At 12/18/12 08:45 PM, RydiaLockheart wrote:
People have asked who is more responsible for the situation the Jets are in, Mark Sanchez or Rex Ryan. I'd say Ryan, since any coach with half a brain would have benched Sanchez much earlier in the season.
I would put blame on Ryan too, but I would put more blame on the Jets GM. Basically, all he has done for the last 4 years or so is to put much, if not all of his focus on one side of the ball, {the defense} and simply gave Sanchez second-rate piecemeal talent to work with on offense, it's no wonder why they can't score more than 14 points in a game on a regular basis to save their own season.
Never mind that they seem to be more content on grabbing headlines for their trades and empty promises, than actually building a Super Bowl contending team every year. The Bengals did this for a while when they acquired players with rap sheets and who burned bridges with other teams, but at least there, it either worked out or they cut their losses and learned a lesson in the process, maybe.
If the Steelers beat the Bengals and the Browns, they're in the playoffs. Of course, the Bengals are not just going to roll over and hand them a win Sunday.
It's also no guarantee that the Steelers will beat the Browns the next time. That said, I'm not going to put any faith into that happening again, while the Browns are somewhat better than before, {if you consider beating up on the AFC West teams not named Denver to be better} they're still the Browns.
The last time they played, Dick LeBeau managed to figure out the Bengals' offense during the first half and was able to use that against them the second half. (I think the Cowboys also figured out the Steelers' offense Sunday, too). I doubt the Bengals will show their hand so easily this time.
Well, Cincinnati had a 14-3 lead last time, but pretty much gave it up and you know the rest. From what I've seen, the Steelers are in a lot of trouble, particularly with Ben's issues with OC Todd Haley, and the defense falling apart every which way, it would be paramount for the Bengals to take advantage of this and pull off a win in Pittsburgh. I'm not going to put too much stock in that happening, considering their history of coming up short despite being the better team, but for once I would like to see them get over that hump.
The Bengals are too talented to be coming up short in these situations over and over again, and I feel like they're way overdue for some success in the winter.