Circle the wagons

[bengal kitten uk]

Bengals fans: It's time to circle the wagons.

Our team is under attack from all sides.

We're the dirtiest team in the league. Vontaze Burfict should be banned from football for life. We're whiners. The Shazier hit was legal. Our fans (we!) are disgusting for cheering Big Ben's injury. Our fans (we!) are disgusting for throwing things on the field. We're chokers. We'll be one and done forever.

Worst of all: we're saying all of these things to ourselves.

ENOUGH!

It's time we stopped playing the role of the bullied and stand united against our enemies.

Here are some facts for people who are quick to judge us:

The Steelers are the dirtiest team in the league
The Steelers have been the dirtiest team in the league for at least the past decade
James Harrison has been fined more and done much worse than VB
Heinz Field cheered as Huber had his jaw broken
Hines Ward's hit(s)
Carson's ACL
The hit on AJ Green last year that cost us our shot at a playoff win then
Mike Mitchell's dirty headhunting on Eifert
Their coaches are as bad as their players: Tomlin on the field, Munchak pulling a player's hair, Porter acting like he's still a player rather than an authority figure
The poorly controlled debacle at the weekend was a continuation of the poorly controlled debacle four weeks ago and even the former Head of NFL Officiating (Mike Pereira) has said that they shouldn't have assigned the same Referee to both games.

We need to be making sure people realise that there are two sides to every story. They are only picking on us because they can. Stand up and be counted as proud (or as proud as you can feel right now) Bengals fans together.

Who Dey! and F**k the Steelers.

[Devils Advocate]

The Steelers have been the dirtiest team since the 70's.

[TexasorBusted]

Agreed. I am just glad that the world FINALLY got to see a typical Steelers-Bengals game. This crap happens twice every year in the AFC North. Non-Bengals and non-Steelers fans I know were shocked at how crazy this game was...How dirty the Steelers were and how different two teams are treated by the officials...I told them, this was par for the course.

When Burfict sacked Big Ben, I said, "That makes us square with Kimo von Oelhoffen destroying Carson Palmer's knee."

Bengals have two missions every year:
1) Bengals win the Super Bowl.....Fail.
2) Steelers don't win the Super Bowl (without Bell and with Big Ben's likely separated shoulder)....mission accomplished.

I can sleep well....

[Gohards]

I dont care what ANYBODY says of sports injuries. If a good player on the opposing team goes down with injury, as a fan of your team, you are happy. If you dont want your team to have the best chance to win, you are not a true fan. When big ben goes down, i get excited. People need to quit living in fairytale worlds and realize, its the truth.

[Gwillednt]

(01-11-2016, 08:51 PM)TexasorBusted Wrote: Agreed. I am just glad that the world FINALLY got to see a typical Steelers-Bengals game. This crap happens twice every year in the AFC North. Non-Bengals and non-Steelers fans I know were shocked at how crazy this game was...How dirty the Steelers were and how different two teams are treated by the officials...I told them, this was par for the course.

When Burfict sacked Big Ben, I said, "That makes us square with Kimo von Oelhoffen destroying Carson Palmer's knee."

Bengals have two missions every year:
1) Bengals win the Super Bowl.....Fail.
2) Steelers don't win the Super Bowl (without Bell and with Big Ben's likely separated shoulder)....mission accomplished.

I can sleep well....

Um.. I agree with a lot of what you said except the Bold. Nationally, the opposite happened owing to a variety of factors: The Bengals looked like the dirty team to the national market. Some of it was ref bias. Some was media bias. Some was the ending of the game.

And you need to remember most people DON'T know about all the history, and only saw THIS GAME. If you only saw THIS GAME you'd see, in my opinion TWO undisciplined teams. So I don't agree with the bolded part at all.

However, in regards to the topic: **** the Steelers.

[Gwillednt]

(01-11-2016, 09:00 PM)Gohards Wrote: I dont care what ANYBODY says of sports injuries. If a good player on the opposing team goes down with injury, as a fan of your team, you are happy. If you dont want your team to have the best chance to win, you are not a true fan. When big ben goes down, i get excited. People need to quit living in fairytale worlds and realize, its the truth.

Agree only to a point. A lasting injury I would not cheer, or a serious life threatening one. But yes, being too banged up to get up for the rest of that game? I can agree to that.

I still can't agree to throwing stuff at an injured player though, that's for Philly and Cleveland.

[McC]

(01-11-2016, 08:48 PM)Devils Advocate Wrote: The Steelers have been the dirtiest team since the 70's.

Probably before that too.  It's just that none of us were around to see it.

[McC]

(01-11-2016, 09:06 PM)Gwillednt Wrote: Agree only to a point. A lasting injury I would not cheer, or a serious life threatening one. But yes, being too banged up to get up for the rest of that game? I can agree to that.

I still can't agree to throwing stuff at an injured player though, that's for Philly and Cleveland.

How many of the 60,000 actually did that?  I'm willing to bet that any crowd of that size with access to beer will always have a few bad apples, at the very least.

[Gwillednt]

(01-11-2016, 09:09 PM)McC Wrote: How many of the 60,000 actually did that?  I'm willing to bet that any crowd of that size with access to beer will always have a few bad apples, at the very least.

I don't like that argument, as I almost never see it happen at PBS, Heinz, or any other field I go to besides Philly/Cleveland. One is too many, it flat out isn't seen most places, and we *are* classier than those two crapholes.

[McC]

(01-11-2016, 08:48 PM)Devils Advocate Wrote: The Steelers have been the dirtiest team since the 70's.

For years, we were comfortably in the rear view mirror.  Now that we're standing next to them, or, at worst, right behind them, they are doing a really lousy job of handling that uncomfortable truth.   They save all their truly rotten shit for us because their worst nightmare is not being better than the Bengals.  Maybe second worst.  There is the Browns. 

I keep coming back to the fact that this never happens against any other team.  How come no one is saying that? 

[TexasorBusted]

I get there are drunks and assholes in a 60,000 seat stadium, but that was uncalled for. Was not happy to see debris on the field. You don't live in Cleveland, you live in Cincinnati...

[TexasorBusted]

(01-11-2016, 09:05 PM)Gwillednt Wrote: Um.. I agree with a lot of what you said except the Bold. Nationally, the opposite happened owing to a variety of factors: The Bengals looked like the dirty team to the national market. Some of it was ref bias. Some was media bias. Some was the ending of the game.

And you need to remember most people DON'T know about all the history, and only saw THIS GAME. If you only saw THIS GAME you'd see, in my opinion TWO undisciplined teams. So I don't agree with the bolded part at all.

However, in regards to the topic: **** the Steelers.

Maybe I just have friends that are not buying the garbage the MSM rags spew...

[Gwillednt]

(01-11-2016, 09:18 PM)TexasorBusted Wrote: Maybe I just have friends that are not buying the garbage the MSM rags spew...

You do. But like I said, to a neutral fan, I don't see why you'd be on the Bengals side. If you fall for the media hype, you'd be on the Steelers... if you don't, you'd fall on the "they're both jerks" side.

I'm being completely impartial when I say that. To one who doesn't know all the history? Both teams acted like punks, and the debris and stuff didn't improve it nationally. I can't blame them for thinking both teams are punks.

[TexasorBusted]

(01-11-2016, 09:20 PM)Gwillednt Wrote: You do. But like I said, to a neutral fan, I don't see why you'd be on the Bengals side. If you fall for the media hype, you'd be on the Steelers... if you don't, you'd fall on the "they're both jerks" side.

I'm being completely impartial when I say that. To one who doesn't know all the history? Both teams acted like punks, and the debris and stuff didn't improve it nationally. I can't blame them for thinking both teams are punks.

One friend of mine is a Redskins fan...Yeah, he was pissed about what happened to his team (And he hates Gruden and wants him fired), but he felt that the refs stole that game from the Bengals...He mentioned the Williams flag, the Burfict flag which he called a "Vlade Divac acting job", the Porter BS move that cause Adam Jones' flag and the Shazier hit on Gio.

He watched the game and was shock that the referees could be SO pro-Steelers...I said this was par for the course....This happens twice a year in the regular season...I wasn't shock about any of it...

[McC]

(01-11-2016, 09:11 PM)Gwillednt Wrote: I don't like that argument, as I almost never see it happen at PBS, Heinz, or any other field I go to besides Philly/Cleveland. One is too many, it flat out isn't seen most places, and we *are* classier than those two crapholes.

You might be trying to inject high moral ground into a place where it doesn't fit.  A couple idiots do a stupid thing.  Come on.  It in no way taints a whole city or the entire crowd.  Guilt by association does not apply.

You said it yourself--you almost never see it happen at PBS.  Of all the outrages in that game, to me, this is far down on the list.  Far, far down.

[jj22]

I agree. I knew we'd lose. What couldn't happen is we get beat up, IR'd and concussed like we did in game 2 with the Steelers coming out barely touched.

I'm not going to act like we have an innocent defense, we don't, and just for times like Saturday. It was a war that had to be had, and it's too bad it was on national tv for the national media to side with the Steelers.

I even forgive the fan. Whoever it is is getting slammed for throwing the one good bottle that almost hit Ben. At that moment that act was for thousands of us fans who think it was tacky, and wouldn't have gone there. The intent was good! And a blind eye should be given. Some here sound like they would have pointed them out.

But AFCN fans (and many more nfl fans) saw what went down and as ugly as it was understood. It was an epic game with an epic meltdown (Hill's another story). But it wasn't a physical one, and the Steelers felt it. And for that I'll be ready to turn the page quicker than expected.

They showed more fire then I've ever seen in a playoff game under Marvin in the second half, and rallied behind a fallen warrior. If there's any reason to explode seeing your teammate down like that is it. So it is what it is.

They'll be ready for them in 2016. And I don't expect them to back down. Win or Loss.

I expect poise and constraint against any other team however.

[GodFather]

All this PC stuff about not wanting other players hurt, I jumped up and cheered when Burfict took Ben out.

[TexasorBusted]

(01-11-2016, 09:31 PM)jj22 Wrote: I agree. I knew we'd lose. What couldn't happen is we get beat up, IR'd and concussed like we did in game 2 with the Steelers coming out barely touched.

I'm not going to act like we have an innocent defense, we don't, and just for times like Saturday. It was a war that had to be had, and it's too bad it was on national tv for the national media to side with the Steelers.

But AFCN fans (and many more nfl fans) saw what went down and as ugly as it was understood.  It was an epic game with an epic meltdown (Hill's another story). But it wasn't a physical one, and the Steelers felt it. And for that I'll be ready to turn the page quicker than expected.

They showed more fire then I've ever seen in a playoff game under Marvin in the second half, and rallied behind a fallen warrior. If there's any reason to explode seeing your teammate down like that is it. So it is what it is.

They'll be ready for them in 2016. And I don't expect them to back down. Win or Loss.

I expect poise and constraint against any other team however.

^^Can't rep you enough.....AMEN!! This was just a battle in the greater war....

[McC]

(01-11-2016, 09:31 PM)jj22 Wrote: I agree. I knew we'd lose. What couldn't happen is we get beat up, IR'd and concussed like we did in game 2 with the Steelers coming out barely touched.

I'm not going to act like we have an innocent defense, we don't, and just for times like Saturday. It was a war that had to be had, and it's too bad it was on national tv for the national media to side with the Steelers.

But AFCN fans (and many more nfl fans) saw what went down and as ugly as it was understood.  It was an epic game with an epic meltdown (Hill's another story). But it wasn't a physical one, and the Steelers felt it. And for that I'll be ready to turn the page quicker than expected.

They showed more fire then I've ever seen in a playoff game under Marvin in the second half, and rallied behind a fallen warrior. If there's any reason to explode seeing your teammate down like that is it. So it is what it is.

They'll be ready for them in 2016. And I don't expect them to back down. Win or Loss.

 

Great post.

[Fan_in_Kettering]

The big bad playground bully finally got his lights punched out and he didn't like it one bit.