Reasons to believe (WARNING-OPTIMISTIC)

[walzav29]

No matter what. Yates is not as good as Schaub. The Bengals proved they can beat Houston. Then we have New England. Being the 31st ranked defense could be a problem. Plus the Bengals have a strength for pass rushing, which is a must against Tom Brady. Then we'll have a rematch against either a very banged up Steelers team, or the Ravens who did sweep the Bengals. BUT they were in both games. Then if they pull those off (yes miracle) they'll either have Green Bay or New Orleans. Bad defenses, but great offenses. If the D gets how with the pass rush. We have a shot. AJ Green, and Simpson, and even Cedric have potential.

I'm going to believe until we lose!

Super Bowl!!!!

[skyline]

Oh, walzav. I can always count on you for my morning shot of optimism.

Thanks!

[Spor_tees]

Quick check of realism, Andre Johnson and Jonathon Joseph didn't play in the first meeting between the Texans and Bengals. The scariest thing of all, is the main reason the Bengals lost, was the Texans took advantage of the Bengals ineptness to cover the TE. How has this become a recurring theme with the Bengals and not been fixed?

[derekshank]

Quick check of realism, Andre Johnson and Jonathon Joseph didn't play in the first meeting between the Texans and Bengals. The scariest thing of all, is the main reason the Bengals lost, was the Texans took advantage of the Bengals ineptness to cover the TE. How has this become a recurring theme with the Bengals and not been fixed?

Joseph did play. AJ Green gave him fits all day. Why do you make things up without checking your facts? The number of times I've had to correct you on this kind of thing has to be in the double digits by now.

The Texans TEs have been productive all season... so that's not a problem unique to the Bengals. Daniels and Driessen are good players.

As for Andre Johnson, well he's still not 100%... and the Bengals didn't have Dunlap last time. That's probably a wash.

Not making excuses... because the Bengals collapsed, but if Geno Atkins doesn't drop the recovered fumble, the Bengals win the game by two scores.

In other words... anything can happen, but the Texans are not a decidedly better team than the Bengals.

[Wraith]

Actually the Texans D was virtually 100% when we played them last so it should be an accurate measure. Game comes down to covering Owen Daniels and stopping Arian Foster and Ben Tate. If we win thats great but we are playing with house money now everything is a bonus.

Andy Dalton was 3-1 in bowl games as a collegian and the 1 loss was to Boise State in a very close game (he did throw 3 picks however)

[Spor_tees]

Quick check of realism, Andre Johnson and Jonathon Joseph didn't play in the first meeting between the Texans and Bengals. The scariest thing of all, is the main reason the Bengals lost, was the Texans took advantage of the Bengals ineptness to cover the TE. How has this become a recurring theme with the Bengals and not been fixed?

Joseph did play. AJ Green gave him fits all day. Why do you make things up without checking your facts? The number of times I've had to correct you on this kind of thing has to be in the double digits by now.

The Texans TEs have been productive all season... so that's not a problem unique to the Bengals. Daniels and Driessen are good players.

As for Andre Johnson, well he's still not 100%... and the Bengals didn't have Dunlap last time. That's probably a wash.

Not making excuses... because the Bengals collapsed, but if Geno Atkins doesn't drop the recovered fumble, the Bengals win the game by two scores.

In other words... anything can happen, but the Texans are not a decidedly better team than the Bengals.

I do it just so you have a reason to respond. Or out of plain spite, I'm not sure yet I guess.

I totally disagree that the Texans success with their TE's is simply because their TEs are that good. The Bengals have had a trouble with covering TEs for a couple years now and can easily be documented over game day threads over and over again. Are you making this up on the fly like me now? This could be a sickness that is spreading!

AJ Green hardly gave Joseph "fits all day." He had 5 catches for 59 yards and no TDs. Hardly a stellar performance by any means. Joseph had 5 tackles which was tied for third on the team, and 2 passes defended. Not bad stats for defending a guy 5 inches taller than he is.

[derekshank]

Matt Miller's Prediction:

When Cincinnati Has the Ball:

Andy Dalton and A.J. Green had better be ready for one hell of a fight. As should the Cincinnati offensive line.

The Houston Texans do a great job getting after the quarterback, but they also succeed at stopping the run and defending the pass. As far as defenses go, there's not one in the AFC better all-around than Houston's squad.

The Bengals need a big game from Cedric Benson, but more than that they need a mistake-free game from rookie quarterback Dalton. A.J. Green will get open, even with Johnathan Joseph and Danieal Manning bracketing him. Dalton needs to pick his spots, working in Green within a rotation featuring the other receivers.

The Texans need defensive points if they hope to win this game.

When Houston Has the Ball:

With rookie quarterback T.J. Yates taking the reigns in the playoffs, the Texans know they need a big outing from their defense and the run game if they hope to win their first-ever playoff game.

Arian Foster and Ben Tate are a dynamic duo, but they will meet a brick wall in the Cincinnati defense. The Bengals' front four is very good, and very deep. They'll be able to line up and match the athletic ability of the Houston offensive line.

Cincinnati would love to rattle Yates, but they'll have little luck getting pressure off the edge. Instead look for pressure to come from defensive tackle Geno Atkins, who is a good matchup against guard Wade Smith.

Yates needs to play within himself—meaning no mistakes, no gambles and a solid, consistent effort.

Prediction: Cincinnati 21, Houston 17

[HoosierCat]

I totally disagree that the Texans success with their TE's is simply because their TEs are that good. The Bengals have had a trouble with covering TEs for a couple years now and can easily be documented over game day threads over and over again. Are you making this up on the fly like me now? This could be a sickness that is spreading!

Just because the Bengals struggle covering TEs doesn't mean Houston's TE aren't very good. In fact, according to football outsiders, Daniels and Dreessen are the 8th and 12th-best TEs, respectively, in the NFL. On a value-per-play basis, Dreessen ranks second only to Gronkowski.

[derekshank]

AJ Green hardly gave Joseph "fits all day."

How the hell would you know? You didn't even know Joseph was active.

I on the other had watched the game, and saw Joseph get torched for 35+ yards on a play shortly after a 25 yard pass interference where Green had him beat. Those two plays resulted in Joseph getting help from Manning for most of the rest of the day against AJ Green. It was a mismatch, and the Houston coaches recognized it pretty early on.

[Spor_tees]

AJ Green hardly gave Joseph "fits all day." He had 5 catches for 59 yards and no TDs.

How the hell would you know? You didn't even know Joseph was active.

I on the other had watched the game, and saw Joseph get torched for 35+ yards on a play shortly after a 25 yard pass interference where Green had him beat. Those two plays resulted in Joseph getting help from Manning for most of the rest of the day against AJ Green. It was a mismatch, and the Houston coaches recognized it pretty early on.

Oh there you go again making things up! I did watch the game...are you sure you did? Did you watch all the other games too? I am not so sure if you have because you seem to have forgotten the Bengals weaknesses against TEs. You are still evading the point that Green had 5 catches for 59 yards and no TDs. Yes he is a great receiver and that is why many teams double team him from the start of the game, instead of making in game adjustments, BUT many other top notch receivers get double teamed all day too, yet they still put up good stats. Joseph is a Pro Bowler this year for more reasons than just his new shiny contract.

[derekshank]

Oh there you go again making things up!

I'm not making anything up. You didn't even remember that Joseph played in the game. Why should I trust your memory on how well Joseph matched up with Green during the game?

You are still evading the point that Green had 5 catches for 59 yards and no TDs.

Nope. Answered that.

First of all, there was a 25 yard pass interference that doesn't go in the box score. It would have resulted in many more yards for Green, and perhaps a very long TD catch if Joseph isn't forced to interfere.

So, very early in the game the Texans realized Joseph couldn't match-up man on man with Green. Green took advantage of Joseph in man coverage, so the Texans coaching staff made a wise move and adjusted by putting Manning over top of him. Green still caught several short passes throughout the rest of the day, but Dalton rarely made downfield attempts to Green after the defensive adjustment.

That's the difference between me and you. You look at a stat sheet as if your fantasy football score is the only measure to how good a player is. But Green changed the way the Texans were gameplanning... and that is a much better sign of greatness than the box score you looked up.

[Spor_tees]

Oh there you go again making things up!

I'm not making anything up. You didn't even remember that Joseph played in the game. Why should I trust your memory on how well Joseph matched up with Green during the game?

You are still evading the point that Green had 5 catches for 59 yards and no TDs.

Nope. Answered that.

First of all, there was a 25 yard pass interference that doesn't go in the box score. It would have resulted in many more yards for Green, and perhaps a very long TD catch if Joseph isn't forced to interfere.

So, very early in the game the Texans realized Joseph couldn't match-up man on man with Green. Green took advantage of Joseph in man coverage, so the Texans coaching staff made a wise move and adjusted by putting Manning over top of him. Green still caught several short passes throughout the rest of the day, but Dalton rarely made downfield attempts to Green after the defensive adjustment.

That's the difference between me and you. You look at a stat sheet as if your fantasy football score is the only measure to how good a player is. But Green changed the way the Texans were gameplanning... and that is a much better sign of greatness than the box score you looked up.

I'll be honest, I remembered that three key players didn't play in the first game, and I thought one of them was Joseph off the top of my head, when in actuality it was Mario Williams.

Not many can matchup on Green one on one but the Texans thought that Joseph a Pro Bowler could and then once they saw it wasn't so easy, made the adjustment. That doesn't mean that Green "gave him fits all day," it means that Joseph was undersized to do so, so they let him take the underneath and gave him help with Manning over the top. Like I said before, that what many teams do from the start anyways...

So how is your search going for game day threads not mentioning the Bengals coverage of TEs? Oh yeah you glossed over that. That's good, stick to a point that you feel comfortable with, and ignore the ones where you are wrong.

[HoosierCat]

So how is your search going for game day threads not mentioning the Bengals coverage of TEs?

The Bengals defense ranks about middle of the pack (18th) in defending the TE. As far as pass defense is concerned, No. 2 wideouts (D ranked 28th defending them) do a lot more damage. Kevin Walter springs to mind...

[derekshank]

So how is your search going for game day threads not mentioning the Bengals coverage of TEs? Oh yeah you glossed over that. That's good, stick to a point that you feel comfortable with, and ignore the ones where you are wrong.

I'm not glossing over it. It's a completely different conversation than the one we were having. If anything, you are the one employing a technique to try to avoid answering for your mistake.

But just to humor you... I never said the Bengals were great against TEs. I said that the Texans TEs were good. The Texans players get paid too. It's not unfair to assume that a good player will occasionally make plays.

Here's the deal though... early in the game the Bengals had an interception on a pass intended for Daniels and 3 of his 7 catches came in their final drive when Cincinnati was playing incredibly soft. They played the Texans really strong for the vast majority of that game... so no, I'm not wringing my hands about this topic.

[Spor_tees]

So how is your search going for game day threads not mentioning the Bengals coverage of TEs?

The Bengals defense ranks about middle of the pack (18th) in defending the TE. As far as pass defense is concerned, No. 2 wideouts (D ranked 28th defending them) do a lot more damage. Kevin Walter springs to mind...

Something similar to this was brought up on another board regarding the Bengal's defensive rankings. Do you realize that the top offense the Bengals played all year was 12th and the average for the entire year was 21.6? So taking that 18th ranking against TEs and 28th against #2 WRs, that makes it sound even worse. So does that mean Clements isn't doing his job, or is it Adam Jones? I thought I had read that Clements was actually doing pretty good this year if you take away his penalties...

[Spor_tees]

So how is your search going for game day threads not mentioning the Bengals coverage of TEs? Oh yeah you glossed over that. That's good, stick to a point that you feel comfortable with, and ignore the ones where you are wrong.

I'm not glossing over it. It's a completely different conversation than the one we were having. If anything, you are the one employing a technique to try to avoid answering for your mistake.

But just to humor you... I never said the Bengals were great against TEs. I said that the Texans TEs were good. The Texans players get paid too. It's not unfair to assume that a good player will occasionally make plays.

Here's the deal though... early in the game the Bengals had an interception on a pass intended for Daniels and 3 of his 7 catches came in their final drive when Cincinnati was playing incredibly soft. They played the Texans really strong for the vast majority of that game... so no, I'm not wringing my hands about this topic.

I actually said I admitted I mistook one defensive star for another. Mario Williams missed the game not Joseph.

[walzav29]

This is just the 1st stop on the Bengal revenge route. Jonathon Joseph gets to eat humble pie, With Chad up next. Then them scumbag Ravens. Then Carson, Chad, and Joseph can all watch us play in the Super Bowl and realize the power of addition by subtraction.

[HoosierCat]

Something similar to this was brought up on another board regarding the Bengal's defensive rankings. Do you realize that the top offense the Bengals played all year was 12th and the average for the entire year was 21.6? So taking that 18th ranking against TEs and 28th against #2 WRs, that makes it sound even worse.

Well, I don't know what numbers were being used elsewhere, but FO's defensive DVOA numbers are adjusted versus an average NFL schedule. That's why the table has an "average NFL" line and one thing that leaps out at me is that TE is far and away the position that the average NFL pass defense has the most trouble with.

OTHO, the average defense is far, far, far more able to stop No. 2 wideouts than Cincy, which I suspect points directly to the Bengals' problems at corner. I think Clements and Jones have done well, all things considered, but Hall is gone for the season and both Nate and Pacman have missed time due to injuries.

[derekshank]

The average defense is far, far, far more able to stop No. 2 wideouts than Cincy, which I suspect points directly to the Bengals' problems at corner. I think Clements and Jones have done well, all things considered, but Hall is gone for the season and both Nate and Pacman have missed time due to injuries.

Hall's injury certainly didn't help. That said, in 2009 I seem to remember that #1 WRs were all but shut down against the Bengals, but that #2 WRs fared much better than average numbers against Cincinnati.

That just seems odd to me because in '09 the Bengals had what was to believed to be the best CB tandem in the NFL. So adding talent won't necessarily fix it.

Perhaps Zimmer just wants to force teams to go away from their comfort zones. Perhaps his method is: "Completely take away the #1 and if the #2 has a better than average day, so be it." And if that's his method... well, I guess you'd have to admit that it has resulted in more successes than failures.

[Spor_tees]

The average defense is far, far, far more able to stop No. 2 wideouts than Cincy, which I suspect points directly to the Bengals' problems at corner. I think Clements and Jones have done well, all things considered, but Hall is gone for the season and both Nate and Pacman have missed time due to injuries.

Hall's injury certainly didn't help. That said, in 2009 I seem to remember that #1 WRs were all but shut down against the Bengals, but that #2 WRs fared much better than average numbers against Cincinnati.

That just seems odd to me because in '09 the Bengals had what was to believed to be the best CB tandem in the NFL. So adding talent won't necessarily fix it.

Perhaps Zimmer just wants to force teams to go away from their comfort zones. Perhaps his method is: "Completely take away the #1 and if the #2 has a better than average day, so be it." And if that's his method... well, I guess you'd have to admit that it has resulted in more successes than failures.

I wonder if Eric Decker counted as a #1 or #2.

Do the Bengals somehow employ a zone on one side and a man to man on the other? I am also wondering why so much, that teams will throw to one side than the other.

[Wraith]

BTW, as long as we are being ridulously optimistic... Bill Polian would make a great replacement for retiring Jim Lippincot, Duke Tobin is currently with the Bengals and is a Polian disciple.

[skyline]

What was Lippincot's actual role with the team? As others have pointed out, the only thing I've ever seen him do is waddle around Georgetown and give people bad news in a pretty rude, yet hilarious manner.

[Spor_tees]

What was Lippincot's actual role with the team? As others have pointed out, the only thing I've ever seen him do is waddle around Georgetown and give people bad news in a pretty rude, yet hilarious manner.

His job was with the fashion police. He was bringing coaching shorts back.

[ct_bengal]

im not sure but didnt clements sit that game too. If he did i feel alot better about our chances against the texans with him healthy this time around...

[derekshank]

im not sure but didnt clements sit that game too.

No. He was out for the Pittsburgh game. He came back against Houston. But he didn't play the entire game. They eased him in a little bit. I think he only played about half of the snaps. So it'll be nice having him completely healthy this time at least.

The Houston game was the thinnest the Bengals have been at D-Line all year though. I believe that was the first game they were without Pat Sims, and Dunlap hadn't returned yet, so Geathers and Peko played a lot more snaps than usual. I expect a much better D-Line rotation this time around.