(07-06-2015, 01:24 PM)rfaulk34 Wrote: Those are the first two that came to my mind. Only thing is, the int came early in the 4th so its still possible that the bengals go 3 and out and montana drives them down for 6 anyway. Carson not getting injured could have changed that game and the course of the bengals from that point forward but theres no guarantee that the game doesnt end the same way.

Greg Cook getting his shoulder shredded is a pretty big one but it depends on what is meant by "change". 

My pick would be montana's last pass to taylor. If ray horton doesnt drift too far right, he's right there to pick the pass, bengals kneel and super bowl win is clinched.

The first play I thought of, like most other people, was the Lewis Billups dropped interception in the End Zone. That was a given, but as others have said it wouldn't have guaranteed a Super Bowl win.

If I had to pick a play, it would be whatever play injured Greg Cook. I would have loved to see what Cook could have done had he not been injured so early in his career. If Bill Walsh says that the best QB he's seen was Greg Cook, then I would feel quite strongly that the Bengals would have been major threats to win Championships while he was here. Damn shame.

That one play in '05 when we didn't break Roethlisbergers neck and end his career.

(07-06-2015, 05:25 PM)J24 Wrote: Palmer was actually fine after that injury I don't why everyone forgets about that. The injury that killed him was the elbow in 08 but everyone forgets about that.

Exactly! Palmer put up great stats in 2006 after the injury.

The elbow injury in the game against the Giants (Thank you Corey Webster) and not getting the Tommy John surgery (as recommended by everyone) is what did him in. I was at that game and to be honest with you, I didn't see any issue with him at the time. Palmer had a solid game and the Bengals almost beat the defending champs but losing in overtime (Housh was a machine).

(07-06-2015, 05:02 PM)GodFather Wrote: The thing about the Palmer play against the Steelers in 05 wildcard, if that play was wiped away you'd have to wonder how this team would do afterwards regardless of how they fared for the rest of the playoffs that year because Palmer never would've been injured.

Even going into the next few seasons.  Palmer was playing awesome -- stringing together 100+ passer ratings in (if I remember correctly) 10 straight games.  Who knows how far he could have led us?  We had all the weapons in place to dominate for years to come.  Then it all unraveled with Chris Perry, Thurman, Slim and Palmer crapping out.

(07-06-2015, 01:21 PM)J24 Wrote: Andy Dalton missing AJ green by this much against Houston in the 2012 playoffs.

Not Andy's fault. AJ ran too fast. 

In all seriousness,

Carson's knee is my #1

Krumrie's bruised leg (Marvin's term for completely broken) is #2

Both of the above drastically changed the game on their respective side of the ball.

(07-06-2015, 06:59 PM)fredtoast Wrote: That one play in '05 when we didn't break Roethlisbergers neck and end his career.

More importantly it would have saved innocent women

The SB and pivotal injuries have been covered, so I'll say that debacle versus SF back at the start of the '87 season. Just punt the damn ball, Sam. The season just semed to go off the rails at that point.

Can locking Stanley Wilson in a closet, in preparation for Super Bowl XXIII, count as a play ?
If not, maybe saving Uncle Timmy's leg would be an interesting scenario.

As a pretty young fan, it was interesting to read all of your responses about Cincy's SB games and other old heartbreaks. I didn't know many of the plays mentioned and I had to try looking them up. So thanks for that.

This wouldn't be the one play I could change but one that really annoyed me was Gio's fumble at around the 1 right before halftime against SD that would have given us 14 pts and the ball to start in 3rd Q. I think we could have kept that momentum going and prevented the choke.

(07-06-2015, 01:09 PM)Nately120 Wrote: That dropped INT that would have (in near certainty) won the 1988 Super Bowl, is a good start.  The 05 playoff debacle works, too.

ding ding ding ding!  We have a winner! ditto here

(07-07-2015, 01:06 PM)WiscoFan Wrote: As a pretty young fan, it was interesting to read all of your responses about Cincy's SB games and other old heartbreaks. I didn't know many of the plays mentioned and I had to try looking them up. So thanks for that.

This wouldn't be the one play I could change but one that really annoyed me was Gio's fumble at around the 1 right before halftime against SD that would have given us 14 pts and the ball to start in 3rd Q. I think we could have kept that momentum going and prevented the choke.

This play is the example I use when fools try to say "there's no such thing as momentum". It feasts on the mentally weak and strikes at the moment of panic. 

But it works in your advantage should you be in the other side of it. Even we've experienced it in some instances.

(07-07-2015, 01:32 PM)Stormborn Wrote: This play is the example I use when fools try to say "there's no such thing as momentum". It feasts on the mentally weak and strikes at the moment of panic. 

But it works in your advantage should you be in the other side of it. Even we've experienced it in some instances.

Absolutely- some people don't realize how big the mental side of sports is. Not only can a big mistake be costly for the scoreboard but mentally it can be devastating not only for the one who made the mistake but for the whole team.

Personally, I think change in momentum is one of the most fascinating things in sports to watch.

(07-07-2015, 01:37 PM)WiscoFan Wrote: Absolutely- some people don't realize how big the mental side of sports is. Not only can a big mistake be costly for the scoreboard but mentally it can be devastating not only for the one who made the mistake but for the whole team.

Personally, I think change in momentum is one of the most fascinating things in sports to watch.

You can just tell with body language most of the time. It's bad enough when you start to feel the shift happening, then you visible display yourself losing, the best competitors eat that up.

(07-06-2015, 01:09 PM)Nately120 Wrote: That dropped INT that would have (in near certainty) won the 1988 Super Bowl, is a good start.  The 05 playoff debacle works, too.

Beat me to it....absolutely the dropped INT.

(07-06-2015, 06:59 PM)fredtoast Wrote: That one play in '05 when we didn't break Roethlisbergers neck and end his career.

Can I change my answer?