NFL Playoffs 2022 (following 2021 Season) and what not

[Gunpowder]

That’s my only frustration. Officials were letting it all go all game both ways - and then all of a sudden weren’t. That blew.

draft OLx4 and a playmaker on defense.

What if the draft is a complete crapshoot tho

[Gunpowder]

That’s my only frustration. Officials were letting it all go all game both ways - and then all of a sudden weren’t. That blew.

draft OLx4 and a playmaker on defense.

Yes. I get it. It can be two things.

obviously you know this more than most, TB, but it's also funny how it seems to be overlooked that the Bengals *did* address the offensive line in the draft and FA this offseason. it's not like they said "yeah let's run it back with the group that almost got Joe killed"

that clearly didn't work out right away due to a combination of injuries and a lack of immediate contribution from Carman, but it feels like a simple bounceback could do wonders for the line in 2022 with minimal additions

The draft is a crapshoot being said, I am still in disbelief that Car Man is the guy they decided to go with there.

[EnochRoot]

That’s my only frustration. Officials were letting it all go all game both ways - and then all of a sudden weren’t. That blew.

draft OLx4 and a playmaker on defense.

Yes. I get it. It can be two things.

Lemme just say I’m sorry your team lost.

To clarify, by playmaker, you know, like a CB with enough awareness to TURN THE FUCK AROUND to make a play on the ball (cuz the whole planet knows its coming).

[tennbengal]

That’s my only frustration. Officials were letting it all go all game both ways - and then all of a sudden weren’t. That blew.

draft OLx4 and a playmaker on defense.

Yes. I get it. It can be two things.

obviously you know this more than most, TB, but it's also funny how it seems to be overlooked that the Bengals *did* address the offensive line in the draft and FA this offseason. it's not like they said "yeah let's run it back with the group that almost got Joe killed"

that clearly didn't work out right away due to a combination of injuries and a lack of immediate contribution from Carman, but it feels like a simple bounceback could do wonders for the line in 2022 with minimal additions

Losing Reiff at RT to a season-ending injury was a problem in week 10 that was never overcome. He was helping Carman and/or Adeniji before that with being a solid vet. Prince had his hands full just trying to be ok, and was useless to help at RG. They relied on Hopkins at C coming off an ACL tear in early January. That was...optimistic. They indeed did not ignore the line, but they didn't all the way fix it either. Which...makes sense, as you cannot completely overhaul an entire team in one off-season. It is a multi-year process - and was my point all along that they were at least one year early for this kind of run. From 5-4 to where they ended up and almost winning the Super Bowl was as magical a run as I have been around in terms of a team walking a tightrope for three months.

Skill positions locked in, QB locked in, guts of D locked in, no excuses not to finish hammering at line this off-season.

[tennbengal]

That’s my only frustration. Officials were letting it all go all game both ways - and then all of a sudden weren’t. That blew.

draft OLx4 and a playmaker on defense.

What if the draft is a complete crapshoot tho

Agreed. I get so tired of the twitter-verse and even the experts saying "OMG DRAFT SEVEN O-lINE"...I mean, fuck. Rookies take time, man. Everyone hammering on Jackson Carman (with reason) but...he was a rookie. How did the rookies fare on the Steelers o-line? (I know you know). Some good, some bad. Etc.

Protecting Burrow is going to require at least two and I would prefer three really good FAs. And then draft line for depth. It is in free agency that this will have to be addressed if they want to even make the playoffs. The AFC is ridiculously loaded as is the AFC North.

I think they will make those moves in FA and I am pretty sure all things being mostly equal in terms of money, players will want to come block for Burrow.

But, as god is my witness, it has to be FA additions. They cannot risk Burrow behind rookie RT, rookie C, rookie RG, etc. etc etc. Won't work. Bad plan.

[tennbengal]

That’s my only frustration. Officials were letting it all go all game both ways - and then all of a sudden weren’t. That blew.

draft OLx4 and a playmaker on defense.

Yes. I get it. It can be two things.

Lemme just say I’m sorry your team lost.

To clarify, by playmaker, you know, like a CB with enough awareness to TURN THE FUCK AROUND to make a play on the ball (cuz the whole planet knows its coming).

I mean, Apple was the 4th CB pressed into service when Wayans got hurt again. He was decent all year. That he got beat 1 on 1 by the best WR in the game is...understandable? I mean, how many CBs exist that stopped Kupp this year? Like, NONE?

[EnochRoot]

That’s my only frustration. Officials were letting it all go all game both ways - and then all of a sudden weren’t. That blew.

draft OLx4 and a playmaker on defense.

Yes. I get it. It can be two things.

Lemme just say I’m sorry your team lost.

To clarify, by playmaker, you know, like a CB with enough awareness to TURN THE FUCK AROUND to make a play on the ball (cuz the whole planet knows its coming).

I mean, Apple was the 4th CB pressed into service when Wayans got hurt again. He was decent all year. That he got beat 1 on 1 by the best WR in the game is...understandable? I mean, how many CBs exist that stopped Kupp this year? Like, NONE?

He wasn’t beaten because he was playing Kupp. He got beaten because he displayed poor fundamentals.

[Johnnie]

I've been trying to find a reverse angle of the final Bengals play, because, with all of the O Line talk, this is brutal:

[EnochRoot]

I've been trying to find a reverse angle of the final Bengals play, because, with all of the O Line talk, this is brutal:

I was stunned they gave the MVP to Kupp. I’m not sure people realize just how dominant Aaron Donald was last night.

[Johnnie]

Yes, he absolutely was. Aaron Donald is unreal.

Also, best I can do is All 22:

[tennbengal]

That’s my only frustration. Officials were letting it all go all game both ways - and then all of a sudden weren’t. That blew.

draft OLx4 and a playmaker on defense.

Yes. I get it. It can be two things.

Lemme just say I’m sorry your team lost.

To clarify, by playmaker, you know, like a CB with enough awareness to TURN THE FUCK AROUND to make a play on the ball (cuz the whole planet knows its coming).

I mean, Apple was the 4th CB pressed into service when Wayans got hurt again. He was decent all year. That he got beat 1 on 1 by the best WR in the game is...understandable? I mean, how many CBs exist that stopped Kupp this year? Like, NONE?

He wasn’t beaten because he was playing Kupp. He got beaten because he displayed poor fundamentals.

okey dokey. the best corners with the best fundamentals have been beat by Kupp all year in those kind of spots on those kinds of routes. If Apple guesses fade and Kupp instead plants and drives to back pylon and catches it (like he did against the 49ers) you hammer Apple for that. Kupp was better than Apple. Bringing in the mythical world's best corner (who I have no idea who you have in mind) likely doesn't change that one outcome. Weird thing to focus on. I am guessing you hate Apple.

[tennbengal]

I've been trying to find a reverse angle of the final Bengals play, because, with all of the O Line talk, this is brutal:

Yes, Aaron Donald won LA the game with that last rush. He is an all-time great player. That Ramsey got smoked again was not surprising to me. Chase is really really good. If they can find enough of a line to buy Burrow one more second in general next year, that's gonna be good for Cincy's chances to compete again for the playoffs. And not having to play Aaron Donald will help too.

[EnochRoot]

draft OLx4 and a playmaker on defense.

Yes. I get it. It can be two things.

Lemme just say I’m sorry your team lost.

To clarify, by playmaker, you know, like a CB with enough awareness to TURN THE FUCK AROUND to make a play on the ball (cuz the whole planet knows its coming).

I mean, Apple was the 4th CB pressed into service when Wayans got hurt again. He was decent all year. That he got beat 1 on 1 by the best WR in the game is...understandable? I mean, how many CBs exist that stopped Kupp this year? Like, NONE?

He wasn’t beaten because he was playing Kupp. He got beaten because he displayed poor fundamentals.

okey dokey. the best corners with the best fundamentals have been beat by Kupp all year in those kind of spots on those kinds of routes. If Apple guesses fade and Kupp instead plants and drives to back pylon and catches it (like he did against the 49ers) you hammer Apple for that. Kupp was better than Apple. Bringing in the mythical world's best corner (who I have no idea who you have in mind) likely doesn't change that one outcome. Weird thing to focus on. I am guessing you hate Apple.

Nah. Apple fights for our privacy. Had Apple turned to make a play on the ball the entire world knew was coming, and Kupp reacts by adjusting his route, that buys the pass rush another second to get to the QB. And why not double him anyway?

[tennbengal]

That's fair question. Don't know. Sometimes you do what you can as a team and it is not enough.

Both teams had chances to win the game. Both teams had chances to lose the game. The outcome really was on a razor's edge. Officials making calls after not making calls all game. Stafford making a great throw mid drive and then surviving some bad throws. Burrow not having an extra half second to make one final throw because Donald is a monster.

But I don't know what is gained by breaking a game as close as that one was down to one play. Any of dozens of plays go differently and it is a Rams blowout or a Bengals win by around 10 or, what we had, something close and in-between.

[EnochRoot]

That's fair question. Don't know. Sometimes you do what you can as a team and it is not enough.

Both teams had chances to win the game. Both teams had chances to lose the game. The outcome really was on a razor's edge. Officials making calls after not making calls all game. Stafford making a great throw mid drive and then surviving some bad throws. Burrow not having an extra half second to make one final throw because Donald is a monster.

But I don't know what is gained by breaking a game as close as that one was down to one play. Any of dozens of plays go differently and it is a Rams blowout or a Bengals win by around 10 or, what we had, something close and in-between.

On the offensive side of the ball, Stafford was as deserving as Kupp. But there was nobody more important to the Rams victory last night than Aaron Donald. Here’s where I exaggerate for effect…If the game were to play out just as it did (OBJ getting hurt, etc): would the Bengals have won by more than two TDs if Aaron Donald were a league average replacement DT?

[tennbengal]

That's fair question. Don't know. Sometimes you do what you can as a team and it is not enough.

Both teams had chances to win the game. Both teams had chances to lose the game. The outcome really was on a razor's edge. Officials making calls after not making calls all game. Stafford making a great throw mid drive and then surviving some bad throws. Burrow not having an extra half second to make one final throw because Donald is a monster.

But I don't know what is gained by breaking a game as close as that one was down to one play. Any of dozens of plays go differently and it is a Rams blowout or a Bengals win by around 10 or, what we had, something close and in-between.

On the offensive side of the ball, Stafford was as deserving as Kupp. But there was nobody more important to the Rams victory last night than Aaron Donald. Here’s where I exaggerate for effect…If the game were to play out just as it did (OBJ getting hurt, etc): would the Bengals have won by more than two TDs if Aaron Donald were a league average replacement DT?

Yes. I think so.

But also, if OBJ doesn't get hurt, I think the Rams win going away.

[Brontoburglar]

worth pointing out that the bengals likely weren't going to double receivers on the Kupp TD pass because of the time and score. the Rams had just snuck it with Stafford and another run to potentially take more time off the clock/force a timeout if there wasn't a TD was a play worth betting on

[Steve of phpBB]

Game was a great time…I’ll post a more detailed experience in the next day or two…flying back to CO Monday morning 7.

Fantastic. I'm glad you were able to make it, outcome notwithstanding.

Condolences to you and TB and any other Bengals fans out there.

[Gunpowder]

That’s my only frustration. Officials were letting it all go all game both ways - and then all of a sudden weren’t. That blew.

draft OLx4 and a playmaker on defense.

Yes. I get it. It can be two things.

Lemme just say I’m sorry your team lost.

To clarify, by playmaker, you know, like a CB with enough awareness to TURN THE FUCK AROUND to make a play on the ball (cuz the whole planet knows its coming).

Yeah man that's how easy playing corner in the NFL is.

[Gunpowder]

Wonder why Jalen Ramsey didn't just turn around when Higgins slowed down? I mean come on NFL players

[HaulCitgo]

I've been trying to find a reverse angle of the final Bengals play, because, with all of the O Line talk, this is brutal:

Yes, Aaron Donald won LA the game with that last rush. He is an all-time great player. That Ramsey got smoked again was not surprising to me. Chase is really really good. If they can find enough of a line to buy Burrow one more second in general next year, that's gonna be good for Cincy's chances to compete again for the playoffs. And not having to play Aaron Donald will help too.

That 3rd and 1 play just as big.

[Gunpowder]

Oh also they gave the ball to PERINE WTF

On 4th down they couldn't give the ball to Perine again no matter what look the Rams showed because Taylor knew he'd be murdered on the spot if it didn't work. RIP Joe Mixon

[DSafetyGuy]

Oh also they gave the ball to PERINE WTF

On 4th down they couldn't give the ball to Perine again no matter what look the Rams showed because Taylor knew he'd be murdered on the spot if it didn't work. RIP Joe Mixon

I saw a tweet last night saying something like there were four 3rd or 4th and short opportunities that the Bengals failed to convert with Mixon out of the game for Perine.

[tennbengal]

I can sorta explain that - for some reason the coaches see Perine as the better blocking back (it’s not clear he is but the coaches clearly think he is) so in two minute hurry up and when they have to throw and are dealing with the line being slaughtered you get Perine. They were in spread on the third and 1 so Perine was in. In fact, he took every snap on the last series. I don’t get it, but that’s been the pattern.

[tennbengal]

For the year, Mixon was 9 of 18 on third or fourth and one and Perine 2 for 4. I am not certain it mattered….the o-line was an issue…

[EnochRoot]

Shoulda tried harder to injure Kupp

Curious as to why the NFL didn’t step in to see if Cooper Kupp suffered a concussion on that dirty hit by Bell. I mean, Bell got flagged for it, so why not evaluate Kupp, as he stayed down for a bit. Dude looked concussed-AF.

[Gunpowder]

For the year, Mixon was 9 of 18 on third or fourth and one and Perine 2 for 4. I am not certain it mattered….the o-line was an issue…

On that particular play, I would have bet money that Mixon would have gotten it*. He was running like a ball of knives while Perine was being Perine.

*I do realize that there's a butterfly effect here but I'm still sticking with this.

[tennbengal]

For the year, Mixon was 9 of 18 on third or fourth and one and Perine 2 for 4. I am not certain it mattered….the o-line was an issue…

On that particular play, I would have bet money that Mixon would have gotten it*. He was running like a ball of knives while Perine was being Perine.

*I do realize that there's a butterfly effect here but I'm still sticking with this.

Fwiw, the fanbase (and me) agrees with you - but would have been different personnel to have Mixon for that because, again, for whatever reason, Perine is the guy they use in two minute offense.

[Brontoburglar]

Wonder why Jalen Ramsey didn't just turn around when Higgins slowed down? I mean come on NFL players

a cornerback would have turned around in 1988

[GoodKarma]

Said I would give a more detailed account of my Super Bowl experience so here goes...I'm not the best at converting thoughts to words on "paper" and being succinct (hence why I don't post much) so bear with me.

As a general rule I hate crowds and prefer to stay home on my couch. That being said I had an overall great experience. The SoFi property is still under a lot of construction but the League did a pretty good job of planning and moving people in and out of the property. Gates to the stadium opened at 11 or 11:30am; my friend and I had previously committed to going to The Players Tailgate since our original plan was to just go to LA for some fan camaraderie and watch the game in a bar somewhere. It was at the casino right next to the stadium so we parked in one of the satellite lots about 3 miles away and were bussed onto the property. Since we were part of the initial rush when the parking lots opened we had to wait about 30 minutes for a shuttle bus and it took about 30 minutes for the bus to get from the lot to the stadium, even though they had one lane each way blocked off as designated bus-only lanes. We hung out at the tailgate until about 2 then walked over to the stadium.

We had a couple of autographed footballs that we tried to take in but were stopped because they were not allowed; luckily they had a trailer onsite with some lockers (for the low low price of $20) to use. Once we got that sorted we worked our way into the actual stadium which is architecturally gorgeous but still some narrow pathways and concourses for moving 70,000 people in and out. We were in section 517; row 6 in aisle seats (which was added bonus). The views were great. It was obviously high up but I still felt like I could see everything I would expect to see in person at an NFL game. Of the people we interacted with in our seats: in front of us were two Rams fans followed by three Bengals fans; next to us were two Rams fans; behind us were three Bengal fans and one Rams fan. The Rams fan behind us was good natured but ran his mouth too much; everyone else was pretty easygoing (except for what I consider to be normal fan behaviors). I'll come back to the game itself in a bit.

The halftime show was amazing in person...the whole stadium singing along to California Love was awesome to hear. I can't really elaborate any more than that. Watching the setup was cool. We specifically chose seats on the side behind the Bengals bench because we figured the performers would be facing that way.

After the game the Rams fans around us were cool; fist bumps, etc. all around (I'm assuming because they won). They thanked us for coming and talked about how they hoped we had a good time and that their city was a good host. We stuck around for the Lombardi trophy presentation and then walked back to collect our things in the locker and then back to the shuttle bus. They had a steady stream of shuttles on hand so we only had to wait 10-15 minutes before we were on our way back to the parking lot. We were back to our car by 8:30.

Regarding the game itself and as a Bengal fan I don't have much else to add. Although have not re-watched the game or seen any highlights yet I agree with TB's take on things; I will just reiterate that the Bengals did not lose the game because of officiating; it is just unfortunate that the refs seemed to swallow there whistles until the Rams last drive. For those (especially Rams fans and Eric Weddle) who want to bitch about the no-call face mask I will just remind them of the NFC title game three years ago against the Saints regarding another no-call PI.


Random thoughts/notes:
We bought the tickets from Vivid Seats...the had the lowest prices by several hundred dollars.
Only game ticket holders could park in the satellite lots...it cost $40 plus they charged you $10 for the shuttle bus. Lots near the stadium were charging $200-$300. All of the lots on the stadium property were closed/used for other things.
In the era of digital ticketing they still made you print the parking pass and shuttle passes in order to use them.
The Players Tailgate food was excellent and booze was included but they let too many people in and it was too hot to be outside with little or no shade...especially considering how much it cost.
The trailer with the lockers had a couple hundred but only three were used by fans...I found this amusing for some reason.
We did not attend any of the fan events inside the gates...there was a concert that I believe was a ticketed event and just a giant bar and retail area.
We went to a nearby brewery after the game. A couple of Rams fans came in and bought us some beers...they said they felt like they should be good ambassadors for the city. When I went to purchase a pint glass to add to my wall (for those of you that have seen me in the Swamply Connect videos) the bartender just gave it to me.
We flew in & out of Long Beach direct from & back to Denver. I got the tickets on the day of the AFC title game and paid $130 round trip. Right up until Thursday the prices were still under $200.
Hotels outside of the Inglewood/LA/Santa Monica area were normally and reasonably priced. Stayed in a Sheraton in Pasadena on Fri & Sat and a Fairfield in Los Alamitos for under $200/night.
Regular beer was $17. Good beer was $19. Water was $5.

I'm not great at taking pictures but here is a link to some pictures/short videos. Some of them are not very good...I'm still deciding what I'm going to keep: https://photos.app.goo.gl/P9ZJXDNj4orwWGBT7

[rass]

Glad you had a good time other than that one thing.

Guy Fieri looks like he's been hitting the gym.

[Nonlinear FC]

Thanks for the recap Z... Pretty cool you got to go, and while it might've run you back some coin, seems like you guys didn't have to totally break the bank.

[tennbengal]

that's fantastic summary GK. Feels like I was there...

[Giff]

Great recap, GK! Glad the experience was worth it.

[The Sybian]

that's fantastic summary GK. Feels like I was there...

Seriously, thanks for taking the time to post. I think most of us have always dreamed of going to a SB, cool hearing the details and the pics/videos great. Really weird seeing the halftime show videos from that angle after watching it on TV, and that stadium is just stunning! It looks cool on TV from the outside but the views of the Hollywood Hills from inside was amazing. Sorry your team didn't win, but it sounds like you had an amazing experience anyways. Funny how the people of LA are concerned with being ambassadors to their city. Maybe it's just weird hosting your own team in a SB.

[Steve of phpBB]

That's an awesome writeup, and sounds like a great time. There are not that many people who can say they've seen their team in the Super Bowl.

[GoodKarma]

that's fantastic summary GK. Feels like I was there...

Seriously, thanks for taking the time to post. I think most of us have always dreamed of going to a SB, cool hearing the details and the pics/videos great. Really weird seeing the halftime show videos from that angle after watching it on TV, and that stadium is just stunning! It looks cool on TV from the outside but the views of the Hollywood Hills from inside was amazing. Sorry your team didn't win, but it sounds like you had an amazing experience anyways. Funny how the people of LA are concerned with being ambassadors to their city. Maybe it's just weird hosting your own team in a SB.

Regarding the ambassadors thing it was nice but I guess I found it odd...and I don't think that is unique to LA. I know some people think their city is at best unique and more realistically think their city is full of terrible people and want to not be that way. All cities have great people and terrible people...it depends on how much of an jerk I act like and/or who you happen to run into.

BTW I'm not hiding how much I paid for the ticket. I'm happy to share if people want to know. I didn't post it b/c I didn't want it to look like some sort of brag or flex. DM me if you want to know or if you all won't think I'm an asshole for posting I'll share it in this thread. I did apologize to my wife for going because it is probably the most financially irresponsible thing I've ever done.

[Johnnie]

[A_B]

Dunno if we have a offseason thread or not. if you can't laugh at your own team, who can you laugh at?

[pruitt2]

Dunno if we have a offseason thread or not. if you can't laugh at your own team, who can you laugh at?

I'm so old that I remember when it was Jeff George because he was the only person who could overthrow the Ayatollah