I still can't process this....

[*Go Cards*]

(02-02-2022, 10:28 PM)Science Friction Wrote: Sorry to hear that. 

Maybe the Universe will somehow deliver him the message.

Thanks, Yet I do believe he is watching with me and is happy somehow too. 

[XenoMorph]

One can only Enjoy the Ride

[*Wyche'sWarrior*]

(02-02-2022, 05:30 PM)XenoMorph Wrote: i dont doubt a lot of us bengals fans at similar thoughts when it was 21-3  then it was 21-10 though and we got a stop before the half.....


And then we remembered the last Chiefs game where we held them to 3 in the 2nd half and low and behold they did it again.   Not enought can be said for how the Defense has played.

Count me in on that. When Apple made that tackle to end the half....I started to believe again. At 21-3, I was certainly doubting another magical finish.

[BengalChris]

(02-01-2022, 07:19 PM)Tony Wrote: I've been a Bengals fan my whole life, born in stealer country north east PA and still here. I even came home when I was born in stealer gear. (Dad still teases me with the picture)..  It was 88 when I noticed football, I started playing midget football and I fell in love with the uniform, Boomer and of course the Ickey shuffle. I been here ever since. All the abuse I've taken for 30+ years has all been worth it to get to this moment. It's finally our time.. It just seems all surreal to me. I was starting to think I'd never see a playoff win let alone being in the superbowl... This is amazing... We are gonna be here for a while to on top of things in the AFC...

Yeah, I'm still in shock and disbelief. Never saw things coming together like this for the Bengals. But very happy that it has happened.

 

[Mickeypoo]

(02-02-2022, 08:17 PM)Earendil Wrote: I'm so glad my kids have been able to see this.

I'm right there with ya buddy!!!!!!

[Tomkat]

(02-02-2022, 08:03 PM)fredtoast Wrote: It is not as surreal to the older fans who have seen us in Super Bowls before.

I can't imagine being a fan since the early 90's and not even seeing a single playoff win in 30 years.

I'd say it's still just as surreal to some of us older guys... having lived through the lost decade and starting to doubt if we'd ever see this again.

[Speedy Thomas]

(02-03-2022, 08:56 PM)Tomkat Wrote: I'd say it's still just as surreal to some of us older guys... having lived through the lost decade and starting to doubt if we'd ever see this again.

That's where I am.  I've been a fan since 1969.  Yeah, I know the team started in 68.  It took me a year to come over from the Browns.  Don't judge me.  I have loved many Bengal teams -- 81, 88, 05, 15 particularly come to mind.  But this is my all-time favorite team.  They play with such joy, and a rare combination of insane self-confidence and humility.  I think Burrow and McPherson were probably born with it, and I put Taylor in that category too.  He and Shiesty set the tone.

I always have high hopes.  But I have had my heart broken so many times (81, 88, 05, 15) that my expectations in August were modest.  Honestly, I would have been happy with a winning season.  But to be here, where we are now....

Surreal.  But thankfully, it's not surreal for the coaches and team.  That's why we have a great chance to win it all.

Meanwhile I am enjoying every minute.  Young people, make sure you enjoy it too.  

WHOOOOOOOO DEYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  

[*Awful Llama*]

(02-03-2022, 08:56 PM)Tomkat Wrote: I'd say it's still just as surreal to some of us older guys... having lived through the lost decade and starting to doubt if we'd ever see this again.

Especially after some of the absolutely bonkers things that have happened to this team.  I mean, the losing from '91 to '02 was bad enough, but then we finally get a playoff-caliber QB/team and look ready for a run, then:

We win the division and get a home playoff game, but our QB get his knee shredded, and
We win the division four years later but lose in the first round to friggin' Mark Sanchez, and
Our QB splits town, and 
Against all odds we manage a WC spot but lose, and
We manage a second WC spot but lose to the same damn team again, and 
We win the division and are favored at home but fumble away the game, and
We manage a third WC spot but all of our receivers shatter into pieces and we lose, and 
We win the division and are within two minutes of sweet revenge before fumbling and fouling our way to an unprecedented loss, and 
We then suffer through five miserable, losing seasons.

Surreal is a good word.

[Speedy Thomas]

(02-03-2022, 09:21 PM)Awful Llama Wrote: Especially after some of the absolutely bonkers things that have happened to this team.  I mean, the losing from '91 to '02 was bad enough, but then we finally get a playoff-caliber QB/team and look ready for a run, then:

We win the division and get a home playoff game, but our QB get his knee shredded, and
We win the division four years later but lose in the first round to friggin' Mark Sanchez, and
Our QB splits town, and 
Against all odds we manage a WC spot but lose, and
We manage a second WC spot but lose to the same damn team again, and 
We win the division and are favored at home but fumble away the game, and
We manage a third WC spot but all of our receivers shatter into pieces and we lose, and 
We win the division and are within two minutes of sweet revenge before fumbling and fouling our way to an unprecedented loss, and 
We then suffer through five miserable, losing seasons.

Surreal is a good word.

Man, I feel your pain.

I was at PBS for every one of those soul-crushing losses.  I have a favorite (cheap) parking lot 8 blocks from the stadium.  An easy walk before the game but the longest trudge in the world after a loss.  God, I remember those walks.

[*rfaulk34*]

(02-02-2022, 08:13 PM)Awful Llama Wrote: Right, we knew it was possible, it was just a matter of when, and would we live to see it.  Younger fans may chuckle at that last bit, but I'm sure there were many Bengals fans in their 50s and 60s who watched that last SB in '89 and never gave up hope of a return trip, yet never lived to see it.  Don't take this game for granted, because you just never know.  

I don't know about anyone else, but it's weird how 30 years never felt so long as it did right after that Raiders game. Before it was a running thing and i don't know if i just didn't comprehend it the same...but when that game was over i thought about 1990/91 and it seemed like 2 lifetimes ago. The difference in perception was like night and day in the span of just 30 minutes or so.

[Sled21]

After watching us fall in the Super Bowl twice, it wasn't until Wyche was fired that I gave up hope of returning. Heck, there were seasons where I just hoped we wouldn't lose all 16 games. I just never felt any of the coaches hired from that time until Marvin could get us there again. When Marvin was hired, I had great hopes and he did great things, but always failed when the playoffs came around. I was then of the mindset we would just be a mediocre middle of the pack team who twice a year took beatings from the Stealers. When Mike Brown went out and hired a new, untested, offensive minded coach who explained what his visions for this team were, for some reason I believed what he was selling. There was just something that told me "This is going to be the guy." Of course, we know his first year was horrible, dealing with an aging and often malcontent roster, and his second year was derailed by injuries that devastated the roster. With Burrow coming back, I predicted 10 wins this year, but was not sure 10 would be enough to take the division, or even back into the playoffs as a Wild Card. But I thought a 10-win season would show we were on the right path. Less than 9, and I said it was probably time to move on. But Taylor never wavered in his vision of how he wanted to rebuild this team. We got 10, got into the playoffs, and have now beaten 3 teams, all of whom were supposed to beat us. So win or lose, we are in the Super Bowl again, and the future could not look any brighter for this young team. I really expect this to be the year they return to Cincinnati with the Lombardi.

[fredtoast]

(02-03-2022, 09:42 PM)rfaulk34 Wrote: I don't know about anyone else, but it's weird how 30 years never felt so long as it did right after that Raiders game. Before it was a running thing and i don't know if i just didn't comprehend it the same...but when that game was over i thought about 1990/91 and it seemed like 2 lifetimes ago. The difference in perception was like night and day in the span of just 30 minutes or so.

I was alive in 1991 and 1960 seemed like ancient history.

[Arturo Bandini]

This is written in the stars.

[*Nate (formerly eliminate08)*]

(02-02-2022, 10:14 PM)Tony Wrote: I wonder how many fans we have just because of our helmets alone... That's what really got my attention.. Back then they were like futuristic, compared to the other helmet designs in the league..

Definitely the reason I became a fan, that and the name of the city. Cincinnati is like the coolest city name there is and it just 
sounds cool with the Bengals after it. The Tiger is also my favorite animal cause of their stripes and just the coolness of the 
largest cat in the world. I know that is the Siberian Tiger but still, awesome animal.

[Tony]

(02-04-2022, 03:27 PM)Nate (formerly eliminate08) Wrote: Definitely the reason I became a fan, that and the name of the city. Cincinnati is like the coolest city name there is and it just 
sounds cool with the Bengals after it. The Tiger is also my favorite animal cause of their stripes and just the coolness of the 
largest cat in the world. I know that is the Siberian Tiger but still, awesome animal.

Ya it was weird because at 8 years old, to just fall in love with every aspect of the Bengals was crazy.. I LOVED the name the unis the ickey shuffle. It was appealing to and 8 year old...

[*Nate (formerly eliminate08)*]

(02-04-2022, 03:32 PM)Tony Wrote: Ya it was weird because at 8 years old, to just fall in love with every aspect of the Bengals was crazy.. I LOVED the name the unis the ickey shuffle. It was appealing to and 8 year old...

Yes, Ickey was my favorite football player at 7 years old. Him and Boomer of course. Boomer Esiason is a cool damn name too.

Esiason looks awesome on a Bengals jersey.

[*rfaulk34*]

(02-04-2022, 12:53 PM)fredtoast Wrote: I was alive in 1991 and 1960 seemed like ancient history.

I was the same in the '80s, listening to hair metal, the '50s seemed like that. That was grandpa and grandma's day at the time.

[Cuzz from England]

We didn't really have access to American football here until 1982 when a new t.v. channel called channel 4 showed a 2 hour highlights programme on a Saturday or morning. I immediately fell in love with the game. No particular team, just the game. Seeing John Riggins run over people , seeing Walter Peyton run and evade tackles, seeing Joe Montana throw so accurately it was all so new and exciting and overall FUN !!!! Then I locked onto Boomer and Ickey and the coolness of the Bengals helmets (as mentioned elsewhere) and I was a Bengal for life. To all of you true fans in America who've lived and breathed a mostly disappointing and frustrating time supporting them through the lean years, this time is for you. Never has there been a more exciting or optimistic time to be a Bengal fan. We could have another 15 years ( hopefully) of the most exciting quarterback certainly in our history, maybe the NFL's history. Every up and coming talent is dreaming of being drafted to us now . We are going to be Superbowl champions and this is just the beginning of great things.