The Cincinnati Bengals’ erratic offense was hitting on all cylinders last week. The Bengals still came up short, though.
Cincinnati will strive for a better result on Sunday when it hosts the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who have had a week to stew over a blowout loss to Pittsburgh.
Through three games, the Bengals (2-2) had converted just 22.8 percent of third downs (8 of 35) and the team looked generally lethargic on offense even in their two wins.
But Cincinnati broke out in a big way last week, racking up 413 total yards in a 23-20 loss to Cleveland. Quarterback Carson Palmer quieted some critics by throwing for 371 yards and a pair of scores while Terrell Owens had 10 catches for 222 yards and moved into second place on the all-time list for yards receiving.
Cincinnati seemed to thrive in the no-huddle and it is likely to utilize it again this week.
The long-awaited emergence of the passing game should open some running lanes for Cedric Benson, who is averaging a mere 3.3 yards per carry – almost a full yard less than last season.
Benson could get untracked against the Buccaneers, who are 27th in the league against the run. The Bengals, however, may want to continue to take to the air.
Prior to their bye week, the Buccaneers (2-1) allowed three touchdown passes to veteran backup Charlie Batch in a 38-13 loss to Pittsburgh.
The Tampa Bay defense is still reeling from the loss of safety Tanard Jackson, who was suspended for a full season for violating the league’s substance-abuse policy.
Tampa Bay has struggled offensively as well, averaging just 16.7 points.
A bright spot has been the play of second-year quarterback Josh Freeman, who has thrown for 544 yards with four touchdowns and two interceptions.
Freeman rallied the Bucs from an 11-point deficit in a 17-14 season-opening win over Cleveland and played efficiently in a 20-7 victory over Carolina in Week 2.
Still, the passing game has been getting little support from the running backs. Cadillac Williams is averaging just 2.5 yards per carry, and his lack of production has caused the Buccaneers to start mixing in rookies LeGarrette Blount and Kareem Huggins.
Tampa Bay has won five straight against Cincinnati. This is the first meeting since 2006, when the Buccaneers prevailed on a touchdown pass from Bruce Gradkowski to Michael Clayton in the final minute in 2006.