After seven seasons of consistent playoff contention under Marvin Lewis, the Bengals were in danger of returning to Bungles status. They were coming off a 4-12 campaign, and had lost high-profile offensive starters Carson Palmer, Chad Ochocinco, and Terrell Owens. Expectations were exceptionally low.
Enter Cincinnati's top two picks of the 2011 draft: Receiver A.J. Green and quarterback Andy Dalton.
Green and Dalton were expected to start from Day 1, and they have exceeded even the most optimistic goals. Six weeks into the season, the 4-2 Bengals have already matched their 2010 win total. Green leads all rookie receivers in receptions (29), yards (453) and touchdowns (four).
At quarterback, Dalton has put up numbers on par with what Carson Palmer gave them a year ago. In fact, his passer rating of 84.3 is higher than the 82.4 Palmer posted in 2010. That type of development is why the Bengals finally felt comfortable enough to deal Palmer to the Raiders before the trade deadline.
A big reason for Dalton's success is his trust in Green, and the rookie receiver's ability to reward that trust. Against the Colts in Week 6, Dalton posted his third game with a passer rating over 100. He was efficient, completing 78 percent of his passes for 264 yards and a touchdown, a play that exemplified the connection between Dalton and Green.
Green, the fourth overall pick in April, has prototypical size for an NFL receiver at 6-foot-4, 207 pounds. He has shown he can use that size to dominate one-on-one matchups, and did so again against the Colts' Jerraud Powers.
On the 11-yard touchdown, Green stemmed his route toward the center of the field, physically muscling the smaller Powers, while forcing him to respect the post. This created more space on the perimeter, and Green used his size to push off slightly when breaking his route to the corner. Dalton's pass was lofted perfectly into that space, allowing the receiver to locate the ball and elevate for the touchdown. Green did an excellent job of snatching the ball at the apex of his jump and turning away from his defender so that Powers had no chance to dislodge the ball.
With plays like that, it's no wonder Dalton displays such faith in Green. And with plays like that, the future looks much brighter in Cincinnati than anyone anticipated six weeks ago.
