The New England Patriots will face a beat up and historically bad Cincinnati Bengals defense in Week 12.
Cincinnati ruled out superstar defensive end Trey Hendrickson on Friday, which will only exacerbate its problems.
Sports Illustrated Bengals writer Jay Morrison explained just how bad head coach Zac Taylor’s defense has been this season in a discussion with Patriots insider Tom E. Curran on the “Patriots Talk Podcast.”
“No team in NFL history has finished last in passing yards allowed, rushing yards allowed and points allowed. And they are 32nd, 32nd and 31st in those three categories,” Morrison said. “Right now, that’s about as bad as it gets.”
With New England quarterback Drake Maye as hot as ever, the MVP candidate could have a field day on Sunday.
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Morrison opined that the Bengals’ defensive struggles have been their own fault and explained how the Patriots could take advantage of their opponent.
“You could see it coming a mile away. They went into this offseason with a glaring need at safety, and they didn’t sign one in free agency, and they didn’t draft one. And they asked their starter (Geno Stone) to take a pay cut,” he said. “Teams know they don’t have to be explosive. You just throw underneath (to the) tight ends, running backs, get guys in space, and the Bengals are going to take bad angles. They’re going to miss tackles. And you can just move the ball down the field. And we see it over and over again.”
Some teams struggle either with their pass defense or their rush defense, but Morrison said there are no positives for Cincinnati’s group.
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“There’s no pass rush. There’s no tackling. It’s a disaster,” he said.
