Stripes

I’d have liked to see one as well. They do seem to like Cam Sample as a versatile option.

They’re probably working on the premise that they already brought in help at those positions on cut down day (Tufele and Asiasi).

Brace for excuses.

Rooting priorities might be interesting this Sunday prior to the Bengals' night game. I will be actively rooting for the Bills to lose to the Steelers. I don't take the latter seriously as a division rival and would view a Bills loss as more valuable to the Bengals than a Steelers loss in the conference standings. It's not as clear for Chargers @ Browns. I'll probably go ahead and root for the Chargers in that one, but it might be a sort of win/win or lose/lose prospect. I don't want Cleveland building any confidence during this Brissett period.

This team rises to the occasion. They’re not perfect, and maybe they hold themselves back sometimes. But they have forged a culture tailor-made for games like this one. This team wins in prime time and in the postseason. That doesn’t mean they’ll absolutely beat the Ravens. Baltimore has a good team that really should be better than 2-2, just like the Bengals. They lost a fluke game to Miami as we lost a fluke game to Pittsburgh. I feel good though. I’m also much less dreary about the coaching staff than the rest of the fanbase seems to be. The offense has sputtered, but that is in line with league-wide trends. Scoring is down. The LIONS lead the NFL in scoring. Things will sort out and we’ll be fine.

If anyone would like to purchase the naming rights to my stadium seats, let me know. I'll give you a competitive rate, and I will ensure the seats are vacated at half time so everyone can see them.

Mike Brown scribbles in J O E B U R R O W in the contract lines covering direct deposit

Probably the right move for them. They're staring down 1-7 or 2-6 with that schedule in front of them either way.

All in a day’s work, boys.

Steelers lose.

Ravens lose.

Browns lose.

That’s fine. Let Baltimore get their emotional “we’re hot shit” win this week.

Falcons up on Browns 10-0

Joe Mixon had a lot of work last season, and carries do seem to carry over into the following season. Even if the coaches still have steadfast belief in him, they should lighten his load. Perine and Evans are right there. Use all three.

It's "funny" how things can work out. The entire Chase/Sewell debate from last year kind of hinged on the second round pick. If you're going to take Chase, cool, but you absolutely must hit on your second round offensive lineman. I definitely said that. Clearly Chase was the right pick, even debating that would be stupidity. But even the above rationale turns out to have been overstated. They did miss on Carman, went to the Super Bowl anyway, and seemingly upgraded with a 4th rounder in the next draft. Cool beans. I don't know yet if Volson is "good", but he already strikes me as better than Carman at his floor. That's really all I wanted in the first place.

I have a feeling Lou will be a head coach in 2023.

Love me some Ted Karras.

I might have to take advantage of that. Good stuff, AB.

Also: we finally won a game called by Al Michaels

Great win. Uniforms looked amazing. Ring of Honor was awesome. Joe finally gets credit for a 4th quarter comeback. Higgins is god. Bring on the Ratbirds.

I don’t understand why we hate QB keepers so much.

I think the defense has been great in the most fundamental sense. They've lacked in takeaways and pass rush, but both turned nicely in New York. Hopefully that's a trend.

I just wanted one collapsed place to talk about the division moving forward. Week 7 games: Denver @ Cleveland, Thursday night Cincinnati @ Baltimore Pittsburgh is on their bye week. Tomorrow's game is a big one. Given their extreme injury report and Mayfield's shoulder, I think the Browns might just plain be screwed for 2021. We'll get a very good idea of that when they face Denver at home, a team that I would call plainly inferior on paper if everyone's healthy. If it goes as badly as I think it might, then I think they're toast and Pittsburgh will be a bigger threat in 2021. What a huge break it'd be for the Bengals if a premier division competitor fell off the map, both for their division and wild card prospects.

I know it's not the NFL, but they're partnered with them so close enough. Is anyone watching these games? I am having a ton of fun with the new league and its rule adaptations. There are no obvious rooting interests for people in the area of Cincinnati, though there are league affiliates in the AAF. Each of the 8 AAF teams has four NFL affiliates and one CFL affiliate. The Bengals are affiliated with the Memphis Express (who just got smashed 26-0 today).