The offensive line has not been good enough early in the season. The run game is broken. From week to week, it has been a different player or two performing poorly in pass protection.
Orlando Brown Jr.
is an example of inconsistent play from the group early in the season. Last week, he posted an 85.9 pass blocking grade per PFF. This week, his pass-blocking grade was 41.5. He looked slow, late off the snap at times, and completely put in a spin cycle that led to a sack.
The interior offensive line trio of Dylan Fairchild, Ted Karras, and Dalton Risner played poorly on Sunday. They are not getting any push in the running game. They look lost and confused at times when picking up stunts and blitzes.
Dalton Risner had an overall grade of 60.2 before leaving injured at halftime. He is expected to play this week. Ted Karras graded out with a 47.8. Fairchild came in with an abysmal 40.9 a week after having one of the more impressive performances of the season against Jacksonville.
Amarius Mims had a solid week in comparison to the rest of the offensive line against Minnesota. He graded out with a 70.7 overall. His foot speed is much better than what we are seeing at the opposite tackle spot. He uses his length well in pass protection. At his size, I do wish he would play with more of a mean streak. He should be putting some guys in the dirt, especially as a run blocker.
It isn’t fair to put all of the blame on the offensive line for the 48-10 loss on Sunday to the Vikings. When you turn the ball over five times, including three fumbles on consecutive plays, you are not going to win games in the NFL.
However, if the Bengals want to have any shot of beating a tenacious Denver Broncos defense on Monday Night Football, they have to be much better on the offensive line.
