Self-Destruction Led To Steelers 35-7 Blowout Over The Cincinnati Bengals
by Josh Kirkendall on Dec 4, 2011 3:54 PM EST
in Game Recaps
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It wasn't supposed to play out like this.
Cincinnati's defense started the game playing to the choir of those that believe that this team can stare down any opponent. By holding the Steelers offense to only 12 yards on eight plays during Pittsburgh's opening two possessions, the Bengals defense force two punts with only one first down allowed. Offensively the Bengals were strong out of the gate, registering 72 yards on 15 plays, moving the football with relative ease during their opening two possessions.
Yet from the very beginning Cincinnati self-destructs their efforts to make any impression as to whether they deserve mention for the AFC North championship this season.
During the Bengals opening possession, Jermaine Gresham's touchdown to take a first quarter lead is negated after A.J. Green is called for a false start. A handful of plays later, a delay of game forces Mike Nugent to re-kick a field goal that he originally made, watching his efforts turn sour with blocked kick at the line of scrimmage. Even Cincinnati's second possession explored the glory of production until an offensive holding on Kyle Cook stalled their drive that was, at this point, on Pittsburgh's side of the field. Cincinnati is forced to punt.
The defense gladly joined in Cincinnati's team effort at self-destruction, though on a much smaller scale. A 45-yard Antonio Brown reception led to a three-yard Rashard Mendenhall touchdown. On Pittsburgh's ensuing possession, a 45-yard pass interference led to Mendenhall five-yard touchdown run.
And to make matters worse, special teams made it a trifecta. Following Mike Nugent's blocked field goal attempt, Brandon Tate fumbled the football on a kickoff that led to Pittsburgh's third touchdown. And just before the end of the first half, Antonio Brown returned a punt 60 yards for a touchdown (Merry Christmas on the no-call block in the back), giving the Steelers a 28-7 half time lead. Now that we couldn't have absolutely expected it. Cincinnati has been outscored 119-39 in the second quarter this season after the first half.
It wasn't supposed to play out like this. But it did.
And the fuel that fires Cincinnati's second half comebacks was completely depleted. James Harrison beat Andrew Whitworth on a quarterback sack early during the third quarter with Cincinnati registering 20 yards on seven plays, with two punts capping off Cincinnati's first two possessions. Though Cincinnati's defense forced the Steelers into a three and out, they followed that gutsy performance by allowing the Steelers to drive down their throats on a ten-play 93-yard touchdown drive that was highlighted with a 27-yard run Mendenhall run up the middle, capped by Mike Wallace's bubble screen with the wide receiver breaking at least two tackles on his way for a 19-yard touchdown.
Even when the defense was in third and ten, Ben Roethlisberger, under intense pressure, fires a strike to Antonio Brown on a deep slant with Kelly Jennings covering, picking up 22 yards on the play and the first down as the third quarter expired.
It was so bad that the Bengals feared the assault on Andy Dalton, electing to bring Bruce Gradkowski into the game to clear Cincinnati's most disappointing performance of the season.
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Dear Mike Zimmer:
I now get why you haven’t been offered a head coaching job in the NFL
What do you do when there's no way out? Find a way to get deeper in it.
by jimbasa on Dec 4, 2011 4:02 PM EST via mobile reply actions
Zimmer's doing a good job with the talent that's there though
they don’t have a single All Pro guy.
by occams_tiger_teeth on Dec 4, 2011 4:16 PM EST up reply actions
All-pro? Half of them
Shouldn’t be in the NFL.
Ben killed them on blitzes, same as last game. What does Zimmer do? He continues blitzing and ofcourse they never even got close to Ben.
This isn’t Zimmers fault.
This was a total team loss.
"Next season will be better" circa 1990
You can see where not being able to draft D last April hurts now
With Hall, Dunlap, Sims and Clements out, any team would struggle on the road, especially there. With the offensive implosion early on and then the Tate fumble, the D was always going to look second best the longer you give the Steelers a chance.
Zim needs to have a big say in April to be given a fair chance.
not just not drafting for D
but losing J Joseph, their best cover guy. Was a crappy offseason in many respects in spite of how good Dalton and Green look.
by occams_tiger_teeth on Dec 4, 2011 5:27 PM EST up reply actions
Our entire offense walked out the door
What were we supposed to do, draft a CB and ask him if he’s ever played quarterback or receiver?
they had no choice
but again, that’s because the owner slash “general manager” doesn’t know how to manage a roster or keep his franchise QB from wanting to run screaming from the city.
by occams_tiger_teeth on Dec 4, 2011 5:34 PM EST up reply actions
Well, winning with a Mike Brown team is always going to be a unique challenge...
Is what it is…We all could have walked away a long time ago, just like Carson. But here we are…
I would probably just stop watching football
rather than pick a new team when I’m well along in life. If I had known when I was 10 years old that Mike Brown was as awful as he is I’d have picked the Patriots.
by occams_tiger_teeth on Dec 4, 2011 6:30 PM EST up reply actions
Dear Marvin Lewis:
I now get why you haven’t won a single game in the post season as a head coach.
What do you do when there's no way out? Find a way to get deeper in it.
by jimbasa on Dec 4, 2011 4:04 PM EST via mobile reply actions
Mediocre Marvin
his teams frequently seem oddly unprepared. In any other city he’d have already been fired.
by occams_tiger_teeth on Dec 4, 2011 4:19 PM EST up reply actions
Just a drop in the bucket
Revenge will be sweet when its served.
Pps: Get ride of Caldwell and Simpson asap.
Thanks
Do you know what a super man Ass Whooping is ?... Its the type of Ass Whooping you wish you could Fly away from !....
signed through 2012
and cheap.
He’s not going anywhere
by occams_tiger_teeth on Dec 4, 2011 9:25 PM EST up reply actions
This ain't baseball
Doesn’t matter when he’s signed through. Not like we gave him a huge signin bonus or he’ll give us a cap hit. Simmons looked PISSED on the sidelines today. I think he’s gone tomorrow. Scott and Hawkins are being wasted. Neither of those guys could do any worse than Tate and neither is a starter. Stupid waste of a roster spot for a guy who everyone prays will either take a knee or wave a fair catch every time he takes the field.
by eric nyc on Dec 4, 2011 9:33 PM EST via iPhone app up reply actions
I hope you're right
Tate is not a smart dude on the field.
by occams_tiger_teeth on Dec 4, 2011 10:18 PM EST up reply actions
next...
Still have post season hopes… Let’s focus on Houston
by WhoDeyTim on Dec 4, 2011 4:09 PM EST via mobile reply actions
Broncos, Jets, Titans win. You gotta be kidding me.
Change gone come mane! Trust me! Cause i Bleed tigerblood!--Jerome Simpson
At this point, we might actually want to start rooting for the Broncos to win out
Oakland looks like they’re suffering from some good old fashioned Palmer-itis. If Denver can get win that division with 9-10 wins, then we’ll probably take any tie breaker over Oakland if we both finish with 10. Plus it knocks Oakland up in the draft.
Just sayin. The Jets are still my biggest concern. Although, after today, I should probably say the Bengals are my biggest concern.
When does the Brandon Tate finally get excused from his duties as the punt & kick return guy?
by Bdub14 on Dec 4, 2011 4:13 PM EST via mobile reply actions
Andrew Hawkins
Why hasnt he been tried at punt returns? I understand right now why pacman hasnt because we would be really screwed at corner if he got hurt but lets try someone else for the love of god Tate is horrible.
by moebball on Dec 4, 2011 4:15 PM EST reply actions 1 recs
Says who?
I can’t believe for a second that Andrew Hawkins would have ever said that in public, or in private for that matter. Guy just came from the CFL. He’ll do anything they ask him to do and he’ll be happy for the opportunity. Plus, hasn’t he returned a few kicks for us this year already?
Never would have thought they’d play this bad. I believe next weeks game is a must win as far as the playoffs go.
by Bdub14 on Dec 4, 2011 4:25 PM EST via mobile reply actions
That wildcard slot is no longer in our hands. Need to win out.
Possible but tough. we need to force TJ Yates to beat us next week. He surely have enough to beat the Cards and Rams, New Year game v baltimore could be us playing for our wildcard lives v Baltimore playing for AFC north title. If I was told that we would still be in the race with 4 games left, in August i would have been ecstatic.
We presided over our own downfall as much as it was to do with what Pittsburgh did.
Just win next week
A loss and the season’s over.
Don’t mind seeing Oakland lose a few more as well – need Denver can wrap up the West (never mind the drat implications).
Playoffs look tough now after today…Broncos worry me & as much as I hate to say it the Jets are right there and making a run like they have the past few years.
by Bdub14 on Dec 4, 2011 4:29 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
Playoffs look tough now after today…Broncos worry me & as much as I hate to say it the Jets are right there and making a run like they have the past few years.
by Bdub14 on Dec 4, 2011 4:29 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
It wasn't supposed to play out like this...
but it did and giving more fire for networks to rag tag on us. Not much help from other teams either. 4 games left. We got HOUSTON coming into town also. That won’t be a easy game either. Thinking the BENGALS will win 4 in a row is just day dreaming. TODAY we sucked and DO NOT deserve the playoffs. If we do make the playoffs it will be ONE and out.
HEZMAN
andre johnson hurt his hammy
I think we win
by joeb698 on Dec 4, 2011 4:38 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
Unfortunately, have to agree...
We have a lot to be excited about for the future…but this team is not ready to compete with the big boys. I don’t even think the injuries played THAT much of a role today – it just looked plain like a lot of self-destruction. I would say don’t bet on the playoffs for this year, if you want to retain some perspective/happiness. There’s a lot to be happy about, but lets be realistic also. The fact that all the cards fell in favor of the other wildcard contenders tells me to try and look at the big picture.
I said it during last week's game, even into the 4th quarter
This isn’t a playoff team. I’d love it if they got there, just so Dalton and Green could experience what the atmosphere was like. I’d expect them to get blown out right away. But I still can’t see this team finishing worse than 9-7. Call up August-Eric and tell him the 2011 Bengals aren’t going to finish worse than 9-7. See how long it takes him to stop laughing.
This season is still a win, no matter what at this point.
Yep,
I wouldn’t have believed a 9-7 record was possible either. I remember some goofball somewhere predicting a 10-6 record, can’t remember if that was on here or somewhere else, but that person clearly was throwing a hail mary pass.
I remember someone in July saying they didn't think there was any way we'd win less than 6
I said I’d bet them any amount of money that wasn’t true and just about everyone on this board said they’d make the same bet.
It's a Loss
That’s all that it is. A young team not yet prepared for the bright lights. Houston is up next at home. A nice redemption game, next…
Nice way to put it
I think seeing this young team going on a 5 game winning streak was misleading. Ur right were not ready for big time as of yet. Need some more maturing.
HEZMAN
After today not sure we deserve to be mentioned in playoff conversation........
we were terrible in each facet of that game. As soon as we f’d up that field goal at the beginning, you knew things were only going one way. Our secondary is awful, our line didn’t play well, this is why we consistently don’t get the attention and support that everyone on here seems to think we deserve. We have to beat these guys and Baltimore before we’re considered playoff teams, we’re not there.
by The Van Buren Boys on Dec 4, 2011 4:35 PM EST reply actions
Definitely sure the Bengals are not playoff caliber
0-5 vs teams headed for the playoffs.
I looked it up (posted on the other thread).
Marvin Lewis is 14-41-1 vs playoff teams, including the 0-5 for this year. The only year of his coaching tenure in Cincy where the Bengals had a winning record vs other playoff teams was 2003.
by occams_tiger_teeth on Dec 4, 2011 4:56 PM EST up reply actions
Your right we ARE NOT there.
Sad day dude. Sad day to be a Bengal fan. Hopefully it gets a little better next week against HOUSTON!
HEZMAN
lets not all freak out. remember what you expected before the season
that said.
Tate cant return kicks anymore.
Draft better O-linemen and get somebody to develop them. every game brings too many killer holding penalties.
The Steelers are not 28 points better than us, and that is a sign of culture and coaching. Steelers dont kill themselves, and the Bengals do stupid shit all the time.
there is still lots of hope for this season and I still love watching Dalton and AJ Green
Hi fans it Brandon Roy.
And ME.....LaMarcus Aldridge
Might as well get it out of the way: The Return of The Bungles
Like you are’ going to be seeing THAT everywhere for the next week.
I just don’t understand it. Every single player on the field except AJ was just NOT in this game. Dalton looked horrible. Every throw was high, he might not have had a completion if AJ wasn’t going up and getting all of them…Even the TD should have been an easy throw into AJ’s chest, instead AJ had to jump to get it all alone. And even AJ took 7 points off the board with the false start in the first. Complete and total meltdown
Brandon Tate has no reason to be on the team anymore. The moment that kick pushed him back in the endzone i was screaming “DON’T RUN IT OUT!!!!” And did anyone have ANY doubt that field goal was going to get blocked?
Honestly, I don’t know how the team that showed up today can beat Houston. They could start ME at quarterback and I could win that game. Houston’s defense is better than Pittsburgh’s, particularly in the secondary. And their running game is MUCH better than Pittsburgh’s. All they really need is about 150 yards of passing from Yates and we could be dead in the water.
I seriously can’t think of a single positive thing to take away from this…
Speaking of HOUSTONS DEFENSE
FYI: Isnt JONATHAN JOSEPHS (our ole CB) playing for HOUSTON!!? AHAHAHAHA…..He can be a nightmare too
HEZMAN
I doubt your sincerity as a Bengal fan
I don’t honestly expect people to be Pollyanna after a game like today, but you appear to be intentionally negative. Borderline troll personality. Suspicions arise on Pedro as well, frankly. Bengals get more love from Steeler fans.
... I still say it was a touchdown, got tammit.
Just stating the obvious dude!
You see I dont get all excited for these games anymore cuz these Bengals always seem to self destruct. One good thing coming out of the HOUSTON game today is WR JOHNSON rolled out with a hammy. Hopefully he is NO GO for this coming Sunday.
HEZMAN
TATE should be let go TODAY! THATS IT!
Put JONES, SCOTT, BABY HAWK back there till the draft. TATE is just PATHETIC…….A true clown at best. BAD special teams, bad decisions, bad play all around. IM just disgusted.
HEZMAN
Tate's had his supporters on this board
And all last week those people were saying “It’s not like he’s HURTING the team.” Well, I’d like to see ANYONE defend Tate’s job after today. And it’s not just the fumble. That was bad enough, but he was useless just about every other time he touched the ball, too. When we desperately needed field position to make an attempt at scoring before the half to make it a 1 possession game, what does he do? Stutter stutter stutter stutter RUN RIGHT INTO A DEFENDER. 1 yard return. Useless.
Weird. I thought he seemed to have eliminated the stutter step. I did miss the fumbled one, so I didn’t see them all.
... I still say it was a touchdown, got tammit.
Watch the punt with 1:30 left int he half
The Wikipedia article for “Brandon Tate – Punt Returner” should just be a video of that play.
Actually
AJ Green was the reason the 1st TD got taken off the board. He had his hand in the loss too he shouldn’t get a pass from blame.
"Next season will be better" circa 1990
Calm down lads. We got a smackdown today
the way alot of you are posting we may as well stay down. This team are gonna get up take the standing eight and start jabbing again. Clements is back next week, hopefully Dunlap and Sims too. Our d will come out with Fury, I trust Zimmer to ensure that.
17-10 Houston over Atlanta
So much for a toothless Houston team for an easy win. Next week’s a playoff game.
I don't expect them to play this badly again
And honestly, of all of our last 5 games, they probably picked the best one to lay an egg. A win today was a LONGSHOT at the least. When we were in the middle of the big win streak earlier this year I said “Either Pittsburgh or Baltimore is going to hand us a huge blowout loss this year. It’s inevitable, but it doesn’t have to sink us.”
This might actually be a good thing in some respects. This is the first game Dalton’s just gotten manhandled and the first the team has lost by more than 7 points. Teachable moment. Bet you don’t like the taste of this, do you Andy? No more “We were in it in every game” answers for the press conferences. This is what it’s like being a pro. Go fix it.
hopefully
We get dunlap, sims and clements back for next week, get rid of tate, pick up trent as insurance, only chance we have to win out
by joeb698 on Dec 4, 2011 4:48 PM EST via mobile reply actions
I know it's been talked about before...
But we really need to take a long look at our medical staff. Injuries are destroying this season, and it seems to happen year after year after year. And I’m not talking about a freak injury that happens on the field. Those can’t be helped…it’s football. But we have guys who pull a hamstring and sit out a month, then come back in and are hampered by it for weeks longer. We have Andre Smith continuing to injure the same foot time and time again. Every season we end up with an injury report the length of my arm in December while teams like the Steelers and Packers seem to get healthy for the stretch run. That’s not coincidence.
I said it before and I say it again
Marvins next man up mentality aint cutting it. There was NO ONE to step up…SIMMS, HALL, CLEMENTS, DUNLAP, D. LEE, and others OUT! Damn. FYI: We barely beat the BROWNS last week did u think we would cruise in and out of PITT!? We got stomped today. Yes I agree ERIC NYC, our injuries are hurting us. Nobody worth a damn to play towards the end of the season to win games.
HEZMAN
14-41-1
Marvin Lewis’ record against playoff teams.
Only year with winning record against playoff teams? 2003. That was 8 years ago.
by occams_tiger_teeth on Dec 4, 2011 5:00 PM EST up reply actions
Every time I want to start giving Marvin the benefit of the doubt...
I just don’t know if the guy is capable of getting a team over the hump. What he’s done this year has been impressive, and clearly to think that we’d be anywhere even NEAR the “hump” yet with this group is absurd, but you just don’t see Marvin Lewis teams get up for big games. He’s all about the workman-like approach, and guys respond to that and try hard, but they dont’ seem to get fired up because when they win it’s “Ok get back to work” and when they lose it’s “Ok get back to work.” I don’t know if we’ll ever see it, but can you even imagine what a post-Super Bowl press conference would look like from Marvin?
“Well, we did some things well. Some other things not so well. We’ll take some time off and enjoy this, but next season starts tomorrow…”
I don't think he's ever had the talent but I also think he's in over his head
The team looks flat and unprepared at some of the most important times of the year.
But he’s been saddled with crappy assistants like Bresnahan who should not even have a job in the NFL… and he’s been saddled with sub-par talent like Chris Crocker or Nate Livings who would not be starters for many other teams.
The whole Marvin era though has been smoke and mirrors. Their best positive point differentlal was 71 points (2005). Bill Belicheck’s teams have exceed that total in all but three of his years in New England.
by occams_tiger_teeth on Dec 4, 2011 5:09 PM EST up reply actions
Eh Sims,Lee are the next men up, we are down to the next "next men up" in some cases
Anthony Collins actually played DT on the goal line today. Collins stepped in and did ok when Andre went out. Depth is an issue with most teams.
Is there any word on Dalton?
This message will self destruct
Who the hell's interrupting my Kung Fu? - Black Dynamite
With two D's, for a double dose of this pimpin'
I don't think he was actually injured
He was just getting knocked around a little too much to make it worth keeping him in there. With Smith out and the rest of the line on their heels they weren’t going to take any chances.
I turned the game off…how long did they keep AJ in? I’d hope he left not long after Dalton.
I'm not sure tbh
But Dalton seemed like Harrisons whole body, plus Keisel’s fat ass all landed on him. It looked like his hip got messed up.
This message will self destruct
Who the hell's interrupting my Kung Fu? - Black Dynamite
With two D's, for a double dose of this pimpin'
If anything its a bruise/hip pointer
no point keeping him in there. Well played by your team. Lebeau schemed our asses off in the 2nd half,our Guards and Center didnt know who to block.
the scheme that is.
This message will self destruct
Who the hell's interrupting my Kung Fu? - Black Dynamite
With two D's, for a double dose of this pimpin'
I can't figure out what they did differently
THey didn’t have Woodley most of the game. It’s not like Marvin and Paul Alexander haven’t seen LeBeau and those guys a hundred times. Whit, Cook, Bobbie…even Livings. They shouldn’t be THAT surprised. How did they handle them so well last time and just looked like a pop warner team today? Doesn’t make any sense.
I don't know man
it just seemed like they were mixing it up a lot and possibly confusing Dalton. IIRC last time we didn’t even touch Dalton. Maybe Coach Dad found something from last meeting that he felt he could exploit? Or..it just wasn’t your day and anything that could go wrong was going to.
This message will self destruct
Who the hell's interrupting my Kung Fu? - Black Dynamite
With two D's, for a double dose of this pimpin'
It wasn't DALTON they were confusing
He was running for his life. He actually had some heads up plays to avoid a few more sacks and, to his credit, never made any bad throws that could have been picked off. It was the line that was confused. THey were just missing assignments left and right. No rookie excuse there. Those guys are all vets.
true
Still, this could be the best thing that happens to the. I know it sounds stupid, but some times it takes an asskicking to kick everyone’s ass in to a new gear.
This message will self destruct
Who the hell's interrupting my Kung Fu? - Black Dynamite
With two D's, for a double dose of this pimpin'
if ass kickings helped the Bengals get into a new gear they'd
have won four Super Bowls already.
by occams_tiger_teeth on Dec 4, 2011 5:26 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs
*happens to them.
This message will self destruct
Who the hell's interrupting my Kung Fu? - Black Dynamite
With two D's, for a double dose of this pimpin'
I said that above.
This might turn out to be a positive thing for Dalton. Up until now, he’s been playing with a stingy defense and a REALLy good special teams unit that has been covering returns great and not missing FG’s. He hasn’t seen what it’s like to get REALLY out performed on both of those phases and have the entire brunt of a game put on him. He hasn’t seen what it’s like to get embarrassed at this level like he was today. Knowing how much he’s used to winning, you can’t imagine he’s going to take that lightly.
Exactly. I expect him to come out on fire next week.
This message will self destruct
Who the hell's interrupting my Kung Fu? - Black Dynamite
With two D's, for a double dose of this pimpin'
Either that or he'll get Bengalized
it’s happened to a lot of good players.
by occams_tiger_teeth on Dec 4, 2011 5:35 PM EST up reply actions
It'll take a lot more than one beatdown for that to happen
They have to take as much positive energy as they can out of the rest of this season and funnel it into next year. Making the playoffs would be a nice bonus, but shouldn’t really be anyone’s primary focus. Build momentum, NAIL next year’s draft (you just have to make those two first round picks count in a BIG way) and put everything you have into avoiding a sophomore slump next year. If he can sniff the playoffs AGAIN next year, he’ll be in good shape. But if they backslide at all…
I don't see how they're gonna live through free agency
Adam Jones, Jonathan Fanene, Kelly Jennings, Manny Lawson, Reggie Nelson, Frostee Rucker, and Pat Sims all free agents. That’s a lot of today’s starting defense.
Benson, Caldwell, Simpson, Livings, Pressley, and Bobbie Williams free agents on offense.
I expect their draft picks will be forced to fill holes from the guys they’re gonna lose… rather than building something by keeping the best ones.
by occams_tiger_teeth on Dec 4, 2011 5:57 PM EST up reply actions
We freed up a TON of money with Carson
Plus I think we let Geathers walk, freeing up even more. Throw in how much less you have to pay for draft picks now and it’s even better.
Of your defensive names, I expect Jones, Fanene, Lawson, Nelson, Rucker, and Sims all to be back. On offense, the only one of those that matters is Pressley, and he should be dirt cheap. We all expect to draft a guard and hope Boling steps up. We’ll look at the draft and FA for a RB and #2 receiver.
I’m not feeling great after today, but even I can say you seem to be a little TOO pessimistic. This is a young team and the vast majority of its talent can still be retained very cheaply for at least a few more years.
Boling as the starter?
Boling is a total unknown. So if Livings and Williams go then they have to draft at least one OG and possibly two, but then you’re talking rookie OGs and that’s an excuse for not winning (which Mike Brown loves).
I have no idea which of the players they’re gonna end up losing but they don’t have a good track record (J Jo the latest example).
I am pessimistic because of two decades of futility. Call it informed pessimism.
by occams_tiger_teeth on Dec 4, 2011 6:12 PM EST up reply actions
I think Boling will be given the chance to start
And there’s always free agency. You think we could possibly do WORSE than Livings? I think we’ve got McGlynn for another year. If Boling shows up and can’t compete for the starting job in camp, we’ll have other options.
I’m just saying, you’re really preaching some Doomsday stuff right now. Go take a walk around the block. Get a drink. Things aren’t all bad. We’ve got a future HOF’er playing wideout and a QB who’s only going to get better. We’ll fill some holes and be a better team with the experience alone.
This next game is critical!
We dont win it were toast. NEED some of those guys back off the injury report
HEZMAN
Good game, Bengals fans
Good luck the rest of the season.
"It’s easy to lie with statistics, but it’s easier to lie without them." -Fred Mosteller
Follow me on Twitter
from what i saw at the end of cbs postgame
We still hold the 6th seed, so, all is not lost
by joeb698 on Dec 4, 2011 5:38 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
Yeah because the Jets beat an NFC team
We still hold a conference record tiebreaker over the Jets I think.
Not that it matters
Week to week playoff seeding is pointless. It’s obvious what we need to do. 3-1 to have a shot, 4-0 for a guaranteed spot. Next week is a must-win. You can’t leave it up to beating the Ravens in week 17.
We can not continue to be dominated by a division rival.
Losing four in a row to a division opponent is unacceptable. We have got to get it fixed.
by D-Day77 on Dec 4, 2011 5:50 PM EST via iPhone app reply actions
more like decades of being dominated
except the 1980s second half.
by occams_tiger_teeth on Dec 4, 2011 5:58 PM EST up reply actions
Point differential for Bengals coaches by season
Marvin looks pretty mediocre.
year PaulBrown ForrestGregg SamWyche MarvinLewis DavidShula 1 -114 -68 0 -38 -90 2 -87 117 4 2 -132 3 57 55 15 71 -130 4 19 44 -85 42 -25 5 70 119 -5 -32 @ fired 6 55 119 -160 7 24 8 14 8 94 -172 -73 9 16
by occams_tiger_teeth on Dec 4, 2011 6:27 PM EST reply actions
You love it when we lose
It gives you every excuse you need to get on here and cry about Mike Brown.
You’re not a Bengals fan, you’re an instigator who thrives off the Bengals losing. I dpn’t see you giving Mike Brown credit when they won 5 in a row!
"Next season will be better" circa 1990
these are facts
they won five in a row against mostly losing teams. Which is nice but if your goal is to win a Super Bowl it’s not that much of an achievement. Fine, Mike Brown should get all the credit for putting together a team that can beat losing teams. I’ll even send him a cupcake with his name on it, if that would make you happy.
by occams_tiger_teeth on Dec 4, 2011 7:36 PM EST up reply actions
LISTEN! LISTEN!
Today SUCKED! True! But, we all knew we had to win 3 out of 5 to have a good chance of making the playoffs. Today we just didn’t have the cards in our favor. Now we got to win 3 out of 4. If we would’ve won THE SAME way Pittsburg won, Pittsburg fans wouldn’t be saying half the shit Bengal’s fans are saying. When your first drive TD is called back and your field goal is called back and then blocked, then your special teams fumbles in the red zone, then you’re giving up over 100 yards in penalties, things turn out this way.
That second quarter took us out of the game. It sucks, but I can guarantee that the bengals come back next week and KILL HOUSTON. Who Dey!
There's a LOT to complain about with this game
But I agree that it’s not the season. Like I’ve said, I’ve been predicting a loss like this all year. A young team is going to run into this kind of Beaton eventually. I actually think this might have been the best game for it to happen in since it was such a stretch for us to come out of it with a win anyway. I am a little sad that it will almost certainly cost Dalton any chance at ROTY, though.
Next week is going to be tough. It’s a playoff game now.
by eric nyc on Dec 4, 2011 8:34 PM EST via iPhone app up reply actions
Yeah. I agree Cam Killed it today too. I think this loss is perfect timing for us.
It says that sometimes you cannot come from behind and win. WE NEED TO PLAY HARD FROM THE BEGINNING TILL END. Sorry for CAPS I guess I’m still intensified.
by BevHillsWhoDey on Dec 4, 2011 8:45 PM EST up reply actions
After stewing about this game for a few hours since it ended........
I agree with several of the recent posts. We got our asses kicked and embarrassed today, there is no other way to say it. But it’s still only one loss and counts the same as it would had it been only a 1 point loss. I’m over it, let’s get to next weekend and take out our frustrations on Houston, a rookie QB might just be what we need. Who Dey?!!
by The Van Buren Boys on Dec 4, 2011 8:37 PM EST reply actions
I agree. This win may be just want we needed before the playoff push.
But damn we need to get our players off the Injured list. And i agree with what some have said about Zimmer blitzing too much.
Our front line is capable of putting enough pressure on Ben (most of the time) and we don’t need to shortchange our secondary so much.
by BevHillsWhoDey on Dec 4, 2011 8:48 PM EST up reply actions
Honestly the defense wasn't AWFUL
7 points off a ST play, 7 more off the Tate fumble which would have been a tough stop that deep, and the rest from constantly playing a short field due to an inept offense.
I’m not letting them off the hook. They did give up a 93 yard drive and I’m a little shocked Mendenhall only had about 65 yards because it looked like he was having his way with us all day. Rey had a HORRIBLE game and Chris Crocker is so beyond done it makes my head hurt…Still, the line got to Ben without Dunlap again and Jones looked pretty good again. If he gets his legs back under him he could be a lifesaver down the stretch. I’d love to see Mays get the start next week, but it clearly won’t happen since there seems to be nothing short of breaking his god damn legs in half that will get Crocker pulled.
by eric nyc on Dec 4, 2011 8:59 PM EST via iPhone app up reply actions
A couple of things
Everyone needs to chill we still are in control of our own destiny. We just need to go 3-1 down the stretch and that should be good enough. I think Jets loose to Miami (they always play them tough and are much improved and Jets are not that good). Teebows scare a little b/c they hold the tie breaker but the Raiders may fall flat and they could end up winning the West, we’ve seen Carsonlead a team who looks good on paper to loose 10 in a row before (last year). Biggest thing is get healthy and make a few minor changes (Brandon Tate has to go!!!) and we will be fine.
I do think we have to root for the Broncos to win out now
They’ll lose to NE, but could still take the West at 9-7. More over, a non-division winning 9-7 Raiders team is a MUCH better first round pick than. 9-7 playoff team. Given the tiebreakers, I’m inclined to become a Tebow fan.
by eric nyc on Dec 4, 2011 9:46 PM EST via iPhone app up reply actions
+1
Who Dey aint tryin to see central bookins!
by NCWhoDey1987 on Dec 5, 2011 12:05 AM EST via iPhone app up reply actions
Unbelievable!!!
I tried reading all these comments and I couldn’t get half way without being disgusted. Yes we lost, and yes it was a bad loss. Nothing went right for us, but we have to look forward to next week with Houston at home. This will be a true test, to see how this team bounces back from such a horrible loss. This game definitely showed just how young these players are, and also showed some rookie mistakes, that we honestly haven’t seen much of this year. We would almost have to expect at least one game like this this season, and we’ve seen it. And Hopefully it will be the last. No more shit about Bungles this and bungles that, this is a different generation and different attitudes.
Who Dey aint tryin to see central bookins!
by NCWhoDey1987 on Dec 4, 2011 10:40 PM EST via iPhone app reply actions
Football is a game of a few critical moments that turn the game to a specific direction. The problem is that the critical moments in the game were all against us.
If AJ Green doesn’t flinch we go up 7-0.
If We don’t go offsides and get our 2nd field goal attempt blocked we don’t feel sucker punched.
If our secondary doesn’t have a mental lapse on the 45 yard pass to wallace
If Brandon Tate doesn’t fumble.
If we don’t have the Pass Interference giving them 40 plus yards.
If we don;t give up 109 yards in penalties.
These 6 things were the bane of our existence. These 6 things all happened before the half.
These six things sunk us.
If the first one didn’t happen, who knows maybe the other 5 didn’t. This is our first ass-whooping and I think we needed it. I think this will push us to win the next 3. We win those then who knows, maybe that final game against baltimore can be for the division.
Crazier things have happened.
Who Dey!
Oakland's final games are tough. I could see Denver winning the division and letting us off the tie breaker hook.
Green Bay
Detroit Lions
@ Kansas City
San Diego
by BevHillsWhoDey on Dec 5, 2011 12:41 AM EST up reply actions
Carson's starting to look like the Carson we know
No mobility, taking a ton of sacks, throwing iffy throws. He’s still got the arm, but his receivers are banged up and the ones on the field are really shaky running routes. I said after his first or second game out there that I thought the Raiders would have a tough time getting to 9-7 and wouldn’t be surprised to see 8-8. I think if both the Broncos and Raiders get to 9-7 then the Broncos take the division. That would be great for us. It would eliminate Denver as a tiebreaker threat, it would put (in my mind) an inferior team in the playoffs, a team I think we can beat that isn’t on the west coast, and it moves Oakland’s first round pick up about 5-6 spots into the mid teens, which could still put us in the running for Kirkpatrick.
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