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[cincygrad]

Ironic the two preseason picks for the DIV both got embarrassed and BAL met the implosion in MIA and feasted, and CIN made a good showing in SEA, should’be won the game.

The north is going to be a wild ride this yr.

Week 1 in the NFl is always a little odd. I don't think we learned anything about Baltimore..... What they are doing down in Miami is an embarrassment to the league. That said, Baltimore is a solid team and if Lamar Jackson becomes a consistent passer, they're a playoff team. We need to see more from the Bengals to get an idea of what they are capable of doing this year. They clearly outplayed one of the better teams in the NFC at one of the hardest places to play. But they lost.... And now there is film on them. Lets see what they look like once everyone gets an idea of what they are doing. Cleveland had a horrible week, but if they bounce back with a 2 touchdown win on MNF on the road in NY, the bandwagon will be fired back up. As for Pittsburgh..... Seems like every season, they have an uninspired loss that gets everyone writing articles about how they are finished.... And then they roll off 4 or 5 wins and everyone shuts up. I'm not falling for the trap.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

Week 1 in the NFl is always a little odd. I don't think we learned anything about Baltimore..... What they are doing down in Miami is an embarrassment to the league. That said, Baltimore is a solid team and if Lamar Jackson becomes a consistent passer, they're a playoff team. We need to see more from the Bengals to get an idea of what they are capable of doing this year. They clearly outplayed one of the better teams in the NFC at one of the hardest places to play. But they lost.... And now there is film on them. Lets see what they look like once everyone gets an idea of what they are doing. Cleveland had a horrible week, but if they bounce back with a 2 touchdown win on MNF on the road in NY, the bandwagon will be fired back up. As for Pittsburgh..... Seems like every season, they have an uninspired loss that gets everyone writing articles about how they are finished.... And then they roll off 4 or 5 wins and everyone shuts up. I'm not falling for the trap.

BAL...59-10 W @ MIA, yeah, MIA rolled out the white flag when they let their LT go...that said, BAL did what you're supposed to do to teams laying down...they kicked them.

Next game...AZ

CIN...20-21 L @ SEA, heard mostly gloom and doom about the upcoming season...obviously the players aren't buying into it. Basically controlled that game on the road on both sides of the ball.

Next game...SF

CLE...13-43, L TN, this was a close game well into the 3Q 15-13, then it went off the rails for Baker and the Browns DEF. That loss took a lot out of the crowd...will be interesting to see how they rebound from that this week.

Next game...@ NYJ

PIT...3-33, L @ NE, Yep...I'm not getting too bent out of shape over the blowout in NE. Both the OC and DC gave Belichick the same game plan that worked in PIT last year and they eat it up. They have a long way to go to even consider themselves a contender.

Next game...SEA

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

 

[cincygrad]

Baltimore and Cleveland pick up wins, while the Bengals and Steelers stumble to 0-2..... It's worth noting that the 3 wins for the AFC-N this season have been against the Dolphins, Cardinals, and Jets. Unless Pittsburgh gets outstanding play from Rudolph, it's looking like a 2 horse race for the AFC-N, but I'm not certain that either team is ready to challenge for the AFC - Yet.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

Baltimore and Cleveland pick up wins, while the Bengals and Steelers stumble to 0-2..... It's worth noting that the 3 wins for the AFC-N this season have been against the Dolphins, Cardinals, and Jets. Unless Pittsburgh gets outstanding play from Rudolph, it's looking like a 2 horse race for the AFC-N, but I'm not certain that either team is ready to challenge for the AFC - Yet.

HUGE test this week for Baltimore. If they are for real, then they will give the Chiefs a run for their money. Still expecting them to come up short though.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

Side note... Is it just me, or is Andy Dalton playin like a man that wants to keep his job?

What are the odds he gets extended? Or do they ride out his contract through 2020 and still draft his replacement?

@cincygrad

 

[cincygrad]

Side note... Is it just me, or is Andy Dalton playin like a man that wants to keep his job?

What are the odds he gets extended? Or do they ride out his contract through 2020 and still draft his replacement?

@cincygrad

Such a tough question. On the one hand, there is so much work to do to clean up other parts of the roster. Dalton is putting up decent numbers without an NFL caliber offensive line and no AJ Green. You could make the case that an extension makes sense as they rebuild the rest of the roster. But part of me thinks its time for a full reboot which would probably mean a first round qb. If they do go in that direction, I expect that Dalton would get considerable attention from a team without a great starter.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

Such a tough question. On the one hand, there is so much work to do to clean up other parts of the roster. Dalton is putting up decent numbers without an NFL caliber offensive line and no AJ Green. You could make the case that an extension makes sense as they rebuild the rest of the roster. But part of me thinks its time for a full reboot which would probably mean a first round qb. If they do go in that direction, I expect that Dalton would get considerable attention from a team without a great starter.

Honestly I think Zac Taylor should have the biggest say here. To see what he's been able to do with that offense without many of its starters is incredible. Gotta applaud him for it. Add in the preseason debut of Ryan Finley... hard to imagine any QB they role with having a bad year. Taylor shows a lot of promise in the QB development department.

But it will ultimately boil down to draft position. If they are top 10 then I think Herbert could be their guy unless they want to fortify the O-line once more. I like Fromm too, but not sure he'll test out very well at the combine. And I believe we had the discussion (or maybe that was @CrashDavisSports ?) about trading AJ Green.

 

[CrashDavisSports]

Honestly I think Zac Taylor should have the biggest say here. To see what he's been able to do with that offense without many of its starters is incredible. Gotta applaud him for it. Add in the preseason debut of Ryan Finley... hard to imagine any QB they role with having a bad year. Taylor shows a lot of promise in the QB development department.

But it will ultimately boil down to draft position. If they are top 10 then I think Herbert could be their guy unless they want to fortify the O-line once more. I like Fromm too, but not sure he'll test out very well at the combine. And I believe we had the discussion (or maybe that was @CrashDavisSports ?) about trading AJ Green.

I didn't talk about trading AJ Green. I am torn on that front, as you want to see a guy a Bengal for life that is going to be a Hall of Famer, and is quite opposite from these diva WR's and DB's in todays day and age. However, he is getting hurt more, and it would be nice to get something out of him before he is completely broke down. Problem is, he is over 30 now, so what can you realistically get for a 30 year old injured WR with less than a year left on his contract? I think his value is more than on the field especially for a team that has next to no Hall of Famers, and boasting almost two guaranteed Hall of Famers right now in Atkins and Green. Don't you have to hold on to that and roll with the highs and lows? It isn't like Green is a bum now, when he is healthy he is still a difference maker.

I think he presents more value to this organization than what we could possibly net for him. I also think you resign him if you can somehow keep it between 15 and 16 million a year.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

Baltimore and Cleveland pick up wins, while the Bengals and Steelers stumble to 0-2..... It's worth noting that the 3 wins for the AFC-N this season have been against the Dolphins, Cardinals, and Jets. Unless Pittsburgh gets outstanding play from Rudolph, it's looking like a 2 horse race for the AFC-N, but I'm not certain that either team is ready to challenge for the AFC - Yet.

Just looking at the games so far...I'm not guessing the north winner will do much in the playoffs. Of course a lot can change between now and then.

BAL...they haven't played a legit playoff team yet, so we'll find out a lot about them Sun.

CLE...they won comfortably at NYJ, but they look fairly average

CIN & PIT...really just trying to find their way to a win of any kind right now. PIT obviously transitioning to the QB2 for the rest of the season. CIN still has some horses on both sides of the ball, but needs some stability on DEF...the run DEF looked horrible vs SF.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

I didn't talk about trading AJ Green. I am torn on that front, as you want to see a guy a Bengal for life that is going to be a Hall of Famer, and is quite opposite from these diva WR's and DB's in todays day and age. However, he is getting hurt more, and it would be nice to get something out of him before he is completely broke down. Problem is, he is over 30 now, so what can you realistically get for a 30 year old injured WR with less than a year left on his contract? I think his value is more than on the field especially for a team that has next to no Hall of Famers, and boasting almost two guaranteed Hall of Famers right now in Atkins and Green. Don't you have to hold on to that and roll with the highs and lows? It isn't like Green is a bum now, when he is healthy he is still a difference maker.

I think he presents more value to this organization than what we could possibly net for him. I also think you resign him if you can somehow keep it between 15 and 16 million a year.

Really depends on how desperate the team is to rebuild or not. Judging by the current state of things, I wouldn't want to trade Green. They aren't as desperate for a reboot as I originally thought.

 

[CrashDavisSports]

Just looking at the games so far...I'm not guessing the north winner will do much in the playoffs. Of course a lot can change between now and then.

BAL...they haven't played a legit playoff team yet, so we'll find out a lot about them Sun.

CLE...they won comfortably at NYJ, but they look fairly average

CIN & PIT...really just trying to find their way to a win of any kind right now. PIT obviously transitioning to the QB2 for the rest of the season. CIN still has some horses on both sides of the ball, but needs some stability on DEF...the run DEF looked horrible vs SF.

They held the league rushing leader Seattle to less than 80 yards rushing in Saettle. They turn around and give up what 1000 yards rushing to the 49ers backup running backs. They are like Jeckyl and Hyde right now. I don't know what team we actually have. 0-2 is the only way to judge them right now, because they have been too inconsistent between their only two games. No 3rd game yet to see which side of the aisle we fall on.

 

[CrashDavisSports]

Really depends on how desperate the team is to rebuild or not. Judging by the current state of things, I wouldn't want to trade Green. They aren't as desperate for a reboot as I originally thought.

I think we already started the rebuild. Taylor has jettisoned a ton of players from the last couple drafts already, including a couple of his own draft picks this year. We will see what happens. Need more data.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

 

[ATL96Steeler]

The entire DIV took a doughnut!

BAL...2-1, L @ KC...28-33. The Ravens scored late to make this one look a little closer than it was. The Ravens scored 1st in this game and that got KC's attention as they rolled off 3 scores rather quickly for 23-6 half time lead. BAL did scrap back to within 1 possession at 22-30, but KC added a FG to make it a 2 possession game again with 4 mins to go. Fairly entertaining game to watch.

Next game...CLE

CLE...1-2, L vs LAR...13-20. Back to back national TV games for the Browns. The Rams front 7 got quite a bit of pressure on Mayfield. Only 3 sacks, but that was enough to get him moving out of the pocket to buy time. The Browns had the ball 1st and goal at the Rams 5 after a penalty and could not punch it in.

Next game...@ BAL

CIN...0-3, L @ BUF...17-21. Bengals DEF rebounded from a terrible effort last week, but it wasn't enough for the win as BUF scored a late TD to clinch it after CIN scored 17 unanswered to take a 3 point lead into the 4th Qtr. CIN gave up 175 yds on the ground, but Josh Allen accounted for nearly 50 yds rushing. Bengals DEF was on the field a long time as well, probably a factor on the Bills last scoring drive.

Next game...@ PIT

PIT...0-3, L @ SF 20-24. the Steeler DEF generated 5 turnovers in the starting debut for Mason Rudolph at QB. His outing was shaky, but he did throw 2 TDs. After taking a 4 Qtr lead on Rudolph's 2nd TD pass 20-17, the Steelers caused their 5th turnover of the game. Unfortunately, after gaining one 1st down, James Connor gave the football back to SF on a fumble and the 49ers were able the convert that into a TD and the final margin.

Next game...CIN

Barring a tie, CIN or PIT will get off the goose egg this week.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

Barring a tie, CIN or PIT will get off the goose egg this week.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

The entire DIV took a doughnut!

BAL...2-1, L @ KC...28-33. The Ravens scored late to make this one look a little closer than it was. The Ravens scored 1st in this game and that got KC's attention as they rolled off 3 scores rather quickly for 23-6 half time lead. BAL did scrap back to within 1 possession at 22-30, but KC added a FG to make it a 2 possession game again with 4 mins to go. Fairly entertaining game to watch.

Next game...CLE

CLE...1-2, L vs LAR...13-20. Back to back national TV games for the Browns. The Rams front 7 got quite a bit of pressure on Mayfield. Only 3 sacks, but that was enough to get him moving out of the pocket to buy time. The Browns had the ball 1st and goal at the Rams 5 after a penalty and could not punch it in.

Next game...@ BAL

CIN...0-3, L @ BUF...17-21. Bengals DEF rebounded from a terrible effort last week, but it wasn't enough for the win as BUF scored a late TD to clinch it after CIN scored 17 unanswered to take a 3 point lead into the 4th Qtr. CIN gave up 175 yds on the ground, but Josh Allen accounted for nearly 50 yds rushing. Bengals DEF was on the field a long time as well, probably a factor on the Bills last scoring drive.

Next game...@ PIT

PIT...0-3, L @ SF 20-24. the Steeler DEF generated 5 turnovers in the starting debut for Mason Rudolph at QB. His outing was shaky, but he did throw 2 TDs. After taking a 4 Qtr lead on Rudolph's 2nd TD pass 20-17, the Steelers caused their 5th turnover of the game. Unfortunately, after gaining one 1st down, James Connor gave the football back to SF on a fumble and the 49ers were able the convert that into a TD and the final margin.

Next game...CIN

Barring a tie, CIN or PIT will get off the goose egg this week.

BAL... Good reality check for them. Seeing the cracks in their game that they need to shore up to contend with the AFC best will serve them well moving forward. They have the tools to do it. Those boneheaded calls by Harbaugh really hurt them in the end. Don't expect he'll make the same mistakes again though. Clearly the best team in the division.

CLE... Can't believe how banged up they were last night. RT, TE, FS, SS, CB1, CB2, etc... All inactive. Had to know it was going to be a rough one, but they held tough. They can keep their chin up for that effort against a great NFC team. Next game at BAL looms large for this group to assert themselves. I'm expecting a great game from CLE, but they need to get healthy fast!

CIN... Looked miserable early on, but luckily for them the Bills let them back in the game in the 2nd half.

 

[cincygrad]

Is there a worse division top to bottom than the AFC-N?

BAL - They look like the class of the division, but they don't look like a team that will compete late into the playoffs. LaMar Jackson is exciting, but consistency is still elusive.

CLE - It's worth noting that this team was massively overhyped coming into the season. They won a lot of meaningless games down the stretch last season and they have some talent.... But they definitely haven't learned to win and their coach looked overmatched against a top team.

PIT - It will be interesting to see where their season goes. This is definitely a spot where Tomlin can stake his claim as a great coach. If he can circle the wagons without his franchise qb, he'll be viewed in a much different light. There are definitely some spots in the schedule where this team could do some streaking.

CIN - Inconsistent. There are times when you watch the D and think they're not half bad. Same for the offense. Yesterday was case in point..... They had a shaky qb playing poorly. They grabbed a late lead and put all the pressure on Buffalo and then immediately gave up a wide open pass to a tight end. Overall I think the team has too many holes to fill before they can be competitive for 60 minutes. I think the new coach is doing a good job, but I think he's going to need a few years to re-imagine this roster.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

BAL... Good reality check for them. Seeing the cracks in their game that they need to shore up to contend with the AFC best will serve them well moving forward. They have the tools to do it. Those boneheaded calls by Harbaugh really hurt them in the end. Don't expect he'll make the same mistakes again though. Clearly the best team in the division.

CLE... Can't believe how banged up they were last night. RT, TE, FS, SS, CB1, CB2, etc... All inactive. Had to know it was going to be a rough one, but they held tough. They can keep their chin up for that effort against a great NFC team. Next game at BAL looms large for this group to assert themselves. I'm expecting a great game from CLE, but they need to get healthy fast!

CIN... Looked miserable early on, but luckily for them the Bills let them back in the game in the 2nd half.

Truth be told, nobody really looks all that great.

BAL is the early favorite now to win the north largely because of beating two stiffs in weeks 1 & 2, but imo they have a long way to go if they are going to stay with the upper tier of the AFC.

CLE...not being able to punch it at home 1st and goal from the 5 was not a good look at all for a team thinking maybe they were ready for the playoffs.

CIN and PIT are just bad football teams.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

Is there a worse division top to bottom than the AFC-N?

BAL - They look like the class of the division, but they don't look like a team that will compete late into the playoffs. LaMar Jackson is exciting, but consistency is still elusive.

CLE - It's worth noting that this team was massively overhyped coming into the season. They won a lot of meaningless games down the stretch last season and they have some talent.... But they definitely haven't learned to win and their coach looked overmatched against a top team.

PIT - It will be interesting to see where their season goes. This is definitely a spot where Tomlin can stake his claim as a great coach. If he can circle the wagons without his franchise qb, he'll be viewed in a much different light. There are definitely some spots in the schedule where this team could do some streaking.

CIN - Inconsistent. There are times when you watch the D and think they're not half bad. Same for the offense. Yesterday was case in point..... They had a shaky qb playing poorly. They grabbed a late lead and put all the pressure on Buffalo and then immediately gave up a wide open pass to a tight end. Overall I think the team has too many holes to fill before they can be competitive for 60 minutes. I think the new coach is doing a good job, but I think he's going to need a few years to re-imagine this roster.

BAL...spot on, long way to go, but they look like a one and done DIV winner, but they will be a tough out at home.

CLE...agree 100%. This week is big for them. On paper, they have more talent than BAL. If they lose that one a split is still in play, but I think they will hover around .500.

CIN...much like PIT, the DEF was on the field a long time...can't help but think that was a factor late on that last BUF drive.

PIT...Steelers margin for error is next to zero right now. If not for the turnovers, SF could've run up 500-600 yds in that game.