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The NE-Miami game wasn't broadcast in my area because of the Bengals-Ravens game, which I watched in its entirety.
I have to say, I was very impressed with the Bengals. They outmuscled the Ravens and dominated both sides of the line, and were more physical than the Ravens. Their defense was very physical and aggressive, repeatedly pressuring Flacco and doing a really outstanding job of containing Ray Rice from breaking the kind of big plays he has made all season. Their DBs are excellent and shut down Flacco's long passing game, and their LBs were great in pursuit and in preventing the Ravens from turning short passes into big gains. I was particularly impressed with Rey Maualuga (who I've never particularly admired), who didn't show up on the stat sheed but was a dominant physical presence, and made a superb play on special teams downing a punt inside the 1 yard line. First time I've ever thought I might have been mistaken about the Pats passing on Maualuga at #34.
In 2 games the Bengals have held Baltimore to an average of 10.5 points. The Ravens are averaging over 30 PPG in their other 6 games (including 21 against the Pats).
Offensively, the Bengals showed nice balance with Palmer having the ability to go deep on the weak Ravens secondary and Cedric Benson pounding the football. Benson has now racked up consecutive 100+ yard games against the Ravens.
I'll be curious to see how the Bengals do next time they play the Steelers. Having already beaten the Ravens twice and the Steelers once, a win would certainly give them an edge in the division. The Bengals are one Denver fluke play from being 7-1, and will be one of at most 8 teams with 6-2 or better records at the mid-way point (Indy, NO, Minny, Denver, NE, Cincy, the winner of Philly-Dallas, and possibly Pittsburgh). Right now the Bengals look like one of the more complete teams in the AFC, with a solid defense (great secondary and good front 7) and a diverse offense (big play QB and passing game and solid running game). Not many teams in the division can boast of that kind of balance - not Indy or Denver, and possibly not even Pittsburgh or the Patriots at this point.
This is a team to look out for. I could see them flying under the radar and upsetting a few front runners come playoff time, if they continue to play at this level. That's a big if, but right now they are an impressive team.
I have to say, I was very impressed with the Bengals. They outmuscled the Ravens and dominated both sides of the line, and were more physical than the Ravens. Their defense was very physical and aggressive, repeatedly pressuring Flacco and doing a really outstanding job of containing Ray Rice from breaking the kind of big plays he has made all season. Their DBs are excellent and shut down Flacco's long passing game, and their LBs were great in pursuit and in preventing the Ravens from turning short passes into big gains. I was particularly impressed with Rey Maualuga (who I've never particularly admired), who didn't show up on the stat sheed but was a dominant physical presence, and made a superb play on special teams downing a punt inside the 1 yard line. First time I've ever thought I might have been mistaken about the Pats passing on Maualuga at #34.
In 2 games the Bengals have held Baltimore to an average of 10.5 points. The Ravens are averaging over 30 PPG in their other 6 games (including 21 against the Pats).
Offensively, the Bengals showed nice balance with Palmer having the ability to go deep on the weak Ravens secondary and Cedric Benson pounding the football. Benson has now racked up consecutive 100+ yard games against the Ravens.
I'll be curious to see how the Bengals do next time they play the Steelers. Having already beaten the Ravens twice and the Steelers once, a win would certainly give them an edge in the division. The Bengals are one Denver fluke play from being 7-1, and will be one of at most 8 teams with 6-2 or better records at the mid-way point (Indy, NO, Minny, Denver, NE, Cincy, the winner of Philly-Dallas, and possibly Pittsburgh). Right now the Bengals look like one of the more complete teams in the AFC, with a solid defense (great secondary and good front 7) and a diverse offense (big play QB and passing game and solid running game). Not many teams in the division can boast of that kind of balance - not Indy or Denver, and possibly not even Pittsburgh or the Patriots at this point.
This is a team to look out for. I could see them flying under the radar and upsetting a few front runners come playoff time, if they continue to play at this level. That's a big if, but right now they are an impressive team.