Losing Home Games / Playoff Chances

[rwjcgc]

Losing this one to a sub-500 opponent at home really hurts. It greatly increases the importance of next week's game.

If they lose again next week, odds are this team drifts into a downward spiral. Sure it will be more interesting to watch than

last year's complete fiasco but it won't result in a playoff berth. The spirit on this team (and it's fans) just looks fragile to me.

Watching the pre-game interviews, it seemed like the stars were too smug and comfortable.

Maybe the nay-sayers were right and they have just been lucky so far. I hope the team can recover and prove them wrong.

Sadly after many years of being beaten down as a fan, my confidence at this point isn't very good. The apparent loss of

several key players today feels like more of the same old, same old we have grown used to around here.

[Stripes]

I think the biggest hit is losing the head-to-head against a potential wild-card contender. I hope we don't end up needing that tiebreaker. We're 4-2 though, sitting nicely with a second straight home game against a similarly capable team. I think we'll be okay.

[Grizz08]

Yeah I agree it is troubling that we lost to a potential wildcard contender but the Bengals are still 4-2 and leading the division with the Ravens losing today. Hopefully they will be able to fill Odom's shoes in the upcoming weeks and we can get back on track with a win over the Bears next week...

WHO DEY

[kingwilly]

Losing this one to a sub-500 opponent at home really hurts. It greatly increases the importance of next week's game.

If they lose again next week, odds are this team drifts into a downward spiral. Sure it will be more interesting to watch than

last year's complete fiasco but it won't result in a playoff berth. The spirit on this team (and it's fans) just looks fragile to me.

Watching the pre-game interviews, it seemed like the stars were too smug and comfortable.

Maybe the nay-sayers were right and they have just been lucky so far. I hope the team can recover and prove them wrong.

Sadly after many years of being beaten down as a fan, my confidence at this point isn't very good. The apparent loss of

several key players today feels like more of the same old, same old we have grown used to around here.

this is pathetic.

5 weeks (8 if you count the end of last year) of improved football, finding ways to win, overcoming the deficit...and one game where they get some injuries and do not pull out the win and we talk about "downward spirals" and po-poo'ing the playoff potential.

Not enough to start 4-2? win at GB? beat the Steelers at home? go to Baltimore and win?

try not to minimize the accomplishments acheived so far in the other games as a result of what we saw today. Houston is not a bad team. in fact, they were touted to be a sleeper team to make the playoffs.

I think had they been at full strength on the D-line, this game could have been a win. remove the TE's fumbles and this also could be a win. coaches forgetting they have the NFL's leading rusher.

It is a downer to drop one at home but it is a far cry form the azz-whipping they used to take last year.

plenty of more wins to come this year. 10-6/11-5 still in the sights.

cheer up.

[Clackwoods]

Just thought I would throw out to all the people that are jumping off the bandwagon that we still lead the division. We have Chicago, Baltimore, and Pittsburgh before we go on a 3 game stretch against the NFL's bottom feeders. We will be OK.

[BengalszoneBilly]

Just thought I would throw out to all the people that are jumping off the bandwagon that we still lead the division. We have Chicago, Baltimore, and Pittsburgh before we go on a 3 game stretch against the NFL's bottom feeders. We will be OK.

I've seen no mass exodus.

[SupaBran]

f**k that! I honestly envy you guys if you are not seriously nervous and/or freaking pissed after this disgusting effort by this team! Honestly, I'm not ready to jump off yet, but I have serious doubts this team can handle success! Think about it, this team cannot win when its supposed to. Week One, everyone said if we don't beat the Broncos after they're reeling after trading their QB and their star WR wants out, and this week we were favored and tanked! Every other game this season we weren't expected to win!

[blueridge]

Its way too early to begin even talking about the play-offs. But I agree with those who choose to philosophically shrug off the Texans game as just a bad day. It was bound to happen sooner than later. This team is still a work in progress. But I would not call the last 4 games a fluke. You have to be a pretty good team to consistently make plays when important games are on the line and defeat staring you in the face.Today they ran into a pretty good team who were on their game.If the Bengals take anything away from this game, I hope its the recognition that there is no team on the schedule that the Bengals can afford to take lightly and that every game can turn into a defeat if they do. We'll see how the team responds against the Bears. Maybe they needed today's loss as a wakeup call.

[SupaBran]

I come on here to express joy or vent frustration to others that know what I'm talking about! I was truly ashamed of this team today! As much as I was proud of them for playing tough and nuttin up during the 4 game winning streak, I was so disappointed in them today! I can live with a loss if they play hard and just get beat by a better team, but to not even show up from the opening kickoff was truly embarrassing! Lack of talent, like Andre Johnson(a beast) vs. our smallest cover corners, just not gonna happen! I can deal with that! But lack of effort is unacceptable to me! Miss tackles and mental breakdowns like letting simple bubble screens go 70 yards is freakin inexcusable!

[Stripes]

The screen game definitely killed us. I bet they finished near 150 yards just on screens.

[Pidge]

Ultimate success hinges on whether the offense can finally find it's feet this season. Over a quarter of the season gone and still no difference. Largely stagnant sprinkled with moments of pure farce and an odd moment of idiot savant genius when it really matters. Except we didn't get the good today in the crucial moments.

The D got plain handled today. Disappointing but it happens from time to time. Sometimes you just get out-talented. I expect them to get back to their form of the previous 5 games, injuries permitting.

Still waiting for the offense to pull its weight and so in that sense it's remarkable we're 4-2.

[Clackwoods]

f**k that! I honestly envy you guys if you are not seriously nervous and/or freaking pissed after this disgusting effort by this team! Honestly, I'm not ready to jump off yet, but I have serious doubts this team can handle success! Think about it, this team cannot win when its supposed to. Week One, everyone said if we don't beat the Broncos after they're reeling after trading their QB and their star WR wants out, and this week we were favored and tanked! Every other game this season we weren't expected to win!

The only problem with you bitching about that Broncos game is their 5-0 and they are very good. They are not reeling at all. Preseason talk is all Bols**t anyways. Look at the 2008 Lions. They were undefeated in the preseason before going 0-16. As much as I hate to admit it that douche bag coach knows what he is doin

[Clackwoods]

The screen game definitely killed us. I bet they finished near 150 yards just on screens.

Our defense is very inept at covering the screen. Baltimore exposed us for that and now the Texans absolutley raped us on it. It is something that has to be fixed.

On another note, everyone needs to calm the hell down. Yea, we got our asses kicked, but so did the Giants. Is their season over? NO we are still leading the division and we have a favorable schedule. The only team we have to worry about is the Steelers because the Ravens schedule makes it almost impossible for them to make the playoffs. It is ridiculous.

[Pidge]

The screen game definitely killed us. I bet they finished near 150 yards just on screens.

Our defense is very inept at covering the screen. Baltimore exposed us for that and now the Texans absolutley raped us on it. It is something that has to be fixed.

On another note, everyone needs to calm the hell down. Yea, we got our asses kicked, but so did the Giants. Is their season over? NO we are still leading the division and we have a favorable schedule. The only team we have to worry about is the Steelers because the Ravens schedule makes it almost impossible for them to make the playoffs. It is ridiculous.

Yes, we're all going out of our minds with panic.

[chandon]

Ultimate success hinges on whether the offense can finally find it's feet this season. Over a quarter of the season gone and still no difference. Largely stagnant sprinkled with moments of pure farce and an odd moment of idiot savant genius when it really matters. Except we didn't get the good today in the crucial moments.

The D got plain handled today. Disappointing but it happens from time to time. Sometimes you just get out-talented. I expect them to get back to their form of the previous 5 games, injuries permitting.

Still waiting for the offense to pull its weight and so in that sense it's remarkable we're 4-2.

I agree with Pidge here. I'm not sold on this team as yet. It most definately is a work-in-progress and should be viewed as such. Yes, we are 4-2 and top the division but look how we got there? We've lost to teams we should beat comfortably, and very narrowly beaten teams we should lose to. And it is the manner of those wins which concerns me. We can't expect to achieve play-off berths by a last-gasp throw in the last minute! As wonderful and stressful as those wins were, they are not how a good team wins.

There are lost of positives for me. The defence is a significant improvement on last year. Carson is playing well overall and bedding in nicely after his long absence. The O line is also improved and giving Carson time in the pocket ( generally! ). The team is showing a lot of heart and desire, and the punting game is also an upgrade. The running game has come alive through Cedric.

But the downside of dropped passes, stupid penalties and a combination of bad play-calling and terrible roster management is killing us. These are consistant problems that are not improving week-on-week. They will kill this team, because if we don't see dramatic improvement soon the Defence is going tho start to wonder why they bother! Then we are in trouble.

The Offence needs a serious look, and Marvin needs to be applying pressure on Brat to get this sorted pronto. Our D didn't play overly badly today, and considering the injuries and the strength of the Texans offence they at least tried. What it needed was our offence to come in and out-score the Texans, as I believe they are more than capable of doing. That's proper team-work...both sides of the ball helping each other.

We are just not consistant enough on the offence to warrant hopes of play-offs. Could we get there? Most certainly. But it's going to take a lot more from the offensive side to make it happen.

[SupaBran]

f**k that! I honestly envy you guys if you are not seriously nervous and/or freaking pissed after this disgusting effort by this team! Honestly, I'm not ready to jump off yet, but I have serious doubts this team can handle success! Think about it, this team cannot win when its supposed to. Week One, everyone said if we don't beat the Broncos after they're reeling after trading their QB and their star WR wants out, and this week we were favored and tanked! Every other game this season we weren't expected to win!

The only problem with you bitching about that Broncos game is their 5-0 and they are very good. They are not reeling at all. Preseason talk is all Bols**t anyways. Look at the 2008 Lions. They were undefeated in the preseason before going 0-16. As much as I hate to admit it that douche bag coach knows what he is doin

I'm not "bitchin" about the Broncos game, I was pointing out what people were saying about that game and how we were favored and loss!

[bwillycuse]

Doesnt really matter if we are favored or not. What does 'Suppose to win' mean? Houston is a good team. We had the lead at half and didnt show up in the second half. Well, we had the TE position single handedly hand the game over to houston stalling any chances of coming back.

Its just one game but the next 4 weeks will determine if we are a playoff team or a team that is building for a future run.

It is frustrating that our weaknesses arent being hidded but amplified. TE is a weakness yet we keep relying on them and they keep failing. Miserably.

I think everyone should remember that we have barely won 4 games. We are a young team progressing. I would love to see improvement and that hasnt happened yet. I would love to see consistency. But I think we all have to accept that each week will be a grind. No gimmees.

In 4 weeks we could be 4-5, 7-2 or somewhere in between.

If we want to win the division we HAVE to beat the Steelers again. Their schedule is an absolute joke this year for a Super Bowl team. All tough games are at home for them. They will win probably 11 games unless Baltimore can take them down.

Ill end my incoherent post. Keep Faith but dont put your expectations in the clouds. This team needs a lot of work and I want to see improvents as the season progresses.

[walzav29]

If we can get 3 games in a roll starting Sunday we will be in a prime spot. 1 week at a time. 3 in a row is what we need.

Chi

Balt

Pitt

We get those and we will at least be 10-6 , 11-5. With tie-breakers against the Ravens and Steelers.

[bwillycuse]

If we can get 3 games in a roll starting Sunday we will be in a prime spot. 1 week at a time. 3 in a row is what we need.

Chi

Balt

Pitt

We get those and we will at least be 10-6 , 11-5. With tie-breakers against the Ravens and Steelers.

We win the next three games? We win the division.

7-2 with KC, Oak, Cle, Det, Min, NYJ, SD. We would easily get to 12 wins IMO.

But I see winning the next three games as an almost impossibility. But 4-1 was an impossibility IMO.

[SupaBran]

I love having a team that doesn't flinch on the road and loves to shut other crowds up, but I'm gettin a little sick of this bulls**t these players keep spewing about how they like to play on the road better! Chad and Carson have both said they like playing on the road better than the jungle. This is redikulus! Its on them as well as us fans to bring an atmosphere that other teams don't like playing in, cause right now other teams get one more home game on their schedule when you come to Paul Brown Stadium! IMO, most of it is on the players. I think they like the us against the world mentality on the road, and when they deservedly get booed at home games they can't handle it!

Am I crazy?

[Ickey44]

Am I crazy?

I don't think that was ever in question.

[BengalByTheBay]

Am I crazy?

I don't think that was ever in question.

Si Senor.