Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow took a ton of heat for his showing in the season opener.
And to his credit, Burrow placed most of the blame on himself, admitting that he was taking what the defense gave him while, at times, being too sped up in the pocket.
For some outsiders, though, more of the blame rests on Zac Taylor’s scheme.
ESPN’s Dan Orlovsky, for example, just appeared on “Get Up” and said he had zero doubt that Burrow would eventually return to form once he was comfortable.
But the scheme? He’s just not buying it.
“My biggest concern with Cincinnati is that their scheme is dead,” Orlovsky said. “The only way this scheme works is if you have two elite wide receivers. Number one, you’re in shotgun all the time. Number two, your tackles are in a two-point stance all the time…the defensive ends, first down, are teeing off…you can’t just line up and consistently live in the shotgun.”
The whole breakdown is worth a watch:
It’s not just CINCY but they’re the lead dog IMO pic.twitter.com/xWrxHS3Srg
— Dan Orlovsky (@danorlovsky7) September 12, 2024
Cincinnati was blatant in its uptick in under-center looks this summer while installing some new wrinkles in an attempt to get less predictable like this analysis says. But to say the first showing for the unit was a flop would be an understatement.
The absence of Tee Higgins in Week 1 (and for the foreseeable future, it seems) was one of the big reasons for struggles against New England. But a dropped touchdown and a fumble during the process of scoring what should have been a touchdown weighed heavily on how everyone views the offense right now, too.
As always, the issues for the Bengals on offense are complex. Getting Higgins back, Burrow more comfortable and perhaps even getting rookie Jermaine Burton out there despite the summer red flags might help solve the early problems.
