Fantasy Scouting Report: Cincinnati Bengals

One of the surprise teams of ’09, the Bengals, have plenty of fantasy stars. Cincy Jungle breaks it down.

Cedric Benson’s 487 yards rushing is the most in the NFL and Houston has one of the league’s worst rushing defenses, allowing 140.8 yards rushing per game. Do I smell a certainty? Maybe. Maybe not. The last time Cedric Benson played the Houston Texans, he recorded 49 yards rushing on 13 attempts. Of course, the Texans were well on their way to beating the Cincinnati Bengals by 29 points. Rushing the ball wasn’t a concern. Last year’s Bengals haven’t shown up this year. In fact, they’ve been eradicated from memory.

Even though it’s not expected, if the Bengals rushing offense struggles, the passing game isn’t much of a certainty. Carson Palmer is scoring late touchdowns to win football games (like that’s important). On the other hand, if one were to rate his fantasy football points, then you have to be a bit more cautious. He’s gone nine straight games without a 300-yard passing game or a passer rating of 100 or better, he’s completing less than 60% of his passes in his last three games and recorded at least one interception in seven of his past nine games. On the other hand, Palmer has recorded a touchdown in six of his last seven games. And quite honestly, this offense is close to breaking out. Will it happen against the Texans 16th rank defense? Carson Palmer faced the Houston Texans once, during a 16-10 win on October 2, 2005. He recorded 276 yards passing with a very efficient 74% completion clip (25-34). You have to go all the way back to 2003 the last time Chad Ochocinco recorded over 80 yards receiving or more against the Texans. In the last meeting, Chad caught five Ryan Fitzpatrick passes for 44 yards receiving.

Cincinnati’s defense has shutdown some of the league’s best receivers. Denver’s Brandon Marshall and Eddie Royal combined for 45 yards receiving. Green Bay’s Greg Jennings and Baltimore’s Derrick Mason didn’t record a reception. Pittsburgh’s Santonio Holmes caught one pass. Sure, some receivers have enjoyed a measure of success (Mike Wallace 102 yards receiving, Donald Driver 99 yards receiving, Mohamed Massaquoi 148 yards receiving). The last time the Bengals played the Houston Texans, wide receiver Andre Johnson recorded 11 receptions for 143 yards receiving and Kevin Walter scored twice in a 35-6 route on October 26, 2009.

Jump on board with the new Bengals over at Cincy Jungle.