05-25-2015, 09:11 PM
(05-25-2015, 08:53 PM)Nately120 Wrote: I don't get it either. I was floored in 2005 because we waited SO long, had a legit QB after years of crap and had a really good chance of making a run. 2013 I went in saying "There is no reason the Bengals should lose this, other than they are the Bengals." Call me a jerk, but I was exceedingly unsurprised we lost in 2013.
I can't speak for everyone, but here's some reasons why I voted for '13 over '05:
1. The 2005 disappointment was all about Carson's injury, which happened on the 2nd play of the game. After that, I pretty much expected us to lose.
2. In contrast, I was optimistic that we could beat SD until somewhere deep in the 3rd quarter.
3. The 2013 team was 8-0 at home, facing a team they'd beaten on the road.
4. The 2013 team had the best point differential in Bengals' history
2005 was obviously the biggest heart breaker of the 6, but it was for different reasons. Once Palmer went down, I wasn't really expecting to win.
The 2013 team was relatively healthy, and again...undefeated at home, facing a team they'd handled pretty convincingly in SD. That game is what made me come to the conclusion that Marvin Lewis will never win a playoff game. We were soundly beaten in a game we were favored to win, and all of the usual playoff problems occurred despite all these things we had going for us.
Edit: Fwiw, I almost voted for 2005, but there was only 1 huge disappointment in the Steelers game. The list of reasons to be disappointed with the Chargers game was by far the longest of all the playoff games though. That game just sucked the optimism out of me.
The training, nutrition, medicine, fitness, playbooks and rules evolve. The athlete does not.
