11-07-2015, 03:13 AM
(11-06-2015, 09:49 PM)Awful Llama Wrote: But they got to the Super Bowl, that's the point. We're not grading on a curve, here. Those teams were special because they were this close to a world championship. :34 in one instance. If this team plays in a Super Bowl, regardless of the outcome, and they best the 12-4 regular season records of those '81 and '88 squads, then then you bet I will join you in saying they're the best Bengal team, ever. Period. But, sorry, not a minute before and certainly not with an entire half of a season left to play.
You may not be grading on a curve. However, I will always look at the broader picture when giving out my analysis and opinion.
Tell me who do you think had the better SB victory, Eli or Peyton? I mean Peyton beat the Bears but Eli knocked off the undefeated NE Patriots. Then Eli beat the Patriots for a 2nd SB victory.
According to you, all 3 teams are the Best teams ever for their respective organizations. However Eli's 1st SB has to be ranked as the BEST of the 3 teams based off of the other factors involved.
I look at what team the Bengals could face in the playoffs. Right now we are in a race for a 1st round bye. Now if we don't get it and have to play WC weekend and we get a banged up or inexperienced team and beat them, sure it will remove the playoff stigma, but then we would have to travel to NE or Denver and also play a strong experienced squad (unless of course the team has some key injuries), which means we could come up short. If you were to put those teams of yesteryear in the same situation, would they be able to come up with the win? I am guessing no, they would lose.
Even with a Bye, we could still have to contend with either the Patriots or the Broncos, depending on the seeding and who wins WC weekend. If we were to draw a 2nd seed and get Pats or Broncos, then we could be 1 and done again. Again, if you were to put the past teams in this situation, would they be able to come up with a win? I am also guessing no, they would lose. Of course this is just based off of my speculation and there is no way to know for sure.
I actually think this team is the best team ever, because it gives us the best chance to win a SB. People talk about the maturity and how much fun everyone is having. I agree with those, but I am also seeing a focus that seemed to be missing before. I don't see any team knocking us out of the playoffs due to this focus. I just don't see anyone willing to give up, they wouldn't want to hear for another year, "Yeah, but the playoffs...", and that seems to be the biggest difference in this team.
