AFC North

[Bengal Mania]

(Bengals slant)

I'm just glad the Bengals are finally at least in the conversation (with admittedly a lot of time left to revert to past season form...........but this team seems different, which is a long-overdue feeling)

 

1- Bengals play Balt at home this week, at Pitt next week. Yes, I can see them losing both, but I also think they can win one. If they win either one (I'm not even sure i care which one, at least for playoff positiioning purposes), then they have an early track on winning the division (assuming they beat Cleveland in Cincy, they'd be 5-1 in this scenario, best division record for tie-breakers)

 

2-Pitt and Balt play each other twice in 2nd half of season. Hope the worse-record team wins both, but at worst, hope for a split, which also helps Bengals.

 

3-Will Cleveland win even 1 division game? If they win one, I'd say that team won't win the division.

 

4-I'm NOT predicting games, but Bengals have the following games left:

AFC North - Balt, @Pitt, Cleve (get any two of these and I am NOT complaining)

AFC West - @Oak, @SD, KC (two wins are definitely do-able, I can't see 2 west coast wins). Balt got big W against DEN, Pitt plays them this week.

AFC South - already played Hou and lost (as it turns out, they lost to a team that now looks fairly formiddable?). Pitt already beat Helplessee, but Balt still has Colts!

AFC East - @NYJ (tough game on road to end season, may very well depend on what teams have to play for). Pitt @ Dolphins, who don't seem headed anywhere. Balt already got Pats loss out of way

NFC North - already beat CHI and @GB(big). Still have DET and @MIN (could MIN possible have homefield wrapped up and rest ADP by Week 14?.....doubt it). Both Balt and Pitt still have to play the Pack, but both are done w/ Min right now.

 

5-The Bengals COULD realistically go 5-4 the rest of way (if no more key injuries), which leaves 10-6, and in the playoff hunt through the end of season, which is all I'm hoping for at this time (you gotta set sights a little lower in Cincinnati, at least at mid point of season....will raise sights later in season if play of team dictates)

 

Final thought - If Bengals are already thinking of scenarios above, then season is lost. But they do seem to show better focus this year on game at hand.

[Bengal Fan]

I agree the upcoming schedule for Ciny looks good for a chance at the playoffs.

[Henry Muto]

Maybe the Browns can pay back the Bengals for 2007 when the Bengals kept them out of the playoffs.

[Grimm74]

I am a Steelers fan. I see a min. of 11 games wining the AFC north and at this point 3 playoff teams from the division. I think the Bengals have a very good team this year but I see them as 3rd in the division. I also know they beat Pitt and Balt but I need more proof then that and 7 games. I predicted the Steelers losing to the Bengals in the first game before the season began...and the Ravens have just too much talent.

[giggity]

I am a Steelers fan. I see a min. of 11 games wining the AFC north and at this point 3 playoff teams from the division. I think the Bengals have a very good team this year but I see them as 3rd in the division. I also know they beat Pitt and Balt but I need more proof then that and 7 games. I predicted the Steelers losing to the Bengals in the first game before the season began...and the Ravens have just too much talent.

 

I think you will get all the proof you need one way or another after the next two games. Even if they split the next 2 they still have to be considered the favorites to win the division. I hope they win em both!!

 

Who-Dey!!!

[tonorator]

we just need one of the two baby ...

[T_bone65]

Being from the Baltimore area, I hope the Ravens win this weekend. They sure looked much better against Denver they had looked recently. I do hope the Bengals do well though, always good to see a cellar dwellar do well

[Trots]

I just looked at the line and am fairly surprised to see the Ravens favored by 3.

[giggity]

I just looked at the line and am fairly surprised to see the Ravens favored by 3.

 

Doesn't surprise me all that much seeing as the Ravens rank higher in most statistical categories and are coming off the big win over Denver. When you have been bad for as long as the Bengals have been bad, it takes more than a few wins to prove you deserve any respect.

 

That being said, I think this year's Bengals team thrives on the underdog role and I like the fact they are home dogs. I just hope they prove the first several weeks of the season were not a fluke, and that the offense really is as good as we saw in Chicago!

 

Who Dey!

[caddyman]

we just need one of the two baby ...

Don't get too far ahead of yourself....the champs will have plenty to say about who wins this division.

[justin]

As nice as it sounds and as much as it hypes up the next two weeks, there is just way too much football to be played here to start thinking realistically about playoffs and the division title. All of these games are critical and even if Baltimore wins the next two (CIN & CLE) and Cincy loses (BAL & PIT), its still to early to tell who takes the division. I really think it will come down to the last week or two of the season, especially with BAL @ PIT. The Ravens schedule is brutal over the next month with CIN, PIT, INDY and GB.

 

I do think that it's very likely that an AFC team could have 10 wins and miss the playoffs (like NE last year).

 

So on to this week's game:

Cincy played with a heavy heart earlier in the year at Baltimore (passing of D coord's wife). They seemed inspired and Palmer was the MAN when it counted. Palmer's going to need to have the same drive this week and the Ravens CB's are soft and very beatable. Last week, the Ravens D shut down DEN, so maybe they're back on track, but Orton never really tested the secondary.

I think the Bengals lost some D-line presence (key injury) and I think the Ravens revert back to a solid running plan, slow pace down and take the game in Cincy. The Ravens O-line had been beat up, but Gaither is back (was injured at NE) and he and Oher are solid bookends to an otherwise above average line.

[giggity]

I agree the the Bengals played inspired football in the game at Baltimore, but the Bengals are getting some pieces back this week as well. Roy Williams is back after missing the past couple games with an injured forearm, hopefully this will shore up the Bengals D against the screen passes, as this is where I see the Ravens trying to attack. Also, the Andre Smith should be available for this game, so we will finally get to see if he can make an already surprisingly good run blocking line get that much better. Benson already ran for over 100 AT Baltimore. I see this game coming down to whether or not the Bengals O can execute in the run game and take advantage of the suspect Ravens secondary down the field, and whether or not they can limit the Ravens O on the explosive big passing plays and special teams. If Carson plays like he did against the Bears, there is no way they lose. Keep in mind that Chad Ochocinco was stripped on a great play by Ed Reed closing out the first half when it looked like he was going to score, and Ray Rice Made an unbelievable play to not go down in the 3rd and score a touchdown on what would have been 3rd and very long. The Bengals could have very easily won that game 24-7 instead of 17-14.

[The Irish Doggy]

The Ravens have to win this game if they want to contend for the AFC North. With a win, they are tied with Cincy. A loss, and they are effectively three games back because of 2 more losses and they lose the H2H tiebreaker even if they ended with the same record. That's a tough scenario with 8 games remaining. Baltimore will come to play I'm sure. This is a hugh game for the division.