If only the Bengals could play defense and run the ball

[walzav29]

After all, thats the reason the Jets are going to kill us. It's all I hear about. I watched some replays and the fact no one brings up that Orien Harris, Shaun Smith, and Dan Skuta were in the game for alot of the long runs and are fine players. They haven't necessarily been the pillars of our defense. The Bengals haven't shed their old image and it will be fine after this game. It's annoying to me because you're starting to hear the cliche's. Watch out for Baltimore and the Jets because they run the ball and play defense. The Bengals swept Balt, and besides running the ball and playing great D all year. Palmer has led winning, and tying 2 last minute drives in 7 games this season. Watch the media bandwagon after this win.

[bwillycuse]

After all, thats the reason the Jets are going to kill us. It's all I hear about. I watched some replays and the fact no one brings up that Orien Harris, Shaun Smith, and Dan Skuta were in the game for alot of the long runs and are fine players. They haven't necessarily been the pillars of our defense. The Bengals haven't shed their old image and it will be fine after this game. It's annoying to me because you're starting to hear the cliche's. Watch out for Baltimore and the Jets because they run the ball and play defense. The Bengals swept Balt, and besides running the ball and playing great D all year. Palmer has led winning, and tying 2 last minute drives in 7 games this season. Watch the media bandwagon after this win.

Im with you.

The SI guy on Sirius NFL this morning was talking about just that. The Jets have what it takes to win the Super Bowl - A good running attack and a good defense.

The Bengals I guess dont. And dont have a Pro Bowl caliber QB.

Now That Retired OLineman from Denver on Mike and Mike is saying the game the Jets won on Sunday will translate to a win on saturday. The Bengals need to get the passing game going if they want to win.

Im just now looking forward to a 40-0 win on Saturday. I want to hear Mike Greenberg on Monday in a bad mood.

[walzav29]

After all, thats the reason the Jets are going to kill us. It's all I hear about. I watched some replays and the fact no one brings up that Orien Harris, Shaun Smith, and Dan Skuta were in the game for alot of the long runs and are fine players. They haven't necessarily been the pillars of our defense. The Bengals haven't shed their old image and it will be fine after this game. It's annoying to me because you're starting to hear the cliche's. Watch out for Baltimore and the Jets because they run the ball and play defense. The Bengals swept Balt, and besides running the ball and playing great D all year. Palmer has led winning, and tying 2 last minute drives in 7 games this season. Watch the media bandwagon after this win.

Im with you.

The SI guy on Sirius NFL this morning was talking about just that. The Jets have what it takes to win the Super Bowl - A good running attack and a good defense.

The Bengals I guess dont. And dont have a Pro Bowl caliber QB.

Now That Retired OLineman from Denver on Mike and Mike is saying the game the Jets won on Sunday will translate to a win on saturday. The Bengals need to get the passing game going if they want to win.

Im just now looking forward to a 40-0 win on Saturday. I want to hear Mike Greenberg on Monday in a bad mood.

It is ridiculous. I would love a blowout as well, but I'm sure I'll have to deal with a gut wrenching last second drive or touchdown!

[walzav29]

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/writers/don_banks/01/06/playoff.power.rankings/index.html?eref=sihp

The Bengals swept the Ravens, beat the Packers and barely lost to SD. Now they're the worst team in the playoffs. Why? Because of the Jet's loss of course. FOrget that Ind,Phi,Arz, were blew out. The Cards did the same thing the Bengals did. N.O. lost 3 straight. NE lost. This is going to hilarious. The backpedal festival that is going to happen Monday.

[Wraith]

According to Jon Gruden our defense is really hurting because we have lost our Middle Linebacker Rey Maualuga! I guess with that in depth and accurate information we should all just surrender now.... I can't wait for Saturday, when all this garbage can be done and we can watch how the game unfolds.

[DC_Bengals_Fan]

According to Jon Gruden our defense is really hurting because we have lost our Middle Linebacker Rey Maualuga! I guess with that in depth and accurate information we should all just surrender now.... I can't wait for Saturday, when all this garbage can be done and we can watch how the game unfolds.

Yeah, of all the injuries that hurt the least. Don't get me wrong, Rey's a great player, but at LB we gots depth. Losing Crocker and Peko *really* hurt. If those two are ready to go, it'll be a bit of a difference.

[walzav29]

According to Jon Gruden our defense is really hurting because we have lost our Middle Linebacker Rey Maualuga! I guess with that in depth and accurate information we should all just surrender now.... I can't wait for Saturday, when all this garbage can be done and we can watch how the game unfolds.

Yeah, of all the injuries that hurt the least. Don't get me wrong, Rey's a great player, but at LB we gots depth. Losing Crocker and Peko *really* hurt. If those two are ready to go, it'll be a bit of a difference.

I think he meant that Rey ISN'T our middle linebacker. I don't think the majority of these expert analysts actually watch the Bengals play.

[Ickey44]

According to Jon Gruden our defense is really hurting because we have lost our Middle Linebacker Rey Maualuga! I guess with that in depth and accurate information we should all just surrender now.... I can't wait for Saturday, when all this garbage can be done and we can watch how the game unfolds.

Yeah, of all the injuries that hurt the least. Don't get me wrong, Rey's a great player, but at LB we gots depth. Losing Crocker and Peko *really* hurt. If those two are ready to go, it'll be a bit of a difference.

I think he meant that Rey ISN'T our middle linebacker. I don't think the majority of these expert analysts actually watch the Bengals play.

That's what I got from it. Most of the "experts" obviously don't watch us play and you can tell by those types of comments.

[ShulaSteakhouse]

The Bengals have scored all of 3 TD's in their last 97 drives.

The QB rating the last 6 games is just over 33 (brutal!)

Rey is a big loss in run support, of course having Crocker and Peko back help. Sims is more of a loss than people give him credit for. Where was Ndukwe Sunday night?

The passing game since losing Henry has gone Antartica south.

This is not the same team that swept the division eons ago.

They are 1-5 against the rest of the AFC this year.

I'm not playing devil's advocate or "bitching," I am providing factual information to consider.

They are limping into the playoffs and don't sound like a confident team at all.

I will be pleasantly surprised if they win Saturday, and will take that for a successful season, no matter what happens beyond this weekend.

It's an opportunity to end the ridiculous playoff winless streak of 19 years. Erase that, keep Zimmer, get another stud WR and actually upgrade the interior 0-line in the off-season, and this team will be fine.

But right now this is weakest playoff team of them all unfortunately, they are just not the same team from mid-season.

[HAPPYJAQ]

The Bengals have scored all of 3 TD's in their last 97 drives.

The QB rating the last 6 games is just over 33 (brutal!)

Rey is a big loss in run support, of course having Crocker and Peko back help. Sims is more of a loss than people give him credit for. Where was Ndukwe Sunday night?

The passing game since losing Henry has gone Antartica south.

This is not the same team that swept the division eons ago.

They are 1-5 against the rest of the AFC this year.

I'm not playing devil's advocate or "bitching," I am providing factual information to consider.

They are limping into the playoffs and don't sound like a confident team at all.

I will be pleasantly surprised if they win Saturday, and will take that for a successful season, no matter what happens beyond this weekend.

It's an opportunity to end the ridiculous playoff winless streak of 19 years. Erase that, keep Zimmer, get another stud WR and actually upgrade the interior 0-line in the off-season, and this team will be fine.

But right now this is weakest playoff team of them all unfortunately, they are just not the same team from mid-season.

Solid post, and I agree with much of it.

As I thought about it more, I was reminded on how the 2008 NFC Champion Arizona Cardinals finished last season

Week 15 - loss to Minnesota, 35-14

Week 16 - loss to New England, 47-7

Week 17 - win against an very under-manned Seattle team, 34-21, in a game that was tied at the half.

The Cards were also a 4th seed last year before beating a red-hot Falcons team in the Wild Card round. That victory alone gave them the confidence and momentum needed to reach the Super Bowl.

Just a thought.

An equally interesting thought is that the Eagles are in the exact same situation as the Bengals, and are far from conceding a victory this week against a team that is better than the Jets, IMO.

For years, the Bengals have played well in these types of situations and I'm believing we'll win this game. Let it be known that I'm not drunk off the Marvin-Aid, either, in suggesting a win this week with our backs firmly against the wall.

[HairOnFire]

The Bengals have scored all of 3 TD's in their last 97 drives.

Perhaps the Bengals themselves are unaware of this fact? If true, Bengal fans should boo them to make the situation more clear.

The QB rating the last 6 games is just over 33 (brutal!)

Paging Joe Pong.

Sims is more of a loss than people give him credit for.

Sims is as overrated as any Bengal player alive, but when healthy he manages to keep the "Waiver Wall" off the field. Sadly, with Sims joining the missing the cupboard is nearly bare even with the return of Peko. Because The Tanker can barely run and the Bengals habit of kicking one or even two DEs into the middle is risky when facing Mangold and Faneca.

This is not the same team that swept the division eons ago.

Actually, it is. Or rather, this is what's left. And if it's going to win a playoff game it will have to do so using exactly the same methods that served it so well earlier in the season. And that means runnin the ball and playing defense. Bengal fans can whine and crab about the inept passing game all they want, but booing won't change anything.

I'm not playing devil's advocate or "bitching," I am providing factual information to consider.

It's PROBABLY not a championship team. I think we all understand that. In fact, the team we've seen for the last month isn't even a worthy playoff team.(Gasp!) But it s a new season and they've shown plenty of toughness and resiliency this season. Enough that I can't and won't count them out of this game.

They are limping into the playoffs and don't sound like a confident team at all.

Relax, we've got NoMentum on our side.

I will be pleasantly surprised if they win Saturday, and will take that for a successful season, no matter what happens beyond this weekend.

I'd say it's been a successful season already for those of us who didn't anticipate a division championship and the playoff berth that comes with it. So no matter what happens this weekend....no booing.

[COB]

The Bengals have scored all of 3 TD's in their last 97 drives.

The QB rating the last 6 games is just over 33 (brutal!)

Rey is a big loss in run support, of course having Crocker and Peko back help. Sims is more of a loss than people give him credit for. Where was Ndukwe Sunday night?

The passing game since losing Henry has gone Antartica south.

This is not the same team that swept the division eons ago.

They are 1-5 against the rest of the AFC this year.

I'm not playing devil's advocate or "bitching," I am providing factual information to consider.

They are limping into the playoffs and don't sound like a confident team at all.

I will be pleasantly surprised if they win Saturday, and will take that for a successful season, no matter what happens beyond this weekend.

It's an opportunity to end the ridiculous playoff winless streak of 19 years. Erase that, keep Zimmer, get another stud WR and actually upgrade the interior 0-line in the off-season, and this team will be fine.

But right now this is weakest playoff team of them all unfortunately, they are just not the same team from mid-season.

All true, but I'm not ready to give up the ship just yet.

First, this football team is different when Cedric Benson plays the whole game. The guy is a level above anyone else we have, and it shows. We're trying to win this game, so I suspect there won't be a lot of LJ, there won't be any saving Ced for next week. It will just be Ced the human battering ram.

Second, the bigger the game, the better this team plays. Must wins against Pittsburgh? Won them both. Must wins against Baltimore? Won them both. Must win against the Chiefs to get in the playoffs? Win. This team is capable of imposing it's will and winning big games. But they have to have the will in the first place, and in this game they do.

Third, I just like it that both teams are going to load the box and dare the other guy to throw. We've got a better thrower and a few guys who can catch, and hopefully their guy plays like the rookie he is.

Fourth, their big-mouthed coach is tempting fate like I can't believe. He's setting himself and his team up for a huge fall, and the football gods are probably happy to oblige. Experienced coaches keep their mouths shut and give the other side much respect. I can hardly believe what I'm hearing from Rex Ryan.

C'mon Bengals, punch somebody in the f**king mouth.

/sits back, satisfied that internet tough talk will carry the day when we meet the Jets/

[walzav29]

I have a whole different theory on this subject. I think Peko was a huge loss. They went all out on the Charger game because they were in it for the #2 seed. They lost by 3. They had to come back from SD, then shoot back to NO and back again to prepare for the Chiefs. They won. Not blowing them out to me is understandable. Then rested people against the Jets. The biggest loss we had was Rey. The passing game has struggled since Henry went to IR. It wasn't spectacular, before that but don't forget. Palmer went for over 300 vs SD. I'll tell you this. I'd bet SD and Ind are pulling for the Jets.

[wpeldios]

After all, thats the reason the Jets are going to kill us. It's all I hear about. I watched some replays and the fact no one brings up that Orien Harris, Shaun Smith, and Dan Skuta were in the game for alot of the long runs and are fine players. They haven't necessarily been the pillars of our defense.

thats not mentioning Kyries Hebert, Abdul Hodge and Ricardo Murray.

[walzav29]

After all, thats the reason the Jets are going to kill us. It's all I hear about. I watched some replays and the fact no one brings up that Orien Harris, Shaun Smith, and Dan Skuta were in the game for alot of the long runs and are fine players. They haven't necessarily been the pillars of our defense.

thats not mentioning Kyries Hebert, Abdul Hodge and Ricardo Murray.

Exactly. I'm finding the Jet's and their fans extremely annoying. Who do they think they are? The Giants?

[DC_Bengals_Fan]

I think he meant that Rey ISN'T our middle linebacker. I don't think the majority of these expert analysts actually watch the Bengals play.

Oh hell, my eyes completely glossed over that. Figures though - somebody who doesn't even know what position Rey plays probably wouldn't realize that we have great backup LBs.

And of course they don't watch the Bengals play. Hell, the only time we're on national TV it was a de facto bye.

[walzav29]

I think he meant that Rey ISN'T our middle linebacker. I don't think the majority of these expert analysts actually watch the Bengals play.

Oh hell, my eyes completely glossed over that. Figures though - somebody who doesn't even know what position Rey plays probably wouldn't realize that we have great backup LBs.

And of course they don't watch the Bengals play. Hell, the only time we're on national TV it was a de facto bye.

I'll tell you another thing. It appeared to me that NBC was truly annoyed with the Bengals tanking. Collinsworth and Michaels seemed to spew alot of venom on Cincinnati. After the Bengals win Sat. I'm glad they won't play again on NBC. Screw them.

[Arizona]

Hey, where did you find the love for the Ravens? I keep reading we're one and done and can't stop God Brady.

[BengalByTheBay]

Hey, where did you find the love for the Ravens? I keep reading we're one and done and can't stop God Brady.

Well, Walter likes you.

/>http://walterfootball.com/nflpicks2009_18late.php

[cincyhokie]

Look, I understand the Jets defense is good. Congrats to them for being #1 or whatever, but alot of people, especially around town and on local radio are acting like this is the 2000 Ravens or 1985 Bears defense.

The Jets defense is good. But honestly I don't think it's any better than the Ravens and Steelers defenses have been the last 5 years.

We are not seeing anything new. It's not as impossible to win this game as people are making it out to be.

By the way we have the #4 defense overall and number #8 against the run. We are also #9 in running the ball. And we're playing at home....with something to play for since the SD game. In fact in all the games the Bengals have played that are do-or-dies....they have played very well.

Also, let's look at the Steelers and Ravens games this year:

First Steelers game: Played well.

Second Steelers game: Played MUCH better.

First Ravens game: Played well made mistakes.

Second Ravens game: Played solid, mistake free football. Played better.

First Jets game: Didn't show up.

Second Jets game: ?????????

[membengal]

Hey, where did you find the love for the Ravens? I keep reading we're one and done and can't stop God Brady.

Hey arizona. It turns out the AFC North was s**t. Despite having three teams over .500 and two in the playoffs. Stupid AFC North and its lack of big media markets...

[HairOnFire]

And we're playing at home....

I hear ya'.

Playing a playoff game infront of a home crowd should be a huge advantage. And maybe that's exactly the way it will turn out.

But I've got my doubts....precisely because of how well I know Bengal fans.

(((sigh)))

[cincyhokie]

And we're playing at home....

I hear ya'.

Playing a playoff game infront of a home crowd should be a huge advantage. And maybe that's exactly the way it will turn out.

But I've got my doubts....precisely because of how well I know Bengal fans.

(((sigh)))

I had a similar feeling all year long in 2005. However, at the playoff game it was VERY LOUD. Louder than any game, PBS or Riverfront, than I have ever been to.

Saturday's going to be an advantage.

[bwillycuse]

And we're playing at home....

I hear ya'.

Playing a playoff game infront of a home crowd should be a huge advantage. And maybe that's exactly the way it will turn out.

But I've got my doubts....precisely because of how well I know Bengal fans.

(((sigh)))

You may have an issue in week 7 against Houston. But not the PLayoffs.

Itll be loud.

[Stripes]

It may well be loud, but that's not all we need from the crowd. If the Bengals commit an early turnover, or false start twice on the opening drive -- will the fugtards begin to boo? I should hope not, but I doubt they can contain their stupidity.