Are you ready for some football?! I sure am, and I know alot you all are too. So it’s time to rundown my predictions of the regular season schedule for the one team that really matters. The Cincinnati Bengals.
Sep. 10 at Kansas City Chiefs - I’m not all that familiar with this year’s Chiefs team, but I haven’t heard much about them either. If Carson doesn’t play in this game, it could be a tough one. But I will give the win to the Bengals either way. The Chiefs could end up looking past a Palmerless Bengals team.
Sep 10 Cleveland Browns - It’s the Browns. ‘Nuff said’. Bengals win.
Sep 24 at Pittsburgh Steelers - Now it gets interesting. The Bengals seem like the better team, but we all know the Steelers are known for rampant cheating. If the refs call this game fair, and Carson is back close to his ability, I look for the Bengals to prove why they should’ve been the ones in the Superbowl last year.
Oct 1 New England Patriots - Tough call, but this will probably be the first loss of the year for the Bengals. If it were in New England, I’d go with the Pats just because they get all the calls in their favor at home. This game, however, is a real toss up. I think the Bengals are a better team, but no one goes undefeated.
Oct 15 at Tampa Bay Bucs - Tampa Bay kinda sucks, so I say the Bengals come off the bye week and cruise to a win.
Oct 22 Carolina Panthers - The Panthers have improved even more since last season. I think this could be a fairly high scoring game. Unfortunately, Cincy falls just short of victory. I hope not though.
Oct 29 Atlanta Falcons - Michael Vick can’t do it by himself. He’ll run around the field alot, but the Bengals will get the win by at least 10 points.
Nov 5 at Baltimore Ravens - Adding Stever McNair improves Baltimore’s lousy offense, but they still aren’t contenders for the division. Bengals roll.
Nov 12 San Diego Chargers - I’ll go with the Bengals again here also. Chargers don’t have enough on offense to match Cincy. San Diego probably needs to score alot of points if they are to win.
Nov 19 at New Orleans Saints - The Saints are still rebuilding with Reggie Bush. Bengals win.
Nov 26 at Cleveland Browns - Browns still suck…next.
Nov 30 Baltimore Ravens - Bengals get by the Ravens again, making 2 straight seasons without a loss to idiot Ray Lewis’ team.
Dec 10 Oaklans Raiders - The Raiders will be lucky to win 8 games all year, and by the time December rolls around, they’ll have enough team dysfunction, with Randy Moss at the center of it. Another Bengals victory.
Dec 18 at Indianapolis Colts - Last year’s game between these two teams was a shoot out. I expect a similar game this year also, with Indy probably getting a win by no more than a touchdown.
Dec 24 at Denver Broncos - This is a game the Bengals can, and probably should win. Unless the playoff picture is set and Cincy starts resting its starters.
Dec 31 Pittsburgh Steelers - The biggest rivalry in the NFL could end up being diminished, depending on how the playoff pitcure has shaped up by the time this game is played. It could either determine the AFC North champs, or be a throw away game due to the possibility of one or both teams having their postseason set. If this is a meaningful game, look for the Bengals to stomp the Steelers, and prove once and for all who is the top team in the AFC North. Screw the Steelers.
So by my calculations, the Bengals should finish the season somewhere in the neighborhood of 12-4 or 13-3. This may be wishful thinking, but stranger things have happened. We’ll all have to see how the whole NFL season turns out.
My favorite team is the Cincinnati Bengals. My 2nd favorite team is whoever is playing the Pittsburgh Steelers that week.
August 18th, 2006 at 3:16 pm
So Ken, was your favorite team the Seattle Seahawks the week of the Superbowl? The Seahawks are my favorite team. I do feel the Seahawks were hosed by the refs in the Superbowl. O well though, nothing anyone can do about it now.
August 18th, 2006 at 3:28 pm
Smarty, we share your pain in getting hosed out of a win against the Steelers.
I must say though, Ken, you’re predictions are pretty lofty. Especially if Palmer doesn’t make it back until after the bye.
I think 10 wins is more than optimistic considering the brutal schedule. I’d be shocked if they win 12.
That said, Pittsburgh will also have a tough time of it having lost half of their offensive weapons. There is a VERY good possibility of both teams rolling into the last game with 9-10 wins with everything up for grabs.
August 18th, 2006 at 3:33 pm
I totally thought they were robbed in that game. But yeah, it was last season. This yeah is all about the orange and black.
August 18th, 2006 at 3:39 pm
I should have noted that my predictions are based on Carson Palmer being near 100% from the second game on. I am also quite biased in my opinion, so that influenced alot. The Bengals do indeed have a brutal schedule, but I don’t think 10 or 11 wins is that far out of reach.
Just remember what NFL stands for: No Figuring League.
August 18th, 2006 at 4:57 pm
Ken you should just do a post on how the NFL and Pittsburgh makes you angry. LOL.
August 18th, 2006 at 8:12 pm
It hurts being schooled by the Big Boys, AKA The Pittsburgh Steelers, over and over, doesn’t it?
We hardly lost half of our offense. Jerome was old and barely played and Randal El is replaceable. I’ll miss him but we have tricks up our sleeve. Gotta love Whisenhunt, he’s a creative fellow that will make our offense kick ass again this year. And I never worry about the defense. We’re known as the Steel Curtain for a good reason.
I see my Steelers going 13-3 and kicking the Bengals ass twice. I would say three times but we all know the Bengals won’t make the playoffs.
August 19th, 2006 at 10:14 am
Yes, the Steelers defense is known as the Steel Curtain for a good reason… because they were so dominant 30 YEARS AGO.
I’m not saying they don’t have a really good defense, but the Bengals lit them up in the second game, and put up just as many points with a backup quarterback as any of the other “top” offenses in the league did during the playoffs.
And don’t downplay losing your grind it out back and #2 receiver… The Steelers offense will definitely not be any better than last year, probably not quite as good.
August 19th, 2006 at 11:20 am
Our defense boasts the best SS in the league in my opinion, Troy Polamalu and with veterans such as Casey Hampton and Joey Porter, they’re going to one of the top defenses this year.
As for your Bengals luck in the second game vs. us last year, it was just that, luck. It takes consistency to earn my respect and admiration and your boys simply have not done that yet.
The offense will be just as good, if not better, this year. The Steelers have a great ability to draft well, with players such as Roethlissberger and Santonio Holmes proving just that. With Staley and Parker, our running game will still have the depth it has had in the past. I will reiterate that I don’t think Bettis and Randel El’s departures will be an issue. There are at least 2 other players on the team that I can recall with QB and WR experience to fill in for Randel El’s absence.
Randel El will wind up like Burress and Thigpen. Great players in the Steeler organization but just not the same once they leave.
August 19th, 2006 at 7:50 pm
You can hardly call Santonio Holmes a product of “drafting well”. He has yet to prove anything. And if I’m not mistaken, he’s having some legal problems of his own… “Hello Kettle? This is the Pot, you’re black.” And putting up 38 points in Pittsburgh is not luck.
Deuce Staley is on his last legs, not really a big threat even to the Bengals crappy run defense. If anything happened to Willie Parker, they would have a lot of trouble putting any points up on the Bengals secondary. Big Ben is a good quarterback when he has the running game behind him, but when he has to throw the ball 30+ times they rarely win.
August 20th, 2006 at 10:21 am
Blah blah blah.
We are two in the same SGT. Stubborn and willing to argue our opinions to their death. Since this is going nowhere, I will sit back and wait for regular season to begin. Then we’ll see who the victor is.
August 21st, 2006 at 7:11 am
is this about the rants or sports? dammit….
August 21st, 2006 at 3:04 pm
The Seahawks or Steelers could make it to the playoffs again. I don’t think the Steelers will though. You have to stop Peyton Manning who is the best quarterback in the NFL. Indianapolis might have the best offense in the NFL. I think their defense is getting better so they will be hard to stop.
August 22nd, 2006 at 5:37 pm
I think your Prediction was for the most part accurate Allowing for your stipulations. except for a couple of things one you forgot the let down game every team has one every year and we are going one and one just like always. I see both of us going 10-6 or 11-5 and that last game meaning a whole hell of a lot.
We did not lose anything subtantial on the field this off season. You are falling into the media trap of people playing up Randle El he caught 31 passes and 1 TD in the regular season. He was not a big loss and neither was Bettis on the field but off the field Bettis was the Leader of the offense now Ben and Heins need to step up and take control of the team. I think our biggest offseason loss is one noone is talking about FS Chad Hope. I don’t think Staley will hold up all season either, he never has, but we are basicly like the denver broncos a twelve year old girl could rush for 1000 yards for us.
August 24th, 2006 at 3:35 pm
Someone
August 24th, 2006 at 3:36 pm
reply to my comment
August 24th, 2006 at 3:36 pm
which is the 12th one please. Anyone agree?
August 24th, 2006 at 5:01 pm
I don’t see why the Seahawks would not make the playoffs. They are probably just as good as they were last year. I hope to god that the Steelers don’t make it. But if they do, I want them to play the Bengals. Then we could finish it once and for all. Or until the following season at least.
There ya go Smartees.
August 24th, 2006 at 5:42 pm
I like the Bengals. They have our old quarterback, Jon Kitna. I hope he still starts for them. I think the Bengals will beat the Steelers this year. They may not sweep them, but I think they are able to beat the Steelers more times than the Steelers beat them. Thanks for the reply Ken. Did the Steelers lose Bettis or something or did I read something wrong? Go Seahawks and Bengals.
August 24th, 2006 at 5:43 pm
I think the Houstan Texans will win the Superbowl this year. LOL.
August 24th, 2006 at 6:28 pm
Kitna plays for Detroit now and Bettis retired.
August 24th, 2006 at 6:31 pm
Oh. Thanks for the reply. I still wait to see a team that can actually stop the Colts’s Peyton Manning.
August 24th, 2006 at 9:14 pm
That includes the stupid “Steel Curtain.” Pittsburgh’s defense can’t stop this player. Peyton is most likely the best player in the NFL. Pittsburgh will not stop him and the steel curtain won’t even be like steel to him. They may stop a little, but Peyton Manning is too much for Pittsburgh and every other team in the NFL. I do hope Pittsburgh beats up on Baltimore because I think Ray Lewis throws a lot of cheap shots.
August 24th, 2006 at 9:17 pm
Peyton Manning can’t beat a team all by himself and the good defenses will most likely do better jobs at containing him. What I was getting at is he really hard to stop.
August 24th, 2006 at 9:49 pm
How many people are in there with you, Smarty?
August 25th, 2006 at 8:15 am
Uhm, am I the only one confused by all of this?
Smarty’s not so smarty.
August 25th, 2006 at 3:00 pm
Uh Steel City you need to just shut up. Don’t get mad just because I said your Steelers aren’t good enough to completely stop him. Sorry about being so confusing. When I get a bunch of ideas going in my head I don’t always convey them to people in a way that makes a lot of sense. What I was getting at was I don’t think any team can completely stop Peyton Manning.
August 25th, 2006 at 3:58 pm
As much as I HATE to admit it, the Steelers kinda did stop Manning last year in the playoffs. Also, Manning hasn’t won a Superbowl yet, although I think he will eventually.
August 25th, 2006 at 4:24 pm
Did they really? I didn’t see that game.
August 25th, 2006 at 4:28 pm
Oops I submitted before I was done. Like I said, I haven’t seen someone do it. Are you sure they really COMPLETELY stop him or did they just keep him from doing full damage?
August 26th, 2006 at 10:02 am
If a tree falls in the forest and no one is there to hear it, does it make a sound?
August 28th, 2006 at 12:17 pm
I’ve been going back and forth on whether to respond to Smarty’s not so nice comment on telling me to shut up.
Well, all I will say is this: Men who think it’s okay to speak to a woman like that is pathetic. Period.
August 28th, 2006 at 3:04 pm
You shouldn’t talk Steel City Gal. Maybe me telling you to shut up was rude and I am sorry I did that. Trust me, I am not a rude or mean person. It is very hard to make me mad too. I would just like to say that you calling me stupid was rude too. Sorry for my comment. I feel bad now. I admitted that I jump back and forth from idea to idea if I have a lot of ideas.
Ken your answer to the tree question is yes, but I don’t know how to prove it.
August 28th, 2006 at 3:04 pm
You shouldn’t talk Steel City Gal. Maybe me telling you to shut up was rude and I am sorry I did that. Trust me, I am not a rude or mean person. It is very hard to make me mad too. I would just like to say that you calling me stupid was rude too. Sorry for my comment. I feel sorry now. I admitted that I jump back and forth from idea to idea if I have a lot of ideas.
Ken your answer to the tree question is yes, but I don’t know how to prove it.
August 28th, 2006 at 3:05 pm
Uh why did it put my post up twice?
August 28th, 2006 at 3:05 pm
I don’t think I clicked twice. O well.
August 28th, 2006 at 3:18 pm
If you read my comment, I said you weren’t so smart. Never called ya stupid. I suppose it’s all semantics.
You must agree your comments were
filled with inaccuracies, therefor not smart ones.
See…I’m right. When I am wrong, I’ll admit it. But it’s a rarity.
August 28th, 2006 at 4:33 pm
LOL. I guess you are right. My statements may not have been inaccurate, but mearly full of opinions that run together making no sense. My statements were my opinion, but you have your own opinion too which is why my statements are inaccurate to you and other people. Sometimes I just say too much and my post will run together, like I am now. LOL. I guess I don’t always make sense when my post runs together. I am going to do us all a favor now and shut up now. LOL.
September 1st, 2006 at 2:20 am
Manning shmanning. Carson shmarson. A fantastic QB/WR tandem can get you far in a season but not all the way. It’s too bad Cincy ditched the running game towards years end. Rudi Johnson (sigh) is fucking great. Do you guys still have him?
Also, its easy for people to write of Duce Staley because he hasn’t been in the news for a while. This guy was a-w-e-s-o-m-e in Philly and had a hundred yards in every game with the Steelers. Don’t speak too soon. I’m marking him as my “shockingly amazing come-back running back” of the year.
September 1st, 2006 at 7:17 am
About time the cavalry comes in and helps me bring a little sense to this post. The Steelers, once again, are underrated and not getting the respect they deserve.
September 1st, 2006 at 7:57 am
UNDERRATED!?!?!? Don’t even try to pull that bull.
Underrated is having SI pick you to finish third in your division at 8-8 when you won it last year at 11-5 and have done nothing but improve.
Being picked by 90% of the so-called “experts” to win the North is NOT underrated, especially when you lose a few big parts of your team. I’m not saying there isn’t anyone to fill in for Randel-el and the Bus, but you have to admit they played a big part in your run to the title.
Don’t EVER say the Steelers are underrated, that pisses me off.
The Bengals have a stigma of a losing team, even though they haven’t had a losing season since 2002, something even the Steelers can’t claim. So even when we win 11 games and had a legit shot at the Super Bowl before Carson got hurt, they pick us to go 8 and goddamned 8.
Hearing Pittsburgh fans talk about being underrated makes me want to break something.
September 2nd, 2006 at 1:41 am
The Bungles haven’t had a losing season since 2002? You didn’t win the superbowl in 2002. In fact, there are no titles under your belt.
Underrated is being picked to lose all of your playoff games and winning the superbowl. I’d say a Bengals 8-8 season is a friggin bullseye.
September 2nd, 2006 at 2:36 am
You want to call the Steelers underrated? Take a look at this: http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/powerranking?season=2006&week=1
Steelers are 3rd overall to start the season. I honestly can’t figure this one out. All the other top 6 teams, minus maybe the Broncos, are more than capable of beating the Steelers.
We all know the Steelers’ success in the playoffs last year was a fluke, since every team they played in those playoffs (again except maybe for Denver) was clearly better when either at full strength or not having the officials against them.
September 2nd, 2006 at 3:54 pm
That ranking came as a shock to me as well. Although I totally agree with it.
Anyways, critics and neysayers have all but counted the Steelers out of a return birth to Superbowl XLI. Say what you want but even as champs, the majority of people don’t give them the credit they deserve.
Sarge, don’t give me your sanctimonious BS. Your Bengals are rated where they are at because they have yet to prove that they’re a Super Bowl caliber team. The Steelers on the other hand have proven time and time again that they’re a solid team with a great history.
Oh, and if you’re going to break something, make it black and orange.
September 3rd, 2006 at 9:32 am
You can’t count ANYTHING outside of the Cowher era, as we can’t count anything outside the Lewis era. The Bengals have been to a couple of Superbowls, that doesn’t mean shit. Just as any championships the Steelers have before this one don’t mean anything. But during the Lewis era, we’ve yet to have a losing season.
Look at predictions at the beginning of ANY season. The so-called “parity” in the NFL makes it ridiculously hard to repeat a championship. 99% of people are predicting the Steelers win the division, but not the Superbowl. This isn’t a knock on your team, they’re just playing the odds. NO ONE has said that the Steelers can’t repeat. Just that they probably won’t.
You and your team are DONE playing the underdog. It just doesn’t hold water.
September 3rd, 2006 at 2:06 pm
I would love to know where you’re getting your stats from Sarge. I think you’re pulling them out of your ass.
September 5th, 2006 at 7:20 am
Start looking at the national sports sites instead of the local ones, you’ll see.
September 5th, 2006 at 8:33 am
OK, so maybe now with Hines having Hammy trouble, Ben’s emergency appendectomy (here’s to a speedy recovery), and Carson’s performance in the preseason, people are changing their tunes a bit. But before all that, most were picking Pittsburgh over Cincy. Actually, most were picking Pittsburgh AND Baltimore over Cincy. Now, I honestly believe any of the three can take the North, and any of them can take one or even BOTH of the Wildcard spots.
How awesome would that be!! Three AFC North teams in the postseason…
September 5th, 2006 at 9:45 am
We finally agree on something. I will place a bet that the next Super Bowl champ will be out of the AFC North.
All I watch and read are national sports sites and I think your perspective is skewed from your hatred of the Steelers. I’m sure we could argue this point forever but once again, we’ll get nowhere.
Oh, and my honey Hines will be fine. He should be playing in the season opener. At least that’s what he told me last night. :-p
September 5th, 2006 at 11:36 am
I don’t know that I would bet on it, only because of the crazy unpredictability of the NFL, but I’d say the North has as good a chance or better than any other division.
September 6th, 2006 at 12:14 am
50
September 6th, 2006 at 10:31 am
lol