Do we really have the players to succeed??

[Derrick]

(12-18-2017, 09:21 AM)sonofstat Wrote: After the playoff loss in 2015 I would have agreed...we seemed to be loaded on both sides of the ball and if not for the losses of discipline we should have had playoff success.

However after the free agency drain in 2016 and 2017 we continue to lack consistent quality across the roster.  

Because we're fans we obviously try and talk up the talent based on the slightest sliver of productions but I look at Billings, Rey , Vigil, Williams, MJ, Lafell, Malone, Core , Ross, Uzomah, Hopkins, Ced, Fish, Bodine, etc, etc.....that's a lot of starters/contributors or potentially soon to be starters who right now are simply not playoff level talent.

Put it another way....talent wise are we nearer the Browns than we are to the Steelers right now ??  

I'm sure people's instant, emotional reaction would be to say we are just off the Steelers but seriously look down our current list of starters and tell me if you were not a Bengals fan you say there is the quality there for playoff success...

I agree. We "grasp at straws" hoping to "catch lightning in a bottle" mostly out of desperation and 27 years of frustration.  Feel free to add your own clichés.