How important is Sundays game?

[NYBengalfan]

Honestly I think with Pittsburgh losing against the Patirots, as of right now I feel that this is one of the biggest games of the year. If we win this will create a bit of space in the standings. Hell with PIT having a bye Cincy could open up a two game lead on them in the win column. And I believe that this will give them a huge amount of momentum going into Jacsonville( dont get me wrong we still need to win this one first)

If we win Sunday:

CIN 4-0

PIT 2-1

CLE 1-2

BAL 1-2 or 0-3

But the games against PIT and BAL are still the absolute biggest games overall.

also I am tired of those dickhead analysts saying that we have a soft schedule. If we were not that good then why did we win each game by an average of 20 points. " GOOD TEAMS TROUNCE TEAMS THAT THEY ARE SUPPOSED TO BEAT" and its BS that we have not played 1 good team. Minnesota was one of the favorites to win the NFC. Oh I guess since we beat them I guess that makes them weak.

[Stripes]

I think this game is big in that, if we lose, we suck. If we win, and decisively, we are good.

[NYBengalfan]

I think this game is big in that, if we lose, we suck. If we win, and decisively, we are good.

Na I dont think that we suck if we lose, but it would remove us from all of the positve media that we have been getting and it would drop us back down in power rankings. But hey in my opinion I think a loss in this game for us is if we dont cover the spread. Im not saying that theres no way we can lose, this is the NFL,but if I had to put my life on it I would not go against us.

[HoosierCat]

I would agree with NYBengalfan that the game is a prime opportunity to keep the pressure on the rest of the division. Maybe our sked is easy, maybe it isn't, but the bottom line is that if the Bengals come out of the first half of the season with 6-8 wins and a 2 or 3 game lead in the division...well, let's just say we'd be in pretty good shape.

[NYBengalfan]

hey guys, please feel free to comment. I wont insult other peoples perspectives like Stooler7

[HairOnFire]

It's hard to call any game against a bad team a big game, but it is. Before this team can become the Super Bowl contender it wants to be it has to prove it can consistently beat the teams it's favored to beat...especially at home.

[Stripes]

I honestly don't think this is a big game. Any game any week can be thought of as big in a sense, but really, as compared to the ones coming up, I won't place this game in that category. Our first real "big" game this year, except perhaps the opener, is coming week 5.

[7/11]

we should win, for sure...but it is a big game. 4-0 is a lot more convincing than 3-1, with a home loss to the texans. it'll be a true test as to whether we are consistent or not...and a testament to our disposition and hunger to win every game.

i'm diggin the new smiles

[JPW]

At this time, Sunday's game against Houston is the Biggest Game of the year ...

Of course last week, the Bears game was the biggest game of the year and the week before that it was the Vikings game and on opening day it was the Browns game.

One game at a time with complete focus on this week's game, that is the way you put together a winning season.

[Stripes]

At this time, Sunday's game against Houston is the Biggest Game of the year ...

Of course last week, the Bears game was the biggest game of the year and the week before that it was the Vikings game and on opening day it was the Browns game.

One game at a time with complete focus on this week's game, that is the way you put together a winning season.

That is how you put together an undefeated season!

[HoosierCat]

I honestly don't think this is a big game. Any game any week can be thought of as big in a sense, but really, as compared to the ones coming up, I won't place this game in that category. Our first real "big" game this year, except perhaps the opener, is coming week 5.

I would argue that the nature of the NFL makes every game a "big game." Whereas other sports like baseball have many, many games over a long season, football's regular season boasts just 16 tilts. Compare that with baseball, which has what, 162 games a season? The margin for error in pro football is virtually nonexistent. Hair is right: if you have playoff aspirations, you cannot lose games you are supposed to win, especially at home.

[Stripes]

Hair is right: if you have playoff aspirations, you cannot lose games you are supposed to win, especially at home.

I certainly agree with you there. It is an important game in that we can't overlook it, and weshould win soundly. I just won't call it big in the sense that I believe that word better suits the divisional games coming up on the schedule, and the primetime game in Jacksonville. A big win over a cupcake at home won't matter as much if we can't handle the big dogs.

[ArmyBengal]

Once again, it's funny how at the beginning of the season, most had the Minn game as "very close" if not a loss. Many thought GB was going to be a tougher game as well. Amazing how things truly shake out once the season gets going... Anyone guess the Ravens would go winless and be in the basement behind the Browns at this point ?? I think not... Goes back to what I said in another thread... You play the games you've got on the schedule and keep the focus and whatever happens happens. Look at all the season ending injuries changing the makeup of some teams. Good God, you just never know. This is not the typical "big game", but another win sure won't hurt my feelings at all !!!

WHODEY !!!

[turningpoint]

well if we go 4-0 that garuntees us 1st place until we play the steelers here at home.

I'd like to think we can go 1-1 vs the titans and jags that will make us 5-1 going into the steelers game.

We should defintly win at home vs the steelers also.

This also one of the most important game of the year cause this is a team we are supposed to beat and are at home..it's pretty much a freebie in NFL terms...this is the kind of game that we lost in 2003 and 2004 that kept us out of the playoffs. We must win these type of games to make the playoffs...

I'm going to go out on a limb sort of.

We win sunday we make the playoffs as division champions.

We lose we'll be lucky to get the wild card.

[derekshank]

This game is not nearly as big as last week. If we beat Houston we don't really do anything but what we are supposed to do. We will have to kill them to really impress anyone.

Chicago was billed as a big time defense, and it was on the road. That went a long way with a lot of people in jumping on the bandwagon.

This will only be seen as a big game if we lose though, because the "bungle" talk will be back in full fury if we can't beat the worst team in the NFL.

Away games are always big, and so are divisional games, so @Jax next week, and home vs Pitt are our two biggest games of the first half.

[HoosierCat]

This game is not nearly as big as last week. If we beat Houston we don't really do anything but what we are supposed to do. We will have to kill them to really impress anyone.

Well, personally, I don't give a rat's a** if we impress anyone or not. All I'm concerned about is that this team actually does what it's supposed to do, namely beat Houston. You can pick any week in the NFL and find examples of teams that were "supposed" to win...and didn't.

And this game does have some importance in the division, IMHO. Pitt has already beaten Houston, Cleveland certainly looks capable of beating them, and they are one of a handful of teams that Baltimore might be able to beat (at least given the way the Ravens look so far). We drop this game and we hand the division an easy opportunity to gain ground on us.

[TippCityRick]

Basically each week is big in it's own right. You can only play the teams on your schedule, and if they happen to be having down years (or down weeks) then you should beat them if you're a good team.

Each week is big for momentum's sake. But how would ya'll feel if we lose Sunday going into a very hostile game next Sunday night? Not a good feeling. However if we win Sunday it takes a bit of the pressure off the Jax game. Just sayin'.

[The_Next_Big_Thing]

This game is exactly 1/16th of our season. It's that important!

If we win it, we stay in the top of the league. If we lose it, we have to regain momentum against a tougher team.

[TJJackson]

It's an important win because it is one of the most winnable games we have remaining on our schedule. Win when you are supposed to win to give you some breathing room and margin of error in the race for the playoffs when facing better teams....

[HairOnFire]

quote]Well, personally, I don't give a rat's a** if we impress anyone or not. All I'm concerned about is that this team actually does what it's supposed to do, namely beat Houston. You can pick any week in the NFL and find examples of teams that were "supposed" to win...and didn't.

Exactly. So much of the debate about if this is a big game seems to be focused on impressing the media. Well that's all well and good, but who really cares about public perception when a win over the Texans counts as much as a win against the World Champions? A win is a win, and putting a 4 on the win side this weekend could be of critical importance in early January when things like tiebreakers and home field advantage are being discussed.

[schweinhart]

4-0 start? You betchya a$$ crackage this is the biggest game in 14 yrs.

Do or die.

It be like the f*cking loss to Zona in '03. Just hangin' around like a playoff killer.

[The_Next_Big_Thing]

It's an important win because it is one of the most winnable games we have remaining on our schedule. Win when you are supposed to win to give you some breathing room and margin of error in the race for the playoffs when facing better teams....

Actually, it isn't one of the most winnable games remaining... It is a game against a team trying to rebound and having twice as much time to prepare to play us. I don't care WHO we are playing, that's a tough game to win. Remember, during our anti-glory years, it was Cincinnati who got overlooked and ended up beating teams that by all rights we shouldn't have.

[Stripes]

Remember, during our anti-glory years, it was Cincinnati who got overlooked and ended up beating teams that by all rights we shouldn't have.

True enough, but when you only win 3 or 4 games a season, those wins have to come somewhere. More that likely, those surprise wins came at home too. The Texans are on the road in a very hostile Paul Brown Stadium, and they haven't been able to use all the extra time to get ready either. What time they have been able to take advantage of will be offset by the poor quality of talent and motivation the Texans will be putting on the field.

[jditty47]

this game is a must win if we want to make the playoffs. our schedule does get harder in the middle to the end so we need to beat all the teams that we should...and that includes the texans.

[MacD BengalFan]

this game is a must win if we want to make the playoffs. our schedule does get harder in the middle to the end so we need to beat all the teams that we should...and that includes the texans.

No, this isn't a must win game to make the playoffs. This is a must win game to maintain respectability. The Bengals are expected to win. So if the Bengals lose, as stated earlier, the current media frenzy of the Bengals will die a harsh death and everyone will come out with the "I told you so". But if the Bengals win, the frenzy will continue and more synics will be stifled.