Hobson: No Huddle Looks Better Than Yes Huddle

My roommate was out of town for Sundays game but he left his very nice, large and expensive flat screen TV. It is a perfect TV to watch the Bengals play on. Well, needless to say, I wasn't necessarily happy with the results of the game on Sunday but my roommate and his TV are very lucky that the Bengals looked better in the second half than they did in the first. If they looked the same in the second half, his TV would have been through the window and out in the middle of the street. One of the many factors that saved me from having some explanation for hurling his lookity-box out of his bedroom window (I wouldn't want it to be my window) was the use of the no-huddle offense.

Granted, a lot of the stats are skewed because the Pats basically played prevent once it got to 31-3 and let them use up the clock with short passes. But the Bengals looked more comfortable in the no-huddle than they did in the game’s first five possessions, four in the traditional set that netted one first down, two three-and-outs and a fumble.

Hobson makes a good point. After the Patriots found themselves up by enough points, they didn't have to kill themselves to shut down the Bengals. They could throw on their Hawaiian shirts and flip-flops and catch some rays while the Bengals tried to make their certain loss look at least like they made the trip to Foxborough and didn't just dress some middle school team in Bengals uniforms and send them to play the patriots. So, even though they may have relaxed a little on defense, that doesn't take away from the fact that the Bengals offensive gears looked like there was at least some oil on them when they ran a no-huddle offense.

So, the question is... or at least my question is... when will somebody other than me (or us?) realize this? When will the Bengals run the no-huddle in the first quarter when the score is even instead of turn to it when they are desperate? Will Bratkowski change things up for the Ravens this weekend? I hope so, because I'll be at that game and while I would get in trouble for throwing my roommate's TV out of the window, I'll get in much more trouble for throwing the poor Bengals fan sitting next to me over the ledge of the stadium. I really need to get control of my "football emotions" before I get myself in trouble. "I was frustrated with the Bengals play calling" will not be a good defense in court.