Who is to Blame?

[*SHRacerX*]

(11-04-2017, 01:36 PM)Bengalholic Wrote: When you talk all the 'top tier' talent this team has had and being a 'top tier' organization...I would ask one simple question: what the hell have these teams/talents done to be considered 'top tier' anything? Outside of 1 PM regular season games, show me where they've achieved anything worthy of top tier consideration. The entire coaching staff and roster has continually failed when they've had the opportunity to hang with actual top tier teams when it mattered.

Good point, Holic.  I will try to offer a bit of perspective around the Dalton-Green Era.  

Look at the Falcons and Colts.  Both have franchise QBs, both are highly thought of organizations, and both have won playoff games in that era.  The Colts won one, I think, and the Falcons made their run last year, blowing an astronomical fourth quarter lead.

Those teams were set to make a run.  So (were) the Bengals.  Our QB got injured.  Look what happened to the Colts without Luck and look what will surely happen to Green Bay and the Texans without their QBs. 

The Bengals were in position to make a run in every year but two of the seven years they have had Dalton and Green.  

I won't bore you with the details of the horrible playoff record, nor will I try to make excuses for the Chargers and steeler losses, because I put them entirely on the coaching staff.  But the point is, they were in position to make a run every year but the last two.  Marv has been completely tuned out and in some sort of revenge to not having a contract, he is sitting guys like Ross, Core, and Malone (who our GM drafted) in favor of the worthless Lafell.  He is also letting MJ start over Willis, Lawson, and Smith.  

However, my point is that the organization has had a very good record of drafting and developing talent in the Dalton/Green era and they haven't overpaid a FA that left them hamstrung and incapable of keeping their core talent.  There are about 5 teams in the NFL that have managed to accomplish that seemingly simple task over the last 7 years, and the Bengals are one of them.  To me, that makes them top tier.  Even if right now I want to hurt their coach.