The Cincinnati Bengalswinning a game on the road in Houston was certainly impressive. However, the number of hits franchise quarterback Joe Burrow took wasn’t.
Burrow was hit 10 times and sacked four times in the 20-6 win over the Texans on Sept. 20. Of his 36 drop backs, Burrow faced pressure often (36.1%). He completed only four of his eight attempts when facing pressure (50%), according to Pro Football Focus.
“Obviously we want no sacks,” Bengals coach Zac Taylor said on Sept. 21. “We really had four to my count. We want to win all of our one-on-ones. They got us a couple of times.”
Meaning, when Burrow is pressured in the pocket throwing the ball, he’s less accurate.
This isn’t new information, though. Burrow’s specialty as a quarterback is his accuracy
so when he’s kept clean and has time to process and go through his progressions, he’s one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL.
Blocking Houston’s premiere edge rushers was always going to be a tough task for Cincinnati’s offensive line, and ultimately the group did enough to win. But it wasn’t pretty, and the Bengals need to protect Burrow better in Week 3 when they face the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sept. 27.
Pro Football Focus credited left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. with giving up three of the Bengals’ four sacks and has him as the lowest graded offensive lineman in their pass blocking metrics. PFF also has Brown giving up three hits and six pressures through two weeks, ranking him first in the NFL at his position for sacks allowed.
It’s worth noting that Houston and Tampa Bay’s defensive fronts are two of the best in the NFL so Brown’s play should be viewed with that perspective in mind.
Brown expressed disappointment in his performance against the Texans. The Bengals hope he rebounds in a big way in Pittsburgh because too many hits on Burrow, who’s dealing with back tightness, isn’t a recipe for success long term.
“Obviously, it's a little bit frustrating for the mishaps and negatives of what happened, but at the end of the day, I still pride myself on being who I am, but I am disappointed with my overall play today,” Brown told The Enquirer.
Because of his performance against the Texans, it’s likely that opposing quarterbacks will center their game plan around trying to attack Brown on the left side. And unfortunately for the Bengals, their opponent this week has the players to do so.
Pittsburgh’s defensive standouts T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith are relentless in their pursuit of quarterbacks coming off the edge. Watt is tied with Buffalo’s Greg Rousseau for the most sacks in the NFL through two games with four. Highsmith has three sacks.
The Bengals understand the risk they’re taking with how much they drop Burrow back to pass. He’s going to be susceptible to more hits, but the team feels the payoff from what it gets in the passing game is worth it.
That said, it’s certainly an area the Bengals must improve moving forward to ensure their most important asset stays on the field.
“We have a high standard for ourselves,” Taylor said. “But we also understand that sometimes when we’re going to drop back and throw the ball, there’s going to be those issues. Conversely, there are times where (Burrow) pulled through that and threw a big touchdown or found some explosives. There’s going to be some give-and-take there. And that’s how the game has gotta be played.”
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Zac Taylor sees room for o-line improvement. 'Obviously we want no sacks'
