Bengals right tackle Amarius Mims has played 111 pass-blocking snaps this season without allowing a single pressure, according to Pro Football Focus. No other NFL tackle is even close to matching that combination of volume and perfect protection. Mims has already faced Bain, Will Anderson Jr., Danielle Hunter and T.J. Watt without surrendering a pressure.
That is who Bain drew for his first NFL game. Mims presented almost the worst possible matchup for what Bain does well. At Miami, Bain consistently won with leverage, strength, and an ability to convert power into pressure despite being undersized for an NFL edge defender. Mims is 6 foot 8 and roughly 340 pounds with the length to engage Bain before he can get into his chest. Cincinnati’s tackle repeatedly used patient hands and his feet to keep Bain outside, forcing the rookie to try to go through him instead.
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Todd Bowles acknowledged afterward that Bain looked like a young pass rusher mentally and specifically pointed to Mims giving him the outside path. Instead of recognizing it and countering inside, Bain continued trying to attack what Mims was taking away. Outside linebackers coach Larry Foote also admitted Bain was frustrated after the game. Bain dominated college football with 24 career sacks, including 9.5 in his final season at Miami, but NFL tackles will force him to develop more answers. Power alone will not consistently work against players with Mims’ size and technique. The encouraging part is that Bain did not struggle against an ordinary tackle. Mims has since erased some of the best pass rushers in football, including holding Watt without a pressure on 29 pass rush snaps. Bain’s debut still was not good enough, and the Bucs needed more from him. But his first NFL assignment also turned out to be the ultimate welcome to the league. If Bain learns from it, getting Amarius Mims immediately might eventually prove more valuable than getting an easy matchup.
This article originally appeared on Bucs Wire: Bengals star Amarius Mims sheds light on Rueben Bain Jr.’s slow start
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