Cincinnati Bengals vs Cleveland Browns Recap 9/11/2011

What a better way to start your NFL career than face the instate rival in Cleveland Browns. With many familiar faces gone from the team this was different look Bengals, and It was evident it the play as they beat the Cleveland Browns 27-17.

I'm not sure if Andy Dalton's first career start got off to a smooth start as he marched the Bengals down the field to get a Mike Nugent 24 field goal as the Bengals took an early 3-0 lead.

In his second series, Andy Dalton led the Bengals down the  field for a 2 yard hook up with Jermaine Gresham to extend the Bengals lead to 10-0.

All along the Bengals defense has been putting pressure on the Browns who had to settle for three straight punts before they got on the score board.

On the next two Browns possession Colt McCoy led this teams to two straight touchdowns to give the Browns a 14-13 lead going into half-time, mostly assisted by two blown coverage on defense. 

The second half was a defensive battle, until the Browns feel asleep at the line of scrimmage and the Bengals ran a quick snap count to get A.J. Green wide open for a 41 yard hook up from the backup QB Gradkowski.

That touchdown put the Bengals up 20-17, from there on it was all about the Bengals defense. The defense stepped up when their name was called. Everything the Browns tired to do, the defense stopped.

And just to put a little cherry on top, Cedric Benson on 3rd and 3 with less than 2 minutes left, got a rushing touchdown to put the Bengals up 27-17.

I have to admit, I didn't give much of a chance to the Bengals after Dalton went out with a wrist injury. I don't think anyone put any faith in Bruce Gradkowski to rally this team for a win, but he did.

Major props goes to the defense for winning the line of scrimmage and for no penalties. Also credit goes to the offense for no turnovers.

Special credit goes to Dunlap, he kept putting pressure on McCoy though out the game. Also give credit to Nelson for making big hit after big hit. The offensive line played really well, kept both the QB's safe and protected though out the game.

On a side note, Dalton was 10 of 15 with 81 yard and one TD with a passer rating of 102.5. Those numbers would have been much better if some of the WR's didn't drop a few balls.

Denver next week.

Read More

Follow @cilii_blog

Cleveland radio guy goes on a rant about the Browns but it might as well be about the Bengals

This is a rant by Greg Kozarik of Cleveland.com Digital Sports Network. I swear if you take out the Cleveland Browns and replace it with Cincinnati Bengals it will be the same damn thing.
And if you replace Randy Lerner with Mike Brown as the devil you won't miss a beat. Every single damn thing he said about the Browns are true with the Bengals. No matter what, we follow the Bengals like a pack of sheep hoping for something better.
If you look at both of these franchises you can clearly see the decline as soon as the new owners took charge. Another reason I'm pondering I should never have kids, cause if I pass something down to my son, it's guaranteed he'll fuck it up.
The Cleveland Browns are just as sad and pathetic as the Bengals, win or lose I don't even hate the Browns anymore, I just feel sorry for them.

Read More

Follow @cilii_blog

Recap Cleveland Browns vs Cincinnati Bengals

Browns - 17
Bengals - Who cares

The 75th Battle Of Ohio has come and gone, and no one missed a thing. The Battle of Ohio should be known as "Lets see who sucks more". I mean when was the last time this rivalry was relevant?
Like I stated last week, for the rest of the season I will not be recapping any more Bengals game, rather I will bitch and complaining about anything I can think of.
But let me say this first, Jerome Simpson caught two passes.
So what made the Bengals a good team that won the AFC North last year and what made them into a 3-11 so far this year? Last year the Bengals was a good rushing team, which meant that they controlled the ball and possession with limited turnovers. So in the off-season, the Bengals organization decided that to be an even better football team that they needed to stretch the field, which meant we needed a good WR. So they went and got TO, which is fine, because TO is a great player and a match up problem for any DB's.
But what the Bengals didn't need to do was become a pass happy team rather than a rushing team. There is only a few teams in the NFL that can just rely on the aerial attack to win games. Adding a great WR is a good addition to an already pretty good team, but the philosophy and scheme didn't need to change just because of one single player. Switching from a rushing team to a passing team put Carson Palmer in a position that he might have not been comfortable in.

You can't blame anyone when Carson starts throwing INT's, but you can blame the OC for the play calling which can sometimes lead to the defense recognizing the pattern and jumping it. And I feel like the coaches this season has not put the players in a good position to do their jobs.

So honestly I wouldn't be upset if Carson stuck around for next season, but I would be a little upset if the coaching staff has not been fired and replaced.

Read More

Follow @cilii_blog

Chad Dukes Don't Have Shit On Us

OK Chad Dukes, we get it, your Redskins got their ass handed to them on national television and you pay $30 for parking tickets. We get the that Shanahan is not making good decisions, and we get that Haynesworth was doing the worm for no reason. But get a hold of your self  man, the Washington Redskins are not the Detroit Lions, the Cleveland Browns or my beloved Cincinnati Bengals.
Think about this Dukes, your beloved Redskins have won super bowl three times in the last 30 years, 1983 (XVII), 1988 (XXII), 1992 (XXVI). So please shut it. At least your idiot owner is willing to do anything to win you guys a championship. He brings in a Superbowl winning coach, he also bring in a QB that has been to the Superbowl once and to the NFC title game five times. If Daniel Snyder could buy a Superbowl he would of have done it years ago. So slow down on your ranting and raving, until you become a Lions, Browns or Bengals die hard fan you don't know what real suffering is.

Read More

Follow @cilii_blog

Re-Cap Cincinnati Bengals vs Cleveland Browns

Cincinnati Bengals 20
Cleveland Browns 23
Last week we where all whining about Carson play, so he goes out today and throws for 371 yards with 2 TD and no interceptions.
So how did we lose to the Browns?
Was it the bad call on Dhani Jones, who was called for pass interference that converted a third down for the Browns. Where the Browns eventually got a 1-yard run from Peyton Hillis.
Or was it a bogus call on Pat Sims who was called for defensive holding on Cleveland’s final drive. Instead of the Browns facing a third-and-nine from their own 12, they got a first down that helped them run out the final 4:41 of the clock.
Or is it the fact the defense couldn't stop the Cleveland's juggernaut offense?
What ever the reason maybe, the Bengals need to figure out their shit. I would like to see one game in the near future where the offense and the defense are playing on a very high level.
And why are the Bengals taking a timeout right after they are done measuring for a first down? It just seemed like a wast of timeout that we could of have used later.
The O line keeps playing like garbage, I just can't figure out these guys.
The Bengals offense seem to play well in a hurry up, so why don't we do it more often? To me it seems pretty simple, it something is working keep doing it.
I only have one thing to say after today's game. With the amount of talent on this football team there is no way we should be playing like the Cleveland Browns. It is just pathetic.

Image vis: (AP Photo/Amy Sancetta)
Stat: ESPN

Read More

Follow @cilii_blog