Ravens vs Bungals

[Murdock2420]

(09-10-2017, 10:43 PM)BmorePat87 Wrote: I don't think anyone would compare the Ravens or Bengals to the Browns or Niners from last year. The Browns were 1-15 and the Niners were 2-14. 

I get that you're trying to say as many times as you can that the Ravens are terrible and will finish below .500 this season as a means of making this defeat less painful, but your comparison is off base. Whether or not the Ravens or Bengals end up being worth a damn, going on the road and shutting out a team in their home opener is impressive. The last time it happened was 2006 when the Ravens shut out the Bucs. The Ravens have done it before in 2000 when they shut out the Steelers in the Pittsburgh home opener. NFL history buffs know that 2000 was the legendary Ravens defense and 2006 was the only year they finished 1st in defense. 

Does that mean that this team will finish in a similar fashion as those two? Not necessarily, but it paints a far more impressive picture than the "this is two turds playing each other, who cares" narrative that you're so desperate to push.

I'm still not sold that they will finish with more than 9 wins, but I'm starting to see what some pundits have been saying about this defense.

Ummm except that I've been saying the team would only win 4 or 5 games this season at best....so no loss is actually painful.

See here's the thing...during the pre-season and the off-season we had real football talk in jungle noise...believe me, I was surprised as well. During that time, the talk was how good Willis and Lawson and Atkins and the D looked. But, there were several people who said "Is the D that good, or is the O that bad, that it makes the D look good." 

Well...I was one who believed the O is a train wreck, the O-line wouldn't hold up against college ranks at this point. So, no this isn't some cute tactic, it is reality. The Bengals are going to suck this year, you can't win without a line. And, I believe that the Browns (who looked pretty decent today) will actually have a chance to finish ahead of both the Ravens and Bengals.