We all bought into the hype. 8-0 start. 12-4 regular season. This was our year to do great things. But once again, we blew it in the playoffs. This season is going to make it EXTREMELY difficult for me to get excited for future seasons. Regardless of how well we start, I just have no faith in the post-season. I hate to be so negative, but I don't see us even making the SB in the next decade, and probably a lot longer than that. At least not with Marv are the helm.

And then there's the issue of the refs being corrupt as f*ck. So the odds are pretty firmly stacked against us. But the bottom line is just because we start the season red hot.... it doesn't mean sh*t. I remember when we were 6...7...8-0 and people here were talking about 16-0 and the SB......

From this point forward, until we actually WIN a playoff game, I'm not getting excited again. I don't care if we go 15-1, earn homefield advantage throughout the playoffs, and get the first round bye....... I won't be fooled again.

Marvin Lewis' nine lives are quickly disappearing.

(01-10-2016, 10:10 AM)BengalChris Wrote: Marvin Lewis' nine lives are quickly disappearing.

I'd estimate, with Mike Brown still in charge, he has about 8 1/2 left.

The narrative for us now will never really be how well we do in the regular season. Talking about "media narrative".

Can this whole team actually stick together? They will have to continue to fight the "you can do whatever you want in the regular season". I have to feel bad for AJ Green.

Is it possible another Carson Palmer and Chad Johnson are leaving era, is coming? (not necessarily with those positions, but a changing of guard) - I doubt it, but the psychological pressure is probably tough.

(01-10-2016, 10:51 AM)reuben.ahmed Wrote: The narrative for us now will never really be how well we do in the regular season. Talking about "media narrative".

Can this whole team actually stick together? They will have to continue to fight the "you can do whatever you want in the regular season". I have to feel bad for AJ Green.

Is it possible another Carson Palmer and Chad Johnson are leaving era, is coming? (not necessarily with those positions, but a changing of guard) - I doubt it, but the psychological pressure is probably tough.

I think once we get a new coach and completely overhaul things from the top down, we'll start doing doing better.

(01-11-2016, 06:03 AM)Adamantium Wrote: I think once we get a new coach and completely overhaul things from the top down, we'll start doing doing better.

I disagree.

A new coach will not automatically result in success.

The Browns overhaul every year.  The same with the Dolphins.  Look at the 49ners, they had success and decided to overhaul and now they are in shambles.

It is easy to think that having an overhaul from top down will equal success but think about this.

Mike Brown hires a GM.  That GM, decides to get a new HC.  That new HC brings in his own staff of coaches, who will want their own players.  That means, any player on this team could be traded or cut to make room for the staff's choices.

Could you imagine a new OC, that wants a different type of WR than Green?  Green is amazing as we all can agree, but he isn't a perfect WR and a new OC may decide that he could do better than having him on the team.  So he request to trade Green for draft picks or for a player that he wants.  The HC agrees with his OC, and the GM agrees with the HC.

So we trade Green for a draft pick.  That pick, is used for a WR, who is unproven in the NFL.  Green continues doing great things, while our new "stud" WR turns out to be a "dud".  So the OC was wrong, which means the HC as well as the GM was wrong.  How many chances do you give them to be wrong before you "blow things up" again and start from top to bottom?

Now you say "Surely there is no way they get rid of Green!", tell that to Eagles fans that thought there was no way Chip Kelly would remove McCoy and Jackson from his roster.  Yet even if they keep Green, just know that any failures that the new regime has will finger point to not having "their guys" on the roster.  So how many failures do we give them before we say "you're fired!" or "you know what, you are probably right, let's get rid of Green and try someone new".

Now I use Green, but you can exchange him for any number of players or even a majority of players on our roster.  Dalton, Green, Eifert, Atkins, Dunlap, MJ, MLJ, Hill, Bernard.

It isn't so easy to just start over.  We will be starting over in a way, Jackson is more than likely gone, which means a new OC.  Guenther is drawing interest which could mean a new DC.  As to getting a new HC, it is possible, but what type of stability do we have, if we do lose Jackson and Guenther?  

I think this will all wear down in the off-season and we'll all be back.

I know this to be true, because the Browns fans are hyped up every damn season and I see it (living in CLE). The past season doesn't seem to have much merit on how excited they get. It only takes 4-5 games in before they give up. The problem is we have to wait 17 games every year before we give up.

But we will still have the narrative that the regular season doesn't matter much, and it's true. Steelers scratch their way in and they beat us. At this poin tI suppose the regular season is for staying healthy, trying a few tricks, and figuring out/improving on your faults. Whatever state the league is in, this Bengals team is going to the playoffs again for a few more years. I don't know what' worse, the Bills 4 consecutive superbowl losses or the Bengals team going 0-8 with Dalton.

(01-10-2016, 09:59 AM)Adamantium Wrote: We all bought into the hype. 8-0 start. 12-4 regular season. This was our year to do great things. But once again, we blew it in the playoffs. This season is going to make it EXTREMELY difficult for me to get excited for future seasons. Regardless of how well we start, I just have no faith in the post-season. I hate to be so negative, but I don't see us even making the SB in the next decade, and probably a lot longer than that. At least not with Marv are the helm.

And then there's the issue of the refs being corrupt as f*ck. So the odds are pretty firmly stacked against us. But the bottom line is just because we start the season red hot.... it doesn't mean sh*t. I remember when we were 6...7...8-0 and people here were talking about 16-0 and the SB......  

From this point forward, until we actually WIN a playoff game, I'm not getting excited again. I don't care if we go 15-1, earn homefield advantage throughout the playoffs, and get the first round bye....... I won't be fooled again.  

I wasn't fooled this time.  I knew there was a chance that we would be one and done.  That is the nature of this game.

I do see us winning a SB though.  At some point.  When?  I don't know and I like it that way.  If I knew, then I could make a lot of money though, so I wouldn't necessarily mind knowing.  

There are many teams that have great starts and fail in the playoffs.  I mean the Panthers could lose next week to the Seahawks, the Broncos could lose to the Steelers, the Patriots could lose to the Chiefs.  Winning in the NFL is never a given so I don't get the "I was fooled" mentality that you have.  It is like saying "how could I not win the lottery?"  I mean you had to know that there was a chance that you could lose right?

Think about this.  In 2013 the 13-3 Denver Broncos hosted the 10-6 Baltimore Ravens in the playoffs.  Broncos had the victory, and gave up a 70 yard TD to lose the game.  It happens.  Sure it sucks to not have won a playoff game since the early 90s, but most of the reason we haven't won a playoff game in so long is because we haven't been going to the playoffs.  Now we are a perennial playoff team and yes we all expected to have some success, but again there is no such thing as a guaranteed victory.  

I will take a 9-7 record and a playoff birth every year, with a chance to win in the playoffs and thus a chance to win a SB over the alternative of not making the playoffs at all.  Yet that also means that with every chance to win in the playoffs comes a chance to be a 1 and done team.

(01-10-2016, 09:59 AM)Adamantium Wrote: We all bought into the hype. 8-0 start. 12-4 regular season. This was our year to do great things. But once again, we blew it in the playoffs. This season is going to make it EXTREMELY difficult for me to get excited for future seasons. Regardless of how well we start, I just have no faith in the post-season. I hate to be so negative, but I don't see us even making the SB in the next decade, and probably a lot longer than that. At least not with Marv are the helm.

And then there's the issue of the refs being corrupt as f*ck. So the odds are pretty firmly stacked against us. But the bottom line is just because we start the season red hot.... it doesn't mean sh*t. I remember when we were 6...7...8-0 and people here were talking about 16-0 and the SB......  

From this point forward, until we actually WIN a playoff game, I'm not getting excited again. I don't care if we go 15-1, earn homefield advantage throughout the playoffs, and get the first round bye....... I won't be fooled again.  

Yeah, you say that now.

(01-10-2016, 10:10 AM)BengalChris Wrote: Marvin Lewis' nine lives are quickly disappearing.

Well, at this pace, we'll only have to keep him for two more years.  Gotta find them silver linings....

It'll likely end uglier than you can imagine. It's clear rock bottom for this franchise is as far down as anyone can imagine (obviously worse than 2010, if you can imagine that). We've lost all respect from the sports world (as you can see from their reaction to Saturday night) as they just aren't impressed with one and done as MB is.

(01-10-2016, 09:59 AM)Adamantium Wrote: We all bought into the hype. 8-0 start. 12-4 regular season. This was our year to do great things. But once again, we blew it in the playoffs. This season is going to make it EXTREMELY difficult for me to get excited for future seasons. Regardless of how well we start, I just have no faith in the post-season. I hate to be so negative, but I don't see us even making the SB in the next decade, and probably a lot longer than that. At least not with Marv are the helm.

And then there's the issue of the refs being corrupt as f*ck. So the odds are pretty firmly stacked against us. But the bottom line is just because we start the season red hot.... it doesn't mean sh*t. I remember when we were 6...7...8-0 and people here were talking about 16-0 and the SB......  

From this point forward, until we actually WIN a playoff game, I'm not getting excited again. I don't care if we go 15-1, earn homefield advantage throughout the playoffs, and get the first round bye....... I won't be fooled again.  

Well, you might miss out on an entire season of fun, but that is your choice and you are welcome to it.

I'm somewhat surprised, though, that you don't give the team credit for beating the steelers at home with the exception of some really bad calls, all with a backup QB.

It wasn't a running back, a safety, or a LB...it was your starting QB.

I saw that no NFL QB had won a playoff game with three or fewer NFL starts (like McCarron) in 36 years.  Yet, they nearly did.

I'm disappointed as hell, too, but I still think this team has a ton going for it.  

I have no idea who will be our OC, but I see two QBs that are capable of winning playoff games, a loaded roster, and an attitude.

I hate the NFL and the officiating, but I still love this team.  

(01-10-2016, 09:59 AM)Adamantium Wrote: We all bought into the hype. 8-0 start. 12-4 regular season. This was our year to do great things. But once again, we blew it in the playoffs. This season is going to make it EXTREMELY difficult for me to get excited for future seasons. Regardless of how well we start, I just have no faith in the post-season. I hate to be so negative, but I don't see us even making the SB in the next decade, and probably a lot longer than that. At least not with Marv are the helm.

And then there's the issue of the refs being corrupt as f*ck. So the odds are pretty firmly stacked against us. But the bottom line is just because we start the season red hot.... it doesn't mean sh*t. I remember when we were 6...7...8-0 and people here were talking about 16-0 and the SB......

From this point forward, until we actually WIN a playoff game, I'm not getting excited again. I don't care if we go 15-1, earn homefield advantage throughout the playoffs, and get the first round bye....... I won't be fooled again.

I lost excitement when Andy went down... Most people should have saw this loss coming.

Only thing that really makes it hurt is we had the game with less than 2 minutes left.

Andy doesn't get hurt, we win this game.
Hill doesn't fumble the ball, we win this game.
I'm not sure how either of those are Marvin's fault, and all the rest is white noise...... the refs were going to do whatever it took to let the Steelers go down the field....

(01-10-2016, 09:59 AM)Adamantium Wrote: We all bought into the hype. 8-0 start. 12-4 regular season. This was our year to do great things. But once again, we blew it in the playoffs. This season is going to make it EXTREMELY difficult for me to get excited for future seasons. Regardless of how well we start, I just have no faith in the post-season. I hate to be so negative, but I don't see us even making the SB in the next decade, and probably a lot longer than that. At least not with Marv are the helm.

And then there's the issue of the refs being corrupt as f*ck. So the odds are pretty firmly stacked against us. But the bottom line is just because we start the season red hot.... it doesn't mean sh*t. I remember when we were 6...7...8-0 and people here were talking about 16-0 and the SB......  

From this point forward, until we actually WIN a playoff game, I'm not getting excited again. I don't care if we go 15-1, earn homefield advantage throughout the playoffs, and get the first round bye....... I won't be fooled again.  

The moment Burfict intercepted I turned to my wife and son and said, "How will the Bengals mess this one up!"

I've been here since 1968.  I've learned a long time ago, expect the worse and hope for the best. Don't get excited until it's the SB, the Bengals are ahead, the clock says 0:00 and there are no flags!!

(01-10-2016, 10:24 AM)rfaulk34 Wrote: I'd estimate, with Mike Brown still in charge, he has about 8 1/2 left.

He has a get out of jail free card until Mikey boy buys the farm.

(01-11-2016, 01:08 PM)Sled21 Wrote: Andy doesn't get hurt, we win this game.
Hill doesn't fumble the ball, we win this game.
I'm not sure how either of those are Marvin's fault, and all the rest is white noise...... the refs were going to do whatever it took to let the Steelers go down the field....

To me, Marvin made one mistake--giving the ball to The Big Mouthed Dancing Fumbler.  I would've given the ball to literally anyone but him.

(01-11-2016, 02:00 PM)McC Wrote: To me, Marvin made one mistake--giving the ball to The Big Mouthed Dancing Fumbler.  I would've given the ball to literally anyone but him.

He would have been handing the ball off to Gio, but he was head-shot right out of the game...without a flag, of course.  Who says cheaters never win?  The NFL makes a crap load of money manipulating these games for the masses.  

(01-11-2016, 03:21 PM)SHRacerX Wrote: He would have been handing the ball off to Gio, but he was head-shot right out of the game...without a flag, of course.  Who says cheaters never win?  The NFL makes a crap load of money manipulating these games for the masses.  

This.
Stop listening to the media.  Media always plays up what most people want to hear.

How are you fooled?  We were 12-4 with a back up QB playing a divisional rival.

I also maintain that if that last play was not an injury, no penalty would have been thrown.  The league is plagued with inconsistencies.
One ref calls every hold, another lets most go.
We also never get apologies from the league or refs when mistakes were made.

Remember Seattle should not have even been in the playoffs from the refs gross missed call when they played Detroit...

These inconsistencies are part of the sport, and game.