ESPN Be Hatin!

[Joelist]

Please do your homework on Glenn. It was ONE injury and a subsequent bone spur procedure both of which are past. He has been fully cleared for action.

[BenZoo2]

(05-08-2018, 08:59 PM)Joelist Wrote: I guess that the fact that this was consensus panned as an almost historically weak free agent class should have nothing to do with splurging - as in not splurging when there is nothing worth buying actually makes sense?

How about that instead we used trading to land a really good LT? And landed one of the few worthwhile free agents in the class too?

I am neither attacking nor defending what the bengals did this offseason.  IMHO this was more than they usually do and I think the team itself is improved.  From a national media perspective they are not an exciting team to write about.  Historically they dont do much in free agency and build through the draft.  Non playoff winning teams will not receive much national attention on improved team lists.

Do you think they are a top 5 most improved team?

[Shake n Blake]

(05-08-2018, 05:48 PM)XenoMorph Wrote: well to be fair on that cincy jungle is just a blog ran by folks like you and me

http://www.bengals.com/news/article-1/O-Line-embraces-move-back-to-09-style/93751472-cc70-4996-bffb-d4a0ad8ecfe5

Is bengals.com and a quote from Paul Alexander legit enough? They clearly thought more highly of Nate Livings and wanted Mathis back "as a backup" in 2011. 

It wasn't just because Mathis was hurt or out of shape (the guy is fitness freak btw).

[jorev5]

(05-08-2018, 02:00 PM)Jakeypoo Wrote: We're a sneaky Superbowl contender if healthy. Good pass rush, improved offensive line,  good secondary,  good QB , and good offensive  weapons.  ESPN doesn't like Dalton so that's why they have us so low.

They say never to place bets with your heart but I dont care.  I put $100 on the Bengals to win the Super Bowl

[Neon Icon]

(05-08-2018, 10:17 PM)Joelist Wrote: Please do your homework on Glenn. It was ONE injury and a subsequent bone spur procedure both of which are past. He has been fully cleared for action.

Yo I saw him working out on Instagram and he looks healthy.

But, it is a fact that he's played in half of Buffalo's games the past 2 years. Hopefully, the surgery corrected the issue and he stays healthy. If he should miss a lot of games for us...we in trouble. There is no Plan B.

Here's to a good healthy season for Glenn. 

[John Shaft]

Since the ESPN talking heads are so frequently wrong, anything contrary to their opinion may be a GOOD THING.

[McC]

(05-08-2018, 02:11 PM)WeezyBengal Wrote: Ill go meh on that No one knows how good our offensive line is going to be. For all we know it could be worse than last year. A lot of unknown variables. 

Our run defense and linebackers are still weak.

I think the Bengals will be around 7-8 wins. 

No, it won't.  

[McC]

(05-08-2018, 11:53 PM)John Shaft Wrote: Since the ESPN talking heads are so frequently wrong, anything contrary to their opinion may be a GOOD THING.

Excellent point.  For a bunch of people who never stop making predictions, they are shockingly bad at it.  They get away with it because nobody ever goes back and holds them accountable.  It never gets mentioned again unless one of them accidentally gets one right.

[Luvnit2]

If ESPN picked Eagles to be top 5 in 2017, show me and they earn my respect. If not, just a bunch of political hacks and lousy sports venue for reporters.

[fredtoast]

(05-08-2018, 10:51 PM)Shake n Blake Wrote: http://www.bengals.com/news/article-1/O-Line-embraces-move-back-to-09-style/93751472-cc70-4996-bffb-d4a0ad8ecfe5

Is bengals.com and a quote from Paul Alexander legit enough? They clearly thought more highly of Nate Livings and wanted Mathis back "as a backup" in 2011. 

It wasn't just because Mathis was hurt or out of shape (the guy is fitness freak btw).

Mathis was fat and out of shape in 2010.  He even made a video of himself getting back in shape before the '11 season.

When Mathis became a free agent after '10 he had 22 career NFL starts and everyone had raved about how well he played in 2009.  But he still had to settle for a league minimum contract to be a BACK UP for the Eagles.  He showed up in shape and got a chance to start due to an injury.  He went on to become an All Pro, but after the '10 season Alexander had the exact same opinion as every other coaching staff in the league.  He was not a starter based on his '10 season.

[jj22]

I think the last two games blinded Bengal fans. Truth is we were looking like a 2-14 team without those last two games. Thankfully we played the 0-16 Cleveland browns twice which helped us get to the 5 wins leading up to the last two games, and we had a miraculous play at the buzzer to beat the Ravens.

Don't forget we got DESTROYED by the Bears (which lets you know just how close to 29 we really are). We also got Destroyed by the Vikes (which is a little more understandable). All of this leading up to those last two games. We looked like the number 31 team on power rankings leading up to the Detroit game.

Moral of the story is ESPN wasn't swayed by the last two games like MB and some fans are. The Ravens blew their win in the final seconds, and the Lions were extremely overrated to begin with. They aren't considering the coaching staff changes, which is really the only thing we can hang hope on. If it wasn't for them, then we are still the underachieving, undisciplined, outcoached Bengals. With still an unknown line that we all hope has improved with the addition of Glenn and Price.

[*Nately120*]

(05-08-2018, 03:51 PM)Shake n Blake Wrote: I don't blame the media for resenting the Bengals though. They were riding that Bengals train a few times, and we always made their predictions look bad come playoff time.

Yeah, can't blame the media for being ho-hum on us because we either stink all year or just stink during prime-time and the playoffs when anyone is watching us.  We kept Marvin after watching teams like Philly and the LA Rams ditch the old muddling HC with a young guy and then take off, and we might like Lazor but on paper we just extended the OC of the 32nd ranked offense and blah blah blah.

Add in the fact that we are over the moon our owner/GM addressed our o-line 2+ years after it was clear we had an issue and I can see why anyone outside of the fanbase wouldn't see the difference between putting us at 29 or 16 or so.  We have to make ourselves noticed, and for the right reasons!

[Shake n Blake]

(05-09-2018, 08:01 AM)McC Wrote: No, it won't.  

I feel confident in that. Kinda hard to get worse than last year. Before the scheme switch, we were averaging less than 3 YPC IIRC.

Dalton was also getting sacked/hit/pressured at a ridiculous rate. We can only go up.

(05-09-2018, 10:59 AM)fredtoast Wrote: Mathis was fat and out of shape in 2010.  He even made a video of himself getting back in shape before the '11 season.

When Mathis became a free agent after '10 he had 22 career NFL starts and everyone had raved about how well he played in 2009.  But he still had to settle for a league minimum contract to be a BACK UP for the Eagles.  He showed up in shape and got a chance to start due to an injury.  He went on to become an All Pro, but after the '10 season Alexander had the exact same opinion as every other coaching staff in the league.  He was not a starter based on his '10 season.

I've seen those before/after pics, and tbh he looked like a typical lineman in the before pic. He just got himself ripped up in the offseason. I've read that was his routine every year. This doesn't mean he was "fat" or out of football shape for 2010, and I won't believe that until I see a quote from a Bengals coach saying he was out of shape. 

As for the Eagles, I'm not surprised he had to work his way up. He was coming to them as someone who had been a backup. His reputation was at a low point, thanks to that benching. Thing is, once they got a chance to see him in action, they stuck with him. PA saw him, saw how talented he was, and stuck with the objectively inferior player. 

That was a whiff by PA. He had a Pro Bowler in his midst and stuck with the inferior guy. That isn't hindsight either. Mathis outplayed Livings as a Bengal.

[*Wyche'sWarrior*]

(05-08-2018, 05:48 PM)XenoMorph Wrote: well to be fair on that cincy jungle is just a blog ran by folks like you and me

Yes.....but the numbers paint an interesting picture in that article.  Stats show no bias.

[SadFaceBengal15]

if we can stay healthy across the board i can see us making a run. the offensive line is much improved...and i think we are gonna get good play at our rg spot...rt im up in the air on but other thn that across the board if we stay healthy LOOK OUT. last time dalton was protected, with less weapons he was in the mvp talk...hes got more weapons now so lets just protect him. and imo our defense is gonna be lights out. jckson is the top tier ramsey level imo. dennard is coming on strong. we are gonna be lock down on d our front sevens is gonna go wild...i can see our defensive front having snother 50+ sack season. with these corners its possible. stay HEALTHY and we make a deep run.

[fredtoast]

(05-09-2018, 11:43 AM)Shake n Blake Wrote: I feel confident in that. Kinda hard to get worse than last year. Before the scheme switch, we were averaging less than 3 YPC IIRC.

Dalton was also getting sacked/hit/pressured at a ridiculous rate. We can only go up.


I've seen those before/after pics, and tbh he looked like a typical lineman in the before pic. He just got himself ripped up in the offseason. I've read that was his routine every year. This doesn't mean he was "fat" or out of football shape for 2010, and I won't believe that until I see a quote from a Bengals coach saying he was out of shape. 

As for the Eagles, I'm not surprised he had to work his way up. He was coming to them as someone who had been a backup. His reputation was at a low point, thanks to that benching. Thing is, once they got a chance to see him in action, they stuck with him. PA saw him, saw how talented he was, and stuck with the objectively inferior player. 

That was a whiff by PA. He had a Pro Bowler in his midst and stuck with the inferior guy. That isn't hindsight either. Mathis outplayed Livings as a Bengal.

I just can't believe that no other NFL teams were aware of how Mathis played in 2009 when he hit the free agent market after the '10 season.  That does not make any sense at all.  Plus, although he did not start he still played snaps in 2010 for all teams to see how he played.

It is much more likely that based on his fitness level and film from 2010 he was not deemed worthy of a starting position in the NFL.  And based on his league minimum contract it was not even close.  Even most scrubs get more than league minimum.

[J24]

(05-09-2018, 11:39 AM)jj22 Wrote: I think the last two games blinded Bengal fans. Truth is we were looking like a 2-14 team without those last two games. Thankfully we played the 0-16 Cleveland browns twice which helped us get to the 5 wins leading up to the last two games, and we had a miraculous play at the buzzer to beat the Ravens.

Don't forget we got DESTROYED by the Bears (which lets you know just how close to 29 we really are). We also got Destroyed by the Vikes (which is a little more understandable). All of this leading up to those last two games. We looked like the number 31 team on power rankings leading up to the Detroit game.

Moral of the story is ESPN wasn't swayed by the last two games like MB and some fans are. The Ravens blew their win in the final seconds, and the Lions were extremely overrated to begin with. They aren't considering the coaching staff changes, which is really the only thing we can hang hope on. If it wasn't for them, then we are still the underachieving, undisciplined, outcoached Bengals. With still an unknown line that we all hope has improved with the addition of Glenn and Price.

So beating two teams that would have gone to the playoffs doesn't matter? I am calling BS on this. Winning those games was impressive and shows us what type of heart and professionalism this team has. Also why not mention that we lossed to Pittsburgh by a field Goal, Tennessee by a late touchdown, and lost in overtime to an Aaron Rodgers lead Packer team. If those three games are won we're 10-6 not 7-9.

[jj22]

If you rewatch the Ravens game we looked horrible. Specifically the second half. Actually we looked bad all the way up til the 4th and 12 play. The Ravens blew that game.

I wasn't all that impressed with the Detroit win. That was more to do with their inept D coordinator.

I understand the coulda/woulda stuff. We coulda/woulda been 10-6 if the ball bounced our way. Yes. But nobody lost more games by a TD or less then the Browns and that didn't really help them in the ratings or national perception.

Like most have said, these "experts" have been pro Bengal and burned a lot during the Dalton/Green era. Top 12 on power rankings for a record 5 years. The team will have to earn the trust from the media again.

I wasn't impressed with last years Bengals. I'm happy they won the last two games don't get me wrong, but the wins hurt significantly as the cover up for all the real underlying problems the team had/has were (obviously) forgotten. It saved Marvin's job, which means even on our best days (or great years) we won't be able to beat the Steelers, win in prime time, or win a playoff game. And that's why we must not lose focus on what this team really needs to take that next step, and likely why pundits aren't sold.

[BenZoo2]

(05-09-2018, 05:08 PM)jj22 Wrote: If you rewatch the Ravens game we looked horrible. Specifically the second half. Actually we looked bad all the way up til the 4th and 12 play. The Ravens blew that game.

I wasn't all that impressed with the Detroit win. That was more to do with their inept D coordinator.

I understand the coulda/woulda stuff. We coulda/woulda been 10-6 if the ball bounced our way. Yes. But nobody lost more games by a TD or less then the Browns and that didn't really help them in the ratings or national perception.

Like most have said, these "experts" have been pro Bengal and burned a lot during the Dalton/Green era. Top 12 on power rankings for a record 5 years. The team will have to earn the trust from the media again.

I wasn't impressed with last years Bengals. I'm happy they won the last two games don't get me wrong, but the wins hurt significantly as the cover up for all the real underlying problems the team had/has were (obviously) forgotten. It saved Marvin's job, which means even on our best days (or great years) we won't be able to beat the Steelers, win in prime time, or win a playoff game. And that's why we must not lose focus on what this team really needs to take that next step, and likely why pundits aren't sold.

You mean the same d coordinator that’s now our new d coordinator?


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[GodFather]

Your looking at this from a Bengals fan perspective. The Bengals re-sign Lewis after two miserable seasons. Your going into a new season with a new DC and OC hired from within. The draft isn't going to turn this team into a Super Bowl contender by any means.

Do I think we are better than that? Yes I absolutely do. Does this team deserve the benefit of a doubt? Absolutely not. When it always come down to getting tough and pulling it out we fail 100% of the time under Lewis.

So I personally am glad so little is thought of us and hope the coaches and players see that too and prove everyone wrong..... or not.