CINCINNATI (vs. Atlanta):
Cincinnati’s offense could put together kind of a breakout game. It’s at home, it’s facing a lesser defense, and Matt Ryan had the hot hand last week, so there could be the need to start putting the ball in the end zone. At Baltimore, the Bengals settled for a league-high six field goal attempts. This game is at Paul Brown, and that’s significant. Cincinnati went 8-0 at home last year (well, until choking in the playoffs against San Diego) and its offense was a lot better in that venue. It went over 40 points in half of those games: Jets (49), Browns (41), Colts (42) and Vikings (42). It went for 34 points against the Packers and Ravens. The Bengals have a new offensive coordinator and were a little ragged in the preseason, but a 30-point game is definitely in play as an option. ... The Bengals want to have a top-10 running game, and it’s got to be sticking in their craw that they haven’t quite been able to get that going yet. Giovani Bernard ran for only 48 yards on 14 carries at Baltimore (that’s 3.4 per pop). They want to get Jeremy Hill set up ...
This report is taken from today's Week 2 edition of Fantasy Index Weekly. The newsletter includes our player rankings, camp reports, stat projections, and custom rankings for the games being played this weekend.
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... as a BenJarvus Green-Ellis type guy, getting 30-40 percent of the rushing attempts, but they didn’t trust him enough to use him much at Baltimore. Here’s a game where they can start getting this ground game fixed. The Falcons ranked next-to-last in run defense last year. They’re a little better now -- they made some adjustments in the offseason -- but this is probably still a bottom-10 run defense. The Saints ran for 139 yards and 3 TDs against them last week. We’re putting the Bengals down for 110 and a touchdown on the ground. Not where they want to be, but moving in that direction. Bernard also should catch 5-7 passes. ... Andy Dalton should post above-average numbers. He’s a capable passer in a good system, and it’s a lesser defense he’s facing. The Falcons were playing at home last week and still let Drew Brees pass for 333 yards. Dalton put up at least 3 TDs in each of his last six home games last year (well, until falling on his face in the playoffs). Only slight concern is they want him to throw fewer interceptions, which might have contributed to the team settling for 6 field goal attempts last week. ... Speaking of field goal attempts, how about Mike Nugent? He didn’t kick more than 2 field goals in a game last year. Only 18 all year -- barely more than one per game. He knocked in 5 field goals at Baltimore. If Dalton, in fact, is playing differently in the red zone this year, Nugent could be a top-5 kicker. ... It’s a good situation for the passing game, so thumbs up for the various pass catchers. A.J. Green is up in that top tier; if this game is a shootout or Bengals blowout (and both are very possible) he’ll probably be in the thick of it. Both Marvin Jones and Tyler Eifert are missing with injuries, so we have to think about Mohamed Sanu and Jermaine Gresham as Week 2 fill-in type options. Both Sanu and Gresham should be available in many fantasy leagues. With Eifert down (for probably half the season) Gresham might emerge as a top-10 tight end. Gresham was the 12th-best tight end in the NFL in both 2011 and 2012, averaging 45 yards per game, with 11 TDs in 30 games played. Sanu will be a slot receiver when Jones is healthy but right now is a starter. He’s shown some ability as a goal-line receiver and caught a 2-point conversion last week. Every once in a while they also have him throw a pass. Sanu doesn’t have the size or speed to run downfield routes. ... We have little interest in the Bengals Defense. When he’s on his game -- and he’s on right now -- Matt Ryan doesn’t tend to take many sacks or throw many interceptions. The Saints had 49 sacks last year but got him only once on Sunday, with no interceptions. Cincinnati was slightly above-average last year in both sacks and interceptions, but doesn’t look like a top-10 unit in either for Week 2.
