(01-04-2024, 11:31 AM)Lucius Cincinnatus Wrote: Eh, I think at this point the Ravens have shown that they will find a way to reload the roster. Of all the big free agents that are leaving, how many of those players were you highlighting for them before the season started? They always seem to be able to backfill talent that they lose with recent draft picks or cheap 1-year vet free agents (Clowney, Agholor, Van Noy, etc.) . They've been leading the comp pick game for years. That's all to say, I probably don't think they will be #1 seed good, but they will be right in the mix for the Division if Lamar is healthy. He has proven that. 

That’s all on target for sure. Baltimore a solid organization and they had lost the division to us two years straight. They stepped it up. Shouldn’t be a shock. They’ve hit in the draft and Monken is a solid OP. Time for us to step up our game too. Get a new OL coach. Get a good DT and RT. Tag Tee. Draft a good RB. We should have a middle round draft pick. I’d go best available at DT or RT for one and FA for the other spot.

My suggestions:

1) Play the youngsters vs Cleveland. They need development and we need to evaluate. Let Hendrickson play as he needs the sack lead. But Chase & Higgins & Hubbard should sit. Pratt & Wilson, too. BJ Hill ditto. If this is it for Boyd, play him.

2) Why? There are 14 guys with true first round grades. After that, a gaggle. If we lose and pick 13th or 14th, it greatly increases our chances of getting one of those guys (say, Newton or Odunze/Nabers/Coleman).

Plus, 4-5 places equals 10 places by round 2. Sweat on the board would be sweet. 45th vs 59th could be the difference.

2) We play soft in the hardest division in the league. Invest in the trenches. Play more aggressively.

3) Taylor needs to go as the playcaller. He is awful. When to go, when to kick, and the plays actually called. He gives too much away formationally.

We won't do any of this. We will win the Browns game, pay the WRs, and ZT will stay as playcaller.

(01-03-2024, 07:01 PM)Bengalstripes9 Wrote: It's a tough task to fill right tackle and defensive tackle this year.
If we are going with rookies there could be growing pains there and we may not know the players we bring in are the answer right away.
We don't have a premier pick so it makes the job difficult.
Maybe we can sign someone but we can't afford the best free agent DT or RT out there so overall I could see the Bengals dline and oline being a little worse than it was this year.
Of course, we could sign and trade Tee to get a premier pick and grab a premier DT prospect. But I don't see that happening.
This could be the best move to make the team more well-rounded and balanced. But it sucks to lose Tee.

When it comes down to it we are built different then the other AFC North teams. All other teams focus is on defense, oline, and running game.
Our focus is on wideouts, quarterback, skill players, and bend but don't break defense.
Time will tell if this strategy will be successful inside the division now that the division teams around us have rebuilt into playoff contenders. 
It's obviously good enough to win in the NFL at large. But inside the division the results are more mixed.

Our best chance of success is to improve the oline, defense, and running game and find more balance on offense.
Good AFC North defenses will give our offense trouble at times and the defense will really need to step up.

It's not an easy fix this year with the potential player losses and where our salaries are headed.
Sucks to miss out on our best playoff window (last 3 years).
Hopefully the team doesn't fall apart around Burrow, Chase and Higgins (if they keep him long-term).

It is tough, but the Reader injury and lack of pass rush besides BJ Hill on the interior have forced our hand with DT and I don't want 
Jonah back honestly. He plays okay against a lot of teams outside the Division but just gets destroyed in our Division. We need a guy
at RT with more upside that isn't playing worse and worse every year.

Honestly if the coaches can develop the young guys this could be a blessing in disguise as we might be moving on from some of 
these older players right in the nick of time. Get a new OL coach and develop our young players and we could be better. I also like 
the idea of signing Tee and trading him. We CAN draft WR's and this is a good draft for them, if we can add an elite proven DT to 
the team like Chris Jones maybe even better and younger pass rushing DT with upside we could be in a fantastic spot.

Truthfully, a healthy Joe Burrow and we most definitely are not 0-5 in the Division this year and this may be the best any Division 
will ever look. That is how good the AFC North has been this year, historically good. If we beat the Browns this next game we will
be the first Division ever for every team to be above .500 in a season if I am not mistaken.

(01-04-2024, 11:33 AM)lone bengal Wrote: The annoying part is they’ve invested a ton on the offensive line. Brown, Cappa and Volson should be able to move people in the run game they need to reevaluate there run scheme and Pollack. Mixon is slow and makes too much money but the good thing is RB’s are easy to find late and cheap. Brown showed some explosion when we used him. DT needs to be revamped. Hill plays way too many snaps which has contributed to his decline in play. Zack Carter offers nothing as a DT. He was supposed to be an undersized interior rusher. He gives no pass rush and gets manhandled in the run because he’s undersized. Tupou is a bottom of the roster DT.

Why is that annoying for us to have invested a ton in the OL again? Isn't this what we have always complained about?

Also we redid Mixon's contract so he is much more affordable last offseason which is a good thing. He looked a lot better this year from 
what I saw so he might have one more year to add some in the pass catching department. I want another RB and I want to see Chase 
Brown with a lot more snaps next year though.

Agree on the DT's though...

(01-01-2024, 09:10 PM)Bengalstripes9 Wrote: These are solid excuses. But the bottom line is the bengals are in jeopardy of a sweep this year. You can make as many excuses as you want, but the bottom line is 0-5, 9-20 overall vs afc north.

The point of the thread is to ask ‘how?’

How can we win inside the division?

On a side note, I wouldn’t mind seeing the ravens or browns win the Super Bowl so the afc north can get some recognition. They’ve done a good job building a winning formula and I wouldn’t mind seeing a team like the browns, ravens, or 9ers winning it all this year. The ravens are the team to beat right now and look like tops in the league.

During any offseason, I think most coaches and players would agree that it’s good to learn from the successful teams and learn how to beat them.

The bengals are close. When they beat the 9ers and bills, they were very balanced. In our afc north games, not so much..

I think the key to winning in the north is stopping the run and establishing the run. Bengals need a balanced attack to win, and a better defense.

I would only question the the Browns have have build a winning formula, solid year this year no doubt but that is after two losing seasons in a row. Ravens with Lamar healthy are very good.. if Lamar stays healthy will be tough to beat

I just wanted to jump on here and give my thoughts about the OP. I apologize if this has already been mentioned. If we could somehow stick to the game plan we had on Browning's 2nd and 3rd starts, basically a balanced attack, with Burrow at QB I believe our offense will be able to compete in the AFC North again.

As far as the defense, we truly miss that Burfict type attitude. We need intimidators on defense. Hit them hard and rap them up. Pratt started trying to rip the ball out every tackle after that game he got it from Kelce and I believe that's been in his head ever since. The first guy needs to make the stop. The second guy needs to be smart enough to determine if the first guy has stopped the ball carriers momentum and make the correct decision of joining in on bringing the ball carrier down or going for the strip. When it's obvious the ball carrier is going down, I have no problem with them going for the ball, but when they're going for the ball and giving up the first down plus more yards, that's ridiculous and on the coaches for not teaching proper tackling technique. I'm honestly not against getting a new DC at this point.

(01-04-2024, 03:18 PM)Nate (formerly eliminate08) Wrote: It is tough, but the Reader injury and lack of pass rush besides BJ Hill on the interior have forced our hand with DT and I don't want 
Jonah back honestly. He plays okay against a lot of teams outside the Division but just gets destroyed in our Division. We need a guy
at RT with more upside that isn't playing worse and worse every year.

Honestly if the coaches can develop the young guys this could be a blessing in disguise as we might be moving on from some of 
these older players right in the nick of time. Get a new OL coach and develop our young players and we could be better. I also like 
the idea of signing Tee and trading him. We CAN draft WR's and this is a good draft for them, if we can add an elite proven DT to 
the team like Chris Jones maybe even better and younger pass rushing DT with upside we could be in a fantastic spot.

Truthfully, a healthy Joe Burrow and we most definitely are not 0-5 in the Division this year and this may be the best any Division 
will ever look. That is how good the AFC North has been this year, historically good. If we beat the Browns this next game we will
be the first Division ever for every team to be above .500 in a season if I am not mistaken.


Why is that annoying for us to have invested a ton in the OL again? Isn't this what we have always complained about?

Also we redid Mixon's contract so he is much more affordable last offseason which is a good thing. He looked a lot better this year from 
what I saw so he might have one more year to add some in the pass catching department. I want another RB and I want to see Chase 
Brown with a lot more snaps next year though.

Agree on the DT's though...

Meant annoying that it hasn’t worked out considering how much capital we’ve invested. Im fine with spending on the O-line and the trenches.

For me the AFC North is a physical division no doubt! It's probably the best division in football TBH. with that said barring healthy players. It needs to start at the front seven on defense and in the offensive backfield for me:

1) We need a running game!!! its controls the clock, puts us in manageable 3rd down spots and keeps opposing defenses honest.
- sign Devin Singletary(Hou) he would from a nice combo with Chase Brown and he is a good pass protector.

2) Get an inside DT pass rusher like what Geno Atkins was.
-Sign Justin Jones (Bears) is only 27. has 6 sacks and 16 QB hits. he will be a nice combo with Trey.

3) Draft a solid NT, we should be able to draft a big run stopper in the draft.

4) We need to add TE more to our offense! it will open up Jamarr so much more, and it opens up the middle for JoeyB!
- sign Hunter Henry(NE) he is a solid TE, and TE is fairly cheap on the FA market to fill.

5) Draft solid!
--invest in secondary and offensive line early in the draft!! find a RT and CB/S in first 3 rds

(01-04-2024, 07:10 PM)schroomytunes Wrote: For me the AFC North is a physical division no doubt! It's probably the best division in football TBH. with that said barring healthy players. It needs to start at the front seven on defense and in the offensive backfield for me:

1) We need a running game!!! its controls the clock, puts us in manageable 3rd down spots and keeps opposing defenses honest.
- sign Devin Singletary(Hou) he would from a nice combo with Chase Brown and he is a good pass protector.

2) Get an inside DT pass rusher like what Geno Atkins was.
-Sign Justin Jones (Bears) is only 27. has 6 sacks and 16 QB hits. he will be a nice combo with Trey.

3) Draft a solid NT, we should be able to draft a big run stopper in the draft.

4) We need to add TE more to our offense! it will open up Jamarr so much more, and it opens up the middle for JoeyB!
- sign Hunter Henry(NE) he is a solid TE, and TE is fairly cheap on the FA market to fill.

5) Draft solid!
--invest in secondary and offensive line early in the draft!! find a RT and CB/S in first 3 rds

#1 running game I believe is less about RBs and more about Oline and coaching, I change Pollack, i don;t have faith in Brown yet being anything much more than a 3rd down back, I love to go for pure power in D. Henry maybe on a 1/2 year contract, his price has went down for sure.

#4- 3 years in a row of one year rentals at TE, I prefer draft and actually give Hudson a shot, he showed more downfield than anyone last 2 years.

#5- We have alot of young investment in secondary, they have to improve though and I resign Hilton. We have invested in Oline in draft, just our picks are not turning out well, need to draft better

(01-04-2024, 06:51 PM)lone bengal Wrote: Meant annoying that it hasn’t worked out considering how much capital we’ve invested. Im fine with spending on the O-line and the trenches.

Cool, I think this has more to do with Pollack than anything. He is just not a good OL coach, these vets in their prime have regressed under 
him from where they were before. Should be the other way around and they should all be getting better and better if he was a good OL coach.

Get a new OL coach that knows what he is doing and paying these guys this much money should pay off and the young OL might actually get
developed into good to maybe even great players.

Upgrade OL and run the damn ball.

(01-04-2024, 04:04 PM)Essex Johnson Wrote: I would only question the the Browns have have build a winning formula, solid year this year no doubt but that is after two losing seasons in a row. Ravens with Lamar healthy are very good.. if Lamar stays healthy will be tough to beat

With a healthy Burrow we can compete with any team. But if this Ravens team is healthy, no team will be favored to beat them.

With some good scouting (and a little luck) you can get Dline help in the 3rd round.

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/39238137/los-angeles-rams-rookies-byron-young-kobie-turner-defense

The year we took Carter, Cleveland, Pitt, and Baltimore all took Dline prospects that I liked better. None have produced. That just wasn’t a good year for Dline help.

It is the toughest division in football. And I am not talking records.

We are a finese team. We need to get tougher & better in the trenches. We need to try and run the ball more & utilize TEs more. We need to throw less so our franchise QB does not get killed. Get some RBs who can pass block.

Oh, and get someone to call the plays. ZT is awful.

Guys I love for us in the draft:

DT: Newton (Rd1)
RT: Fuaga/Mims (Rd 1)
CB/S: DeJean (Rd1)
NT: Sweat (Rd2)

For goodness sake, we should tank the Browns game. Moving up 5 spots in Rd1, 10 in Rd2, and 15 in Rd3 could make a big difference.

(01-06-2024, 01:37 PM)Isaac Curtis: The Real #85 Wrote: It is the toughest division in football. And I am not talking records.

We are a finese team. We need to get tougher & better in the trenches. We need to try and run the ball more & utilize TEs more. We need to throw less so our franchise QB does not get killed. Get some RBs who can pass block.

Oh, and get someone to call the plays. ZT is awful.

Yeah, I don't like being a finesse team. That makes me sad, I want us to get back to being bullies again.

(01-06-2024, 01:46 PM)Isaac Curtis: The Real #85 Wrote: Guys I love for us in the draft:

DT: Newton (Rd1)
RT: Fuaga/Mims (Rd 1)
CB/S: DeJean (Rd1)
NT: Sweat (Rd2)

For goodness sake, we should tank the Browns game. Moving up 5 spots in Rd1, 10 in Rd2, and 15 in Rd3 could make a big difference.

Would love any one of those players early. Especially Newton, Fuaga, Mims or Dejean. Sweat in the 2nd round is now a possibility 
with him struggling against Washington in that big game. We need a 3-tech that can collapse the middle in passing situations, Fuaga
is so explosive, something our OL just haven't shown this year (I blame Pollack). Dejean is just a playmaker in the Secondary and 
getting him would allow Dax to be the swiss army knife he seems to thrive at.