Earlier this week, we heard from a couple of Bengals players about some changes to the offense now that Hue Jackson has been bumped up to offensive coordinator with Jay Gruden moving on to Washington.
Tackle Andrew Whitworth talked about the increased tempo on offense with Jackson calling the shots, but the pace of the offense is not the area Jackson most wants to change in the coming season. In an interview with Geoff Hobson of the team’s website, Jackson pointed to turnovers as the area where the Bengals need to devote their attention.
“We’ve got to be better taking care of the football, first and foremost,” Jackson said. “We can’t give the other team the ball. The ball is one of the most precious things in the game and we have to protect it with everything we have.”
The Bengals turned the ball over 30 times last season and 20 of those turnovers came on interceptions thrown by Andy Dalton, who had three more in their playoff loss to the Chargers. Jackson also said he doesn’t think “you can just throw and win” and that he wants to “consistently run the football,” and all those thoughts come together to signal an offense that won’t be relying as heavily on the passing game as it did last season.