Bengals lose to Vikings 30-10, but do a great impression of a UFL team in the process.
by Craig Conrad on Dec 13, 2009 11:36 PM EST
in Game Recaps
48 comments
I said it weeks ago. Many of us said it. The words were received in some circles and less so in others, arguments were made. There were folk who said that ugly games are the team's bread and butter in 2009, that our defense was good enough to stop any offense in the league. The Kool-Aid was flowing freely in Bengal Nation.
I even took a sip here and there; I even took a healthy swig on a few occasions.
I tried to emphasize three or four weeks ago however that unless the passing game got on track, the Bengals were going to find themselves on the short end of the stick. I was concerned.
I am now alarmingly concerned. Is there any among us who thought today at four o'clock that this team was still going to make a Super Bowl run? I mean is there anyone out there who really seriously thinks that?
DISCLAIMER: I won't be talking much if at all about the defense, because as usual I find myself very satisfied with the way they performed today. Some missed tackles hurt them and they gave up a lot of points at the end of the game when they were physically exhausted. Being on the field for nearly the entire second half will do that to a defense. Jonathan Joseph and Hall played lights out yet again and for the majority of the game the Favres were held largely in check. Consider that my pat on the back for the Bengals today.
~
The game started pretty well, if by started you mean "Quan Cosby did a good job catching the kickoff." There was a penalty on the kickoff return. Then Dennis Roland promptly false started, sending the team back another five yards.
Before Carson Palmer even had a chance to hand the ball off or pick a receiver to whom to throw, he had walked fifteen yards backward. The team (primarily the offense) gave up yet another near football field's worth of penalty yards. At the conclusion of the first quarter they had more yards in penalties (25) than they had yards on offense (15).
The defense was able to keep up with a Percy Harvin-less Vikings Offense for two quarters. Going into halftime the score was 16-7 after one masterful drive by the Bengals offense drew within three of the Vikings only to give up successive field goals to end the half. The score should have been even closer than that, which typically falls right into the wheelhouse of the 2009 Bengals. Well, it fell into the wheelhouse of the early 2009 Bengals who scored all of their points in the second half. It doesn't suit the latter 2009 Bengals who have gone six straight second halves of games without an offensive touchdown.
I said it weeks ago and I'll say it once more. Something drastic needs to change, or these Bengals will be a one-and-done story in the 2009 NFL Playoffs. Once again, if you watched today's game it's going to be awfully hard for you to argue with that. As a matter of fact, unless the Chicago Bears beat the Baltimore Ravens next week it'll take until week sixteen for our guys to clinch the AFC North. If the team that played today comes out in a similar manner (and how could you expect any different at this point), there's absolutely no way they travel to San Diego next week and return to Cincinnati with a win.
They absolutely need to find a way to put points on the board. It's fantastic that they can run Cedric Benson all over any team. Really, they can. Had they not gotten themselves down by three scores late I'm certain that Benson would have carried once or twice more and gotten his 100 on the Vikings' defense today. As opposed to the 36 carries he took to get to 110 yards last week, he had 96 on 16 carries today for a nice little YPC average of 6. Yes, that 42-yarder helped.
All of that is completely irrelevant however if they can't put the ball into the painted area known as the "end zone." Whereas the Bengals held the ball for sig-ni-fic-ant-ly longer than their opponents the past three weeks, today the Bengals' defense was on the field for five minutes longer than their offense. Boy, did it show. By the end of the game our boys were completely gassed. Do you know what would help that?
More drives like that thing of beauty that happened in the second quarter.
Thing is, I no longer have any modicum of confidence that those drives are likely to happen more than once every game or two. Unless the Bengals can show me something next weekend (which I am loath to anticipate), I don't expect to see any of those Cardiac Cats-type drives in the fourth quarter to win a game for us, folks.
The procedural penalties keep piling up. Seriously, are they getting close to record territory yet? It seems like it's every bit as bad each week as it was the week previous.
There is nobody on the field that Carson Palmer trusts at this point to catch the football or run the correct route but Chad Ochocinco. Therefore he is seeing near-constant double and triple coverage. How bad are the other receivers on the field that they can't get open enough that we're still throwing the ball to Dan Coats? Oh, hey Dan. Good job making a couple of catches today. You made me smile. For a second.
Okay, I think I'm done ranting for now. Maybe I'll finish up later.
~
The good news? Our favorite football team is 9-4. I fully expect an 11-5 record at the conclusion of week 17, I really do. I'm not so concerned about getting to the playoffs at this point.
This team will make the playoffs for the second time since 1990. You can pretty much take that to the bank. You know what? I'm damn proud of them for that. I really am. For a team to go from 4-11-1 to 9-4 in a year (I can't remember the specifics, but our Bengals matched the greatest turnaround in the history of the NFL this year in regards to record through the first ten or twelve games).
I am very proud to call myself a Bengals fan, for the second time since I was nine years old.
The only problem? It's not enough anymore. I'm not a Bengals homer that is happy with the fact that we'll make an appearance on a football field the second Sunday in January.
I'm concerned because I'm pretty sure at this point that our boys will be able to make their vacation plans after that.
Listen, I could be wrong and I really, really hope that I am. I really do. All I'm saying is that unless some very serious issues (no deep threat other than Ocho who can't stretch the field like he did four years ago, Carson's accuracy and happy feet, pass protection issues, ALL THE FREAKING PENALTIES, etc, etc etc.) are resolved and soon, this is a one-and-done playoff team again.
I should be happy with that, I know. But I'm not.
Be a better team against elite competition next week and prove me wrong, boys. I'm proud of you, but you've got me wanting more. Really it's your fault for looking so good most of the year.
In the words of someone who knows an awful lot more about football than I would ever pretend to know, fix it. Reach down inside and be a ***ing pro.
A Pragmatic Bengals Fan
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No you all played bettter than a UFL team
The UFL a pain to watch I tried once and I think my eyes actually bled because of it
Players who should be in the Hall of Fame
DIck Lebeau, Pat TIllman, Dwight White, Donnie Shell, L.C. Greenwood, Ray Guy, Steve Tasker, Greg Llyod, Andy Russel and Chris Carter
Good game men.
This was a battle of two superbowl caliber teams. It was simply a slug fest filled with right hooks and left jabs. Do not feel bad…you guys are for real and I fully expect you to punch Payton Manning in the theeth in the playoffs. I have a ton of respect for your team and I honestly think that the home team wins this game. Good game Bengals, and good luck on the rest of your season.
by Jepp The Viking on Dec 14, 2009 12:27 AM EST reply actions
Thanks for the encouragement, Jepp.
I saw at least one superbowl-caliber team on the field today. I also saw a team that bore the fruit of a month’s worth of concerns heading into today’s game.
I certainly hope you prove correct. :) Hope to see you guys again for the great only-possible reason for that matchup. :)
by Craig Conrad on Dec 14, 2009 12:29 AM EST up reply actions
thanks for the kind words.
you’re just being nice though :) we can’t play like that at home and expect to win.
i see the vikings as a super bowl-caliber team, but the bengals are going to have to learn a lot about themselves if they want to win a playoff game let alone (possibly) 3.
but thanks for keeping it classy and best of luck on an injury-free rest of year.
I was a lil' fooled...
but I think I’m simply going back to being happy and surprised that we won’t go 6-10 like I (stupidly) predicted. You have to wonder how long we hold onto Brat as it becomes more and more painfully clear that this offense will prevent us from ever doing anything significant. I’ve seen some dumb things from this Bengal team over the years(Ki-Jana Carter throwing an interception on a halfback pass inside the opponent’s 5, Neil Rackers losing games on missed extra points), but that drive at the end of the first half really ranks up there as an all-time bean scratcher. Time out at 35 seconds/return the kick to the 23/run a draw(slowest/least explosive back)/don’t use a timeout/hurry to the line/run a screen(slowest/least explosive back)/fumble. What??? Really, with that kind of (non)aggressiveness the best case scenario was to get it to our 40 yard line. Then what? Palmer chucks a 60 yard hail mary for a score?
I know we miss Henry. I know we’ve neglected to have any sort of threat at TE since (marginally decent)Tony McGee. But there are teams out there that move the ball much better than Cincy with much less talent. Where are the Hall of Famers on Baltimore’s team that put up 48 on the Lions, compared to our 23? The Redskins, led by Jason Campbell and a guy named Gaither beat Oakland by 3 TDs in Oakland, where we tip-toed our way to a loss. At least one head has to roll after the season and everyone knows who that be.
true that, but...
Brat really wasn’t the entire problem today. The execution was absolutely miserable, as those in attendance (myself included, for once) got to see the Bengals take drive-pre-empting penalty after penalty on offence, and the defence wasn’t a whole lot better in this regard. At least all the Vikings fans around me were happy with the gifts we kept handing out.
How much more would you expect the "D" to do........?
They kept us in it until late in the fourth………and they couldn’t catch a breather cause Bratkowski’s play calling usually only gave them the time it takes to go three and out.
The Defense kept us in the game…..unfortunately Bratkowski’s new approach to running things isn’t putting points on the board. I said it before the season and I’ll say it again. When your offense that used to dominate the NFL (points wise) is now sitting near the bottom of the barrel…..and you basically have the same weapons …..(albeit I realize Coles was just a little over rated coming in…..cause he’s been an achilies heel for the passing attack most of the season, for a guy that was supposed to be just as good as Housh)………it’s time for a change at Offensive Coordinator.
The play calling is so obvious that if I were sitting at B-Dubbs playing the little hand held play calling game……I could make tons of points off watching my own team.
And quite frankly we’re not throwing deep and keeping the pressure of the Offensive line by keeping other teams honest and having to play us straight up. If they are expecting run 65% of the time, then our RB is having to fight for every yard he gets practically. If that’s the case, then Benson should be leading the NFL (even with the two weeks he was out) cause he’s had to make just about every yard he’s gained.
There’s nothing wrong with being a run oriented football team, and still letting Carson do what he does best!
by Whodey4life88 on Dec 14, 2009 8:16 AM EST up reply actions
They were on the field way too much.
The 3 and outs by our O killed them.
by smoormandiddy on Dec 14, 2009 8:22 AM EST up reply actions
That’s true. But I think the lack of discipline is also reflective of the coaching staff. At least Marvin and the guys on the offensive side. Zimmer’s boys finally got worn down today, but you hardly ever look at that unit and wonder what the hell they think they’re doing. There are mistakes, but they’re aggressive and they play hard 99% of the time. I really haven’t seen this offense look so jumbled and guys so uncomfortable in their own skin since the golden days of Akili Smith. Any pattern over 10 yards is an extreme challenge. And when Andrew Whitworth false starts 2 or 3 times a game because he’s not really a left tackle and needs a head start….A 15-20 yard pattern is darn near impossible. When you’re playing teams you know can’t score it’s easy to hide behind “off-tackle left/off-tackle right” and say you’re a smashmouth offense. When you play someone like the Vikes or the Chargers next week, the lie is exposed. You’re running 65% of the time because the offense can’t execute anything more complex. You get put in a position where you’re behind and have to pass…things start to get ugly in a hurry.
To me it all starts with Palmer. To say he’s a shell of himself is an understatement. He looks really uncomfortable even when there’s plenty of time. He doesn’t trust his receivers not named Ochocinco, even when replays show they were wide open. He’s terribly inaccurate on throws of more than 10 yards (a lot of underthrown passes). And worse of all, he’s making ALL the wrong reads. It seems like every other throw we are left wondering “What the hell did he see there?”, like the throw he made to Winfield today, or the throw into quadruple coverage to Chad.
Sure the O-line is struggling, sure receivers are not all that great. That being said, the Carson of old, with the team as it is, would have no problem throwing for more than 94 yards against an average secondary.
I wish I could say that he’ll suddenly go back to what he used to be (a top 5 QB in the league), but nothing points to that, and unfortunately that will cost us the season.
by pedro_oliveira on Dec 14, 2009 1:37 AM EST up reply actions
I don't blame Palmer for not trusting his recievers
Laverious might as well just stay on the bench.
Andre Caldwell missed a couple of key catches.
I don’t know what Palmers deal is. He doesn’t seem to want to make audibles that change the play to something that works against the defense he sees in front of him.
Benson had a good game, but he can’t do it all by himself.
I had to walk away from the TV when JT O’sullivan took the field.
Sadly, the Defense played a great game, but our offense couldn’t keep pace. Same issues we’ve discussed ad naseum here. When the O can keep Favre and his corps of great WRs and RBs off the field…AND SCORE, we stay in the game. The D needed a breather and the O couldn’t give them a break.
What do you expect Palmer to be.....?
He’s a passer. His talents lie in throwing the ball deep. How many times have you seen that attempted this year?
Last time I checked, he’s the quarterback not the offensive coordinator.
Can you say BRATKOWSKI? I knew you could. The answer and fault lies with the man that is supposed to be trying to win games. I wouldn’t be surprised if he wasn’t taking bribes on the side to keep it close or to even make us flounder during games. THE PLAY CALLING IS AWFUL.
And Palmer isn’t audibling out of plays, because they want him running the offense they way they call it…..not from his perspective. He was recently interviewed and asked about this…..and he flat out said, he’s a deep ball kind of guy, he likes to throw, and it’s awkward for him when they have now become a run dominated football team.
by Whodey4life88 on Dec 14, 2009 8:06 AM EST up reply actions
that's why i think there's something wrong with palmer's arm.
he has been known the throw the deep ball in the past, but he simply won’t do it anymore. maybe he hasn’t fully recovered which is why he won’t throw more than 25 times a game or throw anything deep.
Definitely something wrong in the passing game. I don’t think that Palmer’s health is the issue, it’s his mentality right now. We’re not even trying to throw the deep ball. Andre Caldwell is a fast guy that could probably beat a lot of secondaries deep, but I don’t see the ball being thrown to him at all down the field. I don’t even see a lot of routes that go past 10 yards from any of our receivers.
Our -Line did not play that bad, especially not in the second half. Palmer had time, but it seems like he is feeling some sort of phantom pressure all the time and his gut instinct is to check down to TEs or RBs. It would be nice to see him actually make the attempt. I’d like to see him man up and throw some balls to Caldwell deep. I bet he would even get some 1-on-1 coverage.
This is our year!
by Carsonorbust on Dec 14, 2009 2:56 PM EST up reply actions
if he’s having trouble completing passes of 10-15 yards, just imagine how great those throws would be 25-30 yards downfield…
by pedro_oliveira on Dec 14, 2009 2:57 PM EST up reply actions
the difference is
he’s throwing into triple coverage to Ocho on those plays, where he might be able to get some 1-on-1 coverage downfield to guys like Caldwell.
This is our year!
by Carsonorbust on Dec 14, 2009 2:59 PM EST up reply actions
Sub par performance
Palmer was indecisive and inaccurate in some of his throws. You can blame some on the receivers but I think you need to blame some on the QB as well. Execution in the red zone this year had been disappointing. Why did Benson only get 16 touches. I would have thought if the areial game has problem, keep running the ball and at least give the defensive unit some rest time.
Pragmatic Bengals fan.................You are a pathetic excuse of a Bengals fan if I ever saw one!
To think you call yourself a Bengals fan, and you go and spread the stupidity you just displayed in this article …….and yet you still try to call yourself a Bengals fan……just in case!
Quite frankly, I’m tired of seeing all these people that are so called “Bengals Fans”, come popping out of the wood work when we are doing good, just for starters. And then you, of all people proclaim to be a Bengals fan and write an editorial like this about your own team. I only wish my printer could write on Charmin……..cause that’s about where your article deserves to be printed. At least there, it would still serve a purpose.
The only problem I see, is that Bratkowski as usual, calls a crappy game. As an offensive coordinator, that used to have the most prolific passing attack in the NFL, and now ranks somewhere near the bottom, with just about the same weapons……..it’s not the teams fault that they lost yesterday. It’s the play calling that didn’t help to put points on the board.
What do you expect Carson to do? They call the plays in. It’s still his job to do what he’s told to do, and to run what he’s told to run. And how many times did they go to Ocho in the second half? Maybe a handful? He’s your number one wide receiver………and you don’t pass to the guy where he can hurt other teams most??? This stuff of having Ocho go across the middle, just isn’t his style.
Either way, our team still did well……and quite frankly they battled and still had a chance until late in the fourth quarter. TRUE DIE HARD BENGALS FANS STILL BELIEVE!!!
IF YOU ARE GOING TO CALL YOURSELF A BENGALS FAN………HOW ABOUT BEING ONE! Instead of simply holding out…….waiting…………to see whether or not to pull out that new Bengals jersey and that foam finger with the price tag still on it…..and call yourself a real fan………………only if they get it done.
I’ve been a TRUE DIE HARD BENGALS FAN for over 22 years. And anyone who has been too, would tell you…..this is still the best season of them all……so far. If you are a REAL DIE HARD BENGALS FAN…..you gotta love what we’ve done this year!
And if any of the Bengals read this, know that this guy said what he said, cause he’s a critic…….not a fan!
(REAL) WHO DEYS UNITE!!!!
"If you are a REAL DIE HARD BENGALS FAN…..you gotta love what we’ve done this year!"
I think he expressed his point that he IS loving what the Bengals are doing this year. He is just concerned with some of the weaknesses that were finally exposed on Sunday against one of the best teams in the NFL. We’ve been playing teams like the Browns, Lions and even the Steelers that truly aren’t capable of showing our weaknesses this year.
I agree that there are all of the sudden a whole bunch of Bengals fans that have come out of the woodwork, but I absolutely do not think Pragmatic is one of those fans. I thoroughly enjoy and look forward to reading the analysis and insight provided by the men who run this site. They spend countless hours to create commentary on our beloved Bengals every day. You make the choice to read it each week. If you aren’t interested, go read something else.
Keep up the good work!
"I am very proud to call myself a Bengals fan, for the second time since I was nine years old. "?????
And you call yourself a fan, Pragmatic????
You are as I figured…..plain and simply a fairweather fan!
I’m a proud Bengals fan every year! Not just the good ones. Real fans love their teams regardless and are proud to display that.
That’s exactly what I was talking about! I get tired of all the fairweather fans coming out of the woodwork, only when the getting is good. Fans like you make me sick!
It’s because of fans like you that the rest of us have to take the garbage we have……….I have……..everyone has that calls themselves Bengals fans……
I’ve proudly proclaimed my love for my team, and worn my colors with pride for over 22 years!
Personally if you are going to be a fair weather fan, I’d rather see you wearing black and gold, than orange and black. People like you don’t belong in the Who Dey Nation! Go over to the darkside………there’s still plenty of people jumping on that bandwagon!
by Whodey4life88 on Dec 14, 2009 8:26 AM EST up reply actions
I think I speak for all of us when I say that we are all very happy with the teams record and improvement from last year. However, as the playoffs get closer, it pains us to not see the team playing to their potential. We have a very talented team right now but are sick of the penalties and poor execution.
by smoormandiddy on Dec 14, 2009 8:42 AM EST up reply actions
Be careful
Whodey4life88 is going to remind you that a real fan lines up giving butterfly kisses to all Bengals players. NOT being concerned about the playoffs. :)
Blogger at CincyJungle.com -- SB Nation Cincinnati Bengals blog.
by Josh Kirkendall on Dec 14, 2009 10:35 AM EST up reply actions
Well Kirkendall.......as usual yer a moron
First off, I never said that I didn’t hold players accountable for their performances. But I’m also a realist.
You can’t expect your players to be firing on all cylinders when you hardly throw to them, for starters. Our offense is based around Bratkowski’s “new playbook”…….“we’re throwing out the playbooks and starting over…….”. If this is the new playbook, IT SUCKS!
I can’t blame guys like Ocho, who I’m not necessarily a big fan of, but then again….he’s going over the middle. WHY? His talents, and his abilities that make him dangerous are going deep over the middle, not these short slants……
Either way, your ignorant rants don’t impress me as usual. I’ve been a true fan. I’ve weathered the 3-13 years………the 2-14………….and I’ve always said proudly I’m a Bengals fan. It’s one thing to say you aren’t happy with their performance. And I’ve said that. But these guys are playing their hearts out for the most part. If you wanna single a guy out for not performing………(cough Coles!) then yeah I think it’s warranted in cases where it’s obvious. But taking things out on the whole team or dogging a player that is doing what he can with the situation he’s left with……that’s another.
And just to state the facts……..people who aren’t proud to call themselves Bengals fans……..AREN’T REAL FANS! NOT DIE HARD FANS!…….that’s not my “selfish” opinion. THAT’S JUST PLAIN FACT!
If you think you have a better definition of what a real, die hard fan is, oh wise one…..I’m dyin to hear it. But I’ll simply say…..first off if you aren’t proud to be a fan…..and you’re ashamed of displaying it……then it’s why you get your feathers ruffled when I say it, cause you fall in that category.
And GAY?……I would seriously challenge you to say that if you were in my immediate vicinity closet Q ueer! You’d find out real fast, that you seriously underestimated and seriously overstated your place in the food chain. And you’d find you made a major mistake. Either way……yer all mouth. And it’s obvious. And that goes for the others that thought they were impressive with that rant.
If it ruffles your feathers that I said who the real fans are, GOOOD! It’s the truth, and that’s why it bothers you.
I’m tired of hearing the people, seeing the people come out of the wood work when the Bengals are doing well……….AND NOW!!!!!! THEY ARE FANS!
I’ve probably got Bengals shirts older than you, I’m betting.
I think fans like myself have weathered the crap we’ve been fed over the years from other fan bases……..we’ve lived the shame of horrendous seasons, and being called out as the laughing stock of the NFL. And I can’t stand seeing someone wear a Bengals jersey that only does so when they think it might make them look good.
In closing, I’ll simply say. I want something more than mediocrity from the team too……….but I’ve been in the Marine Corps and I know the physical ability it takes to be a pro athlete……I know the dedication these guys must put in. I doubt they just go out there and lose because they like it. YOU DON’T WORK AS HARD AS THESE GUYS DO, and not want to win. It starts with the front office, and it ends with real fans that support you and push you to victory! Not a couple fair weather fans that like to run their mouth and put people down when we’re losing and the minute we’re winning………“yay…..look at me…..I’m a Bengals fan!!!!!” when you think it might get you some brownie points at b-dubs on a Sunday when we’re winning!
by Whodey4life88 on Dec 14, 2009 2:45 PM EST up reply actions
"If you think you have a better definition of what a real, die hard fan is, oh wise one…..I’m dyin to hear it. "
I actually don’t care. If you’re a fan, you’re a fan. I don’t really give two shits about how much a fan is a fan. But if you want to wage the one-man debate, playing with yourself, by all means. Have fun.
If it ruffles your feathers that I said who the real fans are, GOOOD! It’s the truth, and that’s why it bothers you.
No, it bothers me that I have to defend one of my writers, a poster that’s well respected with everyone else here, with you.
I would seriously challenge you to say that if you were in my immediate vicinity closet Q ueer! You’d find out real fast, that you seriously underestimated and seriously overstated your place in the food chain. And you’d find you made a major mistake.
Oh man. Let me get my leather studded jacket and brass knuckles. Meet ya at the play ground at back at 3! I’m assuming you’ll be the guy in the Bengals jersey? :)
In closing, I’ll simply say. I want something more than mediocrity from the team too
I’m with ya there.
Blogger at CincyJungle.com -- SB Nation Cincinnati Bengals blog.
by Josh Kirkendall on Dec 14, 2009 8:43 PM EST up reply actions
I wear my Bengals gear no matter how the wins and losses fall. Always have, always will.
Typically I wouldn’t bother to defend myself to a scary internet tough guy like yourself, but I figure what the heck, looks like fun.
The thing is, and I know this may be hard for such a DIE HARD FAN1 like yourself to wrap that brain around, it’s my job here to analyze the game. To give an immediate emotional and analytical view on what I have seen as a FAN, and one who has a pretty good knowledge of football and what happens during the game that causes a win or a loss.
I pay $350 every year for the ability to watch the games on DirecTV’s Sunday Ticket (with the SuperFan package so I can stream the game on my iPhone if I need to leave the house) as I live out of market. My four year old daughter and my two year old son (who just happens to be named Carson, though in your estimation he should apparently be named Christoper Perry Conrad or Ki-Jana Carter Conrad or David Klingler Conrad or something of the sort and that would make me a better fan) have been chanting Who-Dey since they started talking. To my daughter, every team in every sport is the Bengals. When we’re watching a Cavs game, a Reds game or any college football game, the first thing she asks is “Oh Daddy, are we watching the Bengals?”
I would love nothing more than for everything to be all roses and sugar with our favorite football team. Earlier in the season when the team was able to respond to a deficit (ANY kind of deficit) by taking the ball down the field and taking over the lead when they needed to there were few negative things any of us here had to say. However, as the season has progressed the team’s ability to do that has declined. I don’t mean to distort your own little skewed view on the state of Bengal Nation, but there are some issues that have been present for several weeks that aren’t getting any better; these issues led to a second-half beatdown of our favorite football team day before yesterday. It’s almost as if I DO know what the heck I’m talking about because this is precisely what I said would happen if the passing game didn’t get better weeks ago. But hey, if you think all is wonderful and all is right then you go ahead and be happy with whatever product is on the field year in and year out.
Those of us who’d like to actually see our team in a Superbowl again before we die will go ahead and keep trying to figure out ways that the team can, you know, actually win every week.
Either that or you can stick around and beat your chest with your internet tough guy persona making threats that you’ll never have the opportunity to actually follow up on or prove that you’re anything different than any other guy sitting in his mom’s basement feeling good about himself the only way he can by trying (and failing spectacularly, I might mention) to make others feel poorly about themselves on the internet.
You have fun with that, though. :)
by Craig Conrad on Dec 15, 2009 7:28 AM EST up reply actions
Oh my...it's THAT guy
Dude…you might be the biggest idiot I’ve seen on this site. Awfully proud of yourself, aren’t you? DIE HARD FAN!!!
I’m still trying to put together the psychological profile for a guy who absolutely can’t criticize something he loves and asks for seconds when a pile of feces is shoveled into his mouth. Considering how lousy this team has been the last 20 years….if you’re the model of what a fan should be…I think we need all new fans (you’re not doing the job, pal!!!). Ones that hold the team accountable. Ones that demand success. You, on the other hand, accept anything and pat yourself on the back for no apparent reason. I think I speak for everyone here when I say “Congratulations”.
I was hoping THAT guy wouldn't surface again
He told me I wasn’t a real fan after the Texans game. I wear my colors, win or lose. I’m proud to be a fan of the Cincinnati Bengals. I am not proud of the effort the offense showed yesterday, or the lack of discipline throughout every phase of the game. I’ve been calling for Brat’s head for three seasons now. His playcalling is stale, and while he called a good play on our TD drive, I say even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in a while. I wanted Lewis gone after last year, mainly because I think he sucks at managing a game clock and burns unnecessary timeouts. And it was obvious that MB still makes the personnel decisions with the way Chris Henry was handled last year and this year. I was glad the kid turned it around and contributed, but seeing the injury he suffered was brutal. I hope to see Chris Henry in stripes next year. I definitely want a new OC(even listed that and General Manager as positions of need on Mocking The Draft). I think ML has done a good enough job to keep his job, but I personally am not happy with the way ML manages the game clock. The fourth quarter was a disaster. I quit listening to the game once I heard JTO’s name called. At that point, I knew it was a lost cause. Settling for the FG down 16, and not going for it on 4th and 3 down 13 with 6 minutes to go is packing it in to me. If we play like this the rest of the regular season, we truly are a one and done team(and every stooler fan already thinks that about us). If Our Cincinnati Bengals want to disprove the notion that we are a one and done team, then we need to finish at least 2-1 in our last three, if not 3-0.
by Danimal, Destroyer of Worlds on Dec 14, 2009 12:10 PM EST up reply actions
I wore my Bengals Jersey to the Metrodome and endured the heckling for about 3 hours of my life. I’m sure Pramatic would have done the same as would almost every fan on this site. There’s no reason at all to label him a bad fan just because he looked at the game with a critical eye. He’s probably right about a lot of stuff.
This is our year!
by Carsonorbust on Dec 14, 2009 3:08 PM EST up reply actions
Wow.
I’m not a fan because I’m not willing to accept the possibility that we’ll limp into the playoffs and go one and done. Not the certainty, the possibility. Quoted from this article: "This team will make the playoffs for the second time since 1990. You can pretty much take that to the bank. You know what? I’m damn proud of them for that. I really am. For a team to go from 4-11-1 to 9-4 in a year (I can’t remember the specifics, but our Bengals matched the greatest turnaround in the history of the NFL this year in regards to record through the first ten or twelve games).
I am very proud to call myself a Bengals fan, for the second time since I was nine years old."
Sorry I don’t suck down the kool-aid, man. There’s more to being a fan than rah-rah’ing and pretending everything’s okay after your team goes out and gets embarassed like they did today. I said quite plainly that I expect more than the team’s giving me. Don’t recall saying I was going to go burn my jerseys or anything like that. Hey, enjoy being happy with whatever’s out on the field, though.
by Craig Conrad on Dec 14, 2009 10:19 AM EST up reply actions
RE:
IF YOU ARE GOING TO CALL YOURSELF A BENGALS FAN………HOW ABOUT BEING ONE! Instead of simply holding out…….waiting…………to see whether or not to pull out that new Bengals jersey and that foam finger with the price tag still on it…..and call yourself a real fan………………only if they get it done..
Well, a real Bengals fan spends countless hours watching and rewatching games (yea, sometimes three times) and then writing about their impressions. All without monetary compensation on their free time. How many blogs have you had, or how many times have you written about the Bengals on your own blog?
What do you expect Carson to do?
Throw for more than 100 yards.
cause that’s about where your article deserves to be printed. At least there, it would still serve a purpose.
Actually, we’re not a magazine. We’re an online site. So it’s digital, not print.
The only problem I see, is that Bratkowski as usual, calls a crappy game.
So a real Bengals fan doesn’t expect the players to, oh, I don’t know, perform? That’s a first I’ve heard of that.
And if any of the Bengals read this, know that this guy said what he said, cause he’s a critic…….not a fan!
If you’re the basis of what a fan is, obnoxious, arrogant and making a fool of themselves by promoting only yourself, then yea, maybe none of us are fans.
Either way, our team still did well
I realized that you didn’t support this. You didn’t say how they did good. You just complained about Pragmatic and not throwing to Chad. I wonder if Marvin is saying the same things to his team also. “Yea, that dag um Pragmatic didn’t suck our pinkies and we didn’t throw to Chad. No wonder why we didn’t win!”
Blogger at CincyJungle.com -- SB Nation Cincinnati Bengals blog.
by Josh Kirkendall on Dec 14, 2009 10:27 AM EST up reply actions
We are now looking like one of the "easy teams" going into the playoffs.
For weeks, I’ve defended the decision of moving up Purify instead of Simpson. No more. How bad can Simpson really be if he can’t out perform the chumps running routes for us now (not named Ocho). Palmer wold rather throw to Chad in to quadruple coverage than watch another wide open receiver drop a pass again.
Play calling was terrible. What was with all of the bubble screens an quick outs at the begining of the game. How are we supposed to keep a defense honest if we don’t take a few shots down field every now and then. If he throws a few 45-50 yarders, even if it gets picked, it will give us better field postion than yesterdays punts did.
We’ve all been wondering for weeks if the passing game would improve if we really needed it to (cardiac cat style). They just gave us the answer that we were all afraid of.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy that we are winning the division (for now) and will make it to the playoffs but instead of peaking, we seem to be on the decline.
You don't look like one of the easy teams going into the playoffs
There are many other teams that will make it that will be far easier to deal with than you.. As a Vikings fan and an avid football watcher I see this team making it into the second round of the play offs. Do I think you’ll win the SuperBowl? I don’t know you have enough talent to get there if everything is firing on all cylynders but, if it’s not I think you’ll still make it past the first round with out much of a problem.
I even think you have a good shot at shutting down San Diego this week. I like your team and hope you guys make it deep into the play offs. You and the Ravens are probably my favorite AFC teams.
:handshake:
Easily one of the classiest fans of one of our opponents this year. Well met. :)
by Craig Conrad on Dec 14, 2009 11:39 AM EST up reply actions
I appreciate the respect. I was at the Metrodome, and I got a lot less of it there! I got what I deserved though since I wore my Ochocinco Jersey.
This is our year!
by Carsonorbust on Dec 14, 2009 3:13 PM EST up reply actions
Hey I thought it was great the Ragnor gave him a signed horn.
But then I always like Ocho and was sort of hoping he’d make a go for the horn.. :D
11 penalties for 85 yards.
we have to clean this shit up if we want to even get close to winning a playoff game.
...
I don’t think it’s a matter of receivers not getting open and Palmer not trusting them. I think it’s a matter of the O line not giving him enough time to find an open receiver, and consequently him not trusting the O line.
If you don't live like you wanna, you live like you shouldn't
+1
Blogger at CincyJungle.com -- SB Nation Cincinnati Bengals blog.
by Josh Kirkendall on Dec 14, 2009 10:46 AM EST up reply actions
Maybe it's time they settled in on 1 RT
As much as I like Roland, maybe it’s time to let Smith start and just use Roland as the 6th lineman in Big formations.
by smoormandiddy on Dec 14, 2009 11:01 AM EST up reply actions
Smith is playing more and more. I'm starting to think we need a solid RG. Bobbie is not who he used to be.
If you don't live like you wanna, you live like you shouldn't
I disagree...slightly
Palmer looked like he was feeling phantom pressure all night. The line kept him pretty clean in the second half, but he kept going to his check down like Jared Allen was breathing on his neck (which I didn’t see much of). Somebody compared him to Bledsoe on another blog, and that sounded scarily true. This is the time in Palmer’s career where he proves if he’s a Bledsoe or a Montana. At the beginning of the year, he was a Montana all the way, lately, I think he’s been a Bledsoe.
Also, if he refuses to take a chance down the field, there is no reason not to keep the blitzes coming….
This is our year!
by Carsonorbust on Dec 14, 2009 3:18 PM EST up reply actions
I'm starting to think he's more of a Bledsoe, sadly.
If you don't live like you wanna, you live like you shouldn't
The ranting is so familiar....
I read this article to get a feel for what S.D. would be facing on Sunday… I am a lifelong S.D.fan in WI. And it had all the halmarks of a rant I had about my team many weeks ago. S.D. has pulled it together, but they are not unbeatable. Cincy has a respectable team. If I were S.D. I would be worried about stopping the run. I think S.D. will win as our passing attack is red hot right now and I want home field. I want to play/beat Cincy in the Playoffs in S.D. to errase the bitter tast I still have from 1981.
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