The Bengals might be facing a crisis of galactic proportions
“It is a dark time for the rebellion.”
So begins the opening crawl of “The Empire Strikes Back.” That sentence sets the table for George Lucas’ 1980 sequel to the original “Star Wars.” Though the rebellion has achieved major victories and progress in their previous campaigns against the Galactic Empire, the rebels now find themselves somewhat broken and back on their heels.
Directed by Irvin Kershner, “Empire Strikes Back” is a miracle—a sequel that is superior to its predecessor. “Empire” expands the universe, deepens the relationships of its primary characters, introduces iconic new characters into the saga and delivers one of the most momentous plot twists in the history of popular entertainment. But what makes “Empire” stand out is that it’s somewhat of a downer. There is no victory for the good guys at the end of the film. Our heroes are left in a state of crisis.
It is a dark time for our Cincinnati Bengals too. Coming off an embarrassing 27-3 loss to the Tennessee Titans, the Bengals have fallen to 1-3 on the season—looking like anything but the Super Bowl contender many thought they’d be. The star-studded offense is in disarray, having only scored three touchdowns through four games. The bend-but-don’t-break defense has routinely been a lot more break. Though the roster and staff remains relatively the same, this team barely resembles the teams of the two prior seasons that reached the doorstep of an NFL Championship. Our heroes in orange and black find themselves in a state of crisis.
The most memorable scene: The definitive set piece in “Empire” is the Galactic Empire’s assault on the rebel base on the remote ice world of Hoth. The rebels are totally unprepared for the Empire’s walking AT-ATs, heavily armored personnel carriers that lumber over the frozen terrain like giant robotic elephants. It’s only because of the moxie of a prodigious future Jedi talent named Luke Skywalker that a singular AT-AT meets its demise. The Battle of Hoth is an expertly paced, well choreographed, visually stunning and exciting action piece that might be the pinnacle of all action set pieces in the entire Star Wars saga—a sequence that ends with the Empire having easily penetrated through the rebel’s defensive line and our heroes in retreat.
The Tennessee Titans’ Derrick Henry looked like the flesh-and-blood version of an AT-AT against the Bengals. The bruising bell cow running back lumbered and battered his way through the Bengals defensive front for 122 yards and a touchdown, including a 29-yard dash in the 2nd quarter. But the most memorable play of the day came when Henry lined up in the shotgun to take the direct snap on third down and goal. Seeming like he planned to run straight ahead, Henry took a few steps before elevating to deliver a jump pass touchdown throw. The play was a back-breaker, giving the Titans a 24-3 lead right before halftime. It was made worse by the fact that rookie tight end Josh Whyle, a former Cincinnati Bearcat, helped to drive the dagger through the Bengals’ heart. On the ground and through the air, Henry delivered the crushing blows that ultimately spelled doom for the Bengals.
Runner-Up: Darth Vader’s “I am your Father” reveal to Luke Skywalker. (“The Empire Strikes Back.”) When the clock finally struck zero to end the Titans game, providing some pain relief for the Bengals fan base. (Bengals)
Best Performance: Harrison Ford reprises his role as the cocksure, swaggering space pilot Han Solo, a tour-de-force performance that set Ford on the path to super stardom.
In the original “Star Wars”, Ford’s Solo was charismatic and entertaining yet the character was somewhat repetitive. In “Empire,” Solo becomes more nuanced and varied and Ford takes advantage of the opportunity to explore that range. He asserts himself as both action hero and romantic leading man, commanding the screen each time he gets the opportunity and leading Steven Spielberg to cast Ford in his second legendary role, Indiana Jones. Ford showed his talent by changing a line at a key moment—in the climactic scene where Solo prepares to be lowered into the carbonite chamber and Princess Leia says, “I love you,” Solo famously responds “I know.” Legend has it that the script originally called for the standard “I love you too” response, but Ford didn’t think that typical response was in keeping with the attitude of his character.
The Bengals’ Ja’Marr Chase carries a swagger and bravado similar to that of Han Solo. In the Monday night game against the Los Angeles Rams, the Bengals recognized that the antidote to cure their lackluster offense was to get the ball in the hands of their most dynamic playmaker. Chase was targeted 15 times and achieved a personal milestone by hauling in a career high 12 receptions for 141 yards. “Coming into this game, I was going to feed my guy,” Joe Burrow said.
Chase also led the Bengals in catches against the Titans, hauling in 7 catches for 73 yards with 4 of those receptions converting into first downs. Chase has yet to really find his opportunity with the deep ball yet this season. With Burrow somewhat immobilized by his calf injury, the Titans teed off on the blitz most of the afternoon—bringing the pressure and making it difficult for Burrow to find his most trusted weapon more often. After the Titans game, Chase spoke up with a cocksure attitude reminiscent of Han Solo: “I’m open. I’m always (expletive) open.” If the Bengals offense is going to right the ship, it’ll be Chase who’s responsible for punching the Millenium Falcon into hyperdrive.
Runner-Up: Billy Dee Williams as the debonair Lando Calrissian (Star Wars). Dax Hill, starting to live up to his first round billing (Bengals).
Worst part of the movie: While most everything in “Empire” is great, the movie could have used a little more Boba Fett. Six minutes and 32 seconds is all the screen time we get of the armored bounty hunter clad in a cool helmet. Shrouded in mystery, Fett became a fan favorite and essentially went viral years before the dawn of the internet. The clamor for the character and his backstory has since brought us multiple television series—causing his mystique to fade somewhat. Sometimes, less is more.
Less is not more when it comes to the offense. The Bengals rank dead last in the league in points per game (12.2) and second worst in total yards per game (236). It is a precipitous drop from the dynamic offense that ranked seventh in the league last season in points per game (26.1) and eighth in the league in total yards per game (360.5). That’s an average of two fewer touchdowns per game with essentially the same returning talent from last season. Their points per offensive drive (0.95) is the lowest in the NFL since 2020.
No doubt, Joe Burrow’s health is a prominent storyline. The gunslinger who developed a reputation for the long ball just became the first player in NFL history to throw at least 150 passes in his team’s first four games while averaging fewer than five yards an attempt. It’s a shocking decline. It’s almost as if the real Joe Burrow is encased in carbonite like Han Solo, still in hibernation. Ja’Marr Chase has yet to find the end zone, the rushing game has been somewhat ignored and the heavily invested in offensive line got brutalized by the Titans pass rush.
The offensive play-calling has been called into question. Are Zac Taylor and Brian Callahan failing to adapt their offense to a more limited Joe Burrow to better scheme their playmakers open? Why not lean heavier on the run game to take some pressure off your quarterback? Running back Joe Mixon has been somewhat effective in his limited opportunities. Why is our hobbled franchise cornerstone attempting 49 passes in a game? Why is an offense this talented producing historically low results? Despite the 0-2 start last season, there were signs that the Bengals offense was going to eventually be fine. This year, the first four games show few positive signs that the Bengals offense will find its footing.
Best piece of dialogue: Ja’Marr Chase’s quote about his proclivity to be constantly open is the quote of the day; however, Zac Taylor’s post-game quote is the most important: “This was unacceptable today.” Taylor’s post game comments were not the usual positive spin we’ve become accustomed to. Straight and to the point, Taylor knows he and his team are not getting the job done right now. Taylor went on to say “we just have to get better in all 3 phases.”
Which brings me to the best quote in “Empire.” Think about the bold decision George Lucas made when creating the greatest of all Jedi Knights. To embody the most powerful Jedi in the galaxy, Lucas created Yoda—a two-foot tall muppet who speaks in a backwards cadence.
Yoda has since become an iconic character with a long list of profound statements. Referring back to Taylor’s statement that the Bengals have to get better in all three phases, Yoda’s message to the Bengals locker room is simple: “Do or do not. There is no try.”
Jon Bunch is an avid life-long Bengals fanatic. Raised in the 740. West Pointer, Army and Iraq War veteran. Passionate evangelist of the Who-Dey spirit. @WhoDeyBunch
