Oops!  Sorry, folks, I meant to get this up midweek and managed to forget about it.  Sorry, it's been that kind of week at work and all.  Anyway, here is the thread for week #7 of our Cincinnati Bengals player pick 'em contest.  (We didn't start until week 3 – and then the BYE week screws it up even further – for those of you curious about the mismatched numbers.)  To see the full write-up of the original rules see here.  Last week's scoring results and a summary of the rules are repeated below the jump.  Here are the current score standings:

1 (tie) – brandone – 78 pts
1 (tie) – FriarBob – 78 pts
2 – CincyMike56 – 67 pts
3 – Deisel2405 – 60 pts
4 – Vman in Germany – 54 pts
5 – ZJiff30 – 53 pts
6 – The Dealio – 44 pts
7 – Carsonorbust – 43 pts
8 – Mr. X – 39 pts
9 – Richard L – 30 pts
10 (tie) – jsl413 – 28 pts
10 (tie) – ritalin – 28 pts
11 – Bengals FTW – 21 pts
12 – Greener’s eyes – 20 pts
13 (tie) – IFChris – 19 pts
13 (tie) – featherman – 19 pts
14 – Kabash – 17 pts
15 – WHYUS!! – 16 pts
16 (tie) – JohnnyK – 15 pts
16 (tie) – indesignkat – 15 pts
17 Danimal – 13 pts

Last week we basically took the Ravens out behind the woodshed and gave them a thrashing they won't forget.  I suppose that theoretically might come back to bite us if they make the playoffs, as then they'll be out for blood, but since they are rather unlikely to make it at all I'd consider it far more likely that they'll just be out for our heads next year instead.  But if our guys keep playing like they have the last two games, then whenever our next meeting with Baltimore may be I'm not going to be worried.

Next up, the evil and hated Steelers.  OK, their fans don't consider them that, but then they're obviously biased and we're as pure as the driven snow here, right? ;)  Either way, they just came off a Monday night beat-down of the Broncos, which of course obviously means that they're the better team between us, right?  Well maybe, maybe not.  Depends, of course, on whether our guys play up to their potential or not.  And whether or not we've learned from our mistakes of the past.  We all know how Ben gets those backbreaking passes of his off to convert third downs.  Have our DBs learned to continue to cover their receiver and let the DL and the LBs handle Ben if he really is trying to run?  Or will we fall victim to the same crap yet again?  And if he does lead his team to a few long TD drives, can our offense play up to its potential and keep up?

Time to place your bets.  Do you expect an offensive shootout?  We've got plenty of WRs and RBs to pick for the scores here.  Do you expect a defensive slug-fest?  We've got some secondary players who can catch INTs and linemen who can force fumbles now, so maybe they are the way to go instead.  Either way, pick your player to hang your hat on, and best of luck to all.

The scoring recap post from last week is repeated here as well:

Only 15 participants this week. That means not many points for anybody here, only 14 max "uniqueness" points. Well that’s still better than nothing for those who scored.

By the rules of the game, the following players scored points: Cedric Benson, Andre Caldwell, Leon Hall (x2), and Johnathan Joseph (x2). And so far as I’m aware, for the first time this season everybody who scored points was also picked by somebody.

So here is our weekly scoring only:
ZJiff – 28 pts (Johnathan Joseph)
FriarBob – 28 pts (Leon Hall)
jsl413 – 13 pts (Cedric Benson)
ritalin – 13 pts (Cedric Benson)
Danimal – 13 (Andre Caldwell)
CincyMike56 – 13 (Andre Caldwell)

This leaves us with a five week leader board of:
1 (tie) – brandone – 78 pts
1 (tie) – FriarBob – 78 pts
2 – CincyMike56 – 67 pts
3 – Deisel2405 – 60 pts
4 – Vman in Germany – 54 pts
5 – ZJiff30 – 53 pts
6 – The Dealio – 44 pts
7 – Carsonorbust – 43 pts
8 – Mr. X – 39 pts
9 – Richard L – 30 pts
10 (tie) – jsl413 – 28 pts
10 (tie) – ritalin – 28 pts
11 – Bengals FTW – 21 pts
12 – Greener’s eyes – 20 pts
13 (tie) – IFChris – 19 pts
13 (tie) – featherman – 19 pts
14 – Kabash – 17 pts
15 – WHYUS!! – 16 pts
16 (tie) – JohnnyK – 15 pts
16 (tie) – indesignkat – 15 pts
17 Danimal – 13 pts

If you see any problem with the scoring above please speak up ASAP.

If you haven't played yet, here is a brief recap of the rules:

1) Pick one player (Make it easy on me, make him the title of your post.  Both first and last name please.) who is NOT officially listed as a QB, P, or PK on the roster.
2) An offensive score is worth one point per participant who did not pick your player.
3) A defensive player is worth 3/2/1 point per participant who did not pick your player based on if he 3) actually scored, 2) gained possession of the ball for the team but didn't actually score, or 1) allowed the Bengals to gain possession by causing a fumble (or blocking a kick) that another Bengals player recovered.  Sacks or tackles behind the line of and by themselves are not worth anything unless they are a strip-sack (1 point if we recover) or they are also a safety (3 points).
4) You score the maximum possible points for your player but only one time.  So a defensive player who forces an opponent's fumble that Cincinnati recovers and recovers another opponent's fumble at a different point in the game is worth 2x points (not 3x cumulative).
5) Keep commentary to the bare minimum please.
6) Predictions on how they will score are not required, and if you provide one they don't net you any bonus if you are right nor do they detract if you are wrong (so long as they do actually score by game rules).
7) Try to be original yet still pick somebody you think has a realistic chance to score or cause a turnover.
8) Only ONE (1) player entry per contestant, per week is allowed.
9) Deadline for player entries each week is THIRTY (30) minutes prior to kickoff.