Giants @ Bengals Pregame/Game Thread

[cHaD711Johnson]

Once this team starts going into games confident of themselves and thinking they can win, you'll see more of yesterday and less of Cleveland. Unfortunately, the only thing that will give them that confidence is more Ws.

And a coach who instills that confidence.

This is dumb.

Nontheless, good win. Consistency is the biggest issue with this team, and I hope that we can now carry on some momentum after a big win and beat some teams that we should beat. I'm sure that doom and gloom will continue here, but it's better the week after a win.

[BengalszoneBilly]

Once this team starts going into games confident of themselves and thinking they can win, you'll see more of yesterday and less of Cleveland. Unfortunately, the only thing that will give them that confidence is more Ws.

And a coach who instills that confidence.

You'd think confidence would be pretty high after b**ch slapping the defending champions. It's hard to tell with this team.

[volcom69]

Once this team starts going into games confident of themselves and thinking they can win, you'll see more of yesterday and less of Cleveland. Unfortunately, the only thing that will give them that confidence is more Ws.

And a coach who instills that confidence.

You'd think confidence would be pretty high after b**ch slapping the defending champions. It's hard to tell with this team.

Didn't you know that the Giants were a tired team, that's why they lost not because the Bengals played good. Well at least that's what I'm hearing today.

[Earendil]

Once this team starts going into games confident of themselves and thinking they can win, you'll see more of yesterday and less of Cleveland. Unfortunately, the only thing that will give them that confidence is more Ws.

And a coach who instills that confidence.

This is dumb.

Nontheless, good win. Consistency is the biggest issue with this team, and I hope that we can now carry on some momentum after a big win and beat some teams that we should beat. I'm sure that doom and gloom will continue here, but it's better the week after a win.

How is that dumb? I think we all know that Marvin isn't all that great at instilling confidence in this team considering he is consistently outcoached on gameday. And I'm not even a Marvin hater...

[BengalszoneBilly]

Once this team starts going into games confident of themselves and thinking they can win, you'll see more of yesterday and less of Cleveland. Unfortunately, the only thing that will give them that confidence is more Ws.

And a coach who instills that confidence.

You'd think confidence would be pretty high after b**ch slapping the defending champions. It's hard to tell with this team.

Didn't you know that the Giants were a tired team, that's why they lost not because the Bengals played good. Well at least that's what I'm hearing today.

My Marine buddy, Giants fan from Long Island minced no words. His team took the Bengals too lightly and ended up with their a$$es being handed to them.

[ArmyBengal]

The doom and gloom will continue.

When this team and it's coaches turn in a consistent effort more than once every 5th game, maybe that will change.

Enjoy this week, there's no guarantee they will show up again within the next 4-5 weeks.

Be happy about that.

[wpeldios]

Wow, seriously, wow. I dont think there is much that can be added. But I would like to say I didnt see anyone mention it in the talk of the best dbs today but Leon Hall was shadowing Victor Cruz around the field all day today. Now I want you to think about how many times you heard Cruz' name called and appreciate what he did. Studly performance. Now if only we werent going to be spiritually crushed next week because we are bengals fans.

Uhm, what game were you watching today? Leon Hall was in active with his bad hamstring. Jones covered Cruz all day until he got hurt. Does anyone know what Jones injury was? I was also proud of Newman and Kirkpatrick in coverage AND tackling. Even Rey tackled well today. It was a good game all around. Zimmer needs to keep having the corners play up on the line like that and bump the receivers hard.

I was messing with you, Hall played good today.

You know I had a whole response wrote up with stats and stories. Than I read the last line you wrote.

[Sea Ray]

This isn't just typical Bengal inconsistency. The Bengals have consistently lost to good teams. How many times have we heard about the Bengals record vs over .500/playoff teams? Well they just did today what they hadn't done in a long time: beat a playoff team. That's progress.

I don't think playoffs are in the cards for 2012 but maybe knocking down another Bengal stat...two consecutive over .500 yrs

[skyline]

Like most, I wonder about Marvin's ability to motivate, etc.

With that said, let's not lose sight of how young this team is. With a team like this, inconsistency comes with the territory. Hopefully we see less and less of that as the year goes on.

[cHaD711Johnson]

Once this team starts going into games confident of themselves and thinking they can win, you'll see more of yesterday and less of Cleveland. Unfortunately, the only thing that will give them that confidence is more Ws.

And a coach who instills that confidence.

This is dumb.

Nontheless, good win. Consistency is the biggest issue with this team, and I hope that we can now carry on some momentum after a big win and beat some teams that we should beat. I'm sure that doom and gloom will continue here, but it's better the week after a win.

How is that dumb? I think we all know that Marvin isn't all that great at instilling confidence in this team considering he is consistently outcoached on gameday. And I'm not even a Marvin hater...

I didn't know that was the case.

Pass rush changes EVERYTHING. We know this and it just continues to prove to be right. When we get a pass rush we usually look like a really good team.

[HoosierCat]

Pass rush definitely makes a difference, but coaching plays a role there as well. You have to call the blitzes and put the pass rushers on the field. Look at the game thread and there are plenty of us wondering where Dunlap is in the first half. I would say that "instilling confidence" isn't quite right, it makes it sound like there's a magic potion you can just pour into the Gatorade and poof! they're confident. But Marvin & Co. often coach like they aren't confident in the players. When they won earlier this year you saw them get ballsy and act like they believed in their guys with fake punts and FGs and razzle dazzle plays. Then October hit and everything went conservative. Yesterday they got back to calling with some guys, going for it multiple times on fourth down and letting the D get after Eli in the second half.

More, please.

[Spor_tees]

You also said Myles would have a 15 year Hall of Fame career with the Bengals. If you added Reggie and Jeromy together you still wouldn't get one Taylor Mays.

...and Mays sucks.

Not sure what this has to do with Sanu, but your remarks here have rarely involved fact and/or logic

What board is Hair on now?

What does it have to do with anything? It has to do with your ability to judge talent and form an opinion it. It's by far not your first or your last mistake, after all you think I don't know what I am talking about, and I think you are wrong. Prove me wrong and I might change my mind, but I doubt it. You were right about Sanu, but then again so was I. I spent the last week arguing with about 20 people on another board about why Sanu deserved a chance to play on Sunday and not be stuck in Marvin's magical doghouse that included Dunlap last year. Sanu after all was picked in the draft to be this team's #2 right? You still have a lot of right decisions left before I start taking you seriously. I said Mike Brown of the Lakers was why the Lakers were failing this past week, and he got fired just hours later after only 5 games into the season, try that on for size?

[Spor_tees]

Wow, seriously, wow. I dont think there is much that can be added. But I would like to say I didnt see anyone mention it in the talk of the best dbs today but Leon Hall was shadowing Victor Cruz around the field all day today. Now I want you to think about how many times you heard Cruz' name called and appreciate what he did. Studly performance. Now if only we werent going to be spiritually crushed next week because we are bengals fans.

Uhm, what game were you watching today? Leon Hall was in active with his bad hamstring. Jones covered Cruz all day until he got hurt. Does anyone know what Jones injury was? I was also proud of Newman and Kirkpatrick in coverage AND tackling. Even Rey tackled well today. It was a good game all around. Zimmer needs to keep having the corners play up on the line like that and bump the receivers hard.

I was messing with you, Hall played good today.

You know I had a whole response wrote up with stats and stories. Than I read the last line you wrote.

Success!

[Spor_tees]

Pass rush definitely makes a difference, but coaching plays a role there as well. You have to call the blitzes and put the pass rushers on the field. Look at the game thread and there are plenty of us wondering where Dunlap is in the first half. I would say that "instilling confidence" isn't quite right, it makes it sound like there's a magic potion you can just pour into the Gatorade and poof! they're confident. But Marvin & Co. often coach like they aren't confident in the players. When they won earlier this year you saw them get ballsy and act like they believed in their guys with fake punts and FGs and razzle dazzle plays. Then October hit and everything went conservative. Yesterday they got back to calling with some guys, going for it multiple times on fourth down and letting the D get after Eli in the second half.

More, please.

I pointed this out during the game, and I guarantee if you go back and watch the game you will see what I am saying. Zimmer finally started to call this game like he did when the defense played best. He allowed his corners to walk up the line of scrimmage and get their hands on the widereceivers at the snap and not let them get a running start. He would also let a linebacker walk up and hit the tightend, and sometimes after hitting the tightend the linebacker would rush the passer or cover the runningback in the flat, a second linebacker would then be less than five yards off the line and hit the tightend a SECOND time, that pretty much took that tightend so off pace he was wasted on the play. The third Lb would cover the intermediate area, and the safties were playing close enough to take away any slants. The cornerbackes would then ride the widereceveiers either down the sideline or out of bounds, taking them out of play as well.

What all the first paragraph means, is it gave that extra 1-2 seconds for the pass rush to get to Manning, and it worked. On the Giants touchdown drive late in the game, the Bengals started walking back the corners, and the very first time they did, Cruz dropped a touchdown pass. If Zimmer continues to call a game like he did Sunday, this team can win. This is THE best defense for a guy like Newman. He by far played his best game all year, even better than his two interception game.

Trust me, go back and watch the game.

[ArmyBengal]

You also said Myles would have a 15 year Hall of Fame career with the Bengals. If you added Reggie and Jeromy together you still wouldn't get one Taylor Mays.

...and Mays sucks.

Not sure what this has to do with Sanu, but your remarks here have rarely involved fact and/or logic

What board is Hair on now?

Sanu after all was picked in the draft to be this team's #2 right?

Depends on who you ask.

If the answer is Marvin Lewis, the answer is no.

He spent most of his time telling everyone how wrong they were about the talent that was already on the team in Tate and Binns.

He thought they already had their #2 on the roster.

If you ask me, the answer is yes and Sanu should have been given those reps a HELL of a lot earlier.

Many had Sanu with the talent to go in the bottom of the first.

[Spor_tees]

You also said Myles would have a 15 year Hall of Fame career with the Bengals. If you added Reggie and Jeromy together you still wouldn't get one Taylor Mays.

...and Mays sucks.

Not sure what this has to do with Sanu, but your remarks here have rarely involved fact and/or logic

What board is Hair on now?

Sanu after all was picked in the draft to be this team's #2 right?

Depends on who you ask.

If the answer is Marvin Lewis, the answer is no.

He spent most of his time telling everyone how wrong they were about the talent that was already on the team in Tate and Binns.

He thought they already had their #2 on the roster.

If you ask me, the answer is yes and Sanu should have been given those reps a HELL of a lot earlier.

Many had Sanu with the talent to go in the bottom of the first.

If you ask a lot of people that are fans of the Bengals and people around the league, they think the influx of good young talent on this team has a lot to do with Marvin getting more control of the talent evaluation, scouting, and drafting process. With that said, I would equate Marvin Lewis to a guy that used to play in the Major Leagues, named Rob Deer. The guy gave the team one of two things when he came to the plate every game, a home run...or a strike out. Marvin has made some good decisions but at the same time, his stubbornness has cost the Bengals by keeping great talent like Dunlap and Sanu off the field and in his doghouse. The day that Marvin is in the front office and no long on the field, will be the first day the Cincinnati Bengals are able to say its time to move on to a brighter future. Marvin took the Bengals out of darkness and into mediocrity, now it's time for someone to take them into the second round of the playoffs...or further.

[TJJackson]

What board is Hair on now?

[HoosierCat]

What board is Hair on now?

go-bengals

[Sea Ray]

Sanu was not drafted to be the #2 WR. He's been used as the slot receiver since training camp. Whether that was the right call is debatable but they really haven't used him much as a #2. Marvin Jones was more the #2 in their eyes

[ArmyBengal]

Sanu was not drafted to be the #2 WR. Whether that was the right call is debatable.

Yep, they thought they had their man in either Tate or Binns.

You know pretending to be Larry Fitzgerald during practice carries a lot of weight.

Anyway, I saw Sanu as a nice compliment to a team with a top #1 WR in place.

If they see him more in the slot role, fine, just get him on the d*mn field.

[cincyhokie]

Sanu can be our version of Hines Ward. Honestly, who cares what number he is?

While his speed may not command double teams, the fact that when single covered, he is coming down with the ball more often than not. That's ALL that matters.

[ArmyBengal]

All I know is Sanu is 6'2, 211 lbs.

He was known for his route running, hands, and knowledge of where the holes while reading defenses.

People wanted bash him for running a 4.67 at the combine, but more often than not, he was timed in 4.4's-4.5's.

He's tough and will probably turn out better than many of the WR's taken before him.

TJ Douchemanzadeh ?? 6'2, 203 lbs.

Sanu has a role on this team and needs to be given further opportunities.

[cincyhokie]

All I know is Sanu is 6'2, 211 lbs.

He was known for his route running, hands, and knowledge of where the holes while reading defenses.

People wanted bash him for running a 4.67 at the combine, but more often than not, he was timed in 4.4's-4.5's.

He's tough and will probably turn out better than many of the WR's taken before him.

TJ Douchemanzadeh ?? 6'2, 203 lbs.

Sanu has a role on this team and needs to be given further opportunities.

Right on.

[TJJackson]

For the record, Housh's speed as a rookie was in the 4.4 range. Faster than Chad's.

Back to Sanu......

While [sanu's] speed may not command double teams

from http://www.nj.com/rutgersfootball/index.ssf/2012/03/rutgers_mohamed_sanu_boosts_nf.html

Sanu — angling to become the Scarlet Knights’ fourth first-round draft pick since 2008 — ran a pedestrian 4.65 in the 40 during last month’s NFL Combine (the time was later adjusted to 4.67).

and

Sanu needed a better showing at Rutgers’ annual Pro Day on Wednesday on the Piscataway campus as much for himself as for the scouts in attendance representing 24 NFL teams.

The wide receiver from South Brunswick, who set a school and Big East record with 115 catches last season, got what he needed. Or, as many in attendance concluded: Sanu made some money for himself Wednesday.

The 6-2, 211-pounder turned in times of 4.41 and 4.48 for his two attempts in the 40,

and

Sanu added, he had a confession to make about his showing at the Combine.

“I wasn’t feeling too well. I’m not going to lie to you guys,” Sanu said. “I didn’t feel well. I was a little drained, a little tired. I didn’t have that pop that I usually do. I suffered my first 10 yards.”

[ArmyBengal]

My point exactly.