Geoff Hoblaw's Hob Blog: We Need To Work On Some Things And Get Better Edition

As Peter King might write:  Complacency, Bengals.  You embody it.

But don't just take fake Peter King's word for it, go get confirmation straight from the source.  That's right, that warped funhouse of misinformation and insanity Bengals.com.  Normally it's dangerous to walk amongst its mirrored hallways of infintely reflected madness, but it's the bye week.  So fuck it.  Let's take a stroll.

Are the Bengals concerned about giving away two of only a small handful of games where they will likely enter as favorites?

We’ll watch the film and everybody is going to see something they could have done better, which in turn makes everybody work harder.

We have heard this literally after every loss since things started downhill in the 2nd half of 2009, and probably earlier.  For example last week Marv said "But that’s where we are, and we’ve got to work at the positives of it and do more things right for a longer period of time."  Easy part of your schedule just ended.  Lockout looms next year.  There is no more longer period of time to wait to improve.

On Palmer's play:

“I’m not going to put the blame on anybody,” [Brat] said.

No worries.  Cause I put it on you.  And Carson.  See how easy it is to blame?  Check out the tag to this column, Brat.  I even try to pin Katrina on you, you ass.

On the awful 3rd & 13 interception:

The route ended up inside further than it should be, so the ball ended up further outside than it should be. When the quarterbacks throw it, they throw it prior to the break. The ball was still right there.

Yes, but prior to the break doesn't mean throwing blind.  TO ran the route inside because, as you will see, THAT'S WHERE ALL THE GODDAMN SPACE WAS!!!

You tell me why on Earth TO should not break the route a little more inside than might be called for in the playbook and why Carson shouldn't ere towards aiming it inside since the only defenders that exist in this play are to the outside.  Look at the screen shot, the ball is still in Carson's hand as TO breaks anyway (contrary to Brat's point) and he can see this.  IF BRAT IS WATCHING THE VIDEO AND BLAMING THE ROUTE ON T.O. HOLY SHIT WHAT IS THIS MAN LOOKING AT.

Now the playcall was ill-advised and lacked any strategery or coherence in the first place given the previous repeated successful pounding of Benson prior to the play and it's high risk nature...but still, look at that photo.  Sure looks like an easy pitch and catch for a first down.  At this point, despite the idiocy of the play in the first place, it was headed for success.  What ended up dooming it was the inaccurate and somewhat late throw.  But sure, Brat, let's chalk it up to TO's route.

About the playcall on the interception:

As they always do before every critical situation, Lewis and Bratkowski conferred on the headsets when it was third-and 13, 2:28 left, the Bengals up, 21-14, and the Bucs with no timeouts left.

"Bob?"

\crickets chirping

I only wish they had not conferred.  Here is the conclusion they actually came to:

"We knew if we got a first down, the game was over,” Bratkowski said. “So that’s the decision that was made. The thinking was if we complete that ball, the game’s over.”

Notice the complete focus on reward and none on risk.  No consideration at all is given to, what if our shaky, innaccurate-to-date QB throws an INT on a long pass play the defense will expect?  Or, what if we get a lucky first down by handing it to the highly successful Benson and at worst make Josh Freeman go 70 yards on the road with no Timeouts against Zimmer's defense?

TO's been around some great football minds.  TO's also been around the Bengals.

Let's close it out with more pointless discussion about establishing an identity:

We still want to be a running team. We ran for 148 yesterday and that qualifies, yet have enough balance to get the chunk plays,” Bratkowski said.

How about just designing an offense based on your offensive talent and the defense you face?  How about doing what works and not just deciding to do something for the sake of doing it?

As you can see, the Bengals appear real concerned and filled with urgency to turn this season around.

Comments

[MikeBrownStillSucks]

They might have thrown the ball on 2nd down. Or on the previous drive. But no, after 8 run/dink plays Bratworst suddenly realizes that if they get one first down they win. If you're going to throw on 3rd and 13 there you go to the sidelines where they don't expect it. Wouldn't have mattered if they go out of bounds on a completion if they get a first down on the play since there would be less than 2 and a half minutes left, 1st down, and other guys out of timeouts.

Bratworst's a friggin moron. He won't work again in the NFL. Like Dave Shula. They should work together at the steakhouse.

[Major Payne]

"'We knew if we got a first down, the game was over,' Bratkowski said."

Wow, Gomer, it sure is good we got us a edumakated guy running the offense to figure out hard stuff like that.

(smack head on desk. repeatedly.)

It sure would be nice to see Bobbo take this approach in, say, the first half. String a few of those new-fangled 'first down' thingies together and you'll probably end up with a TD. Put a few TDs together and SHAZAM!! The game is over! And without having to do something stupid in the final minutes.

I hereby and forevermore shorten Bobbo's job title from Offensive Coordinator to just "Offensive".

[Rich]

For most of the last decade the mantra has been "We're inconsistent and made mistakes. We just need to lose attitudes and work harder."

No, you are a fucking incompetent organization that can only win when your schedule is week and other teams look past you.

Its all spin at this point.

[Hofbraunow]

That picture, complete with John Madden CBS Chalkboard on it, is a great picture of a great play about to not happen

[blesterov]

Great post Bien.

Another great example of how Hob just covers this stuff up. The photo says it all that the ball has not left Palmer's hand and TO is in his break.

Now not only is Brat an incompetent OC, he is a liar. I love it!

[Kevin Jones]

Geoff Hobson is the Sean Hannity of Cincinnati Bengals news, always buffing the cock of the mighty elephant (republican) or in this case Mike Brown is the elephant.

WDR is the Alex Jones of Cincinnati Bengals news. Letting people know that shit is fucked up, and it's our obligation to be pissed about it.

[Neutered Bengal]

this is frustrating.

[Wyatt]

@Kevin Jones:

Let's leave politics out of the discussion, huh? The Democrats have been in charge for two years now, and shit's still fucked up. It's not a Republican thing or a Democrat thing, it's a "same old politics as usual" thing, and it has no place on a football blog.

[Kevin Jones]

@Wyatt:

Sorry. No offense to you or anybody else who didn't care for the comment. I wasn't attempting to make it Republican/Democrat thing, more of an Establishment/Revolutionaries type of thing.

[MikeBrownStillSucks]

Marvin-speak is just a slightly different flavor of Dave Shula speak or Dick Lebeau speak or Hobspeak. "We'll get that cleaned up" followed by -- wait for it -- another 8 or 9 pre-snap penalties next frigging Sunday. Cincinnati Groundhogs, now in their 20th season.

It's funny when some of the other sites Bengals fans always write "we have loads of talent" "if we could only execute" but actually the talent level's not that awesome and even the Bengals thought so last year, viewing themselves as the players nobody else wanted. The only position where the talent level is way up there, right now, is CB. And if JJo leaves then they've got no positions with way up there talent.

[Hofbraunow]

Our offense seems very static, in the way they run plays...they are not afforded (or they do not afford themselves) much latitude, when it comes to the play action, as would a more dynamic offense...

...notable exceptions being the times they go with the no-huddle offense, and when T.O. does things like in the play pictured above

[Hofbraunow]

and by that I'm referring to the *adaptive* route he's running and not the fact that the pass
(which was thrown behind him) was intercepted

[wch]

Having an indoor practice facility will solve all of this...

[MikeBrownGreedyClown]

Right echo all we care about is the practice facility that's why it's the one and only demand... wait, what?

[Hofbraunow]

ahh, hmmm, let's see...practice facility, OC, etc. etc.

VIVA La Revolución!

[Rich]

What's the over/under on the Bengals losing against the bye week? My guess is Palmer has two interceptions.

[Hofbraunow]

Only because he is forcing his throws against Atlanta *right now as I post this*....

[Football Betting]

TO and Bengal are like to be fix their word but this will not make the fans mind as they don't take it seriously. Throwing ball to a long distance may difficult but it could recover their pride.