Early in the AFC wild-card game between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Las Vegas Raiders, the Bengals have shown the ability to get after quarterback Derek Carr. On the Raiders’ second possession of the game, Trey Hendrickson was able to beat Foster Moreau with a rip move and get to quarterback Derek Carr, forcing a fumble which the Bengals recovered.
The Bengals turned that ensuing possession into a field goal.
Then, after a botched handling of the ensuing kickoff pinned the Raiders deep in their own territory, Las Vegas faced a third down in the shadow of their own goalposts. This time it was Sam Hubbard who got to the quarterback, on a creative defensive blitz package from Cincinnati:
The @Bengals front came to play today. #RuleTheJungle #SuperWildCard
📺: #LVvsCIN on NBC
📱: NFL app pic.twitter.com/u6uw20EbMT— NFL (@NFL) January 15, 2022
Prior to the snap, the Bengals dropped Hendrickson off their edge, and into an off-ball linebacker’s alignment. He then looped to the left, behind three Cincinnati blitzers. The Raiders could not handle the overload blitz look, and Hubbard was able to get home for the sack.
In the buildup to this game, many were wondering if the Bengals could protect Joe Burrow. But so far, the team struggling to protect their quarterback is not Cincinnati, but the visiting Raiders.
