Bengals looking to take the load off of Andy Dalton in 2014

It's been no secret the Bengals want to run the ball more this year and not have quarterback Andy Dalton throwing 30+ times every game. With a massive offensive line paving the way for a pair of young, dynamic backs in Giovani Bernard and Jeremy Hill, there's no reason to not run the ball 25+ times every game.

Dalton attempted the 8th-most passes (586) in the regular season last year to go with his 51 attempts in the playoff loss to the Chargers was far too many for any non-elite QB. It's no coincidence the Bengals are just 2-12 (including playoffs) in games Dalton throws 41 or more passes, and the two wins featured 13-10 and 20-10 final scores.

Shocker: Cincinnati is 18-4 in games Dalton throws 31 times or less, and three of those games were decided by seven or less points.

Bengals.com's Geoff Hobson thinks that attempts number could dip by over 100 attempts in 2014.

New offensive coordinator Hue Jackson is committed to changing it and I think he’s also committed to taking the load off Andy Dalton. A big adjustment that has to make is cutting his pass attempts from 586 to closer to Russell Wilson’s number of 407.

To heck with the short stuff. The running game should open up the deep ball and with Jackson’s experience under Al Davis you can believe they’ll be running many more vertical routes.

It is worth noting that Wilson rushed 96 times last year compared to Dalton's 61. The Seahawks also had a nice 1-2 punch with Marshawn Lynch and Robert Turbin, but the Hill-Gio combo could be just as formidable in 2014.

All being said, the Bengals should indeed look to take the ball out of Dalton's hands more this coming season and spread the workload out.