This week, our Player Report Cards assignment was to review the play of the offensive guards battling for (what we hope is open) the open LG position. I carefully watched every single snap that Nate Livings, Clint Boling and Max Jean Gilles took against the Lions and handed out grades for each play. After breaking down Nate Livings vs. the Lions, we move onto his competition at LG, Clint Boling and Max Jean -Gilles.
Clint Boling
Total Snaps: 21
Run Plays: 10
Pass Plays: 11
Neutral Plays: 12
Positive Plays: 7
Negative Plays: 2
Run Blocking Grade: +3.0
Pass Blocking Grade: +0.5
Total Grade: +3.5
Max Jean-Gilles
Total Snaps: 24
Run Plays: 11
Pass Plays: 13
Neutral Plays: 11
Positive Plays: 6
Negative Plays: 7
Run Blocking Grade: -1.5
Pass Blocking Grade: +0.5
Total Grade: -1.0
Boling's Best Play
Time: 10:32
Yard: own 32
Down: 2nd & 13
Player Spotlight: Clint Boling
Player lined up at: LG
Offensive Formation: Shotgun; 3-WR; Slot & TE left
Defensive Formation: Nickel
Play Description: Run; Draw play between LT-LG. Boling locks his man up and actually spins him around and away from the RB, which creates a big hole for Jay Finely. Boling had the DT (Pitcock on ice skates and anything the Pitcock tried, Boling had a counter for it. Gain of 3-yards.
Grade: +0.5
Boling's Worst Play
Time: 9:18
Yard: own 47
Down: 1st & 10
Player Spotlight: Clint Boling and Max Jean-Gilles
Players lined up at: Boling (LG), Jean-Gilles (RG)
Offensive Formation: I-Formation; Strong right
Defensive Formation: 4-3; SS in box
Play Description: Run up the middle. Boling gets beat off the snap and can't recover. The Lions DT was just a hair quicker at the snap and got underneath Boling's pads to walk him backwards. He doesn't make the tackle, but he forces the RB to hesitate and another Lions player finishes the play. Loss of 4-yards.
Grade: -0.5
Jean-Gilles' Best Play
Time: 6:39
Yard: opp 35
Down: 3rd & 7
Player Spotlight: Max Jean-Gilles
Player lined up at: RG
Offensive Formation: Shotgun; 2 WR; 2 TE (split out)
Defensive Formation: Base 4-3 (looked like Zone coverage pre-snap)
Play Description: Pass to Shipley short of 1st down. Max Jean Gilles sets into pass protection mode and waits for Lions DT (Pitcock) to rush. Pitcock tries to put a spin move on him but MJG pushes him into the ground. This shows the type of player MJG can be. He was patient, knew whom to block, and used his strength and technique to completely immobilize his man. Gain of 5-yards.
Grade: +0.5
Jean-Gilles' Worst Play
Time: 9:18
Yard: own 47
Down: 1st & 10
Player Spotlight: Max Jean-Gilles
Player lined up at: RG
Offensive Formation: I-Formation; Strong right
Defensive Formation: 4-3; SS in box
Play Description: Run up the middle. MJG's guy (Callaway) over-powers him inside and makes the tackle for a loss. Jean-Gilles was late on the snap and never played with good leverage. Calloway had his hands inside on MJG and was in complete control. No amount of strength or body mass can help MJG when he's late off the ball and doesn't play with proper technique. Loss of 4-yards on the play.
Grade: -1.0
Overall Game Analysis: Clint Boling
Clint Boling played a very consistent and steady game. At one point during the game, Boling had five positive plays out of six snaps. That's very good achievement on an offensive line that couldn't string together enough good plays to keep a drive alive. He showed flashes in both the run and pass game. He still needs to get stronger and use better hand placement, but at this point, Boling can be an upgrade to the offensive line. We need to see him against some starters to get a better feel for him, but his future looks bright after only one game in a Bengals uniform.
Overall Game Analysis: Max Jean-Gilles
For most of the game, Max Jean-Gilles looked lost and confused. I'm not sure if he's in great shape or if he doesn't entirely know the playbook yet, but there were some bonehead plays that we hope can be corrected by some film study and another week in this offense. MJG can be strong and move people in the run game, but when he doesn't know whom to block or is late off the snap, he doesn't stand a chance. The night wasn't a complete disaster for him, he did get to take seven snaps at LG (which is where we want to see him anyway), and in those snaps he had only had one negative snap and two consecutive positive snaps. There is hope for MJG, but we need to see how he progresses this pre-season.