled tremendously to protect their most valuable asset. Statistically, Burrow has been pressured approximately 12 times per game on only 41 dropbacks per game, suffering pressure almost 30 percent of the time. Unfortunately, that statistic has led to two season-ending injuries in his short four-year career including a slew of injuries last season that limited him to ten games. Undoubtedly, Cincinnati needed to figure out a legitimate way to protect their prized asset down the stretch.
Cincinnati Bengals’ Revolving Door of Value Picks on the Offensive Line
This past offseason, the team pushed to solve the final piece of the offensive line when they addressed the right tackle position with both free agent veteran Trent Brown and first-round draft selection Amarius Mims. While Mims will likely be the future of the right tackle position in Cincinnati, Brown was awarded the starting job to start the season for this beleaguered unit.
Fast forward to the disastrous week 1 performance of this team against the New England Patriots when virtually nothing went right for this team. The normally explosive offense was completely stagnant for virtually the entire game and the defense was porous as running back Rhamondre Stevenson punished the defensive line of Cincinnati all game long.
In an interesting twist, the offensive line for Cincinnati was arguably the best part of the team on Sunday as the unit limited a talented Patriots defensive front to only eight pressures on thirty-five dropbacks for an improved pressure rate of 23% in a pass-heavy comeback attempt in the second half. Several players such as right guard Alex Cappa and Brown each had regressions following poor performances where the two players totalled for five pressures including two sacks of their elite quarterback but the left side of the line appeared much improved.
In particular, left guard Cordell Volson made a huge jump in his first game of 2024 as he ranked as the 12th best guard in football during Week 1 according to Pro Football Focus after the young bruiser finished the game with a clean sheet (no pressures allowed throughout the game). On top of that, last season’s biggest acquisition left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. finally lived up to expectations after he only gave up one pressure against New England. For the high expectations that he has come with, the team would like to start seeing him put up some clean sheets but it was definitely an improvement over last season.
Cordell Volson had the second best PFF grade of his career vs the Patriots:
⚫ 76.0 pass-blocking grade
🟠 76.7 run-blocking grade
⚫ 35 pass-blocking snaps
🟠 0 pressures allowed pic.twitter.com/Yo0b6zsOBM— PFF CIN Bengals (@PFF_Bengals) September 10, 2024
Considering his young age and potential to be a team-friendly contract for years to come, Volson growing into his own at the left guard position would be a huge win for the Cincinnati offense. While the tough game for their newly acquired right tackle Brown (four pressures and a sack) is certainly a concern, it simply shows that the team may look toward Mims to step in as the starting right tackle earlier than expected. While Mims doesn’t have the same pedigree as a starter as Brown does, his combination of size and athleticism could lead to him being an elite pass protector on the right side.
Anyone who has watched Trent Brown seriously over the last couple of years expected him to be bad. Bengals fans were in my mentions about how much of an upgrade he is.
Goofy. pic.twitter.com/ns38NSwLJ3
— Christian Williams (@CWilliamsNFL) September 10, 2024
While this game is definitely good news for fans who want to see Burrow finally remain healthy for a full campaign, it is important to note that this is a New England team that just traded away its best pass rusher from a year ago in Matthew Judon and lost their best defensive lineman Christian Barmore to a season-ending injury to start the season. This upcoming week the team will face the defending Super Bowl Champion Kansas City Chiefs in a game that could potentially be a prequel to the AFC Championship Game later in the season.
The past few times that Cincinnati has played the Chiefs, defensive tackle Chris Jones has been a game wrecker and made huge plays to hinder the Cincinnati offense down the stretch. If Volson is to have a breakout season as an interior offensive lineman, one of the best ways to advertise that would be to shutdown one of the league’s best interior pass rushers. Look for Cincinnati to follow their usual strategy of attempting to soften the Kansas City defense by attempting inside runs early and then changing pace by throwing short to medium passes down the field.
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