Friday 17 October 2014 14:16, UK
The Cincinnati Bengals face a tough task to get back on track after a stumbling recent run as they visit Indianapolis to face the streaking Colts on Sunday.
Both teams top their respective AFC divisions after six weeks, but they could well be trending in opposite directions with the Colts having won four straight after losing their opening two, while Cincy have gone cold after a hot start.
Marvin Lewis’ men still top the AFC North but, after going 4-0 to start with, they were pummelled by New England before fluffing numerous chances to beat the Panthers – including missing a late 36-yard field goal – to tie 37-37 last week.
Such bungling and inconsistency has blighted the Bengals for years, and with a number of injury concerns on their offence they will face a tough task trying to keep pace with Andrew Luck – who is on course for a monster year as Colts quarterback.
Luck leading the way
A fifth win on the spin would be the longest streak of Luck’s young career and he’s been nothing short of brilliant so far – piling up 1,987 yards and 17 touchdowns already. He’s thrown 23 TDs in both of his previous seasons, giving some indication of his improvement, and his current yardage totals puts him on pace for around 5,300 for the season – which would be around the third best ever in a single season.
He’s passed 300 yards in five of six games this season, bizarrely recording 370 yards three times and a whipping 393 against the Titans. He’s also run in two scores and his ability to deliver when the game is on the line has already been proven. Oh, and despite defeat he threw for 326 yards and four TDs against the Bengals last year.
With Luck under centre the Colts have legitimate claims to be the best offence in the NFL. They certainly dominate the relevant categories as they lead the league in per-game averages in terms of points (31.5), possession (36:28mins), total yards (444) and passing yards (328.7).
Receiving threat
TY Hilton has really stepped up for the Colts this year, and he’s coming off a monster 223-yard performance against Houston last Thursday. He’s fourth in the NFL with 604 yards and fifth with 40 catches, although he only caught his first TD last week. His rapport with Luck is excellent and he’ll be the man to watch for the Cincy defence.
For the Bengals, AJ Green is their main man but he’s struggling with a toe injury and looks like missing out again. It’s a huge blow losing a player right up there in the conversation for the best wideouts in the league – with him averaging 104 yards in his three games this season.
Marvin Jones would be next man up but he’s just been ruled out for the season, leaving Mohamed Sanu as the go-to guy, and he did well last week with Green out as he logged 120 yards and a TD. He’s also thrown a TD pass this season just for good measure. Greg Little has been signed from Cleveland as a stop gap.
Bungling Bengals
One of the best defences in the league last year has been borderline hopeless over the last fortnight – after allowing just 33 points in their first three games they fell apart after their bye week. The Pats rolled them over, most worryingly with 220 yards on the ground, while Carolina had similar success.
They’ve allowed an average of 288 yards through the air as well over the last two games, so facing the league’s best passer in Luck is a nightmare scenario for this struggling unit – which has given up 80 points in the last two efforts.
QB pressure has also been a worry – Cam Newton strolled around without any pressure and Tom Brady was sacked just once. They’ll need more than that to limit Luck to anything manageable. Throw in Mike Nugent’s fluffed 36-yard field goal which would’ve beaten the Panthers and you have a torrid run of form that threatens to derail their campaign.
Quotes
"I can't look behind. It does no good looking back. There's too much ahead to look back all the time, and there's too much change in the future to look back. You're wasting your time looking backwards," Bengals coach Marvin Lewis.
"We know them so well. It seems like we play them twice a year, every year. Really good football team. Well coached, a lot of athletes. They've built a big, long athletic roster on both sides of the football. They have playmakers all over the place,” Colts coach Chuck Pagano.
"We were in a perfect position to win the game, two seconds left on the clock, we've got to win the game. Everybody in here gets paid to do a job and that's what everybody needs to do,” Adam Jones less than happy with Mike Nugent’s missed kick last week.
