KC-CIN Grades: Andy Dalton continues to impress

Here are the top takeaways and highest-graded players from the Bengals-Ravens game:

Kansas City Chiefs

– Eric Fisher (+2.1) has been solid two games into his move back to right tackle. He allowed just two hurries on a whopping 57 snaps in pass protection to earn a positive pass blocking grade (+2.0). He was just average as a run blocker though, but compared to how he’s performed during his three-year career (-8.6 career run blocking grade), the Chiefs will take any improvement they can get.

– CB Marcus Peters had his first bad game of the season, as QB Andy Dalton earned a perfect passer rating when targeting the rookie who allowed four catches for 81 yards and a touchdown on the day. He also missed two tackles and played poorly against the run for a negative overall grade (-2.7) on Sunday.

– It was bittersweet for Chiefs fans to see K Cairo Santos connect on all seven field goal attempts, including four over 40 yards and two over 50 yards, giving him a career-best grade for the game (+2.3). Unfortunately, it demonstrates how many drives stalled once reaching Bengals territory, forcing the Chiefs to settle for the astounding seven field goals.

Top performers:

LG Ben Grubbs (+2.7)

HB Jamaal Charles (+2.4)

RT Eric Fisher (+2.1)

K Cairo Santos (+2.3)

OLB Justin Houston (+1.2)

Cincinnati Bengals

– Well, we’re a quarter of the way through the NFL season, and we’ve yet to see more than a glimpse of the bad Andy Dalton. His overall grade (+12.0) through four games is his second-highest graded four-game stretch of this career, behind only the outstanding grade he earned (+15.5) over his final four regular season games in 2013. On top of that, his under-pressure passing grade ranks 12^th-best in the league, and he’s been accurate on 60 percent of his targeted passes of 20 or more yards downfield, which currently ties him for second among those with at least 10 deep pass attempts. Maybe Andy Dalton has finally made that leap, and will continue to minimize the bad plays going forward.

– DT Geno Atkins isn’t quite to the level that Rams’ DT Aaron Donald is performing at right now, but it’s clear that Atkins is finally healthy and very near that pre-injury level he was at during the 2012 and 2013 seasons. Atkins tallied two sacks, a hit, and two hurries against the Chiefs, placing him at a position-best level for pass rushing productivity on the season (+10.0).

– It was a rough outing again for CB Dre Kirkpatrick, who earned a negative overall grade for the fourth consecutive week (-3.4) which ranks him near the bottom of the league at 103^rd overall (-9.8) out of a possible 104 qualifying cornerbacks. Kirkpatrick was targeted 10 times and allowed 122 yards on seven receptions, 104 yards of which were to WR Jeremy Maclin.

Top performers:

QB Andy Dalton (+4.2)

DT Geno Atkins (+2.3)

HB Jeremy Hill (+1.7)

LB Emmanuel Lamur (+2.0)

CB Darqueze Dennard (+1.7)