|
 |   |
|
EVENTS Fantasy Central Inside Game Multimedia Central Statitudes Your Turn Message Boards Email Newsletters Golf Guide Cities Work in Sports
CNNSI.com GROUP
COMMERCE |  |
Sieve in Cincy Bengals seeking to improve defensive pressure
GEORGETOWN, Ky. (AP) -- New season, old problem. The Cincinnati Bengals are still trying to mount a pass rush, which was sorely lacking during Friday night's preseason loss in Atlanta. Falcons quarterback Chris Chandler was not sacked in the first half against the Bengals' first-team defense and was afforded the time to pick the secondary apart. Chandler was 12-of-18 for 177 yards and a 38-yard touchdown. The Bengals were particularly hurt by corner routes, a pattern in which the receiver breaks to the sideline. It requires the quarterback to spend a little more time in the pocket than most passes. "We have to synchronize our pass rush with our coverage," head coach Bruce Coslet said. "We need to put more heat on people with our normal pass rush, like the other side was doing to us." "I think our pressure has been what I would call average, and I don't want us to be an average pressure team," said Dick LeBeau, the Bengals' defensive coordinator. "I think initial penetration from one player or another has been pretty good. But we haven't been able to finish things." The Bengals sent outside linebacker Steve Foley and strong safety Cory Hall in on occasional blitzes. But for most of the game, the Cincinnati defense remained in a 4-3 alignment, relying on pressure from the tackles and the ends.
LeBeau said he hoped the early preseason schedule would be a good test of how well the front four could create pressure without help. But other than a sack by nose tackle Oliver Gibson, a deflected pass by end Vaughn Booker against Buffalo and a sack against the Falcons by reserve tackle Andre Purvis, there hasn't been much. The Bengals run defense has been able to force opponents into some third-and-long situations, but opponents have too often been able to throw for first downs. The Falcons completed passes of 15 yards or more five times in the first half. The Chicago Bears, the Bengals' first opponent at Paul Brown Stadium this Saturday, have stepped up their passing attack. Some of Cincinnati's problems have been compounded by injuries. Tackle Tom Barndt (2.5 sacks in 1999) and end Michael Bankston (6) are out. Starting ends Vaughn Booker (3.5) and John Copeland (4) have been slowed by injuries. The American Football Conference average last fall was 41.1 sacks per team; the Bengals had 35, about 2.2 per game. They have only managed 41 sacks in a season twice since 1990 -- 45 in 1992 and 42 in 1995.
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
