The Bengals and the art of post-snap movement

Cincinnati's defense is moving and evolving. The results: Encouraging.

The Bengals are good. At this point, that is less an opinion and more a statement of fact. And while a whole bunch of the attention is — rightly — being dumped on Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase, let’s reserve some time this morning for the Cincy defense.

Bengals defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo is on a heater. Most importantly: he’s adapting and changing through the course of the season, rather than arrogantly slipping into the play-what-we play cliché that has often followed him throughout his career.

The Bengals have embraced the NFL’s current trend, playing a bunch of spot-dropping, zone coverage from split-safety (two-deep) sets. But while that serves as the base, Anarumo has done a nice job of toggling from split (open) field looks to single-high (closed) field looks.

Issues have come on third downs and obvious passing situations, though. Against the Packers, the Bengals’ defense got strung out — a regular complaint of any Bengals fan this year. Anarumo is apt to cover as much vertic…