Cincinnati 38, New York Jets 31
The Jets managed to outsuck the Bengals Sunday in a quagmire of turnovers and penalties. Chad Pennington swiss cheesed the Bengal secondary early with his wet noodle of an arm and proved once again that anybody can throw against Deltha and friends. A coat tree could tackle better than our corner backs. Bresnahan’s blitz calls have improved the last two games and the linebackers are limited but not directly losing games. It’s the secondary that continues to allow the blow up plays and we’ve invested two first rounders to dam that flood. We still have a good ways to go before the young tandem can become at all consistent. Down by 13 points in the second half to a lousy team at home, I thought we’d hit a new (recent) low.
Then things turned around in the second half when Bratkowski called his best game of the season, capped off by the shovel pass to Watson on 3rd and 7 inside the redzone in the fourth quarter. I’d been calling for that play all year. He stuck with the run behind by two touchdowns and that allowed the battered offensive line to get into rhythm. Behind Carson, Whitworth is the best draft pick under Marvin Lewis. For such a colossal guy he really moves down field well.
After two thorough drives to give us the lead, one thing became obvious; Watson is a more effective runner than Rudi. Remember when Corey Dillon got into a car accident on his way to the stadium in ‘03 against the Seahawks? Rudi came in and bashed Seattle and we never really saw Corey again. Now Rudi is on the outside looking in too.
Rudi has one style of running, straight ahead. If a play calls for a hole to be somewhere, Rudi either runs through it or tries to create his own hole if it isn’t there. The second Kenny Watson gets the ball, he scans the field and finds a hole even if it isn’t where it should be. He’s more patient than shifty, more finesse than power. He allows plays to develop in front of him and then squeezes through small openings to get him just enough for first downs, touchdowns, etc. Rudi puts his head down and tries to smash through walls.
But there’s more to it than just running style. With Watson’s ability to run to the outside, the Bengals play calling is opened up to a new set of possibilities. Maybe we’ll run a screen, a shovel pass, a draw, or a delay with Watson. When Rudi is back there, outside linebackers move in between the hash marks and wait for him to run right at them.
There’s also the style of the run blockers to think about. In ‘03 the Bengals had a smash mouth line who could push defenders backwards. Now we have some young athletic lineman who prefer to pull away from the line and get down field before laying a hat on somebody. Willie is older and not the same as his glory days, Levi has become 100 percent finesse, and Bobby Williams is just fat. But the youngsters, Ghaicuic and Whitworth, and even Stacy Andrews like running the screens, the pitches and the draws.
Watson is an older less explosive version of both Chris Perry and Kenny Irons. When one or both of those guys someday get back on the field, one can see how this offense can get back to the high powered days of old. Rudi may soon be watching the Bengals play on TV with Corey Dillon considering he’s due to collect over 6 million next year. It seems he’s reached his plateau as a Bengal and limits the play calling too much to remain effective. Running backs have a short shelf-life in the NFL especially for those considered a one-trick pony like Rudi.
Mojokong - Carting off workhorses to the glue factory.
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
Thursday, October 18, 2007
Week 6 recap
Chiefs 27, Bengals 20
Whenever the Bengals are brought up in conversation these days, a roomful of people will furrow the brows, think a moment, and settle on one of many reasons why they aren’t winning games anymore. Eventually everyone agrees that nobody really knows why that is and go on to the next topic.
The fact nobody knows is the unsettling part. Surely somebody has to know or all hope is lost, right? No one wants to face that fact just yet.
If the conversation holds a minute longer on the Bengals, then we get the Time Machine Effect. First they think back to when winning seemed to fall into our lap (forty four times), and when Carson seemed to never make mistakes (101.1). 2005, the Should-have-been Super Bowl year!!!
Then they remember the dark ages when winning 6 games in a season seemed okay. Finally they just shrug at the mediocre team we seem to have settled on and again move on to another topic, usually Dusty Baker.
I don’t want to talk about the defense anymore. They aren’t getting much better no matter who gets healthy at linebacker. Losing Odell Thurman will continue to haunt this team until they can find a game changer. If we must indulge in the Time Machine Effect than he is the missing link from the limited (even pretty lucky) defensive success we enjoyed that season. He had five interceptions, five forced fumbles, over 100 tackles and most of all, everyone watching knew when Odell made the tackle. You rarely see players blowing up ball carriers so consistently. And he did all that his rookie season. He has been banished since and the absence of his impact still hurts two seasons later.
Now, the other major difference to an 11 win season is that of a dominating offensive line. What in the hell has happened to Levi Jones? I questioned resigning him to a big contract when negotiations were taking place and this is what I was afraid of. A friend of mine has for years warned me of buying into Levi, even when he was drafted. I never listened until he came with a $40 million price tag for six years! I do think he will get better and move forward though. Ask Marv.
Willie is literally falling apart before us. His body ages in dog years and he’s just too lovable to have him put down. I can see Willie being one of those decrepit retired players who becomes the example of how football destroys your body. Poor guy. And he’d play if he was missing both legs if you asked him to. Here are some Willie quotes from this week:
"I'm all right ... no one is 100 percent,"
“They said it's up to me to play with the pain,"
We love ya Ol’ Yeller. I hope Willie is the next Bengals coach for the 8 to 10 years that he can still walk.
Then there’s Steinbach. He got paid a boat load to go to Cleveland, but they seem to have a decent line up there. I laughed when I saw what they paid him. I’m not laughing anymore. Also Guicec is not Rich Braham. This line isn’t near the caliber of ’05 and it is exposing our superstars as seeming vastly overpaid.
Will Rudi be back? Would trading Chad set back the passing game all that much? Could he bring a first rounder or a good linebacker? Is Carson a really a top three quarterback? All of these questions would have been scoffed at before the season and now are worth at least discussing. Chad isn’t getting traded, Rudi will be back and Carson is fine. It’s just the kind of speculation that ensues after a series of bad losses. What else are we gonna talk about? Oh yeah, Dusty Baker.
Mojokong – asking for a third down conversion this Christmas.
Whenever the Bengals are brought up in conversation these days, a roomful of people will furrow the brows, think a moment, and settle on one of many reasons why they aren’t winning games anymore. Eventually everyone agrees that nobody really knows why that is and go on to the next topic.
The fact nobody knows is the unsettling part. Surely somebody has to know or all hope is lost, right? No one wants to face that fact just yet.
If the conversation holds a minute longer on the Bengals, then we get the Time Machine Effect. First they think back to when winning seemed to fall into our lap (forty four times), and when Carson seemed to never make mistakes (101.1). 2005, the Should-have-been Super Bowl year!!!
Then they remember the dark ages when winning 6 games in a season seemed okay. Finally they just shrug at the mediocre team we seem to have settled on and again move on to another topic, usually Dusty Baker.
I don’t want to talk about the defense anymore. They aren’t getting much better no matter who gets healthy at linebacker. Losing Odell Thurman will continue to haunt this team until they can find a game changer. If we must indulge in the Time Machine Effect than he is the missing link from the limited (even pretty lucky) defensive success we enjoyed that season. He had five interceptions, five forced fumbles, over 100 tackles and most of all, everyone watching knew when Odell made the tackle. You rarely see players blowing up ball carriers so consistently. And he did all that his rookie season. He has been banished since and the absence of his impact still hurts two seasons later.
Now, the other major difference to an 11 win season is that of a dominating offensive line. What in the hell has happened to Levi Jones? I questioned resigning him to a big contract when negotiations were taking place and this is what I was afraid of. A friend of mine has for years warned me of buying into Levi, even when he was drafted. I never listened until he came with a $40 million price tag for six years! I do think he will get better and move forward though. Ask Marv.
Willie is literally falling apart before us. His body ages in dog years and he’s just too lovable to have him put down. I can see Willie being one of those decrepit retired players who becomes the example of how football destroys your body. Poor guy. And he’d play if he was missing both legs if you asked him to. Here are some Willie quotes from this week:
"I'm all right ... no one is 100 percent,"
“They said it's up to me to play with the pain,"
We love ya Ol’ Yeller. I hope Willie is the next Bengals coach for the 8 to 10 years that he can still walk.
Then there’s Steinbach. He got paid a boat load to go to Cleveland, but they seem to have a decent line up there. I laughed when I saw what they paid him. I’m not laughing anymore. Also Guicec is not Rich Braham. This line isn’t near the caliber of ’05 and it is exposing our superstars as seeming vastly overpaid.
Will Rudi be back? Would trading Chad set back the passing game all that much? Could he bring a first rounder or a good linebacker? Is Carson a really a top three quarterback? All of these questions would have been scoffed at before the season and now are worth at least discussing. Chad isn’t getting traded, Rudi will be back and Carson is fine. It’s just the kind of speculation that ensues after a series of bad losses. What else are we gonna talk about? Oh yeah, Dusty Baker.
Mojokong – asking for a third down conversion this Christmas.
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
First Quarter Report Card
A solid D. That’s the grade the Bengals received for the first quarter of the season and not what they demonstrated on the field.
The offense gets a B, the defense a D- and the special teams an F.
The bad:
Cleveland Browns scored 51!!
Justin Smith was completely useless for the first quarter after being franchised in the off-season.
Leon Hall doesn’t pay attention in class.
Safeties can’t tackle.
Marvin treats Levi like an unwanted step child.
Willie looks like he can’t move after games.
Darren Simmons’ special teams are zombies with football helmets.
The good:
Kenny Watson doing all he can.
Our passing game.
Michael Myers
If you break the season into quarters, the Bengals need two quarters of 3-1 records and the other one they have to go 2-2 to end at 9-7. That seems tough. Take a hard look at this team and you can’t help but see another 8-8 season. They exemplify mediocrity. Marvin has had five years to construct a winner and it just isn’t happening. This team is all glamour and no backbone. It’s a yacht built out of ply wood and glue. These coaches don’t seem to prepare like other teams do either. We always hear the players saying that the opponent did “exactly what we thought they would”. Then why do we lose games when we know what’s coming?
This Sunday is the earliest must-win I can remember. It’s early October and we have to beat the Chiefs to have a shot at the season. While David Fulcher and Reggie Williams will not be returning for the Bengals defense this season, a few linebackers will. And even though that’s like bringing a band aid to Iraq, you never know what might save lives, or in this case seasons.
Mojokong - Ichabod Crane does my grades.
The offense gets a B, the defense a D- and the special teams an F.
The bad:
Cleveland Browns scored 51!!
Justin Smith was completely useless for the first quarter after being franchised in the off-season.
Leon Hall doesn’t pay attention in class.
Safeties can’t tackle.
Marvin treats Levi like an unwanted step child.
Willie looks like he can’t move after games.
Darren Simmons’ special teams are zombies with football helmets.
The good:
Kenny Watson doing all he can.
Our passing game.
Michael Myers
If you break the season into quarters, the Bengals need two quarters of 3-1 records and the other one they have to go 2-2 to end at 9-7. That seems tough. Take a hard look at this team and you can’t help but see another 8-8 season. They exemplify mediocrity. Marvin has had five years to construct a winner and it just isn’t happening. This team is all glamour and no backbone. It’s a yacht built out of ply wood and glue. These coaches don’t seem to prepare like other teams do either. We always hear the players saying that the opponent did “exactly what we thought they would”. Then why do we lose games when we know what’s coming?
This Sunday is the earliest must-win I can remember. It’s early October and we have to beat the Chiefs to have a shot at the season. While David Fulcher and Reggie Williams will not be returning for the Bengals defense this season, a few linebackers will. And even though that’s like bringing a band aid to Iraq, you never know what might save lives, or in this case seasons.
Mojokong - Ichabod Crane does my grades.
Thursday, October 4, 2007
Week 4 recap
New England 34, Cincinnati 13
The Bengals played the roll of underdog well on Monday night. They looked overmatched, uninspired and outcoached to the mighty Patriots. The Bengals locker room continues to look like M*A*S*H and everybody’s yelling at someone else. But ask Marv what he’s going to do about it and he’ll tell you this, “We’re moving forward.”
That expression has become Marvin’s daily mantra. We hear it every press conference multiple times. It can fit into an answer for any question thrown at him. How are you going to fix this team? We’re going to get better and move forward. Will any linebackers be back for KC? They’re moving forward. Hey Marv, how was traffic this morning? Moving forward. It’s a little ridiculous.
The mentality of this team has been so delicate the past five years that it seems they could never become the model of professionalism that is New England. Cheating aside, the Patriots never panic. They too have had years when injuries press third and fourth stringers into action on defense but they still get it done thanks to exceptional game planning and an occasional hidden camera. Cincinnati on the other hand simply can’t handle the pressure of stepping up when the chips are down. The coaches don’t have an answer. The players are either penciling themselves into the Super Bowl or are convinced they’re a bad team without any grounded perspective after every game. The media overhype the players reactions because the coaches are always mum on any subject of importance. And it all results in a team who can’t be counted on when it matters most.
Before we move forward to the point where we miss the playoffs and fire Marvin, let’s step backward for a moment. When the schedule came out, pundits and fans all agreed we could easily be 1-3 at this point. The schedule really loosens up after the bye week. Can we go 9-3 the rest of the way? Probably not. Eight more wins seem at first overly optimistic, but look closer. On offense, Rudi, Chris Perry, Tab Perry, Chris Henry, and Eric Guicheck are all coming back soon. On defense there’s Ahmad Brooks, Landon Johnson, Rashad Jeanty, Caleb Miller and maybe someday Frostee Rucker. That’s a lot of help on the way and coupled with the easier second half schedule , you have yourself a legitimate bright side.
Sure we’re moving forward but in what direction?
Mojokong - The Orangutan of Optimism
The Bengals played the roll of underdog well on Monday night. They looked overmatched, uninspired and outcoached to the mighty Patriots. The Bengals locker room continues to look like M*A*S*H and everybody’s yelling at someone else. But ask Marv what he’s going to do about it and he’ll tell you this, “We’re moving forward.”
That expression has become Marvin’s daily mantra. We hear it every press conference multiple times. It can fit into an answer for any question thrown at him. How are you going to fix this team? We’re going to get better and move forward. Will any linebackers be back for KC? They’re moving forward. Hey Marv, how was traffic this morning? Moving forward. It’s a little ridiculous.
The mentality of this team has been so delicate the past five years that it seems they could never become the model of professionalism that is New England. Cheating aside, the Patriots never panic. They too have had years when injuries press third and fourth stringers into action on defense but they still get it done thanks to exceptional game planning and an occasional hidden camera. Cincinnati on the other hand simply can’t handle the pressure of stepping up when the chips are down. The coaches don’t have an answer. The players are either penciling themselves into the Super Bowl or are convinced they’re a bad team without any grounded perspective after every game. The media overhype the players reactions because the coaches are always mum on any subject of importance. And it all results in a team who can’t be counted on when it matters most.
Before we move forward to the point where we miss the playoffs and fire Marvin, let’s step backward for a moment. When the schedule came out, pundits and fans all agreed we could easily be 1-3 at this point. The schedule really loosens up after the bye week. Can we go 9-3 the rest of the way? Probably not. Eight more wins seem at first overly optimistic, but look closer. On offense, Rudi, Chris Perry, Tab Perry, Chris Henry, and Eric Guicheck are all coming back soon. On defense there’s Ahmad Brooks, Landon Johnson, Rashad Jeanty, Caleb Miller and maybe someday Frostee Rucker. That’s a lot of help on the way and coupled with the easier second half schedule , you have yourself a legitimate bright side.
Sure we’re moving forward but in what direction?
Mojokong - The Orangutan of Optimism
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