Bengals’ snap counts: Takeaways from Thursday night’s loss to Browns

The Bengals dug themselves into too deep of a hole to get out of on Thursday Night Football against the Browns. This week has not only revealed true weaknesses on the team, but their initial plans to mitigate them. Whether some of these plans change with a long week to prepare after an 0-2 start remains to be seen. Right now though, this is what we can takeaway from Week 2.

Here are the Bengals snap count takeaways for Week 2:

• This is a prime reason why time of possession and amount of offensive plays really can get thrown out the window as determinations of who wins a game. The Bengals ran 92 plays to the Browns 58. So why did it feel like Cincinnati could never catch up? They had to settle for field goals rather than converting red zone opportunities into touchdowns. It also helps that the Bengals were five of five on fourth down conversions to extend drives.
• Joe Mixon only played 46 snaps. Giovani Bernard wasn’t far behind with 42. As of now, that contract looks more and more like a mistake. Mixon is the kind of back who should be motioned all over the formation getting easy mismatches. There was a point in the game where he and Joe Burrow got into sync taking advantage of the linebackers, but then we never saw it again. He just needs to be on the field more and in different situations to compliment his do-it-all style. That isn’t to say Bernard should be getting less snaps, but these two can share the field. Someone remind the Bengals that.
• Probably the most impressive thing to come out is that D.J. Reader played 56 of the 58 defensive snaps. That is just a ridiculous amount for a defensive tackle. Even with Geno Atkins and Mike Daniels out, you would expect more of a rotation at that position to keep him fresh. Also Christian Covington (34) was the next highest played interior defender. That gives you a pretty good idea as to where this team stands with him.
• There were never any adjustments made along the offensive line. This was obvious to people watching, but it feels like an important note that Bobby Hart and Fred Johnson both struggled throughout the night, but there was never an attempt to remedy that. Hakeem Adeneji did get to play one snap as an extra tight end, though.
• Carlos Dunlap (30) got the short end of the defensive end snaps. Carl Lawson (33) and Sam Hubbard (43) both out snapped him. This really doesn’t mean much as no one from this group was really able to get anything going this week against the Browns. Baker Mayfield was only pressed three times on the night.
• Auden Tate was a healthy scratch at receiver. Rookie Tee Higgins (60) also saw way more playing time. Mike Thomas (32) also saw some increased playing time and even caught a touchdown on the night. John Ross saw his snaps drop to just 28, which isn’t a good indication of how this season is going for him in the coaches eyes. The split between these wide receivers going forward will be interesting to watch. Given all the hype for Thomas during training camp and his obvious chemistry with Burrow, we should expect to see more of him going forward.