Even though they've struggled through the first two preseason games, Andy Dalton, A.J. Green and the Bengals offense came to live against the Panthers defense in the third preseason game, scoring 24 points in the second quarter. In that quarter, Cedric Benson, Bernard Scott and A.J. Green all scored touchdowns and it was all capped off by a 55-yard field goal from Mike Nugent.
The rushing touchdowns were nice, but nothing in that entire game was more exciting than this:
The guy who called that play, Bengals new offensive coordinator Jay Gruden, has been impressed with the team's first- and second-round pick.
Gruden likes the way Dalton has learned the playbook, the way he has adjusted to the pro game and his toughness.
"He's handling all the audibles and all the good things that you have to do as a quarterback," Gruden said. "He's a calm, cool customer right now. We definitely like what we see in his progression.... It's not going to be easy any week, any game that we play. He's going to see some things, take his licks, get up and come back at 'em."
As for Green, Gruden calls him "the real deal."
"He's the real deal," Gruden said. "So far he's everything as advertised. He's going to see some different looks. He's been able to use his raw talent to get open his whole career. Now he's going to have to make sure his depth and his routes are consistent, to set up people, and find holes. That's going to take some time, but as far as raw talent goes, he's a special character."
Green and Dalton are young but they've both shown flashes of brilliance in the three preseason games that they've played in so far. They may not find a ton of success in their rookie seasons but they could both easily go on to have very successful careers. I don't think Gruden is the only person that's impressed with what they have shown us on the field so far.
Hopefully they continue to impress tomorrow night as well.