(08-22-2022, 08:39 PM)fredtoast Wrote: So you believe that the Bengals just chose to not plan or use their skill through the first 13 games of the season?

That is an interesting theory.

So, you feel as if teams.... especially the 5th youngest in the league, can't get better throughout the course of a season? Key players coming off ACL injuries? Key high draf tpicks? Coaches? None of them ascend during a season?

(08-22-2022, 10:11 PM)rfaulk34 Wrote: The only thing Vegas and the NM cares about is trends. Trend says that only once in the last 27 years has a team lost a SB and returned the next year and that was the GOAT. Before that, it had been 46 years since a team lost a SB and won it the following year. 

In the entirety of the SB era (56 years) only 8 teams have returned to the SB the year after losing it. Three of those times were one team (Bills). Only 3 teams in the SB era have won the SB after losing the previous year. 

Vegas and the NM don't care about continuity and improvements. 

That trend is going to change brother. Awesome post Rfaulk.

(08-22-2022, 08:22 PM)fredtoast Wrote: You don't know the definition of "fluke".  I am not saying the '21 Bengals were nothing more than a fluke, but they certainly fit the requirements..

-No team played fewer games against teams with a winning record than the Bengals (7) yet we barely made the playoffs at 10-7.

-13 games into the season we were 7-6 with the #14 offense and #17 defense.

-We got hot and won 6 games but half of them were decided on the last play of the game.

Anyone who does not understand why a lot of NFL fans see our '21 season as a fluke is just in denial.

You are a fluke, now go away...

(08-22-2022, 09:30 PM)bfine32 Wrote: Your trollish schtick has grown old with me.

There was nothing flukish about our 2022 season. We had a talented well-coached team, who stayed at/near the top of the division from week 1 to week 17. After we played 13 games (for some reason a very important point in the season to you) we were leading our division and the #4 seed in the AFC. EXACTLY where we finished the season. 

He's only here to troll, and argue.. Shit was old years ago..

(08-22-2022, 10:58 PM)PDub80 Wrote: So, you feel as if teams.... especially the 5th youngest in the league, can't get better throughout the course of a season? Key players coming off ACL injuries? Key high draf tpicks? Coaches? None of them ascend during a season?

No more than any other team in the league.

Chase and McPherson were great from game one.  All of our coaches have years of experience.  So, no, I don't see them getting better suddenly in the middle of the season.

(08-22-2022, 09:30 PM)bfine32 Wrote: Your trollish schtick has grown old with me.

There was nothing flukish about our 2022 season. We had a talented well-coached team, who stayed at/near the top of the division from week 1 to week 17. After we played 13 games (for some reason a very important point in the season to you) we were leading our division and the #4 seed in the AFC. EXACTLY where we finished the season. 

Well at least my "trollish schtick" is true instead of 100% BS.

After 13 games we were out of the playoffs.  Five AFC teams had more wins than us (Chiefs, Pats, Titans, Chargers, Ravens).  The Browns had the same record as us but won the head-to-head tiebreaker.  The Colts also had the same record as us but had a better record against the AFC (6-3) than us (5-3).

And week 14 was not just important to me.  Go back and see how many times you see this phrase "We finished 6-2 not counting the Browns."

(08-22-2022, 08:22 PM)fredtoast Wrote: You don't know the definition of "fluke".  I am not saying the '21 Bengals were nothing more than a fluke, but they certainly fit the requirements..

-No team played fewer games against teams with a winning record than the Bengals (7) yet we barely made the playoffs at 10-7.

-13 games into the season we were 7-6 with the #14 offense and #17 defense.

-We got hot and won 6 games but half of them were decided on the last play of the game.

Anyone who does not understand why a lot of NFL fans see our '21 season as a fluke is just in denial.

"You don't know the definition of "fluke"."  And you dont know what other people know.  What we all know is that you are dick-head, daily.

You want to whine about games being decided by a TD or less...?  What about:
Losing to the Packers on a missed FG at the buzzer?
Fumbling 2 punts inside the opponents redzone vs SF?
Mixon fumbling during the Chargers comeback?
Horrible unsportsmanlike penalty on Hilton on final drive vs the Jets?

Shit happens every season, most NFL games are pretty close, that doesnt negate the value of the winner.

We also sat all of our starters in the final regular season game.  We could had easily have been 14-3, but thats how the NFL works, you would know this if you werent so busy being a dick-head and attempting to negate everyone else's comments.

(08-22-2022, 09:05 PM)fredtoast Wrote: I have no idea what you are trying to say.

Based on the definitions I see you guys trying to use there would never be any "flukes" in the NFL ever.

You sure do like to correct everyone while not having any idea what people are saying.... DH.

(08-22-2022, 10:11 PM)rfaulk34 Wrote: The only thing Vegas and the NM cares about is trends. Trend says that only once in the last 27 years has a team lost a SB and returned the next year and that was the GOAT. Before that, it had been 46 years since a team lost a SB and won it the following year. 

In the entirety of the SB era (56 years) only 8 teams have returned to the SB the year after losing it. Three of those times were one team (Bills). Only 3 teams in the SB era have won the SB after losing the previous year. 

Vegas and the NM don't care about continuity and improvements. 

Very true, but as you mentioned we maintained continuity and improved which bucks the trend of most Super Bowl losers.... IMO, we need to string together 2-3 successful seasons in a row to get past some institutional stigmas.

(08-22-2022, 07:03 PM)Soonerpeace Wrote: 1. The Continuity and gained experience of Zac,Lou,and Brian foremost but the staff in general.
2. The Continuity of Joe and his receivers
3. The Continuity of all 11 defensive starters returning
4. The improved OL will help in our biggest weaknesses the red zone and short yardage
5. The improved OL should expand our playbook. In the Athletic Podcast earlier this summer Brian and Zac lamented how it severely limited what they wanted to do on offense.
6. The Bengals weren’t a fluke. Flukes don’t beat KC twice. Flukes don’t beat Baltimore 41-17 & 41-21 Pittsburg 41-10 & 24-10 Beat the Raiders 32-13 on the road. Go win in the playoffs on the road in OT & last 30 seconds. They were 6-2 to end the season ( not counting the Browns)

All of this and I will add that it looks like as many as three of this year's draft picks might see significant snaps from week 1 (Hill, Carter, Volson) and guys like Gunter should get some rotational snaps as well as on special teams with Anderson.

The position group I think that has improved the most is the pass rush.  Carter looks like a solid penetrating 3T that will keep Hill fresh.  Ossai returning will help to keep Hendrickson fresh as well as use the two of them on the field together creatively.  Lastly, Gunter looks like a steal in the 7th round.  The LBs and secondary have been very good, but they could look even better with an improved pass rush.  

The continuity of the coaches is huge, and the world has no idea what a Year Three Burrow looks like.  It only knows that in year 2 he won an NCAA Championship and had what was probably the most prolific season in college football history and he went to the Super Bowl in the NFL as they leagues top rated passer.  All year two.  Burrow in year three?  Yes, please.  

(08-22-2022, 07:35 PM)guyofthetiger Wrote: The Bengals will also improve this season. However, so will some other teams.

For me, the most improved of the rest will be as follows:

LV Raiders
Philly Eagles

and as much as I hate to admit it:  LA Chargers.

(08-22-2022, 08:36 PM)bfine32 Wrote: I know the definition of a fluke:

https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/fluke
something, usually a good thing, that has happened as result of chance instead of skill or planning.

So feel free to consider me in denial. 

Agreed.  It was not chance that Burrow's knee was better later in the season.  It was not chance that the young defense came together and the coaches figured out how to best defend teams.  As the definition states, it was planned and was skill in action. 

(08-23-2022, 02:30 AM)fredtoast Wrote: Well at least my "trollish schtick" is true instead of 100% BS.

After 13 games we were out of the playoffs.  Five AFC teams had more wins than us (Chiefs, Pats, Titans, Chargers, Ravens).  The Browns had the same record as us but won the head-to-head tiebreaker.  The Colts also had the same record as us but had a better record against the AFC (6-3) than us (5-3).

And week 14 was not just important to me.  Go back and see how many times you see this phrase "We finished 6-2 not counting the Browns."

Love how you always get to define what is true or not based on your perspective instead of saying perhaps that you believe this is the case because of this...

And as far as the five teams that had more wins that the Bengals, which of them played in the AFC North?  Just one.  Titans had a cake walk.  Jags and Texans were four bye weeks on the schedule.  Pats FINALLY have to deal with at least one other good team in their division (maybe two this year).  

If you want to call their health "fluky", ok.  I guess that I could agree with, but the rest of the season was a young team figuring things out and finishing strong.  It could have been a fluke if they rolled one team and crapped the next game only to roll the next team and crap the following game, but they were VERY strong down the stretch and in the playoffs.  

That's not a fluke.  That is a young team growing and developing.  

(08-22-2022, 07:32 PM)phil413 Wrote: Great post. I don't know of one talking head that is taking the Bengals to win it all. I think there was one on the few shows I saw on NFL network that took them to lose to the Bucs.  Regardless, this isn't the Bengal team that beat some bad teams and backed into a playoff loss vs the Texans, this is a team and QB you DON'T bet against.

Michael Irvine has been talking them up quite a bit.

(08-22-2022, 09:30 PM)bfine32 Wrote: Your trollish schtick has grown old with me.

There was nothing flukish about our 2022 season. We had a talented well-coached team, who stayed at/near the top of the division from week 1 to week 17. After we played 13 games (for some reason a very important point in the season to you) we were leading our division and the #4 seed in the AFC. EXACTLY where we finished the season. 

Yep there are no flukes in the NFL. What the Pats have done is not the norm. It's not like baseball where a guy goes around the league and hits .350 his first two months and then all of a sudden they're throwing him sliders away and he hit .170 the next two. You are who you are in this league. A few plays a game do/can determine winners and losers weekly. Just look back at the Bengals of the 90's and they were in so many games mid/late 4th quarter and then the wheels fell off. A couple drops on 3rd down. a terrible punt, a couple bad penalties and their opponent went down and won the game.

There are very very very subtle differences between a team that goes 5-12 and 12-5. Damn near every athlete at each position in the NFL is identical in size speed, size,athletic ability, etc. Yes, a tremendous QB goes without saying, but the teams that go 5-12 are usually teams very high in penalties and turnovers with players that also aren't on the same page as the coaches. Losing attitude can diminish the will to win.

(08-23-2022, 08:33 AM)SHRacerX Wrote: It was not chance that the young defense came together and the coaches figured out how to best defend teams. 

Then that is a failure on the coaches part.  Our defense was loaded with veterans and zero rookies.  Coaches have to "figure out" how to play defense before the team is almost eliminated from the playoffs.  

Quality coaches don't need half a season to figure out what they are doing.

(08-23-2022, 09:14 AM)higgy100 Wrote: Yep there are no flukes in the NFL.

There you go.  The Bengals could not be a fluke because flukes don't exist.

(08-23-2022, 09:20 AM)fredtoast Wrote: Then that is a failure on the coaches part.  Our defense was loaded with veterans and zero rookies.  Coaches have to "figure out" how to play defense before the team is almost eliminated from the playoffs.  

Quality coaches don't need half a season to figure out what they are doing.

Only stupid people think that 2 new CBs, 2 new DTs, new Edge and 2nd yr player taking over the MLB spot would be gangbusters game one and wouldn't need time to gel.  

(08-23-2022, 09:26 AM)casear2727 Wrote: Only stupid people think that 2 new CBs, 2 new DTs, new Edge and 2nd yr player taking over the MLB spot would be ganbusters game one and wouldn't need time to gel.  

We had 4 new starters on defense.  Every single one of them was a veteran.

Only stupid people don't know enough about the NFL to understand that most teams have multiple new starters every year.  And they also don't see how other teams bring in new starters to rebuild and don't ne over half a season to figure out how to coach them.

If nothing else Bengal fans should remember the 2011 season when we rebuilt our defense and crushed it from opening day.  Held opponents under 300 total yards in 5 of our first 6 games.  

(08-23-2022, 09:49 AM)fredtoast Wrote: We had 4 new starters on defense.  Every single one of them was a veteran.

Only stupid people don't know enough about the NFL to understand that most teams have multiple new starters every year.  And they also don't see how other teams bring in new starters to rebuild and don't ne over half a season to figure out how to coach them.

If nothing else Bengal fans should remember the 2011 season when we rebuilt our defense and crushed it from opening day.  Held opponents under 300 total yards in 5 of our first 6 games.  

Only stupid DHs dont believe that teams improve and gel throughout the season, see KC and us just last season, along with the Rams. EVERY YEAR TEAMS IMPROVE THROUGHOUT THE SEASON - such a Fred DH take, lol.