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Jets. Steel Cage Questions

Friday, October 19, 2007

This week we trade questions with the guys from www.thejetsblog.com. Check out their site. They do a pretty amazing job.

What scares you about the Bengals?
Thejetsblog: The Holy Trinity of Palmer, Johnson and Houshmandzadeh. The Jets' ability to stop the pass is suspect, and I think these three could have a very big day. If it turns into a 'track meet,' the Jets don't stand a chance.


What scares us about the Jets?
Comer Kai: Thomas Jones. Typically success stopping the run does not fall on just the defensive line. The entire front 7 should work together to create one line. D-line does their job and then linebackers fill the holes. The Bengals linebackers are very slow to react. Chalk it up to inexperience or simply drop in talent from starter-to backup-to the guy “picked up off someone else’s practice squad”. Regardless of the reason, when the linebackers don’t clog the holes, the running lanes are wide open. Thomas Jones has the potential run all over the Bengals. He’s got mad game on and off the field.

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What match up makes you feel confident in the Jets?
Thejetsblog: Sadly, kick returns. Backup RB Leon Washington who is filling in for injured Pro Bowl returner Justin Miller already has two TDs already on the season. The Bengals have struggled on covering kicks, so I expect Washington to put the Jets in good field position during the game ... something the Jets are going to need badly.

What match up makes us feel confident in the Bengals?
Comer Kai: Okay, so last week we felt confident in our much bigger o-line imposing their will upon the smaller Chiefs d-line. Then Levi melted down and we stopped running. Therefore I’ll search out another bright spot. Jonathan Joseph is back on the field at corner splitting the field with Deltha O’Neil. With Pennington’s arm strength in question, these two former #1 picks should be able to jump some routes and cause the turnovers that make this defense work.

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Who is the best (current) Jet's player, Bengal's fans have never heard of?
Thejetsblog: Kerry Rhodes, got a lot of hype leading up to the season. The Jets' Safety has quickly become a difference-maker for the defense. In his rookie year, 2005 he put up similar numbers to Troy Polamalu, but didn't have the hair to get the hype. Last year was his break out season where he had 5 sacks, 3 forced fumbles and 4 interceptions. Although the team has had trouble this season defensively, Rhodes is still doing his best to make plays for the team. So far in 2007, he has an interception, a forced fumble with recovery for TD, as well as a sack on McNabb last week where he almost had a safety. He's a guy that can be dangerous when pressuring the QB or roaming in center field. (Plus he has a sweet diamond belt).

Who is the best (current) Bengal's player, Jet's fans have never heard of?
Comer Kai: Linebacker Robert Geathers. Maybe you have heard of Geathers, the defensive end, but chances are you have not heard of Robert Geathers the linebacker. Due to the decimated linebacking core, he ended up getting the start in a position that at one point saw a mix of two guys with a couple weeks of Bengal’s experience and a rookie safety. Geathers is big and extremely athletic and could create problems for a defense. This is a guy who is used to going against O-Tackles, and this Sunday, could find himself with only a running back between him and Pennington. And when Geathers hits Quarterbacks. It is not pretty.

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Who wins the game and what's the score?

Thejetsblog: I think that the Bengals win 31 - 24.

Comer Kai: Got to go with the Bengals. Because if they don’t win, we won’t even have the slimmest of hopes of the playoffs no matter how easy the rest of our schedule is. Lets say the Bengals offense wakes and converts a couple third downs. Suddenly a few sustained drives keep the defense off the field and Thomas Jones from eating up the clock. Bengals get a few key turnovers and pull out a slim victory 24-17.

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If there was a steel cage match instead of a football game featuring one current player, who do you nominate?

Thejetsblog: If it was a bar brawl, I think I would nominate RT Anthony Clement (6'8" 320), but sight unseen, I would have to say rookie ILB David Harris (6'2" 243). Harris played his college ball at Michigan and is as smart as he is tough. Watching Harris early on during training camp, he can hit pretty hard. I wouldn't want to be stuck in a cage with him.

Comer Kai: This week we bring American Samoan Damato Peko. According to an ESPN article in 2002, a Samoan male is 40 times more likely to play in the NFL than a non-Samoan American. Why? Because are enormous and warriors by birth. Peko is no exception. At 319, he’s a mountain of a man and that huge mop of hair is a sign that he is a warrior and ready for battle. Of course, in the Steel Cage we’ll tie it up in a nice little bun to make sure Harris doesn’t use it against him.



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Keys To The Game

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Week 7 – Jets
We tried to justify the Bengals slow start by talking about injuries and the tough schedule, but now there is no other conclusion to make other than this is just a bad team. The talent is there to win games, but this is a bad team. The Bengals had 2 weeks to prepare for the Chiefs, they said it was a must win game, yet they came out unprepared, unfocused, and flat. The Bengals gave up 30 yards in penalties on the opening drive of the game to a team that had not scored in the first quarter all year. They followed that up by allowing 20 first half points to a Chiefs team that had scored 16 first half points combined in 6 previous games going back to last season. Even after their offensive explosion against the Bengals, the Chiefs offense is still in the bottom 5 in the league. The Chiefs have a good defensive line, but they are in no way dominating. The Chiefs D-linemen have made exactly zero pro bowls, but the Bengals made them look like the ’65 Rams “Fearsome Foursome” as every snap was a jailbreak. And when needed, the Bengals went backwards in every short yardage situation. Levi Jones had previously stated that he didn’t sign his contract to be a backup, then did he sign it to be embarrassed on the field? While the score was 27-20, the game was not that close, and the Bengals were dominated by a team that is average at best. With the Bengals talent, their problems can only be attributed to coaching or a lack of acceptance of coaching. Either way, there needs to be major changes. Either Marvin needs to overhaul the roster with people willing to accept his coaching, or Marvin needs to go in favor of someone who can get the team under control.

The point of every season is to get to the playoffs, that is every team’s initial goal. Can the Bengals still make the playoffs? In a tremendously optimistic world, like the movie Joe Dirt where mulleted David Spade scores multiple scorching hot ladies, the Bengals can still do it. How you might ask? First, the Bengals started 1-4 in Marvin’s first two seasons as coach. Both of those teams got hot and had shots at the playoffs going into the last weeks of the season. However, those teams were not good and overachieved as Marvin was trying to turn the franchise around. This year’s team is good, yet is in a freefall, but we’ll forget that point for a second. Next, the Bengals schedule is supposedly easy enough to produce wins. The Bengals should be able to beat the 6 teams left in the AFC East (NYJ, @BUF, @MIA) and the NFC West (ARI, STL, @SF). That would give them 7 wins, then depending on what is needed for the wild card, the Bengals may only need to win 2 of the remaining games, @PIT, PIT, @BAL, CLE, TEN. This would be possible if the Bengals could beat teams that they should beat. So far this season, the Bengals have been favored to win in 3 games, their record in those games is 1-2. So don’t bet on the Bengals getting their act together enough for 9 wins. By the way, the Bengals somehow are favored by 6 this week against the Jets.

Keys to the Game.
With a record of 1-5, the Jets are one of three teams in the NFL that are currently in worse shape than the 1-4 Bengals. The Jets offense is about the same as the Chiefs, yet a little worse. Does it really matter though? The good news is that the Jets have an equally bad defense. In fact, the Jets defense is so bad that they are nearing the Bengals defense. The Jets lone win was a 3 point struggle at home against the winless Dolphins. This is the Bengals rock bottom game, either they start the uphill climb back to respectability, or just sink to rock bottom.

When the Jets have the ball: Bad news, the Jets have a strong running back in Thomas Jones. Jones was battling injuries early in the season and got off to a slow start. However, he is healthy now and ran for 130 yards last week against a usually tough Philly defense. The good news, the well documented weak arm of QB Chad Pennington should allow the Bengals defense to crowd the line. Much has been said about Pennington not being able to throw the deep ball, but with that said, his accuracy has been good so far at 68%. He has been prone to interceptions though. Aside from Tom Brady, the Bengals have played a “struggling” QB every week and except for Steve McNair, every QB has had no problem with the Bengals defense. With Pennington supposedly not being able to throw deep, the Bengals weak pass rush should not matter as the Jets will not be running deep routes. The passing game will test the Bengals DBs as the Jets do a lot of quick hits, crossing patterns, and short cuts. The Bengals DBs will have to play tight and break quickly on the ball which they did not do at all last week against the Chiefs. If Thomas Jones can get going, he will draw the Bengals DBs more into the running game. Once that happens, look for a long and frustrating day of 5 yard runs and quick 6 yards passes up and down the field. My favorite part of every Bengals game is watching Dexter Jackson break late on a play or miss a tackle, and then after the play is over, turn and yell at teammates or the refs. The poor guy is surrounded by incompetence and he is just letting everyone know it. And something to spotlight, we did have a Frostee Rucker sighting on Sunday. After being a 3rd round draft choice in 2005, he has now played in 2 games, has 1 assisted tackle, and 1 fumble recovery.

When the Bengals have the ball: The Jets do not have a strong frontline pass rusher like the Bengals have faced in most games this season. However, they do run a 3-4 defense which can give an offensive line fits if they do not communicate. The Bengals seemed to get their act together in the 2nd half against the Chiefs, but they cannot afford any breakdowns this week against the Jets. As long as the Bengals can pick up the blitzes run by the Jets, the Jets do not have any players good enough to beat the Bengals linemen one on one.
A glaring problem with the Bengals offense is their 3rd down efficiency. But the problem of extending drives goes beyond just 3rd down. Not every drive has to be scoring in order to be successful. Sometimes getting a few first downs, running the ball to keep the clock going, and getting a good punt for field position can be the most important drive in the game. Running the ball not only helps the passing game, but it also shortens the game and can help keep a bad defense off the field. Any way you look at it, Kenny Watson has been very productive as a running back. In the past 3 games, he has carried the ball 35 times for 183 yards for a 5.3 yard avg. per carry. Against KC, he had 68 yards on 13 carries(5.2 avg), why is he only getting the ball 13 times? Watson had 24 yards on his first 2 carries, and then proceeded to get the ball 4 times in the Bengals next 21 plays until halftime. Meanwhile, the Chiefs pass rush was killing the Bengals passing game for 3 sacks, 1 lost fumble, 1 INT, and countless Carson pressures. Sacks and turnovers kill drives, field position, and put a lot of pressure on the defense. On the Chiefs first TD drive, they started on the Bengals 44 following a sack, punt and good punt return. The next drive started on the Bengals 45 following a Jared Allen sack/fumble. Luckily, Larry Johnson fumbled out of the endzone to save another TD set up by bad offense. The next Chiefs drive began on the Bengals 46 following a Palmer INT on 3rd and 14. This time Larry Johnson held onto the ball and scored a TD for the Chiefs. Seeing a theme here? The Bengals offense gets too cute in all situations instead of taking the easy way to first downs. Twice on 3rd and short, the Bengals came to the line and the Chiefs had nobody over the center. Both DTs were over or outside the Bengals Guards. With at least a 6 foot gap between DTs, the Bengals having 3 linemen to the Chiefs 2, and Palmer being 6 foot 5, why couldn’t the Bengals do a quick snap to get the yard? All Palmer would have to do is take the snap, take one step forward, and fall down to get a first down. It may be a chincy grade school move, but it will get you the first down. Instead, the Bengals try to run a toss sweep having 350 pound men moving sideways, or having a WR run a 2 yard route in traffic. It seems the Bengals only like to run a QB sneak when the defense is crowded all over the center.
This week, the Jets are sure to follow the same formula and bring everything to disrupt Palmer and the passing game. I only hope The Soul Patch gives the ball to Watson enough to help Palmer and the defense.
[Bratkowski]


What you do want to see: The Bengals run the ball until the Jets stop them from doing it.
What you don’t want to see: The Bengals injury report.

Matchup of mullets: TJ vs Nick Mangold


While Mangold does not have a classic mullet, he has to be recognized for whatever this is. I think he is trying to scare people away from him on the football field. I bet his hair smells like cinnamon and rose petals. BENGALS WIN

Matchup of Moustaches: RB Kenny Watson vs WR Brad Smith

Smith was a star QB in college at Missouri and is trying to convert to WR in the NFL. What is the best way to immerse yourself into a new position? Try to look like your coach by growing a moustache, WR Coach Noel Mazzone.

I didn’t know Buddy LaRosa had a brother working for the Jets. JETS WIN

Duel of the uglies: QB Jeff Rowe vs. Strength Coach Rick Lyle

Holy crap, what is it with strength coaches? Through all of the weekly analysis, I have learned only 2 things. One, mullets make you run faster, and two, strength coaches are the most God-awful ugliest people on the planet. And I may go out on a limb and say their rank in ugliness could extend beyond the planet Earth and through any era in time. Strength coaches give credence to one of the basic tenets of Scientology- that Xenu, the dictator of a galactic confederacy millions of years ago, brought his people to Earth and their spirits remain. Strength coaches have to be the vestiges of this defining event in galactic history. Tom Cruise is right!!!


NFL strength coaches:

Not coincidentally, the man who played Sloth, John Matuszak, played for the Oakland Raiders and then competed in strong man competitions. Could Sloth have been an NFL strength coach? He looks like an NFL strength coach, but he was just too accepting of Chunk being a tub of lard. "Sloth hate Chunk and his fat ass, get in here and LIFT!!"
To make things fair to Jeff Rowe, I will match him up against a non strength coach, OL Mike DeVito:
DeVito is an appropriate name as this guy reminds me of Danny DeVito in the movie twins. Doctors create the perfect baby from multiple eggs, and with all of the crap left over they make the baby’s twin, DeVito. It’s not enough to beat our man Jeff though. BENGALS WIN

Battle of old men: DE Bryan Robinson(33) vs P Ben Graham(33)

Graham is an Australian native and star Aussie Rules football player who made his NFL debut at age 31. He played for the Geelong Football Club where in 1999 he won the club’s “Best and Fairest” award. The top players in Aussie Rules football can make up to $800,000 in US Dollars for 25 to 30 games per year. However, Graham signed a 6 year $5.2million dollar contract with the Jets prior to last season. He could be a star player and target in Australia for 25 games, or for a little more money, he can be a lowly anonymous punter in the US and never have to risk his body in 16 games. Some may consider this a smart financial move, but I consider Graham an unmitigated sellout worthy of the utmost contempt. BENGALS WIN

Biggest loser fan: Stormtrooper vs Elmo

Elmo is one of the sickest and freakiest perverts in America. He hosts a children’s show, his doll promotes kids to tickle him, and his biggest supporter is an overweight lesbian. Is Elmo related to John Mark Karr? If I walked around like Elmo I would be thrown in jail for the rest of my life, but because he is a little red furball, he gets away with it. BENGALS WIN

Trashiest looking cheerbabe: Rhonee vs Gina

It is really not fair this week for the Bengals cheerleaders. Even though the Jets “Flight Crew” (That is the real name) was just started in recent years, they have the ability to add girls from Long Island, New York. Long Island is the epicenter for American trashy, everything else is just the minor leagues. Nowhere else in the world can one become a billionaire just by opening a nail, hair or tanning salon. Let’s see what Gina from Long Island was wearing as she stepped out of her boyfriend’s parent’s Escalade for Flight Crew tryouts:

At least she knows how to dress for a tryout and highlight her strengths. And then of course you must pose for your individual shot at the team photoshoot. Each girl picked her own pose, and here is Gina’s.

Sadly, Rhonee did not stand a chance, and I am looking for an apartment on Long Island. JETS WIN

Little known Jets fact: Jets star defensive end Mark Gastineau had 107.5 QB sacks in 108 career starts. He surprised everyone when in 1988, at the age of 31, he retired midseason while leading the NFL in sacks. In what can only be described as one of the oddest reality TV show worthy moments, Gastineau retired to spend more time with his new fiance Brigitte Nielson, who was having health problems at the time. Meanwhile, Gastineau was still married to his first wife and reality tv star, Lisa Gastineau, with whom he had one daughter Brittny. Lisa and Mark’s marriage fell apart when Lisa walked into their home to find Mark in bed with Brigitte Nielson. Where were all of the VH1 and E! Channel cameras when the real action was going down?

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Bengals Bar in NYC


With the Bengals playing the Jets this weekend, I thought I'd let the Bengals fans in NYC know about Phebe's, the Bengals bar in the East Village.

I'd been looking for a bar to watch Bengals games in New York, where I moved to a month ago. Of course, I could find a bar that has the DirecTV package to watch the games, but then I'd be surrounded by fans of every team playing. The ESPN Zone in Times Square was an option, but I needed a place that would help me forget the great WhoDeyFans tailgates I was missing.

Phebe's is the place. It may not be the only Bengals bar in town, it's the one I've found though, and I'm quite happy. For the Monday night Patriots Game, almost everyone in the place was in Bengals jerseys. During the pregame show, everyone loudly booed as Stuart Scott and the other idiots on the ESPN show picked the Patriots to win. (Okay, they weren't idiots that night) And when the Bengals scored their one touchdown, one fan got up, loudly screamed "1, 2, 3" and then the whole place started singing the Bengals fight song.

From what I know of Phebe's, a couple of Bengals fans just decided that it was going to be the Bengals bar, and told every Bengals fan they knew about it. It grew from there.

Watching the game at Phebe's didn't make up for not being at the game, or the Longworth lot before the game, but it was the next best thing--an awesome experience.




There must be Bengals bars all over the country. Do you know of one in your town? Please let us know in the comments section. We're going to create a master list of all the Bengals bars across the country, but we'll need your help. And if there isn't a Bengals bar in your town that you know of, this is also the place to recommend a place.

So help us create the list of Bengals bars by adding the ones you know of in the comments section.



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Ginger, the Mary Anne of the football team.

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

The kicker, who could not get the ball past the 20 on kick-offs, suddenly booted 5 deep during the Kansas City game. In other news, the Bengals release Josh Huston from the practice squad. So lets get this straight: the Bengals get Josh Huston on the practice squad and all the sudden Shayne “Ginger” Graham can kick the ball. So all this bad field position was because... what... Ginger didn't feel inspired? Suddenly, this proven un-clutch player now proves that he also untrustworthy. Here's a guy who does not have to tackle, or hit or do anything more than kick a ball a few times on Sunday. Since when do kickers need incentive to play hard?

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Jones vs. Porter: the Video

I don't know if this is the right time of the season to share this, maybe I should wait until we play the Dolphins. But you knew a video of the fight in a Las Vegas casino between Levi Jones and Joey Porter existed and it was going to eventually come out. I've been waiting to watch this since I heard about the fight.



It's hard to really tell what's going on, but a few things:

4 guys against one, nice class Porter.

The way these guys are playing, we'll see if either is on the field for Bengals at Dolphins, Dec. 30.

Either Levi doesn't travel with an entourage (refreshing) or his boys didn't back him up (depressing).

What do you think about this video? Is it a good metaphor for our season?



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Right the ship

Monday, October 15, 2007


The Bengals are finding ways to lose. Our defense did not lose this game. They were terrible, they made a guy that failed to gain more than 12 yards on the ground last week into a century rusher in the first half. They made an 11 year journeyman look like Montana for a few quarters. They allowed wide receivers about an 11 yd cushion.

But they are not the reason we lost.

I don't want to hear about TJ's record pace this season, or Chads leading the league in yds, these are the kind of stats that are put up when you are behind the whole game. I want to talk about 1 for 18 on third downs the past 2 games. 1 for 18.

Ask anyone around the league and they will tell you what an offensive powerhouse the Bengals are. Against the Chiefs (whose defense is terrible) we could not convert on third down.

Ask Levi Jones if he is still ready to play. He had no problems complaining when he wasn't on the field, but when he was, Jarred Allen owned him.


If it isn't the defense, it's the offense. If the offense is good special teams is terrible. What will be the excuse next week?



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