The Cincinnati BengalsWeek 5 game has elements of a desperation, must-win game.
The Bengals (2-2) travel to play the Miami Dolphins(0-4) on Oct. 11 at Hard Rock Stadium, and that might not scream "desperation" on its face, but consider what a loss would mean.
If the Bengalslose to winless Miami, they'd be on a three-game losing streak. Cincinnati would have its entire Week 6 bye week to stew on the defeat and their situation, and the noise outside Paycor Stadium would become deafening. Fans were already rightfully upset after back-to-back losses in winnable games against the Pittsburgh Steelers and Jacksonville Jaguars.
A third straight loss and a losing record
through five games for a team that was thought to have addressed major problem areas on the roster, plus the playoff expectations that accompanied those fixes? That's not a place the Bengals want to be − and don't forget their first game coming out of the bye week is at the Baltimore Ravens, the AFC North favorite.
Even going into the bye week at 3-2 feels like a consolation prize, but it's all the Bengals can do at this point. They just need a win. Here's how they can manage that in Miami:
Bengals available wide receivers need to step up
The success of Dohnte Meyers and the recently reacquired Mitch Tinsley in the Oct. 4 loss to the Jaguars, and particularly on the final drive of the game when Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins weren't available, was a nice story. But now, Meyers, Tinsley, rookie Colbie Young (if available) and any other available receivers can't be content with just being a nice story. At Miami, they could all end up being the primary targets for quarterback Joe Burrow.
While this week might have seemed like a good moment for the Bengals to finally push all their chips in on their struggling run game, the health of offensive lineman Dalton Risner might not allow for it. Risner exited Bengals practice early on Oct. 8, and has been dealing with a knee injury since the final drive of the Oct. 27 loss to Pittsburgh. Risner playing on one good leg wasn't part of the recipe for rushing success against the Jaguars. It probably won't be again this week.
If the Bengals have Chase and Higgins in the game, both of them would be coming off injuries, too. For Chase, it would be a relatively quick turnaround after entering concussion protocol. Higgins is looking to bounce back from what the team has called groin/neck issues that forced him out of the Jaguars game late.
After being complementary pieces the first four games, it stands to reason Meyers, Tinsley, Young and others might see their roles increase dramatically and be counted on for far more at Miami. Successfully taking on that added responsibility could be the difference between Cincinnati being 3-2 or 2-3.
Don't pass the ball 50-plus times
The Bengals run game needs work, and maybe the bye week is the place in the schedule to drill down on the issues there. Again, due to the aforementioned injury concerns for Risner, this probably isn't the ideal situation for Cincinnati to try to revive the run game.
What Cincinnati can do to avoid a calamity going into the bye is be better than last week, which should be a low bar to clear as long as the game doesn't get away from them.
Bengals running backs Chase Brown and Semaje Perinehad 12 combined carries against Jacksonville for 17 yards. Add in Burrow's rushing haul and the team finished the game with just 23 rushing yards - the lowest single-game output of the Zac Taylor era.
Even if Cincinnati isn't prolific in the run game this week, it needs to run the ball enough to loosen up Miami's pass defense. A tiny amount of variety and unpredictability for the Bengals offense could go a long way against the Dolphins. Dropping back 54 times, which the Bengals did against Jacksonville, is an altogether abandonment of the run game. A predictable Bengals offense is much easier to stop.
Win the turnover battle vs. Dolphins
This is one of the oldest, most straightforward, tried-and-true rules for football success, but the Bengals haven't done it the last two weeks. Against Miami, Cincinnati's defense needs takeaways and to win the turnover battle.
This is one of few areas where the Bengals defense has come up short lately. The defense has given Cincinnati a chance to win in all four games, but the team actually won when the defense was creating takeaways against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sept. 13 and getting multiple fourth-down stops against the Houston Texans a week later.
Like the Bengals' offense, the defensive personnel is getting banged up and injuries are piling up. A timely break is coming in Week 6. They'll enjoy the break more if they take advantage of a Dolphins offense ranked last in the NFL in points per game (11.5) and 31st in passing offense (178 passing yards per game).
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Bengals have no room for a slip-up against winless Dolphins
