Uncomfortable Topic

[kingwilly]

So, yes, big win, 5-0 in division, awesome road win again, won the hard way...etc.

here is the only bad thing I can cite.

Did it look to anyone else that Carson was really struggling with his accuracy?

He had several trademark darts, especially early in the game, but it seemed to erode. He was high, behind the receiver, and off quite a bit yesterday.

Not trying to go all "negative" but just wondering if anyone else saw this.

I saw Chad drop two passes he should have caught. For all his theatrics, Ocho needs to make the catches on passes he's thrown.

[membengal]

Good lord willy.

Against one of the best defenses in the NFL, he didn't look as sharp as against Chicago?

Wow, whyeverwouldthatbe.

Not every game is a home run.

Hell, I think anyone worried over that game is not understanding the premium the Bengals placed on playing mistake free football. For me, it was a thing of beauty from Carson. No interceptions against a Steelers team had a streak of five straight games with a defensive touchdown.

And if Carson was throwing the ball poorly, what was Roeth doing?

Oh, wait, again against a top defense.

By the way, Palmer was 6 of 7 in the fourth quarter. Just sayin'.

[derekshank]

Yep. Ben's passer rating was like 51 I think.

Good defenses get pressure on QB's and force them to throw when they are uncomfortable.

I give a lot of credit to the Steelers. I also think that Palmer didn't have his best game as a Bengal. He had a couple of throws that I said "That was uncharacteristic" but nothing to start to worry about.

No turnovers and clock control against one of, if not the best D in the NFL, and no Benson security blanket. No shame in being unable to replicate the Chicago game.

[kingwilly]

Good lord willy.

Against one of the best defenses in the NFL, he didn't look as sharp as against Chicago?

Wow, whyeverwouldthatbe.

Not every game is a home run.

Hell, I think anyone worried over that game is not understanding the premium the Bengals placed on playing mistake free football. For me, it was a thing of beauty from Carson. No interceptions against a Steelers team had a streak of five straight games with a defensive touchdown.

And if Carson was throwing the ball poorly, what was Roeth doing?

Oh, wait, again against a top defense.

By the way, Palmer was 6 of 7 in the fourth quarter. Just sayin'.

Hey, hey, don't get me wrong. I hear ya.

I just am noticing a trend that Carson's throws are more erratic than I recall. Some are just bad throws. Yes, it could be worse wrt INT's.

Yes, I am grading it on a scale given the oposition, and I do not expect him to toss 25-30 for 300 yrds guaranteed. I just would like to see better acuracy on some of those throws.

I overlooked the 6-7 in the fourth qtr, that does settle me down a bit.

Trying to contain my excitement at the 7-2 record. Where will the improvement come? What can be done better? that is my thinking.

[HoosierCat]

He had several trademark darts, especially early in the game, but it seemed to erode.

I think he was actually better late, something like 10 for 13 in the second half versus 8 for 17 in the first or something like that.

Like mem, I think the Pitt D had more to do with it than anything else.

I also saw a note where Cook suffered a mild concussion during the game, so he might have been a bit shaky, tho I can't say I noticed it during the game.

[skyline]

Carson had plenty of off-target throws before his injury as well. I really think that it's been so long since we've watched him play on a regular basis, that we've got a kind of distorted view of how he used to play.

We have the 2005 Carson in our minds as the golden standard, and even then there were plenty of complaints after some games. Here's the line from our loss to Pitt. that year:

21 -36

227 yards

0 TD 2 INT

I'll take his performance yesterday over this one any day.

[Pidge]

You know what Carson did? Moved the ball well enough when needed and played it ultra conservative. He never, at any point, overplayed his hand against a damn good D itching to pounce on a single mistake and quite rightly trusted his D to get the job done.

No wonder he's happier these days. This isn't Madden, it must have been quite a depressing thought that he'd have to throw for 300 yds and 3 TDs to even have a chance of winning a game in yrs past.

[cincy9275]

So, yes, big win, 5-0 in division, awesome road win again, won the hard way...etc.

here is the only bad thing I can cite.

Did it look to anyone else that Carson was really struggling with his accuracy?

He had several trademark darts, especially early in the game, but it seemed to erode. He was high, behind the receiver, and off quite a bit yesterday.

Not trying to go all "negative" but just wondering if anyone else saw this.

I saw Chad drop two passes he should have caught. For all his theatrics, Ocho needs to make the catches on passes he's thrown.

both qb's struggled yesterday, every bit of it was directly because of the defenses. yea palmer missed a couple to chad. but carson's management of the game was damn good. no turnover's and a win that's huge. you have to take your hats off to the steeler D they played a hell of a game. they know carson better than most teams and it showed yesterday. even with that carson was still able to come up with some drives in the 2nd half to take the lead and win the game.

[kingwilly]

So, yes, big win, 5-0 in division, awesome road win again, won the hard way...etc.

here is the only bad thing I can cite.

Did it look to anyone else that Carson was really struggling with his accuracy?

He had several trademark darts, especially early in the game, but it seemed to erode. He was high, behind the receiver, and off quite a bit yesterday.

Not trying to go all "negative" but just wondering if anyone else saw this.

I saw Chad drop two passes he should have caught. For all his theatrics, Ocho needs to make the catches on passes he's thrown.

both qb's struggled yesterday, every bit of it was directly because of the defenses. yea palmer missed a couple to chad. but carson's management of the game was damn good. no turnover's and a win that's huge. you have to take your hats off to the steeler D they played a hell of a game. they know carson better than most teams and it showed yesterday. even with that carson was still able to come up with some drives in the 2nd half to take the lead and win the game.

Well, then all I can say is my expectations are just dialed too high. I agree with all the points noted by all. I just get nervous as hell when he gets a bit erratic. If wishes were horses, beggars would ride, but I wish some of those throws were just a bit better.

I'll take Carson throwing 150 yrds a week, as long as the wins are coming and Brat does not call any end-arounds.

[redsbengalsbucks]

I told my wife during the game that if Palmer would have been on target like he had been for the 2 previous games, it would have been over in the third quarter.

He was not on fire, but was still able to beat a very good defense. Very glad to see him able to produce enough to win even when he is not exactly on his game.

[derekshank]

Rewatched the game last night. Palmer did have a few passes off target... but most were because the Steelers were starting to get pressure on him. A couple over their heads, a couple at their feet, a couple behind them. But that happens when a throw gets rushed and you don't have proper form.

By the way... I was surprised how long Palmer had to throw the majority of the game. It seemed to me like it was taking the WRs way too long to get open. Poor playcalling or good secondary play... not sure which.

Anyway... at least one of them I put more on Chad than Palmer. He got both hands squarely on it. He catches that ball 90 times out of 100. He showed Palmer up with his whole throwing his hands in the air thing... but he should have caught it.

Palmer's worst throw came on what I can only assume was a miscommunication, because Chad wasn't even looking for it. It should have been picked off. It was nowhere close, and Palmer wasn't rushed - so I can't believe they were on the same page.

For the most part though, Palmer got the job done, often finding a way to get the ball to a check down before getting hit. You won't always be able to have a 100+ passer rating, so here's to our defense picking up the slack!