Comparing The Bengals 2005 Offense Vs. Bengals 2010 Offense

by Josh Kirkendall on Jul 30, 2010 1:04 PM EDT in Analysis Comment 18 comments

While at my job -- the one that I'm supposed to show up for to put on a happy face, letting them know that I do, in fact, work for them still -- I got a thought in my head that began with wondering which squad at a better group of wide receivers. The 2005 squad or the 2010 squad. Then it morphed into the entire offense. I choose not to do the entire team; simply because I'll just say it right now, the 2010 defense is miles better than the 2005 squad, whose greatest contribution was turnovers (I mean no offense, John). That being said, let's compare the two offenses from 2005 and 2010 and then you guys chime in on your thoughts of the two squad comparisons.

Position	Advantage	Notes
Quarterback	2005	While the same quarterback is playing on this year's squad that started on the 2005 squad, Palmer five years ago was largely considered an elite quarterback before his knee was shredded by Kimo Von Oelhoffen. It's not that Palmer is a worse quarterback now, but he's definitely trying to recapture that magic; which he very well could do this year.
Running Back	2010	The Bengals are sporting perhaps the best running back combination during Marvin Lewis' tenure to date. While Rudi Johnson was good in his own right, I believe Cedric Benson is a slightly better back -- consider that if Benson plays all 16 games at his 92 yards/game pace, he'd have broken the franchise record by nearly 100 yards. Even if you consider them a draw, Bernard Scott's versatility and Brian Leonard's third-down contributions last year gives this year's unit the edge.
Offensive Line	2005	With Pro Bowlers Willie Anderson and Levi Jones (second alternate), this unit allowed only 21 quarterback sacks; protection from this group allowed Palmer to take 5-7 step drops routinely; unlike 2009 where a majority of Palmer's passes came during short drops. Furthermore, the team's rushing offense of 4.2 yards/rush is the highest since 2000. This group also included left guard Eric Steinbach, who would be a second alternate in the 2006 Pro Bowl, the cagey veteran leader Richie Braham and Bobbie Williams. This was one hell of a unit.
Full Back	2005	While hitting the height of his prime, Jeremi Johnson was considered one of the better fullbacks in the NFL with his power and decent hands skills out of the backfield. Johnson would become a shell of himself last year, his final year in the NFL as of now. The Bengals aren't necessarily having a problem with fullbacks; however it's expected that they'll be employing two unproven players in either Fui Vakapuna or Joe Tronzo.
Tight End	2010	With Jermaine Gresham, we admit we're ranking this year's tight end unit higher based off potential; something we couldn't do with the fullbacks group. Aside from that, the Bengals will bring Reggie Kelly back and if Chase Coffman rebounds after a redshirt rookie year, this squad of tight ends could easily be the best unit fielded during the Marvin Lewis era.
Wide Receiver	Draw	I know this will cause some debate. With the team having a potential three-way threat with Chad Ochocinco, Terrell Owens and Antonio Bryant, one could argue that it falls short of the Bengals Big-Three in 2005. Chad was much younger, dominating as one of the league's best receivers. T.J. Houshmandzadeh was coming into his own as a possession receiver that routinely found gaps in the coverage, converting 67% of his receptions for first downs. Chris Henry was one of the best number-three receivers in the game, creating serious matchup problems with his size and athleticism who scored a touchdown on nearly 20% of his 31 receptions that year. Outside of the big three is where the 2010 squad comes strong. While the 2005 squad also had Kevin Walter (whose been the #2 receiver for Houston for a few seasons) and Kelly Washington (greatest endzone dancer in the history of endzone dancing), the Bengals 2010 lineup with Jordan Shipley and Andre Caldwell comes into the new season with generally much higher expectations. But I couldn't pick one group as being better than the other. Both are unique and this year's squad could be just as strong and entertaining as that playoff team in 2005.

Your turn. How do you compare the two offenses?

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Comments

Looks about right

I wish we had that 2005 O-line still

by CincyJacket on Jul 30, 2010 1:19 PM EDT reply actions 1 recs

RE:

I loved that o-line

Blogger at CincyJungle.com -- SB Nation Cincinnati Bengals blog.

by Josh Kirkendall on Jul 30, 2010 1:20 PM EDT up reply actions

I agree

Lots of talk has been made of the WR additions this year aiding the passing game (deservingly so), but if the 2010 OL doesn’t give the time for the deeper drops, I don’t think we will see the overall output we expect. That ’05 line was great.

by Cedric Benson Boat Party on Jul 30, 2010 1:24 PM EDT up reply actions

I think the 2010 line

will surprise people. With legitimate downfield threats defenses won’t be able to pressure the line like last season.

by Throw the ball on Jul 30, 2010 1:47 PM EDT up reply actions

I personally still believe Rudi was a better back than Benson.

Rudi was more consistent, and I felt more confident that he would bust a big gain. I also think he had ore top-end speed.

I’d love Benson to prove me wrong this year.

by Throw the ball on Jul 30, 2010 1:42 PM EDT reply actions

RE:

Rudi in ’03, ’04 and ’05 was pretty badass. I believe the next season he decided it was a good idea to lose weight to become more swift footed, but really lost some of his power and then he became injury prone.

Blogger at CincyJungle.com -- SB Nation Cincinnati Bengals blog.

by Josh Kirkendall on Jul 30, 2010 1:54 PM EDT up reply actions

Believe me

Rudi was completely a product of the system (passing game/Big Willie and Bobbie/Jeremi Johsnon). Not elusive, marginally powerful, and hit the wrong gap all the time. Plus he was an idiot, an utter moron who considered himself a HOFer after his first 1000 yard season.

MwWsA

by raclark11986 on Jul 30, 2010 1:57 PM EDT up reply actions

You could have just said you didn't like Rudi... good grief.

Blogger at CincyJungle.com -- SB Nation Cincinnati Bengals blog.

by Josh Kirkendall on Jul 30, 2010 2:18 PM EDT up reply actions

I agree. Rudi was more of a product of a great OLine and passing attack. They couldn’t put 8/9 guys in the box against the 05 Bengals like you could last year. I’m in the boat of hoping that Benson washes away any doubt that he is a better back than Rudi ever was.

by JaredM on Jul 30, 2010 2:34 PM EDT up reply actions

Please don't use Boat and Benson in the same sentance.

Just sayin.

2010 - The Year of the Tiger.

by UpStateMike on Jul 30, 2010 9:17 PM EDT up reply actions

I think Benson is overrated by Bengals fans.

He’s another product of the system, showed very little ability to power through tackles (I wrote many times that he was becoming a more elusive back, but not more powerful runner last year) and he never broke a huge run. He was stuffed a lot, and rarely did much in the open field after he got passed the 3-4 yard area. He was (mostly) only effective between the tackles, which is why it’s awesome that we have Bernard Scott in his second year.

by Jake Liscow on Jul 30, 2010 5:09 PM EDT up reply actions

benson was literally the exact opposite of what you just said. do you not remember the 60+ run he had in the playoff game against the jets? i’d count that as a big one, and in an important game. he was rarely stuffed, and if anything he was an extremely powerful runner who was very rarely brought down by the first tackler. while he was effective between the tackles, most of his effectiveness was on stretch plays on which he was allowed to improvise. you just described rudi, not ced.

i'm going to go america all over your ass!

by Raging Clue on Jul 30, 2010 6:24 PM EDT up reply actions

The stats really don't support your argument.

by Jake Liscow on Jul 31, 2010 11:04 PM EDT up reply actions

Good breakdown.

I would give the edge to the 2010 WR’s though because I think Dez and Shipley are underrated and TO and Ocho are a top tandem while A Bryant will be a nice # 3 if the knee comes around.

He’s always open. He catches a lot of balls. He’s un-guardable, no matter how old he is

by WarWolf on Jul 30, 2010 1:58 PM EDT reply actions

How can you say "Underrated?"

They’ve never played a down in the NFL. IF ANYTHING, they’re as overrated as overrated gets.

by JohnCockToastin on Jul 30, 2010 2:52 PM EDT up reply actions

That's My Type of Post

I like this kind of material…here’s my overly opinionated thoughts as usual:

QB……You’re spot on.

RB……I’ve read the above opinons from others and sort of agree that Rudi was kinda/sorta a “product of the system” and that he Jumped The Shark when he decided to emulate an underwear model. However, he was HIGHLY productive at the end of ‘03, in ’04 and very much so in ’05 and ’06. Say what you want…but the dude got it done for a 4 year period. Kind of hard to argue that. Ced was good last year and for the end of ’08. Not going to argue he wasn’t…but I believe ’05 Rudi was studtastic. Yeah, i said it.

O-LINE……No question. That’s indisputable. Awesome unit.

FB……Can’t argue it.

TE……If anything I’d call this a draw, as both units are highly marginal at best. Just because the ‘10 Bengals have a 1st round TE doesn’t mean he’s going to produce Pro Bowl numbers. This year or ever. Trust me, I hope he does. But keep in mind that literally half the guys drafted in the 1st round will turn out to be total turds in their NFL careers. Potential doesn’t earn anything.

WR……I think this is the area where you’re most susceptible to argument. You said it yourself, Chad was arguably the #1 best WR in the NFL that year, TJ was as clutch as clutch got and Henry had like what 6 or 7 TD’s? (I forget and din’t feel like looking it up) …If I recall, Henry had something ludicrous like a TD per every 4 catches he had that year. He was a monster. Then you had Kevin Walter, who I understand wasn’t the Kevin Walter of ‘08 by any means…but still, I remember sitting in the Dawg Pound in Cleveland on Opening Day of ’05 and watching him score a TD on a nice catch and run. We all LOVED “The Squirrel” and how about Tab Perry the ONE and ONLY year he did anything productive in the NFL? Point being, you’re taking “potential” and comparing it to reality. …though I understand you have to do that as ‘10 hasn’t arrived yet. Still, I’m arguing ‘05 WR vs. ’10 WR’s 8 days a week.

SOLID POST…we need to do more of these.

by JohnCockToastin on Jul 30, 2010 2:50 PM EDT reply actions

Housh

Old 05 Housh wasn’t as good as later on. In 08 he was catching anything in arms reach while Chad just plain sucked. I actually would vote for 10 instead of 05 for WRs and if Shipley and Bryant meet their expected level of play it will solidify it because it will have to result in Playoff wins…or more?

2010 - The Year of the Tiger.

by UpStateMike on Jul 30, 2010 9:23 PM EDT up reply actions

i will say this regarding the offensive line: while there is no doubt that as things stand now that line was immensely better, i think there are areas of this line that have the potential to be at least at that level. whitworth can be as good as or better than levi, and if andre smith gets his head on straight he has the potential to be up there with willie. kyle cook is a better physical specimen than rich braham was, so if he gets the mental aspect down he could be one of the better centers in the league. bobbie williams is better now than he was then. now to solve that steinbach problem.

i'm going to go america all over your ass!

by Raging Clue on Jul 30, 2010 6:30 PM EDT reply actions