Bengals Hoping Stronger, Leaner Cordell Volson Propels Run Game Forward This Season

[Arkansas Bengal]

 

Cincinnati's rushing attack is expecting to be more physical this season.

• Elise Jesse
• 24 minutes ago

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Cincinnati Bengals

 

The Cincinnati Bengals' run game struggled for most of last season, especially early in the year. Their success rate on running plays and point per attempt was in the bottom four of the league through the first five weeks.

 

To be fair, the Bengals offense was forced to adjust after Cover 2 defenses kept them in check early and often through the start of 2022.

Cincinnati refused to completely abandon the run, they kept working at it and the dam broke in Week 9 against Carolina when Joe Mixon and Joe Burrow combined for five rushing touchdowns.

 

Fast forward to January, the Bengals were in Buffalo for the AFC Divisional round of the playoffs and they managed to rack up 172 rushing yards. 

Frank Pollack and Justin Hill worked closely to set up more powerful angles for the offensive line which created space for the backs and allowed the run game to flourish.

 

“Justin Hill has been fantastic," Pollack said. “I’ll chime in with the backs out of practice. We do meet during the season on Wednesdays. Usually after practice we’ll watch practice and talk about what I expect the looks to be like, what I expect your cut, here’s the practice rep you got, here’s the exact look in the game that we’ve scripted for you. Sometimes the look was perfect, sometimes it wasn’t quite right, here’s what it should look like. Here’s how we are blocking it and here’s what you can expect from us.”

 

Mixon has been studying the run schemes that coaches have installed. At this point in his career, he has the full understanding that being on the same page with his offensive line will help them get back to the Super Bowl.

 

“Everybody is taking that initiative and that jump to really want to execute in the run game and the big guys up front, they’re loving it,” Mixon said. “They’re loving the run scheme right now and everybody is buying in. We are getting ready for the big year.”

 

Pollack has noticed a new energy and approach from Mixon in training camp this year. In fact, he's been so pleased with what he’s been seeing from the run game in training camp that it gives him chills when he talks about it.

 

“He’s been outstanding at understanding our angles of departure and what we are trying to do from blocking schemes up front to be able to attack where the holes are going to be even faster,” Pollack said. “It actually happens because we leave the first level or the second level fit, he’s already cutting off that second level block and it's been really good and exciting to see. In fact I was talking to Justin the other day and getting goosebumps talking about it. It’s been really well oiled so far in practice and we have to obviously carry that into the season when teams give us different looks.”

Mixon and the offensive line held their own player meetings last year as they tried to get on the same page. Heading into the 2023 season the 27-year old has even stronger bonds with the big guys up front.

 

“I’m a very big fan of Cordell Volson,” Mixon said. I just love everything about him. He filled in a big void last year and just since day one he’s been a pro. Since day one, he walked in and he always looks to get better. He’s always picking Ted (Karras) and Alex Cappa’s ear and just the relationship that me and him have together is a great thing.”

 

Future Hall of Famer? 

 

“All praise to Cordell," Mixon continued. "He’s going to be around a long time and I believe that as long as he’s on the right track of doing what he’s doing he’s a potential Hall of Famer.”

 

Pollack didn't dismiss the idea, he smiled upon hearing it.

 

“He’s a hall-of-fame person, I know that,” Pollack said. “He’s got the right attitude for it. In his second year that’s a pretty big lofty statement. I wouldn’t be surprised though because that’s how he approaches the game. He’s got huge expectations for himself and that’s quite [a lot of] praise coming from his running back. I would not be surprised if at the end of his long career he were to end up there.”

 

Volson played every snap at left guard last season after the Bengals took him in the fourth round (136th overall). 

 

The second-year lineman shook his head when he heard the Hall of Fame comments.

 

“Obviously it’s a huge compliment from someone who has played a lot of football in this league,” Volson said. “I can’t worry about those things, just have to take it one day at a time and the results will take care of themselves and you know hopefully in 10-12 years I can look back and make Joe proud and prove him right but that’s not what I’m focused on right now.”

 

Volson came into this year’s training camp with a noticeably different body than he had in his first season. At the start of training camp Volson was measured as the leanest player in the offensive line room. The 25-year old put on roughly 10 pounds of pure muscle, while boasting the lowest body fat percentage of any lineman on the roster.

 

“That wasn’t necessarily my goal,” Volson said. “My goal was just to be in great shape and as strong as I could be and the body fat thing just kind of happened with it.”

 

Pollack believes that Volson’s 2023 body composition will only elevate his play.

 

“He came in pretty good his rookie year and he’s even gotten better in his second year," Pollack said. "It just shows you where his mind set is right now and where he wants to take his game.”

 

Volson will be a big piece of Cincinnati’s success on the ground. The Bengals have been installing more RPO’s into their offense throughout camp. 

Pollack wants to also see more physicality when it comes to the ground game in 2023.

 

"I want to see guys have more of a nastier finish mindset,” he said. “Obviously we don’t want to finish guys down to the ground in practice, but when we get the opportunity in games, we want to do that. Flipping that switch and finishing guys all the way down to the whistle and pushing these guys, keep pushing themselves and each other to do that. The run game at the end of the day a lot of it is want to and attitude and we just need to keep pushing that envelope so that’s the name of the game when you run the rock. That’s the fun stuff.”

 

There’s been a lot of talk this offseason about Cincinnati having a chip on its shoulder, there have also been a lot of expectations placed on the team to go out and win the Super Bowl this year from Bengals greats like Ken Anderson and Cris Collinsworth. Pollack didn’t seem to agree with the idea that a Super Bowl ring is the biggest stimulus for this squad.

 

“The greatest motivator you can have in pro football for anyone in the building is what I call peer pressure and not wanting to let the guy next to you down,” Pollack said. “We have that kind of organizational culture and obviously that starts with ownership and the head coach. When you’ve got that, that’s the ultimate motivation and you’ve got a chance to have some good success. I’m motivated by that. I don’t want to be that guy that lets my fellow coach down or any of the players down and I know they’ve got the same approach and mind set so that’s when you’ve got a chance. You’ve got something good when you’re motivated by that and we’ve got that kind of team.”

 

https://www.si.com/nfl/bengals/allbengals-insiders-plus/bengals-hoping-stronger-cordell-volson-propels-run-game-forward

[PatternMaster]

Quote

"I want to see guys have more of a nastier finish mindset,” he said. “Obviously we don’t want to finish guys down to the ground in practice, but when we get the opportunity in games, we want to do that. Flipping that switch and finishing guys all the way down to the whistle and pushing these guys, keep pushing themselves and each other to do that. The run game at the end of the day a lot of it is want to and attitude and we just need to keep pushing that envelope so that’s the name of the game when you run the rock. That’s the fun stuff.”

 

Now that is what I'm talking about... I think the addition of Brown will help Volson because they both have it in them to be nasty finishers in the run game. If Jonah can get this edge to his game he should be just fine at RT. 

 

Oddly enough Jackson Carman has this edge to him, he's just so damn inconsistent that it doesn't always show up but when it does...

 

 

[|BlackJesus|]

Volson is a beast. And somehow this year he looks even Beastier. 

[UncleEarl]

It's pretty common for second year players to make a big jump in conditioning.  I mean, if they raise their work level to NFL level.  Some guys never do.  Hope it pays off for Volson. 

 

One thing you can say about the Bengal OL is that they go up against some tough cookies in practice. 

[-GoBengals-]

3 hours ago, UncleEarl said:

It's pretty common for second year players to make a big jump in conditioning.  I mean, if they raise their work level to NFL level.  Some guys never do.  Hope it pays off for Volson. 

 

One thing you can say about the Bengal OL is that they go up against some tough cookies in practice. 

 

i bitched loudly and regularly about how weak of a bitch volson was last year. fingers crossed and hopeful the reports are true. i am concerned that ALL of the praise seems to mention his run blocking tho. that comment is like a bright red asterisk everytime its said, the left guard run blocking prowess is about the 8th most important o-line attribute im concerned with.   but strength was his big weakness, seems to have the other characteristics of a good long term lineman.

 

[PatternMaster]

On 8/26/2023 at 3:00 AM, GoBengals said:

 

i bitched loudly and regularly about how weak of a bitch volson was last year. fingers crossed and hopeful the reports are true. i am concerned that ALL of the praise seems to mention his run blocking tho. that comment is like a bright red asterisk everytime its said, the left guard run blocking prowess is about the 8th most important o-line attribute im concerned with.   but strength was his big weakness, seems to have the other characteristics of a good long term lineman.

 

 

Is Volson a diamond in the rough or just fool's gold, it's looking like the latter at this point?

 

So far Volson has been a huge disappointment with a PFF grade of 38.4 so far this year. While yes, PFF grades don't always tell the whole story it's also back up by the eye test which is that Volson has been awful. He seems to be a favorite of the coaching staff and oddly the media and fans don't analyze his play like other young OL who struggled like Jackson Carman, which is odd, to say the least. 

 

Volson is a liability and hasn't shown any significant improvements which makes me wonder why he is gifted a starting spot on this offensive when there are other options available? If you have a hobbled QB you can't let him get pressure up the middle, which is exactly what Volson is doing on a consistent basis, he's the weakest link and should be benched. 

 

https://www.pff.com/nfl/players/cordell-volson/30614

 

https://www.si.com/nfl/bengals/allbengals-insiders-plus/bengals-film-breakdown-analyzing-cordell-volson-performance-monday-night-rams

 

 

[|High School Harry|]

1 hour ago, PatternMaster said:

 

Is Volson a diamond in the rough or just fool's gold, it's looking like the latter at this point?

 

So far Volson has been a huge disappointment with a PFF grade of 38.4 so far this year. While yes, PFF grades don't always tell the whole story it's also back up by the eye test which is that Volson has been awful. He seems to be a favorite of the coaching staff and oddly the media and fans don't analyze his play like other young OL who struggled like Jackson Carman, which is odd, to say the least. 

 

Volson is a liability and hasn't shown any significant improvements which makes me wonder why he is gifted a starting spot on this offensive when there are other options available? If you have a hobbled QB you can't let him get pressure up the middle, which is exactly what Volson is doing on a consistent basis, he's the weakest link and should be benched. 

 

https://www.pff.com/nfl/players/cordell-volson/30614

 

https://www.si.com/nfl/bengals/allbengals-insiders-plus/bengals-film-breakdown-analyzing-cordell-volson-performance-monday-night-rams

 

 

Sophomore slump?

[claptonrocks]

7 minutes ago, High School Harry said:

Sophomore slump?

Yeah that may be it...

Or he just isn't good enough at this level..

Could Cody Ford be any worse?

 

[-GoBengals-]

is it a sophomore slump if you fucking sucked your freshman year too?

 

he was too weak and getting thrown to the ground (literally 5 times a game) last year, i had high hopes of at least mediocre play with all the talk of how strong her got in the offseason. 

 

well he is mostly staying on his feet but he is getting pushed around like he's joe mixon blocking in there. (joe mixon sucks ass at blocking too) 

 

third years the charm? Volson out here recording 0.0 blocking ratings and shit.

 

[T-Dub]

"Hall of Fame potential" though like.. STFU Frank, your unit is hot Long John Silver's dumpster juice  & everyone knows it, quit embarrassing yourself.

[Cat]

2 hours ago, GoBengals said:

is it a sophomore slump if you fucking sucked your freshman year too?

 

 

"I used to do drugs. I still do, but I used to, too"

[MOC]

5 minutes ago, Cat said:

"I used to do drugs. I still do, but I used to, too"

I can quit doing drugs anytime I want. I've done it a thousand times 😁

[claptonrocks]

4 hours ago, Cat said:

"I used to do drugs. I still do, but I used to, too"

Lol

[|High School Harry|]

[-GoBengals-]

are yall still pretending volson was good last year.?

[-GoBengals-]

last year he was 64th out of 77 rated guards.

 

gtfo

[-GoBengals-]

 

Fan favorite, dakota legend, franchise left guard, Volson. 

[claptonrocks]

8 hours ago, GoBengals said:

is it a sophomore slump if you fucking sucked your freshman year too?

 

he was too weak and getting thrown to the ground (literally 5 times a game) last year, i had high hopes of at least mediocre play with all the talk of how strong her got in the offseason. 

 

well he is mostly staying on his feet but he is getting pushed around like he's joe mixon blocking in there. (joe mixon sucks ass at blocking too) 

 

third years the charm? Volson out here recording 0.0 blocking ratings and shit.

 

Is that Pacman?

[claptonrocks]

32 minutes ago, GoBengals said:

 

Fan favorite, dakota legend, franchise left guard, Volson. 

I can't believe it's possible to record a 9

in pass blocking.

A fuckin 9 ?.....

Cody Ford is a better guard than this shit show we're seeing outta Volson..

 

We'll see if Pollack keeps riding with his baby boy..

Losing respect for him at this point..

[Cat]

9 hours ago, GoBengals said:

are yall still pretending volson was good last year.?

Well, I mean Bobby Hart was "phenomenal", so naturally Volson is a future HoFer.

 

I feel like the only reason we like(d) Pollack was because he wasn't Alexander or Turner. There HAS to be someone better we can get.

[|High School Harry|]

So if Volson is this bad (not saying he isn't) what does that say about Jackson Carman that he can't even be on the active list

on game days?  That said, he'll probably start Sunday.

That said 2... look for Conrad to develop some minor injury today or tomorrow (ala Irv Smurf Jr) and we'll see Spuds Sharping

or Cody "Paycheck Picker Upper" Ford?

 

One thing that frustrates the hell out of me about the Bengals is they traditionally are poison about making

changes and would rather continue to pound square pegs into round holes and giving sweetness and light

press conferences when things go south.

Zac is starting to sound like Marvin... sorry, Zac.

[PatternMaster]

36 minutes ago, High School Harry said:

 

One thing that frustrates the hell out of me about the Bengals is they traditionally are poison about making

changes and would rather continue to pound square pegs into round holes and giving sweetness and light

press conferences when things go south.

Zac is starting to sound like Marvin... sorry, Zac.

 

That is definitely an area of improvement for this franchise and it starts with Mike Brown

[IKOTA]

19 hours ago, GoBengals said:

is it a sophomore slump if you fucking sucked your freshman year too?

 

he was too weak and getting thrown to the ground (literally 5 times a game) last year, i had high hopes of at least mediocre play with all the talk of how strong her got in the offseason. 

 

well he is mostly staying on his feet but he is getting pushed around like he's joe mixon blocking in there. (joe mixon sucks ass at blocking too) 

 

third years the charm? Volson out here recording 0.0 blocking ratings and shit.

 

Hahahahah I love this post so much 

 

19 hours ago, T-Dub said:

"Hall of Fame potential" though like.. STFU Frank, your unit is hot Long John Silver's dumpster juice  & everyone knows it, quit embarrassing yourself.

 

It was Mixon saying the HoF stuff I believe but yeah…

[Jamie_B]

18 hours ago, MOC said:

I can quit doing drugs anytime I want. I've done it a thousand times 😁

 

Quitters never win.

[Jamie_B]

3 hours ago, Cat said:

Well, I mean Bobby Hart was "phenomenal", so naturally Volson is a future HoFer.

 

I feel like the only reason we like(d) Pollack was because he wasn't Alexander or Turner. There HAS to be someone better we can get.

 

Pollack was the Oline coach for Dallas when Collins was there and playing at his peak, at that time they had one of the beat Olines in the league. I'm more convinced this is a scouting issue, Pollack has produced good Olines before,  but its hard to turn chickenshit into chicken salad.