The Cincinnati Bengals came out in an empty-backfield formation 14 times on Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens. On those 14 plays, Joe Burrow completed 11 of 13 passes for 246 yards and a touchdown and was sacked once. His completions included Tyler Boyd’s 68-yard touchdown, Joe Mixon’s 52-yard catch that sealed the game, and five other passes of over 15 yards. Needless to say, they were wildly successful in these formations.
An empty-backfield formation is any formation where there is not a running back lined up in the backfield. Although there are many variations, sometimes people will use the term “empty” to describe any of these formations.