Under these bright lights, the underdogs always make their name heard.
The Super Bowl is usually, historically, all about the stars.
The Starr’s. The Montana’s. The Rice’s. The Brady’s.
But none of the faces of the league’s biggest stage would be as successful or famous if it weren’t for lesser-heralded names stepping up in the clutch.
If Desmond Howard doesn’t have a historic kick-return effort, Brett Favre’s Packers never win the Super Bowl. The Greatest Show on Turf Rams don’t make the “Gateway to the West” the “Gateway to the Best” if Mike Jones doesn’t make a game-saving tackle on the one-yard line. Eli Manning’s Giants wouldn’t have stopped the 2007 Patriots from undefeated greatness if not for a practice squad player like David Tyree making the catch of his life–maybe the best catch in Super Bowl history.
When the Bengals (+4.5) and Rams take the field on Sunday for Super Bowl LVI, chances are it’ll be another role player stealing the limelight to seal a win. The peak of the playoffs is for the underdog, after all. Here are the likeliest out-of-nowhere hero candidates for Cincinnati and Los Angeles.
Super Bowl week is always superfluous with one characteristic: Overanalysis.
The lead-up to Bengals (+4.5) and Rams — one odd Super Bowl to have on paper — has been no different. The usual overabundance of narratives and breakdowns and extended conversations about what can and will and might and should happen has been nonstop, utterly superfluous. All you can do is hope for a good game at a certain point.
On that note, there’s no need to put too much more thought into what will or could happen between Joe Burrow and Matthew Stafford’s bunches. Let’s make it simple, and let me put your mind at ease with three short numbers that ultimately tell us everything about Super Bowl LVI.
There will be several fascinating matchups in Super Bowl LVI, but the one between Rams (primary slot) receiver Cooper Kupp and Cincinnati Bengals (primary slot) defensive back Mike Hilton will be one of the most important.
There are many things that set Kupp apart from his competition. He prides himself on his quickness and route running techniques. Despite running a 4.6 — 40 time coming out of college, his quickness out of his release and into his break is what his opponents have a hard time defending. Kupp is playing at the top of his game right now currently holding the triple crown for receivers — first in receptions, yards and touchdowns.
When we look at the Bengals’ defense as a whole, they have done a pretty good job locking down number one receivers this season. They held Justin Jefferson to only 5 receptions for 71 yards and 0 touchdowns. Keenan Allen had 5 receptions for 34 yards. In their last matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs, Tyreek Hill only went for 78 total yards, and 40 yards in week 17. The Bengals aren’t allowing 100+ yard reception games from any single receiver very often.
Hilton brings a different kind of toughness as a nickel corner, similar to Jalen Ramsey’s physicality where he can blitz, penetrate through blockers, drop into zone coverage but he performs his best when one-on-one shadowing receivers across the field using his 4.5 speed.
(Kareem Elgazzar-USA TODAY Sports)
Hilton has lined up on 83% of his snaps in the slot/nickel spot, and when we look at Kupp, he has been in the slot 63% of the time. So, it will be unlikely that Hilton will follow Kupp around the field, but when they are matched up in the slot expect a press coverage defense.
This isn’t the first time these two lined up across from each other. Back in 2019, when Hilton was with the Pittsburgh Steelers, these two faced off and the Steelers came out on top,12-17.
The most impressive part was how Hilton locked Kupp down, allowing no receptions on four targets.
Went back to 2019 to check out Mike Hilton vs Cooper Kupp when Hilton was still on the Steelers. It was often where the Steelers just let Hilton take on Kupp 1-on-1. We may see a similar gameplan in the Super Bowl.
The 2019 tape showed a lot of press coverage, where Hilton lined up right on the line of scrimmage across from Kupp.
Hilton is either in hard-press coverage, putting his hands on him disrupting his release, or in soft press, letting Kupp get off the line of scrimmage but staying hip-to-hip preventing separation throughout his route. In both coverages, it’s physical.
When the Bengals are in man coverage, expect them to leave Hilton on Kupp one-on-one until he reaches the top of his rout,, that is when the safety will come down to help prevent additional yards after catch.
We saw a similar game plan from the Bengals in the AFC Championship game against Tyreek Hill, who obviously brings a rare speed element to his slot opportunities..
In order to stop these speedsters, the defense must bracket them at the top of their route. This is still one-on-one, but with help over the top.
Hilton lines up with outside shade forcing him inside, funneling him into his help over the top.
This shade allows Hilton to break towards the ball if the play goes underneath, or he can trail his original man using his speed to catch up to maintain his leverage.
Earlier in the season, Hilton faced off against Las Vegas Raiders slot receiver Hunter Renfrow.
Hilton is lined up with the same outside shade forcing Renfrow into his safety but as he breaks outside the two are left one-on-one and Hilton uses his speed to catch up preventing the completion. Renfrow only totaled 58 yards on the day.
It’s important for any defender to line up with the outside shade in press against Kupp. He is a master at his craft and if you play off coverage, giving him room to juke you, he will do just that.
There will be times throughout the game where Hilton won’t have any help at all over the top. For instance, if Kupp is going to the outside, we may see them go at it mano a mano.
Back in 2019, we saw Kupp attempt to get outside and when Hilton attempted to stop him, it ended in a defensive pass interference penalty.
Expect the matchup to be physical if Kupp is forcing his way to the outside.
If the Rams want to isolate Kupp with Hilton, expect them to move some receivers around pre-snap.
If the Rams come out in trips, and Kupp is lined up in the middle, the Rams may motion the inside slot receiver to the other side of the field, taking away the help for Hilton. Here, the safety may be helping the outside cornerback). This is similar to a situation the Bengals saw against the Chiefs in the AFC Championship game.
On this play, Hilton is lined up directly in front of Byron Pringle. There is no shade or leverage in any direction, this gives Hilton a fair chance to keep up with the receiver no matter where he decides to cut. As Pringle is running a deep crosser behind the backside linebacker, Hilton uses his closing speed and physical defense at the catch to break up the pass.
When Hilton is playing off-coverage or has to catch up at the top of the receiver’s route, expect some physicality and a jersey grab making it tough for the receivers to secure the catch.
If the referees are allowing these guys to play on Sunday, expect Hilton to have a good day.
What makes Hilton one of the NFL’s best slot corners is his ability to tackle. Kupp is known for being one of the best run blockers at his position, so not only will we see them face-off during the pass, but also when the Bengals are defending the run.
This is where Hilton does his best work. In both clips above, Hilton sheds his blocker to make a play on the back.
With Hilton winning their first matchup in 2019, expect Kupp to want revenge. Over the last two years Kupp has transformed into one of, or arguably the best receiver in the NFL, but he was still dominant in 2019,.
Now with Matthew Stafford throwing him the ball, expect a better outcome for Kupp than his performance back in 2019, but that also means even more physicality (and more shutdown opportunities) from Hilton.
He who wins these battles might be in the lead for the next Lombardi Trophy.
Mike Hilton ended a Tennessee Titans’ scoring threat with an incredible interception.
Things are certainly going the way of the Cincinnati Bengals in Tennessee.
The visitors are out to a ten-point lead over the Titans, and just when it looked like Tennessee was going to cut into that lead in a big way, defensive back Mike Hilton ended a scoring threat with a tremendous interception.
Joe Mixon gave the Bengals the ten-point lead on this touchdown run in the third quarter, taking advantage of the cutback angle for the score:
But then, the Titans got things rolling on their ensuing possession. D’Onta Foreman, in the game to give Derrick Henry a spell, ripped off this huge gain to give Tennessee great field position:
Foreman looked a lot like Henry on that run, and the Titans seemed to be in business. But on the next play, Cincinnati showed pressure with Hilton on the edge. Ryan Tannehill looked to throw quickly in that direction, and Hilton was ready:
The Titans defensive front is applying heavy pressure on Joe Burrow, having sacked him six times already. But if the Titans offense keeps turning the football over, Tennessee might be looking at an early exit.
And a few weeks later, now the NFL has given Hilton an award — for essentially the same play.
Hilton went for the middle of the defender’s body during last weekend’s loss to the Chargers, got his head out of the way and made a play. The NFL gave him a weekly award as a result:
That is…nearly an identical play to the one flagged against the Jets, except this time the ball-carrier didn’t lower his head, too.
It just goes to show the NFL doesn’t really have any idea how to iron out the inconsistencies in officiating on a game-to-game basis, which is flat-out unacceptable in 2021 given the technology available.
And while it’s nice the NFL seems to have essentially admitted its mistake again, the Bengals won’t care — the flag against the Jets came late in the fourth quarter on a third-down stop that would have given Joe Burrow and Co. the ball back with two timeouts and a three-point deficit to erase. It might be the difference between a 5-3 record in the AFC right now and a 6-2 mark, which is a big deal in playoff seedings.
Cincinnati Bengals cornerback Mike Hilton put on an epic performance during his team’s 41-10 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers.
A pick-six of Ben Roethlisberger, of course, was the highlight of the special showing from Hilton.
As Pro Football Focus noted while naming Hilton its Defensive Player of Week 12 though, he ranked first among all NFL defenders with a 92.4 grade while allowing a 0.0 PFF rating.
The ink is barely dry on Mike Hilton’s contract, and he’s already forgotten where he came from.
The ink is barely dry on Mike Hilton’s contract, and he’s already forgotten where he came from. The former Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback called Bengals’ Jessie Bates, not Minkah Fitzpatrick, the top safety in the NFL.
Hilton told Cincinnati Bengals reporters in a press conference on Monday, “[Bates is] the best safety in the game. He just doesn’t get the respect he deserves.”
Hilton cited study habits and mental acuity as reasons why Bates is the best in the league and noted he makes ‘just as many plays’ as Minkah Fitzpatrick.
The Bengals signed Hilton in free agency to bolster their suffering secondary.
The Pittsburgh Steelers take on Mike Hilton and the Cincinnati Bengals on September 26 at Heinz Field.
Bengals CB Mike Hilton, who came over from Pittsburgh this offseason, said Jessie Bates is the No. 1 safety in the NFL.
"He's the best safety in the game. He just doesn't get the respect he deserves."
Hilton praised Bates' mental approach and play-making ability.
Early this week, Hilton also talked about his time in Pittsburgh with Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com and threw out something really notable — he thinks Jessie Bates is the best safety in the league, even better than Pittsburgh’s Minkah Fitzpatrick.
He also explained why he chose the Bengals:
“Just seeing the guys they had over here. It started with Joe (Burrow). When you have a guy that you can build around for the next 10 plus years, that’s definitely an exciting feeling. And you know, just seeing the growth of this team over these last four years that I’ve played them. They might not get the respect that we deserve around, but we feel like we’re coming to that turning point where guys are definitely going to respect us as a team.”
The last week or so has been a fun get-to-know session with Hilton for Bengals fans after being told for months that he was a great, underrated signing by the team.
Much was written and said about what a steal the Cincinnati Bengals got in free agency this offseason when signing former Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Mike Hilton.
What didn’t get touched on much? His potential impact on the culture.
According to players like Jessie Bates, Hilton brought over the idea of charting good and bad plays by secondary members during practices.
Bates says they’re running with it and benefiting, per Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com:
“We’re tracking missed assignments, bad techniques and loafs. We’ve got a nice little pot going already. That’s something that we didn’t do years before. And I think Mike Hilton kind of came up with that. I think we’re going to switch on and off, who evaluates who has the most loafs and stuff like that. And we’ll put a chart together, put a put a little bucket of money together, and hopefully, whoever has the most interceptions gets the pot.”
The revelation comes a day after Bates and Hilton’s defense bullied the first-team offense, shutting down weapons like Tee Higgins and holding Joe Burrow without a touchdown pass.
Summer training camp days won’t always be that good — not against an offense as stacked as this — but the system in place from Hilton should only help the entire defense.
Finding true locker room leaders and stressing accountability has been a priority of the Zac Taylor era. From the sounds of it, Hilton is paying off in more ways than merely on the field.
Slot defenders used to be afterthoughts in the NFL, but they’re starters these days. Which slot guys are the league’s best?
In the 2020 NFL season, per Sports Info Solutions, defenses played more dime (six defensive backs) than “base” (four defensive backs). Nickel is the new base, as teams played with five defensive backs on the field 65.7% of the time (11,813 snaps), and the positionless player revolution, and the need for defensive coordinators to adjust to passing concepts that are ever more diverse and potentially explosive, have those coaches putting more and more defenders in the slot to defend all kinds of concepts. On a total of 17,969 pass defense snaps in 2020, teams lined up with six defensive backs 3,695 times (20.6% of the time), and with four defensive backs just 3,063 times (17.0%).
So, if you’re of the old-school opinion that the modern slot defender is an afterthought, now is a good time to catch up. Because in the NFL of today, if you don’t have at least one top-notch slot guy who can do everything from defending the run to the outside to working pressure with blitzes to covering slot receivers and tight ends up the seam to covering curl/flat, your defense is going to be at least one step behind.
The slot defender is more important than ever, and here are the 11 best in the NFL today.
