Looks like we're heading to New England

[Carolinabengalfanguy]

Ravens then Houston as they haven't sailed into the playoffs pats coming off Super Bowl year against the leagues easiest schedule (preseason) and broncos are very dangerous as well

[NASBengalfan]

As of right now, we will be playing one of these four teams in the playoffs. Which would you most want to match up against?
If I'm not mistaken, the only way we can play Baltimore is if we lose to them. I wouldn't mind playing Baltimore; it is tough to beat the same team twice in a row, much less three times in a season. I don't really want to lose next week though. Houston could be interesting, because it would be a re-match of last year. Denver would also be interesting. They were a game before our big win streak and we fought with them until the end. Peyton said it wasn't easy at all. I believe someone else here said that facing New England wouldn't be bad, because of our defensive line.
What do you guys think?

[berserkerone88]

Bring 'em on.
I don't think we match up better or worse with any of them.

I think we could give them all hell.
We are getting healthy at the right time. If the WR decide to make some plays this year, we can beat them all.

[OSUfan]

Originally Posted by NASBengalfan

As of right now, we will be playing one of these four teams in the playoffs. Which would you most want to match up against?
If I'm not mistaken, the only way we can play Baltimore is if we lose to them. I wouldn't mind playing Baltimore; it is tough to beat the same team twice in a row, much less three times in a season. I don't really want to lose next week though. Houston could be interesting, because it would be a re-match of last year. Denver would also be interesting. They were a game before our big win streak and we fought with them until the end. Peyton said it wasn't easy at all. I believe someone else here said that facing New England wouldn't be bad, because of our defensive line.
What do you guys think?

It will be what it will be.....bring any one of them on!

[bradfritz21]

The great thing about this team is that we don't have to fear anyone and we can play with any team.

That said, I would rather play the Ravens or Broncos, but, then again, I don't want to lose to the Ravens this week because I want momentum going into the playoffs. However, without Rey, I'd feel pretty good against them.

If Foster ended up missing time, I'd rather play the Texans because he makes that team go which, if every home team wins this week, that's who we play, but I doubt that any irregular heartbeat keeps him out.

Ravens are on a slide and we're on the rise, so I might be ok with losing this week so we play them again in the first round.

[hondanation09]

Take New England.

Houston looks beatable but they will get up for playoffs...Arian Foster is too good to not be a factor.

Let Manning rest without facing tough defensive front then BANG...here comes hot Bengals!

If they beat the Brady they are good enough to beat anyone...they will play down to their competition so please no Baltimore...let them be underdogs and they will perform better.

[Thorobredbullies]

Originally Posted by NASBengalfan

As of right now, we will be playing one of these four teams in the playoffs. Which would you most want to match up against?
If I'm not mistaken, the only way we can play Baltimore is if we lose to them. I wouldn't mind playing Baltimore; it is tough to beat the same team twice in a row, much less three times in a season. I don't really want to lose next week though. Houston could be interesting, because it would be a re-match of last year. Denver would also be interesting. They were a game before our big win streak and we fought with them until the end. Peyton said it wasn't easy at all. I believe someone else here said that facing New England wouldn't be bad, because of our defensive line.
What do you guys think?

Although NE ability to spread us out create mismatches with their TEs and RBs scares me a little they are who I want to play. Little to no expectations will be had for the Bengals chances. A win would give Cincy a ton of credibility and a loss no matter how bad really wouldn't have any impact.

[Shady]

Originally Posted by berserkerone88

Bring 'em on.
I don't think we match up better or worse with any of them.

I think we could give them all hell.
We are getting healthy at the right time. If the WR decide to make some plays this year, we can beat them all.

Agreed.



We can beat any of those teams. Any of those teams can beat us. To quote AJ, "We let Cleveland beat us." But I think this team has taken positive steps forward. Especially on D. It's the playoffs. Of course, they'll be tough games. To be the best you gotta beat the best. Andy Dalton is nothing if not a winner. I'm ready for another run. Let's make it 7 straight!

[Beaker]

Houston....all day long. I want revenge.

[berserkerone88]

Originally Posted by Shady

Agreed.



We can beat any of those teams. Any of those teams can beat us. To quote AJ, "We let Cleveland beat us." But I think this team has taken positive steps forward. Especially on D. It's the playoffs. Of course, they'll be tough games. To be the best you gotta beat the best. Andy Dalton is nothing if not a winner. I'm ready for another run. Let's make it 7 straight!

We beat ourselves against Dallas.
4, 10, 7, 8, 1
5 of our 6 losses have been by less than 2 TDs.
4 of those 5 have been by 1 score.

This team is 5 plays away from being considered one of the best in the NFL.
With a mostly young core, this is a good thing.

[NATI BENGALS]

I want Houston. Revenge for knocking us out last year. And I think we could block JJ Watt, once you get past him their D isn't very scary. And I think we could neutralize Foster and Andre and they don't have much behind those two.

Dalton with the opportunity of winning his first playoff game in his hometown could be extra motivation for him too.

[berserkerone88]

Originally Posted by Beaker

Houston....all day long. I want revenge.

To quote my favorite comic character (from his terrible movie):
"This is not vengeance. Revenge is not a valid motive, it's an emotional response. No, not vengeance. Punishment. "

[NATI BENGALS]

I think Houston is currently the easiest path.

[ikilledsuperman]

i dont really mind who we play....as long as we pack our defense we will be in any game in the postseason.

[Interceptor]

I would like the Pats because then after the game every non-Bengal fan will say 'What the hell happened??????"

[MississippiBengals]

If I had my pick Id take Houston, they are beginning to look flawed and to knock them out first round of the playoffs of their "superbowl season" would be especially sweet.

I think Denver is the last team I'd want to face right now, but I agree if we bring our defense like its been playing the last month, it will come down to the 4th quarter.

It is so great to be talking about potential playoff opponents on this board! Bring em on!

Who DEY

[Cincy's Best]

OK, Well we all know by now who are the 5th and 6th seeds going into the playoffs. What we don't know is who will be the 1st-4th seeds. So I took a moment to look at how we stack up against all of the AFC playoff teams.

1 NE - this is the one that we are currently up against. We all know that the Offensive scheme is one of the best, if not the best, in the NFL. However their Defense leaves a lot to be desired. They are currently 17th in scoring, 27th in yards allowed, 29th in Pass D (which may be due to team HAVING to throw on them to keep up), 12th in rush D (which may be due to teams ability to throw on them). They have 30 sacks as a team with the leader being Ninkovich which is saying something considering that teams continuously throw on them. So Offensively Dalton should have a pretty clean game as far as pressures and hits. Which should give our WRs time to get through their routes and Dalton the ability to make his reads.

Now I mentioned Offense. Yes they are the best in the league, but not unstoppable. San Fran and the Giants was able to disrupt the scheme of the Patriots and that will be key. Get Brady to leave the pocket, he struggles when his protection breaks down. The Offensive Line is one of the best in the league only allowing 26 sacks. NE does struggle with strong fast interior DTs and luckily that is what we have, yet Atkins can't do it alone though, Dunlap will HAVE to step up to get Atkins some help.

The TEs are dangerous, Gronk will be back and Hernandez looks to be getting back into the groove, be prepared for Brady to get the ball out quick to these guys. Zimmer remembers the mistake of 2010 and will not make the same mistakes again. So New England will be a tough team but not impossible to beat. They are also a team that a win against would bring Cincinnati the MOST respect.

2. Houston - They are a much more balanced team with a strong Offense that has both passing and ground capabilities. They also have an opportunistic Defense that has it's own Atkins with JJ Watt. Watt excels in batting down passes at the line of scrimmage. As a team they have accumulated 43 sacks while only giving up 24. They are the number 1 seed and do not look like they will lose to the Colts. However we actually match up well against them.

Yes the playoffs was embarrassing but we as a team gave up on a few plays. Dalton will have more experience against Watt and his propensity to bat down passes and should utilize the pump fake more to lure him into leaping more than needed. This would slow down his rush as well as make him second guess himself more when attempting to bat down passes. Matt Schaub will actually be the playoff rookie on the field and may let his inexperience show. Our Defense will have a sour taste to want to get some revenge on a few plays, especially Crocker who had one of his worst games in Houston last year. I don't see him dropping another chance to turn the game around.

3. Baltimore - This would be a rematch of the 1st game of the season where both teams will be playing for something. We know Rice is always a threat and the real key will be slowing him down. Baltimore is also balanced but unlike Houston they are not in the top 10 on either side of the ball. They have 35 sacks as a team with the leader being Kruger and they have given up 34 sacks. The Defense is wearing down and it has shown in the second half of the season. Lewis may return for the playoffs but how effective he will be is the question. The young guys have stepped up but due to their inexperience have made some mistakes.

Offensively the question is which Flacco shows up. Again we know Rice is a threat however Flacco will be the one that is the most crucial to disrupt. When Flacco gets into his groove he can light up anyone. However the bad Flacco who is not in sync would be our best player. He has a tendency to go for the big play. Contain Torrey Smith's speed and cover the TEs and Flacco will have to try to connect with Boldin who he has issues connecting with or just doesn't trust for some reason. This is when Flacco checks down to Rice who usually bails him. We match up well against Baltimore and we would be lucky to draw them in the playoffs.

4. Denver- Of all of the AFC teams, this is the one that I personally feel is the toughest. Manning is finally comfortable in that offense and the defense is very underrated. They have more sacks than we do at 48 while only surrendering 21. Add to the fact that we would have to travel to Denver only adds to the difficulty. The plus side is the WRs are not burners and neither is their secondary. They just have a technically sound team with a top numbers on Offense and Defense. So the key is to be faster than they are. Utilize the quick screens to Jones and Hawkins so that they can beat the DBs in space and minimize the pass rush of Miller and Dumervill. Pump fakes should help to keep those rushers guessing. Manning is similar to Brady, he doesn't do well improvising. Disrupt his scheme and you usually find success.

Our stats. We have 47 sacks on the year and have given up the most (among playoff teams) at 44. That is more than the 40 that the Colts have surrendered (by the way the Colts only have 28 sacks as a team). So our OLine needs to play better to keep Dalton clean. Dalton will also need to work on his pump fake and really sell out to make the Defenders go airborne. He also needs to hit some quick passes to make the pump fake work more effectively. Defensively if we keep doing what we are doing then we should beat every team in the AFC.

[Strongsville City Schools]

Good write up!! I wanna face
1. Baltimore
2. Houston
3. New England
4. Denver

In that order

[Shake n Blake]

Don't underestimate NE's ability to run also. Ridley has more yards and tds than Green-Ellis this year, on 4.4 per carry. They are deep at RB too.

[ibengals]

Not too worried about their receivers and running backs, but Brady can pick apart almost anyone (SF was getting shredded in the second half) and Gronkowski/Hernandez will be full go.

I think it'd be a shoot out much like the SF game where our D would have to cause some turnovers. A winnable game though.

[Slappy from New Haven]

Originally Posted by ibengals

Not too worried about their receivers and running backs, but Brady can pick apart almost anyone (SF was getting shredded in the second half) and Gronkowski/Hernandez will be full go.

I think it'd be a shoot out much like the SF game where our D would have to cause some turnovers. A winnable game though.

SF played man coverage the first half and then went to Zone in the 3rd quarter. He didn't do anything against the man covergage

[BengalYankee]

Originally Posted by Bengals Mike

Well when you mention it that way, what's stopping the Ravens from doing what the Patriots did when the paths of 3 and 4 would look like this?

3rd: host Bengals, guaranteed visit to Denver with win
4th: host Colts, probable visit to Houston with win

right now the Colts would definitely be perceived as the weaker team between them and the Bengals and then after that nobody wants to play Denver with what could be an 11 game win streak but they would want to play a Houston team who just lost at home to a lesser team

If you're the Ravens the choice of their path is pretty obvious

If I was the Ravens I would opt for seed 4.

Look, everyone knows that Belichick is a genius. No one questions whether he is a great coach. He let his starters rest their last game, heck in all honesty that game against Miami was a dive. He let his 2nd-3rd stringers against Miami's first stringers. He let Doug Flutie do a drop kick!!!!!!

Alll this talk about momentum is foolish. The Pats wanted no part of the Steelers and preferred Jacksonville to come into New England to play in the cold. In the end, Bill was right, Jacksonville had to play in New England on a COLD SATURDAY NIGHT!!!!
Pittsburgh went on to win the Superbowl.

BTW, Miami is a rival to Pats.

[12thmanontheBengals]

Honestly, I don't want to run into the Patriots. As awesome as it would be to finally take them down, they have our number, and they are scary in the playoffs. Here's a team who EXPECTS to be in the big game, or else they have had a bad season....

Baltimore is so hit or miss, and I think the OP made a great point with Flacco. I've gotten to watch this team this season and really, they are so inconsistent. We were a couple of plays away from fighting for the division title this week, and that's saying something based on OUR inconsistent play. I'll have to see what they feed us this week.

Houston is solid, but not unbeatable. I think if we scheme really well we can take them down--bring back some of that early season aggressiveness, coupled by a great game by Dalton, and I think we can take them down by 10 points or so.

Denver--Do people not realize we've played them this season and were pretty close to beating them? We've seen their schemes... We've seen their tricks. Play aggressively, and push our front line to get in 18's face. Yes, Zimmer will have to make the best calls, and hide coverage well. Don't be taken out by WR screens (this kills me). I want another shot at them, to be honest. I think taking down a monster like Denver might give us the push we need to get through these other big hitters.

We're in the big league now, boys. Let's get 'um.

[Bonnie Bengal]

Originally Posted by Cincy's Best

OK, Well we all know by now who are the 5th and 6th seeds going into the playoffs. What we don't know is who will be the 1st-4th seeds. So I took a moment to look at how we stack up against all of the AFC playoff teams.

1 NE - this is the one that we are currently up against. We all know that the Offensive scheme is one of the best, if not the best, in the NFL. However their Defense leaves a lot to be desired. They are currently 17th in scoring, 27th in yards allowed, 29th in Pass D (which may be due to team HAVING to throw on them to keep up), 12th in rush D (which may be due to teams ability to throw on them). They have 30 sacks as a team with the leader being Ninkovich which is saying something considering that teams continuously throw on them. So Offensively Dalton should have a pretty clean game as far as pressures and hits. Which should give our WRs time to get through their routes and Dalton the ability to make his reads.

Now I mentioned Offense. Yes they are the best in the league, but not unstoppable. San Fran and the Giants was able to disrupt the scheme of the Patriots and that will be key. Get Brady to leave the pocket, he struggles when his protection breaks down. The Offensive Line is one of the best in the league only allowing 26 sacks. NE does struggle with strong fast interior DTs and luckily that is what we have, yet Atkins can't do it alone though, Dunlap will HAVE to step up to get Atkins some help.

The TEs are dangerous, Gronk will be back and Hernandez looks to be getting back into the groove, be prepared for Brady to get the ball out quick to these guys. Zimmer remembers the mistake of 2010 and will not make the same mistakes again. So New England will be a tough team but not impossible to beat. They are also a team that a win against would bring Cincinnati the MOST respect.

2. Houston - They are a much more balanced team with a strong Offense that has both passing and ground capabilities. They also have an opportunistic Defense that has it's own Atkins with JJ Watt. Watt excels in batting down passes at the line of scrimmage. As a team they have accumulated 43 sacks while only giving up 24. They are the number 1 seed and do not look like they will lose to the Colts. However we actually match up well against them.

Yes the playoffs was embarrassing but we as a team gave up on a few plays. Dalton will have more experience against Watt and his propensity to bat down passes and should utilize the pump fake more to lure him into leaping more than needed. This would slow down his rush as well as make him second guess himself more when attempting to bat down passes. Matt Schaub will actually be the playoff rookie on the field and may let his inexperience show. Our Defense will have a sour taste to want to get some revenge on a few plays, especially Crocker who had one of his worst games in Houston last year. I don't see him dropping another chance to turn the game around.

3. Baltimore - This would be a rematch of the 1st game of the season where both teams will be playing for something. We know Rice is always a threat and the real key will be slowing him down. Baltimore is also balanced but unlike Houston they are not in the top 10 on either side of the ball. They have 35 sacks as a team with the leader being Kruger and they have given up 34 sacks. The Defense is wearing down and it has shown in the second half of the season. Lewis may return for the playoffs but how effective he will be is the question. The young guys have stepped up but due to their inexperience have made some mistakes.

Offensively the question is which Flacco shows up. Again we know Rice is a threat however Flacco will be the one that is the most crucial to disrupt. When Flacco gets into his groove he can light up anyone. However the bad Flacco who is not in sync would be our best player. He has a tendency to go for the big play. Contain Torrey Smith's speed and cover the TEs and Flacco will have to try to connect with Boldin who he has issues connecting with or just doesn't trust for some reason. This is when Flacco checks down to Rice who usually bails him. We match up well against Baltimore and we would be lucky to draw them in the playoffs.

4. Denver- Of all of the AFC teams, this is the one that I personally feel is the toughest. Manning is finally comfortable in that offense and the defense is very underrated. They have more sacks than we do at 48 while only surrendering 21. Add to the fact that we would have to travel to Denver only adds to the difficulty. The plus side is the WRs are not burners and neither is their secondary. They just have a technically sound team with a top numbers on Offense and Defense. So the key is to be faster than they are. Utilize the quick screens to Jones and Hawkins so that they can beat the DBs in space and minimize the pass rush of Miller and Dumervill. Pump fakes should help to keep those rushers guessing. Manning is similar to Brady, he doesn't do well improvising. Disrupt his scheme and you usually find success.

Our stats. We have 47 sacks on the year and have given up the most (among playoff teams) at 44. That is more than the 40 that the Colts have surrendered (by the way the Colts only have 28 sacks as a team). So our OLine needs to play better to keep Dalton clean. Dalton will also need to work on his pump fake and really sell out to make the Defenders go airborne. He also needs to hit some quick passes to make the pump fake work more effectively. Defensively if we keep doing what we are doing then we should beat every team in the AFC.

Great post. I agree with you that Denver is going to be the toughest to beat.

[Captain Happy Pants]

Too bad our game this week won't have any meaning. I'd rather face Bmore again in the playoffs