What this post-season has meant to me

[Earendil]

So, I thought this would be a fitting 1,000th post here on The Bengals Board. I know I don't say a whole lot (I'm a man of few words and a love of parentheticals), but I try to contribute when I can. I wanted to create a thread where we can discuss what being able to watch the Bengals in the Super Bowl means to each of us.

I'm kind of in the middle between the older fans who remember the founding of the team and the young pups who had never experienced a playoff win until this year (kinda like the Gen-X of Bengals fans). I only have vague memories of the '81 season, but remember quite clearly hating people like Bernie Kosar and Jerry Glanville. Cris Collinsworth was my hero (dude, what happened??) and I still remember the heartbreak of losing Super Bowl XXIII. I remember being horrified watching Krumrie's leg and devastated when Billups dropped that interception.

Of course, I thought that the team was going to be great for a long time and we would get another chance at a title. We all know how that turned out. Still, I stuck with the team, through the Shula years, Coslet, Klingler, Akili, etc. The Marvin years brought hope initially, but he was never able to get the team over the hump, for reasons that don't need to be litigated in this thread. But 2015 was pretty much my breaking point. I didn't post here much after that game and really only hung around because you guys are so cool (yes, even Fred sometimes).

I started becoming cautiously optimistic when Zac was hired, but still felt a little burned by the team. So I held back a bit. I wasn't terribly thrilled with the two-win season, but I hoped that it was a transition year while he evaluated the talent and determined how he wanted to structure the roster.  I've never cared about watching the draft, but I was glued to the screen for the pick of Joe Burrow. I had higher hopes for the season than I guess I reasonably should have, but it seems to have worked out pretty well for us. I said at the beginning of this season that I thought this was Zac's make or break year. If he could get to the playoffs, then I would be completely behind him. But if it was another miserable season, then I wanted the team to look for a different coach. Well... I guess I'm completely behind him now.

Anyway, this Super Bowl means a lot to me. After all the waiting and hoping, all the disappointments and anger, to finally see them back on the big stage again, I can't express how I really feel. Being able to see the joy on my kids' faces this year, having them be proud to wear their gear instead of fearing they will be mocked, it's precious. I lost my dad in 2000, and I really wish he could see this team. He would be over the moon. But now I can share it with my kids, so that makes it a little better.

So... "WHO DEY!" to all my Bengals brothers and sisters out there.  Let's bring this thing home.

[TecmoBengals]

(02-01-2022, 07:16 PM)Earendil Wrote: So, I thought this would be a fitting 1,000th post here on The Bengals Board. I know I don't say a whole lot (I'm a man of few words and a love of parentheticals), but I try to contribute when I can. I wanted to create a thread where we can discuss what being able to watch the Bengals in the Super Bowl means to each of us.

I'm kind of in the middle between the older fans who remember the founding of the team and the young pups who had never experienced a playoff win until this year (kinda like the Gen-X of Bengals fans). I only have vague memories of the '81 season, but remember quite clearly hating people like Bernie Kosar and Jerry Glanville. Cris Collinsworth was my hero (dude, what happened??) and I still remember the heartbreak of losing Super Bowl XXIII. I remember being horrified watching Krumrie's leg and devastated when Billups dropped that interception.

Of course, I thought that the team was going to be great for a long time and we would get another chance at a title. We all know how that turned out. Still, I stuck with the team, through the Shula years, Coslet, Klingler, Akili, etc. The Marvin years brought hope initially, but he was never able to get the team over the hump, for reasons that don't need to be litigated in this thread. But 2015 was pretty much my breaking point. I didn't post here much after that game and really only hung around because you guys are so cool (yes, even Fred sometimes).

I started becoming cautiously optimistic when Zac was hired, but still felt a little burned by the team. So I held back a bit. I wasn't terribly thrilled with the two-win season, but I hoped that it was a transition year while he evaluated the talent and determined how he wanted to structure the roster.  I've never cared about watching the draft, but I was glued to the screen for the pick of Joe Burrow. I had higher hopes for the season than I guess I reasonably should have, but it seems to have worked out pretty well for us. I said at the beginning of this season that I thought this was Zac's make or break year. If he could get to the playoffs, then I would be completely behind him. But if it was another miserable season, then I wanted the team to look for a different coach. Well... I guess I'm completely behind him now.

Anyway, this Super Bowl means a lot to me. After all the waiting and hoping, all the disappointments and anger, to finally see them back on the big stage again, I can't express how I really feel. Being able to see the joy on my kids' faces this year, having them be proud to wear their gear instead of fearing they will be mocked, it's precious. I lost my dad in 2000, and I really wish he could see this team. He would be over the moon. But now I can share it with my kids, so that makes it a little better.

So... "WHO DEY!" to all my Bengals brothers and sisters out there.  Let's bring this thing home.

I appreciate getting to read this post. I hope you think about your dad while enjoying the Super Bowl win with your kiddos.

& congrats on post 1,000 and becoming VIP. Let's kick it!

[MileHighGrowler]

Well said!

I'll chime in for my 800th post.

I was born in 85 so I have some memories of the SB in early 89, but didn't watch it. Mostly I remember how excited the city was, and I think it was definitely the first seed that planted a love for the team. I recall in probably 91 or 92 asking Santa (at the Cincinnati Zoo's Festival of Lights) for a Bengals uniform with Boomer's jersey. Santa laughed at me. In front of all the people waiting in line, telling me I'd be better off asking for a jersey for a team that would ever win a Super Bowl. That Santa was a dick, but it didn't dampen my spirits. I got that jersey and loved it for years.

The 90s were brutal. I had to listen to the games on the radio so often because the tv broadcast was blacked out so much. The highs of every year hoping they'd get better turned into disappointment after disappointment. I hate running, but started running sometime in the later 90s because I needed an outlet from the frustration on Sundays. I saw my first game in person in 1998 against the Elway-led Broncos at Riverfront. The Bengals almost won that game. And the energy of seeing that in person was amazing. So was losing my voice for the first time at a sporting event. I remember the excitement when Marvin Lewis came in and turned the team around. I was in college in 2005 when I thought they'd win a playoff game and go all the way (I still have a shirt from that AFC North Champs season). 2005, 2009, 2015... so many more disappointments. I emotionally distanced myself from the team a bit because I couldn't handle the heartbreak of investing every week and every season just to have it crumble. 2015 really broke me.

But I couldn't stay away. I lurked here for years, keeping tabs on the team and the community but not committing myself to really engage too deeply. Two years ago I changed that and finally joined the board. I remember some of you from the old Mothership board, and others I felt I already knew from seeing posts for years. But I was willing to give it a shot again. ZT said all the right things, had the locker room, but I was worried that once again the Bengals had someone whose pride was going to get in the way of their success. Since I left Cincinnati in 2004, I've lived by 9 other NFL team cities. But kept rooting for the Bengals and getting embarrassed for wearing their gear in public. Would it ever pay off?

And then this season. Watching the games each week (on replay if I couldn't catch them live), allowing myself to get excited about the future. And then the future became the present. This run has been special. Special because it's been waited for so long. Special because I've invested again in the team. Special because they're back in the Super Bowl. And when they win? It's going to be amazing for the team, amazing for the city, and amazing for the little boy who Santa himself told it would never happen to.

Who Dey indeed. This is a special time. I'm so glad I'm here for it. Anyone who's been a fan of this team for a long time and through the pain feels a lot of really new and amazing emotions right now, and I'm all in for them.

[Bengalstripes9]

It's great to see how much the success means to everyone. I've been watching videos all week about how excited Bengals fans are and it's just great to see. We've suffered for so many years and we're due for some success.

The wildcard game in 2015 was rock bottom for me as a fan. Burrow's injury felt similar. But now all the pain going back to the 2005 playoffs and before that being a laughingstock in the 90s..it's washed away.

This year's success means a lot to me. I'm definitely learning from Burrow and these players/this team. The way they battle back. The way they never give up--their relentlessness. I tore my ACL in high school and this summer it was giving me some trouble and it got me down as I'm only 33 and it sucks to have issues with my knee already. But watching what Burrow has done has motivated me to just go above and beyond and attack rehab and do everything I can to take care of my physical and mental health. Watching this team gives me so much motivation to just be the best person I can be and continually strive for success. I've always had it in me to focus on growth (and I think everyone does), but that extra bit of motivation has helped tremendously in terms of attacking my physical health with my knee rehab. It's so great to watch this team be successful and I'm very grateful.

[HarleyDog]

I was a Cowboys fan growing up because that's all I seen on tv and my best friend was a Cowboys fan. However, my step mom was a huge Bengals fan and I started watching with her sometimes when I was at my dad's for the weekend. In the Army, we had 1 channel and that was AFN (Armed Forces Network). We only got games they decided to show and it was tough following (they have to program to try and please everyone from everywhere). Had to read the stars and stripes newspaper to keep up. Although, when the playoffs started in 88. I was 100% rooting for Cincinnati. They represented my home state. I also rooted for the Browns too for the same reason but was still loyal to the Cowboys.

I got out and came back to Ohio and when John Kitna joined the Bengals, that was my transition. Something about that guy and his toughness got me started. Been a Bengals fan since, with Cowboys as my 2nd but really don't follow them closely or much at all.

[grampahol]

I quit letting disappointment get to me and I was fully prepared and still am to accept that the league fixes everything for profit. I can live with it because the NFL is and has been in bed with the big media companies so it is a QB driven, personality driven league.. It IS most definitely a FOR PROFIT enterprise no matter what anyone says or thinks. They went to court and won arguing that the NFL is an entertainment business just like Sony Pictures, Fox Noise, Universal and the others.. They are completely free to set whatever story lines they see fit for their share holders..
What gives me hope with the Bengals is Joe Burrow.. The guy walked straight out of NFL central casting directly to the LSU stage then onto the NFL stage. There is nothing more compelling about Mathew Stafford or any of the Rams players moreso than the Joe Burrow story, the small town kid makes good for the local team who had been on the losing end for the past 30+ years.. Being how I honestly believe the league has manipulated games through refs and even perhaps certain players to sell the most compelling story lines I just can't imagine LA being the better story here and more profitable for the league in the long run.. The NFL just isn't going to allow LA to win this game and if they do someone better lose their job..
See, I've felt this way for many years and we've just never quite had the right story line. Andy was never quite compelling nor was Palmer and Boomer nor Kenny could overcome the mystique of the SF QBs Young or Montana, but the Joe Burrow story along with Chase and the kid wonder McPherson.. Mahomes had nothing on Joe and our story and neither does Stafford and the Rams.. We ARE going to celebrate winning the SuperBowl for once..  Use logic here folks.. Just because I'm a Bengals fan doesn't mean I don't buy into game fixing.. It's a multi billion dollar enterprise, each franchise being worth more than a billion each. Does anyone in their right minds think these BILLIONAIRES are going to leave this game up to chance and Matt Stafford? Not on the very best days of all our lives combined!  

[Science Friction]

(02-01-2022, 07:16 PM)Earendil Wrote: So, I thought this would be a fitting 1,000th post here on The Bengals Board. I know I don't say a whole lot (I'm a man of few words and a love of parentheticals), but I try to contribute when I can. I wanted to create a thread where we can discuss what being able to watch the Bengals in the Super Bowl means to each of us.

I'm kind of in the middle between the older fans who remember the founding of the team and the young pups who had never experienced a playoff win until this year (kinda like the Gen-X of Bengals fans). I only have vague memories of the '81 season, but remember quite clearly hating people like Bernie Kosar and Jerry Glanville. Cris Collinsworth was my hero (dude, what happened??) and I still remember the heartbreak of losing Super Bowl XXIII. I remember being horrified watching Krumrie's leg and devastated when Billups dropped that interception.

Of course, I thought that the team was going to be great for a long time and we would get another chance at a title. We all know how that turned out. Still, I stuck with the team, through the Shula years, Coslet, Klingler, Akili, etc. The Marvin years brought hope initially, but he was never able to get the team over the hump, for reasons that don't need to be litigated in this thread. But 2015 was pretty much my breaking point. I didn't post here much after that game and really only hung around because you guys are so cool (yes, even Fred sometimes).

I started becoming cautiously optimistic when Zac was hired, but still felt a little burned by the team. So I held back a bit. I wasn't terribly thrilled with the two-win season, but I hoped that it was a transition year while he evaluated the talent and determined how he wanted to structure the roster.  I've never cared about watching the draft, but I was glued to the screen for the pick of Joe Burrow. I had higher hopes for the season than I guess I reasonably should have, but it seems to have worked out pretty well for us. I said at the beginning of this season that I thought this was Zac's make or break year. If he could get to the playoffs, then I would be completely behind him. But if it was another miserable season, then I wanted the team to look for a different coach. Well... I guess I'm completely behind him now.

Anyway, this Super Bowl means a lot to me. After all the waiting and hoping, all the disappointments and anger, to finally see them back on the big stage again, I can't express how I really feel. Being able to see the joy on my kids' faces this year, having them be proud to wear their gear instead of fearing they will be mocked, it's precious. I lost my dad in 2000, and I really wish he could see this team. He would be over the moon. But now I can share it with my kids, so that makes it a little better.

So... "WHO DEY!" to all my Bengals brothers and sisters out there.  Let's bring this thing home.

Great post. I echo most everything you said. 

[*bengalfan74*]

(02-01-2022, 08:53 PM)HarleyDog Wrote: I was a Cowboys fan growing up because that's all I seen on tv and my best friend was a Cowboys fan. However, my step mom was a huge Bengals fan and I started watching with her sometimes when I was at my dad's for the weekend. In the Army, we had 1 channel and that was AFN (Armed Forces Network). We only got games they decided to show and it was tough following (they have to program to try and please everyone from everywhere). Had to read the stars and stripes newspaper to keep up. Although, when the playoffs started in 88. I was 100% rooting for Cincinnati. They represented my home state. I also rooted for the Browns too for the same reason but was still loyal to the Cowboys.

I got out and came back to Ohio and when John Kitna joined the Bengals, that was my transition. Something about that guy and his toughness got me started. Been a Bengals fan since, with Cowboys as my 2nd but really don't follow them closely or much at all.

If you walked into any dept. store in 1975 (in my neck of the woods) all you saw was Cowboys, Packers, Steelers, and Browns stuff. A tiny little slight smattering of Bengals once in a blue moon.

Hated the Cowboys back then.

[Johnny Cupcakes]

(02-01-2022, 07:16 PM)Earendil Wrote: So, But 2015 was pretty much my breaking point. I didn't post here much after that game and really only hung around because you guys are so cool.

2015’s playoff loss was the end for me. For a long time, at least.

I’m not sure how many posts that I had on the old boards in the 6-7 years that I was a member (probably ten thousand plus), and 2/3 of my posts here were in the 8 months between the board’s inception, and the 2015 playoff debacle. A week after the loss, I quit posting here regularly, and didn’t really pick it back up until early this season. The only reason that I came around was for the members (tee-hee), and I ended up living in the P&R section mostly (I try to stay away from there now).

Burfict and Pacman ruined my love for football, and I’m glad that they never got to experience a playoff victory. I’m really glad that the Bengals rebuilt their team, both roster and culture, and reinvigorated my love for them.