12-06-2021, 01:34 PM
Well, someone has to win this division.
I don't look at any other team in the North with a ceiling as high as the Bengals. The Ravens are shot. They are horribly depleted at corner and their best defensive player is now out for the year. They're on their 5th or 6th running back. Their o-line has been battling injuries all year. Everything they do is dependent on Lamar putting the team on his shoulders, and that's not going well right now.
We've seen what Pittsburgh is with a cooked quarterback, lack of speed and protection, and a defense that plays very soft in most games. On top of that, we have two decisive wins over them.
The Browns scare me head to head because they beat our asses at the line of scrimmage. Now Conklin is out. Mayfield is the walking wounded. On top of that, they've done very poorly playing teams in division that aren't the Bengals.
Yesterday's game was rough, because up until the Mixon fumble, it was there for them to take. Still, it doesn't make me think they can't win another 3 or 4 and get in. They might be the only team in the division with a prayer of winning a playoff game. When they are on, ie when Mixon comes out of the gate getting yards, they tend to crush their opponents.
Super Bowl or conference title game is a tough sell for me, because two straight good games seems to be when they hit a wall. Gotta do better than that to go anywhere in January. However, I still see no reason to write them off. They are learning tough lessons about preparedness and what it takes to win week to week. The good news is that they are right there in it and get a chance to prove that they can adjust.
I don't look at any other team in the North with a ceiling as high as the Bengals. The Ravens are shot. They are horribly depleted at corner and their best defensive player is now out for the year. They're on their 5th or 6th running back. Their o-line has been battling injuries all year. Everything they do is dependent on Lamar putting the team on his shoulders, and that's not going well right now.
We've seen what Pittsburgh is with a cooked quarterback, lack of speed and protection, and a defense that plays very soft in most games. On top of that, we have two decisive wins over them.
The Browns scare me head to head because they beat our asses at the line of scrimmage. Now Conklin is out. Mayfield is the walking wounded. On top of that, they've done very poorly playing teams in division that aren't the Bengals.
Yesterday's game was rough, because up until the Mixon fumble, it was there for them to take. Still, it doesn't make me think they can't win another 3 or 4 and get in. They might be the only team in the division with a prayer of winning a playoff game. When they are on, ie when Mixon comes out of the gate getting yards, they tend to crush their opponents.
Super Bowl or conference title game is a tough sell for me, because two straight good games seems to be when they hit a wall. Gotta do better than that to go anywhere in January. However, I still see no reason to write them off. They are learning tough lessons about preparedness and what it takes to win week to week. The good news is that they are right there in it and get a chance to prove that they can adjust.
