Bengals vs. Falcons Preview
Cooper Neill - Getty Images
The Bengals finally play back home in Cincinnati this week after going 1-1 on the road the past two weeks. They look to finally break above .500 for the first time this season back in Paycor Stadium.
Both the Bengals and the Falcons are 3-3 on the season, which is surprising for each team in different ways. As last year’s AFC champions, everyone assumed the Bengals would come back strong this season and continue to play as well as they did in last year’s playoffs. So far, they have been less than stellar, losing to the Steelers in week one with a subpar performance.
The Falcons, on the other hand, have already exceeded expectations on their season. After trading veteran quarterback Matt Ryan, the Falcons have had to rely on Marcus Mariota, who has never been a star quarterback for an NFL team. Going into the season, no one expected the Falcons to be very successful with Mariota steering the ship, but he has helped lead the team to success in what looks to be a promising year.
Mitchel Martin - Atlanta Falcons
Last week against the Saints, Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow had his highest quarterback rating of the season at 77.9, which was the third highest in the NFL for the week. However, Mariota had the highest rating of the week at 95.8. Although he only threw 14 passes compared to Burrow’s 37, we could be in for a great quarterback battle this week.
The Bengals offense has a lot of weapons that should not be forgotten. Running back Joe Mixon, coupled with wide receivers Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins, and Tyler Boyd are lethal playmakers for the Bengal offense. Newcomer tight end Hayden Hurst will come out to play strong as well as it’s his first game against his former team since signing with the Bengals in the offseason. Hurst will be playing with a chip on his shoulder, telling ESPN earlier this week that he didn’t feel like he got to show the Falcons all that he could do for them. He will get the chance to show them what they missed out on this week.
The Bengals defense has been spectacular all season, but struggled against the Saints run game last week in New Orleans. If they can continue to stop opposing offenses as well as they have all year, the Bengals will be in a great spot to win this game.
Chris Roling
These next few weeks leading up to a bye week in week nine will be important in determining how the rest of the season plays out for the Bengals. Following this week against Atlanta, they travel to Cleveland to play division rival Browns before heading back to Cincinnati to take on the Panthers. Joe Burrow says, “When you’re sitting on your couch thinking about how your season has gone so far, 6-3 sounds a lot better.”
It’s time to get it done.
