Bengals Fan Rate Your Hate, Part 2: AFC South

We’re using the time between OTAs ending and training camp beginning as an excuse to break out the pitchforks for some good old fashioned fan on fan/team on team hate. In part one, we covered the AFC East and talked about everything from past AFC Championship wins to losing back-to-back games to a quarterback now best known for the butt fumble. This time, we’re turning to the AFC South for part two of our Rate Your Bengals Hate series, and it’s anyone’s guess as to who will take the victory here.

Tennessee Titans

In a close competition, the Titans (dating back to their Oilers lineage) have a 39-34-1 edge in all time games with the Bengals. Being a previous division rival in the now defunct AFC Central division, the Oilers and Bengals had some games for the ages prior to the division realignment in 2002. The Oilers/Titans are also the last team Cincinnati has had a playoff victory against, which is probably depressing enough to hate them for not even existing anymore.

Jacksonville Jaguars

The Jaguars, another old AFC Central rival lead the Bengals in all time meetings 11-9. However, the Bengals have won the last four meetings, and the last time the Jaguars beat the Bengals our President was George W. Bush. That alone should tell you how things have gone for the Jaguars in the last 10+ years. Don’t get me wrong, the Jaguars had some great teams in the late 90s and early 2000s when Tom Coughlin was running the show, but hating them at this point just feels mean.

Indianapolis Colts

If you want to talk about lopsided competition just look up the Bengals against the Colts during the Peyton Manning era. From when he was drafting by Indy in 1998, Manning never lost a game to the Bengals. He was on the team when the Bengals beat the Colts in 2011, but that was a season where Manning never played a down before eventually being released the following offseason. Since Andrew Luck has taken over, the Bengals have gone 1-2 against the Colts, but one of those losses was a Wild Card weekend game where the Bengals’ roster was absolutely decimated offensively, with a second-year Rex Burkhead playing receiver.

Houston Texans

And finally, the team that inexplicably has the Bengals’ number. For whatever reason, the Houston Texans, or, specifically T.J. Yates have been kryptonite to the Cincinnati Bengals. Too many Wild Card games have been lost, even more memes have been created, and Yates has built a career on beating one specific team. No matter how much I may despise the Texans, I can’t help but be amazed at how Yates has kept himself in business by slaughtering just the Bengals on a few choice occasions. But still, I have no soft spot for either the team or Yates.

Photo by Thomas Shea/Getty Images

I mean just look at that face. Evil personified. So, which AFC South team do you hate the most?

Rate Your Hate Series:

Part 1: AFC East

Part 3: AFC North

Part 4: AFC West

Part 5: NFC North