Steelers @ Bengals II Pregame Thread/Game Thread

[COB]

1 hour ago, ArmyBengal said:

Am I the only one who read "whole gang of Zoners", but saw "whole gang of Boners" ??

Personally, I think a gang of boners would be some scary shit and certainly not something I would be into.

I can't be alone in this right ??  COB ??  Where you at on this ??

Right here dude.  

And a "gang" is not the correct term for a group of boners.  Everything has it's term for a group, such as a "school" of fish, a "herd" of cattle, a "pride" of lions, or a "murder" of crows (that's real, you can look it up).  A "gang" of boners?  Ha ha!  Everyone knows that any group of penises is called a "clutch."  Like after a big day at work a urologist might kick back with a martini and tell his wife, "Wow, you should have seen the clutch of wieners we had at the office today!  Billed medicare about a hundred grand!"  

 

[HoosierCat]

Nice callback...

 

[Stripes]

I definitely think run defense has been the biggest reason the Bengals have lost these playoff games.  Hoosier's example is probably the most alarming; it also happened with Ronnie Brown/Danny Woodhead/Ryan Mathews, Arian Foster twice, and Shonn Green.  All of them killed the Bengals, and it allowed each opponent to limit the Bengals' opportunities to figure their shit out on offense.

That can't happen this time.  Especially with Williams likely out.  It just can't.  If it does happen, then there is a serious defect somewhere in this organization that I couldn't readily identify.  All of those defenses were at least above average against the run in the regular season.

[COB]

1 hour ago, StripesInSuffolk said:

 If it does happen, then there is a serious defect somewhere in this organization that I couldn't readily identify.  

One issue in my mind is Domata Peko.  Hard to push him backwards, but you can push him sideways.  

[kingwilly]

8 minutes ago, StripesInSuffolk said:

I definitely think run defense has been the biggest reason the Bengals have lost these playoff games.  Hoosier's example is probably the most alarming; it also happened with Ronnie Brown/Danny Woodhead/Ryan Mathews, Arian Foster twice, and Shonn Green.  All of them killed the Bengals, and it allowed each opponent to limit the Bengals' opportunities to figure their shit out on offense.

That can't happen this time.  Especially with Williams likely out.  It just can't.  If it does happen, then there is a serious defect somewhere in this organization that I couldn't readily identify.  All of those defenses were at least above average against the run in the regular season.

Bengals LB corp has Burfict back at very high level, and with Rey M playing well, and Hawk as a good run stopper, this is as good of  LB group as we could hope for. I would like to see PJ Dawson get some action as the nickel backer with Burfict, since he is a natural fill in for Lamur with his speed and ability.

[kingwilly]

15 minutes ago, COB said:

Right here dude.  

And a "gang" is not the correct term for a group of boners.  Everything has it's term for a group, such as a "school" of fish, a "herd" of cattle, a "pride" of lions, or a "murder" of crows (that's real, you can look it up).  A "gang" of boners?  Ha ha!  Everyone knows that any group of penises is called a "clutch."  Like after a big day at work a urologist might kick back with a martini and tell his wife, "Wow, you should have seen the clutch of wieners we had at the office today!  Billed medicare about a hundred grand!"  

 

Ha, duh. meant 'Zoners but boners is funnier. a clutch of boners wouldn't be necessary.... maybe if the Bengals win in a rout.

[kingwilly]

19 minutes ago, HoosierCat said:

Nice callback...

 

Man, seeing Palmer's knee get collapsed still gets me irate. it is so clearly an intentional, dirt hit. No reasonable person who watches football could see it any other way, unless, of course you live in/near shittsburgh. F U Kimo.

[HoosierCat]

 

[cincyhokie]

Am I late to the party?  When did Brandon Thompson go on IR?  And who was brought in to replace him?

[HoosierCat]

see the roster thread.

[cincyhokie]

6 minutes ago, HoosierCat said:

see the roster thread.

Ah, yes.  

[HoosierCat]

Kiss of Death delivered: Pete Prisco picks the Bengals.

Bet the farm on the Steelers, boys.

[ArmyBengal]

17 hours ago, COB said:

Right here dude.  

And a "gang" is not the correct term for a group of boners.  Everything has it's term for a group, such as a "school" of fish, a "herd" of cattle, a "pride" of lions, or a "murder" of crows (that's real, you can look it up).  A "gang" of boners?  Ha ha!  Everyone knows that any group of penises is called a "clutch."  Like after a big day at work a urologist might kick back with a martini and tell his wife, "Wow, you should have seen the clutch of wieners we had at the office today!  Billed medicare about a hundred grand!"  

 

See, that's not nearly as scary as a gang of boners.

Could this explain why women carry around a "clutch" purse ??
It's all about the domination of the male species.
Bitches...

[combatbengal]

So, as usual the 2015 AFC North Division Champions- Cincinnati Bengals have received the worst case scenario! Las Vegas has us losing to the Steelers! The analysts and so called Football experts, have us getting beat by the Steelers! Our starting QB will be out and we’re playing with an inexperienced back up! We’re playing the Steelers for the 3rd time this season which sucks! Since the year 2000, we’ve lost our Home game against the Steelers 13 times and have only won 3 of those games! The last time we faced them in a playoff game, they broke our QB’s leg! We’ve set ourselves up to play a wild card game instead of getting a week off to rest and prepare! The NFL in its wisdom ways scheduled our game on prime time at home; we don’t do so well in Prime Time! Backs are against the wall, and the only people that think we’ll win are the guys in the locker room and us die-hard fans! We believe in our back up QB and stand behind him 100%! Our Defense is Stellar this season. We have tons of weapons on offense! We’re hungry and due for a play-off win! All that we ask is that our coaches have these Bengals prepared to play a FULL sixty minute game, concentrate on basic fundamentals (tackling, covering, protecting the rock, etc), have good time management, and don’t let up. Even if we’re up by 30 points, I want them to blitz, I want them to drive the ball on offense and not settle for 3 and out. Who Dey! We are so ready to shut up Steeler fans and the rest of the world and just win it all!

[cincyhokie]

Wednesday check in.

3 days until the big game.  This is the matchup I wanted.  And it's not because I think the Bengals will win, necessarily.  But this is the win, that if they get it, could propel them to the Superbowl.  I stress "could".  The payoff of winning this is so huge.  For the team, for the city, for everyone's confidence.  It's still going to be very tough, though.

But as midweek is upon us, I am taking stock of a few things since I've been listening to 93.7 The Fan in Pittsburgh.

-Steelers fans and media types are very nervous about the likely loss of Deangelo Williams

-They are concerned about the offense and the disappearance of Martavius Bryant

-They are concerned about Ben's recent rash of interceptions and spotty play

Other stats and facts:

-This season vs. the Bengals, Ben has thrown for 1TD and 4INT's

-The Bengals are gaining Jones, Illoka, and Eifert to their offense for this game

-Jeremy Hill ran for 96 yards on 16 carries last week

-Burfict is on fire

-McCarron has another game of experience under his belt

-The team is saying all the right things this week in light of the December game when the game turned into a street fight

I've gone from thinking the Bengals will lose to not knowing who is going to win.  It could go either way.  No result will surprise me other than a Bengals blowout.  I don't see the Bengals offense scoring enough points to blow out Pitt.  No way.

Dream big!  Imagine what could happen if they win.  And the thing is...it's not unlikely.

 

[BengalszoneBilly]

Hell Yeah!! 

[ArmyBengal]

10 hours ago, combatbengal said:

The only people that think we’ll win are the guys in the locker room and us die-hard fans! We believe in our back up QB and stand behind him 100%!
All that we ask is that our coaches have these Bengals prepared to play.

Nope, I still don't think we win this game, but i'll be rooting like hell.
While I like AJ, I don't think he can pull this off.
Yes, really hoping the coaches have these guys ready.

In all honesty, they appear to be saying the right things and to be focused, which is exactly what I was hoping to see from them.
If, as mentioned previously, the rest of the team can rally to play the best game of their lives, they can pull this out.

With the weather forecasting for heavy rain Saturday evening and into the night along with temps in the mid 30's, it sounds like a game plan of running the ball and controlling the clock.  Considering the Steelers looking to be without DeAngelo Williams, I think that is something that gives me added hope.  Keep the Steelers offense off the field and pound the ball.

[HoosierCat]

Yeah, looking more and more like horrible weather for the game. Rain, 10-20 mph winds, near freezing temps. Of all the games Hewitt had to be out for...

[Walrus]

A note about the predicted weather: Ben plays pretty well in the mud. I don't think cold, wet weather will slow down their passing game much, esp with a gimpy RB situation. They're going to throw it all night and the Bengals' D had better be ready for that. Our pass rush needs to be absolutely relentless and our DBs should definitely expect more opportunities than usual for takeaways.

This article focuses on Brady, but stats are there for Roethlisberger, too. http://nypost.com/2015/01/24/the-stats-when-conditions-get-bad-brady-doesnt-get-worse/

[HoosierCat]

The cold and rain are less of a problem than the wind. That will play merry hell with long passes and kicks of all sorts.

I'm actually more interested to see the weather's impact on McCarron. Running the ball sounds good but that's the strength of the Steelers D. Their secondary is junk. If the Bengals can't take advantage of that because of the conditions, they're doomed.

[ArmyBengal]

Both threads seemed to be going in the same direction so I merged.

I don't think the Steelers have much choice but to try throwing the ball when considering Williams being out.  I don't know much about his backup(s), but they are 3rd string type guys, so color me far less concerned than I would be with Williams in there.  Either way around, the Steelers strength is in their passing game when considering their weapons and the weather will be a factor.  Thing is, it will be a factor for both teams and why I think the Bengals game plan should focus around running the ball and controlling the clock.  Keep the Steelers offense sitting on the bench for as long as possible and keep the game from turning into a shootout.  Control the ball and don't turn it over.  That's how they win.

[gregcook68]

I agree with what Army has said, and I think it is the biggest factor of all, and that is how the Bengals will respond to the thuglike taunting.  Steelers know they can get their goat.  The team, including, Jones and Kirkpatrick, has said they won't respond negatively and let stupid penalties cause them the football game.

I wouldn't bet the farm on whether the Bengals will stay the course.  If they don't, they have no shot, IMHO.

[Stripes]

2 hours ago, HoosierCat said:

The cold and rain are less of a problem than the wind. That will play merry hell with long passes and kicks of all sorts.

I'm actually more interested to see the weather's impact on McCarron. Running the ball sounds good but that's the strength of the Steelers D. Their secondary is junk. If the Bengals can't take advantage of that because of the conditions, they're doomed.

The passing game is also Pittsburgh's most potent threat, and if the conditions adversely affect that then I don't think it's entirely a negative.  It might be a push.

[HoosierCat]

53 minutes ago, gregcook68 said:

I agree with what Army has said, and I think it is the biggest factor of all, and that is how the Bengals will respond to the thuglike taunting.  Steelers know they can get their goat.  The team, including, Jones and Kirkpatrick, has said they won't respond negatively and let stupid penalties cause them the football game.

I wouldn't bet the farm on whether the Bengals will stay the course.  If they don't, they have no shot, IMHO.

On that note...ref for the game:

Referee: John Parry

2015 with Steelers: Called seven penalties against Steelers in Week 5 and five in Week 14

2015 with Bengals: Called six against Bengals in Week 14

Comment: It's fascinating that Parry will get another crack at a Steelers-Bengals game after struggling to control the chippiness and emotion in the teams' Week 14 matchup. He called a total of 11 penalties in that game, well below the league average for all games. And not surprisingly, Parry's crew finished the season on the low end in "behavior" penalties: personal fouls, roughing the passer, taunting, unnecessary roughness and unsportsmanlike conduct. It combined for 22 such calls, tied for the fourth-lowest in the league. You wonder if he'll need to be more aggressive to keep the rematch under control.

http://espn.go.com/blog/nflnation/post/_/id/195060/scouting-the-referees-for-wild-card-weekend

[HoosierCat]

25 minutes ago, StripesInSuffolk said:

The passing game is also Pittsburgh's most potent threat, and if the conditions adversely affect that then I don't think it's entirely a negative.  It might be a push.

Could be. OTOH Ben has stunk in the playoffs recently (77 rating in the last five playoff games).

It's sounding more and more like this will be a sloppy, low-scoring affair, which is definitely to the Bengals' advantage since they stand little chance of winning a shootout. Probably comes down to who makes the last mistake (and for mistake, read: turnover).