[ I Am Bengal II – Bengal Harder (Page
8) ]
Okay, as is traditional, let’s kick things off with a look at the
end-of-season standings in each conference. We’ll start with some feel-good
factor – who’s who in the AFC?
1. BENGALS 13-3
2. Marine Mammals 12-4
3. Chargers 9-7
4. Colts 8-8
5. Jets 12-4
6. Ravens 11-5
---------------------
Oranges 10-6
Steelers 10-6
Looking at this, two things become immediately clear - a) We have gotten top
seed in the AFC despite playing in the Toughest Division In Football (tm). No
team in the AFC North has a record lower than 10-6, and the only three games
we’ve lost all season have been to division opponents. And b) For the second
year running, the AFC South has produced nary a single team with a winning
season, and for the second year running the Indianapolis Ponies have snuck into
the playoffs - as 4th seed no less! – at the expense of much, much better teams.
Last season’s conference champs, the Pittsburgh Steelers, will sit out the
postseason this year.
To the NFC, then...
1. Eagles 14-2
2. Rams 14-2
3. Packers 12-4
4. Buccaneers 10-6
5. Seahawks 11-5
6. Bears 9-7
---------------------
49ers 9-7
Saints 8-8
All the smart money is on the Rams or the Eagles to win the lot this year. Both
teams just look too good on both sides of the ball for anyone else to compete -
no-one really holds out much hope for anyone coming from the AFC. If there is
hope, it lies with the Marine Mammals, whose combination of stifling
pass-defence and power running might be enough to unsettle the NFC’s
high-fliers. Nobody, but nobody, believes that the lads in the funky
tiger-striped helmets might just have what it takes...
And that’s just the way we like it.
-
Let’s have a little peek at the numbers that shape our world.
OFFENCE
Overall, our offence ranked 2nd in the league in terms of both yards (468) and
points (33.0) per game – the Rams topping the tree in both categories. Who did
what? Well...
PASSING (League rank: 7th)
+Akili Smith – 183 from 320 attempts (57%) for 3004 yards. 28 TD, 11 INT, Rtg
103.6
Jon Kitna – 21 from 32 attempts (65%) for 310 yards. 5 TD, 0 INT, Rtg 136.7
Michael Bishop – 9 from 19 attempts (47%) for 149 yards. 1 TD, 1 INT, Rtg 69.8
+ = Pro-Bowl
An almost identical passing-yardage total from last year (3463 this, 3443 last),
and just as last season, our passing game has been efficient without putting up
“wow” numbers. The big improvement has been in our TD-to-INT ratio – this season
we’ve thrown three scores to every pick, as opposed to less than 2 TDs per
interception last year. Akili Smith topped off a career year by being named the
AFC’s Quarterback Of The Year, and coming 3rd in the overall NFL voting behind
Kurt Warner and Donovan McNabb.
RECEIVING
+Peter Warrick – 53 catches for 1078 yards (20.3 yards/catch)*, 10 TD
Daniel Graham – 42 catches for 638 yards (15.1 yards/catch), 6 TD
Chad Johnson – 31 catches for 637 yards (20.5 yards/catch), 7 TD
Corey Dillon – 28 catches for 361 yards (12.8 yards/catch), 4 TD
Jim Kleinsasser – 16 catches for 216 yards (13.5 yards/catch), 1 TD
Jason Harris – 11 catches for 184 yards (16.7 yards/catch), 3 TD
+ = Pro-Bowl
* = Leads NFL
These numbers are skewed a little by Chad Johnson being out for four games and
not at full-speed for two more, and by missing Dan Graham for the last three
weekends of the season. But the bottom line is career years for Johnson and
Peter Warrick, who was voted the AFC’s top wide-receiver. Dan Graham’s numbers
are a little down from the phenomenal effort in his rookie season, but this was
in no way due to a deterioration in his play, just an improvement in the options
around him. The most encouraging thing is the youth of my main receivers – the
trio of Warrick, Johnson and Graham will be a threat for years and years to
come...
RUSHING (League rank: 2nd – sachinfrachinrachinSteelers...)
+Corey Dillon – 321 attempts for 1839 yards* (5.7 yards/carry*), 24 TD*
Adam Smith – 98 attempts for 330 yards (3.3 yards/carry), 5 TD
Akili Smith – 39 attempts for 214 yards (5.4 yards/carry), 2 TD
+Lorenzo Neal – 20 attempts for 40 yards (2.0 yards/carry), 2 TD
+ = Pro-Bowl
* = Leads NFL
I think that’s what they call “gaudy numbers”. Once again, the running game was
our sword and our shield – it controlled the clock and kept the opposing team’s
offence of the field, but it was also a big-play threat in its own right, CD
putting up an incredible 13 rushes of 20+ yards, more than double the number put
up by anyone else (LaDainian Tomlinson was second, natch, with 6). If I were
determined to be hyper-critical, I’d say that the rookie Adam Smith didn’t get
enough touches in a backup role, and Akili Smith’s production was down a little
on last year (mainly, in truth, because he was looking after himself better and
sliding rather than take a tackle). That said, though... damn. Dillon,
naturally, supplemented his first league rushing title by being named the NFL’s
MVP, the season’s Best Running Back and Offensive Player Of The Year. Then, as
an encore, CD went on to pick up a Nobel Prize For Chemistry, an Oscar for Best
Cinematography, the Best Bluegrass Recording Grammy and the award for
Pipe-Smoking Man Of The Year.
And he doesn’t even smoke a pipe! THAT’S how good a season Corey Dillon
had this year!
-
DEFENCE
Our defensive showing this year was... Well. In terms of bald stats, it was a
disappointment. We ranked 18th in the league in terms of yardage (283/game), and
a hideous 27th in terms of points given up (22.5 per game) – both of which were
only a marginal improvement over last year. And yet... and yet... it just –felt-
like our defence was playing better this season by an absolute street. I can’t
explain it. There were a few occasions when we coughed up points with the game
already won, I suppose, but all in all, it’s a puzzler.
TACKLES
Takeo Spikes (ROLB) 68, Lamont Thompson (FS) 63, Jonathon Crane (CB) 54,
Brian Simmons (MLB) 52, Aric Morris (SS) 49, Willie Middlebrooks (CB) 45.
TACKLES FOR LOSS
Takeo Spikes 11, Brian Simmons 7, Jon Crane 5.
SACKS
Justin Smith (RE)/Sam Adams (DT) 4, Roderick Reed (LE)/Keith Hamilton (DT) 3,
Takeo Spikes/Brian Simmons 2.
INTERCEPTIONS
Aric Morris/Willie Middlebrooks/Lamont Thompson 3, Hugh Langham (SS)/Jon
Crane 2, Aaron Hall (LOLB)/Brian Simmons 1.
The one stat that has really jumped from last season to this is the number of
interceptions – 7 last year, 16 this. Admittedly, Patrick Surtain managed more
than that on his own this year, but hell, you know, it’s a start. You might
think that having statistically the league’s worst passing defence meant that
the draft picks that were spent on Crane and Middlebrooks were wasted, but you’d
be completely wrong. Part of the reason we surrendered so many passing yards was
that our run defence gave up a mere 63 yards a game, forcing other teams to
throw, throw and throw again. Both the corners can hold their heads up as having
played full-part in stifling almost every running back we faced this year... I
don’t know. Bottom line, this unit played much, much better than it looks on
paper. They didn’t win any games for us, but when it came right down to it and
we absolutely, positively needed a stop, more often than not the defence found
one. I can’t ask for much more.
Still... let’s hope people are wrong about this whole “offence wins games,
defence wins championships” deal, eh?
Aaaand... I think that’s it from me, for this thread. Check back tomorrow for
“Bengal III – Subtitle To Be Confirmed”, and 'till then, I'll try and weave a
bit of mystery as to exactly how the chips have fallen, and who we'll be facing
in the divisional round.
But I was pleased with the draw. Very pleased. But, aaaah, was I pleased
because:
a) We got the Ravens, objectively speaking the worst team left in our side of
the draw?
b) We got the Jets, a team we've already turned over this year?
c) We got the Chargers, and a chance to test the league's leading rusher against
the league's second-leading rusher?
or d) We got the Colts. And this time, we've got them at OUR place, dag nabbit...
Only time, as they say, will tell. Ooooooh...
Ciao for now!
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(c) daniel roe 2003
