Stripes

Still buzzing. We all know we’re sitting on another Super Bowl contender

Eat my ass, Chiefs

Wanted a pass on 4th down. Oh well. Need a big Anarumo second half.

Great first quarter all around.

Thanks for nothing Denver

Very possible. Seattle and Detroit both possess resources to trade even if he is tagged.

Lamar Jackson is questionable to return (knee). Huntley has them driving though.

Also go Texans. The human garbage is back.

So many good games this week, and they have unambiguous rooting interests. SF > MIA MIN > NYJ PHI > TEN LV > LAC DEN > BAL Obviously that won’t all happen, but there’s no doubt about where we should lean.

Technically those are their designations, yes. I think Chase is playing though. He was full-go in the last practice and didn't miss any days. Mixon is legitimately questionable. Wilson had an illness, but it's unclear what -- he could well be over it by Sunday. Hopefully he is, but even if not I feel okay about that. I think linebacker has quietly become one of the best units on the roster.

Chase? Check Reader? Check ArmyBengal? Check It’s over.

How are we feeling about round 3, gang? All week it's been "revenge revenge blah blah", and I find the entire narrative meaningless. They're both good teams and playing well. By the matchups I think there are reasons for optimism.

I'd be watching the game on my phone from the bathroom at the party and probably exposing every 3-year old to colorful language.

Pats are toast, so that’s ideal if we lose Sunday. I think a Pats win would have been better with a Bengals win though. Oh well, feels like a win-win.

Yep. JT is always enthusiastic about a Burrow breakdown. This time he even offered some gentle criticisms (fairly so I think, in a way that I'd expect Joe to agree with himself). The video is in the spoiler tag:

Speaking of Arby's, I was reminded just yesterday of a long-forgotten roast beef entity once known as Rax. The mere concept of "Rax" sent me spiraling into a nostalgic tailspin to a time when I was a pubeless snot bubble of a boy, when nothing mattered in the world and the Bengals were 3-13 in consecutive seasons. I have never eaten at Rax.

No difference. You're free to express any concerns you like.

They're gonna do what they're gonna do, and I'm not going to worry about it.

The receiver seems like a nice grab. He’s at least more productive than Mike Thomas.

Nice, mem. I’m already there, but I encourage the local squad to take advantage. The KC game in Cincy last year was a brilliant experience.

I think Zac Taylor has quietly put together a fantastic season of head coaching. He never gets much credit given that on either side of the ball it goes primarily to Burrow and Anarumo instead, and that's fine. I doubt he gives a crap. But I think he is doing a great job this year. His infectious winning culture is in full view every week at this point, and he has kept them focused through an 0-2 start, an 0-3 start in the division (including a MNF ass whooping), and his play calling has been perfectly effective for weeks now.

Could be a pest given the recent batted balls issue.

As I have looked forward to this game, my biggest concern has easily been the loss of Awuzie. He was a critical piece of the coverage puzzle that befuddled Mahomes in both second halves of last year's matches, and I haven't been sure how the Bengals would be able to handle him and his weapons with a depleted secondary (even without Tyreek Hill they have weapons galore). However, I am extremely encouraged by Cam Taylor-Britt's performance yesterday. He had the one 50-50 ball that he allowed deep to Burks, and credit to Burks for making that play (quite like Tee Higgins made his catches downfield). Otherwise he was locked in and had his best performance in coverage of the season. He's been tackling well every week, but it wasn't until yesterday that he held his own in coverage too. If he can build on that it will be a huge deal against Kansas City. Obviously they run through Kelce more than anyone else, but we already have answers to that problem (Hilton, Flowers, and Dax). I was worried more about the outside, and maybe that won't necessarily be a disaster. The pass rush remains a bit of a concern though. Hubbard is the perfect kind of mush-rush edge player to keep Mahomes from extending plays (as seen so beautifully in the fourth quarter of the AFCCG). You still have to generate some kind of meaningful pressure though, and KC's offensive line is better than Tennessee's.

Reader would be my pick for player of the game. He was still rusty last week but is right back to All Pro form now. The run defense is night and day depending upon his availability.

Shake, take, salute