[BillWunkle]

WUNKLES TAKE: BROWNS AT BENGALS

All eyes will be on Johnny Manziel (1-1 as a starting QB) as he makes his third career start tonight – second against the Bengals – as our beloved Cleveland Browns make the bus trip to Cincinnati. Last year’s 30-0 debacle against the Bungles was a product of Johnny’s lack of discipline, the coaching staff’s inability to properly prepare him for the task and Ray Farmer’s ineptitude as a General Manager of an NFL franchise for selecting Manziel in the first place when there were at least two quarterbacks on the board that graded better than him. His second start came earlier this season against the Tennessee Titans at First Energy Stadium, as the Browns were on the up side of a 28-14 final score.

Cincinnati comes into the game with a spotless 7-0 record, as starting QB Andy Dalton seems to have exorcised the demons that have haunted him as recently as last year’s prime time match-up against the Browns. Oddly enough, it was also in Cincinnati. For the record, Dalton is 3-7 as a starting QB in prime time. Which Andy Dalton will show up tonight? We’ll just have to wait and see. The offense is loaded with playmakers AJ Green, Mohamed Sanu, Tyler Eifert, Giovanni Bernard and Jeremy Hill; so Dalton doesn’t have to try and win the game all by himself.

On the other side of the football, the Bengals defense has a front seven that gets after the passer and gives up an average of 18.9 points per game.

So, what do the Browns have going for them? An offensive line that has greatly underperformed, nearly no playmakers on offense and one of the league’s highest priced defenses that gives up an average of 27 points per game.

THE BOTTOM LINE: With a better grasp of the playbook, Johnny needs to take whatever the opposing defense is giving him. The Bengals D will likely blitz on practically every down (unless they can get adequate pressure with the front four), and Johnny will need to buy time with play action and designed roll-outs to move the pocket and find the open receiver. The coaching staff needs to avoid calling plays where Johnny is dropping straight back because he cannot see  the middle of the field from a traditional pocket. Chances are that Johnny will also be the leading rusher for the Browns because of the O-line’s ineptitude to run block. Travis Benjamin must have a huge night on special teams with at least one return for a TD, and the defense – along with finding a way to both stop the run and keep AJ Green in check – must score a TD as well.  Lastly, Andy Dalton needs to revert back to being the Andy Dalton of prime time from last season. Quite frankly, I just don’t see that happening. Sorry fellow Browns fans.

Final score: Bengals 31 – Browns 17

I’m Bill Wunkle, and that’s the way I see it. Have a good night, everyone.

Am I going mad, or did the word THINK escape your lips? You were not hired for your brains, you hippopotamic landmass!

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