It is that time again, the road to the Super Bowl. This weekend's wildcard matchup between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Houston Texans could very well decide one half of the AFC Championship Game. The most pivotal matchup I have my eye on is J.J. Watt against the offensive line of the Bengals.
When looking at the matchup you can't focus on one side of the line to try and stop Watt. In a Wade Phillips' defense the linebackers and defensive line are constantly being shuffled around to cause confusion with the quarterback and linemen. With the current struggles with protecting Andy Dalton this season it would be easy to think that Watt will have a career game this Saturday in Houston.
Last season (24 sacks), the Bengals had a better season protecting Dalton than this year (46). When looking closer at how the team performed this year I was expecting to see a lot of shuffling within the offensive line, but that was not the case. Four of the five starting linemen actually played and started in all 16 games this year. However, the center position did change from opening weekend. Trevor Robinson and Kyle Cook split time at center, which could have led to an increase in the number of sacks given up.
The center is not the cause for concern for the Bengals, though; Watt is. His rise from last season has been remarkable. He compiled five and half sacks, 48 tackles, no fumbles forced and four passes defended in his rookie season under the first year of Phillips' return to Houston. This season he has put up some remarkable stats and league rankings. He led the league in sacks with 20.5 just one sack ahead of Aldon Smith of San Francisco, 69 tackles which was tied for 62nd, forced four fumbles (10th) and 16 passes defended (10th). The passes defended stat stands out to me because Watts tied players the caliber of Charles Tillman from Chicago and Ed Reed of the Ravens, both defensive backs.
In order for the Bengals to try and disrupt Watt they will need to either leave in an extra blocker or chip with the running back. That takes away another option for Dalton on passing downs. How this helps Houston is that Phillips' can bring more pressure with safety or linebacker blitzes. With the name of the game being bring more defenders than you can block this could spell trouble for Dalton.
It is time to make a prediction for this game. I see the Bengals having trouble with Watt and the blitz scheme from Phillips. That being said, it could be a long day for Dalton and I see the contest being 31-24 Houston. The Houston Texans are built for a long playoff run.