Another week in Cincinnati Bengals-land and another set of “what if’s”. Who has seen this movie before? Who knows how it ends? At this point in our collective fan hood, we all have a preconceived notion of how it ends. Thirty-plus years of disappointment tend to do that to a person, or fan base as is the case here.
For the second consecutive week, against an inferior opponent, in a setting the Bengals should excel (home), the home team came out flat, dug a hole, and rallied furiously only to fall short.
To make matters worse, the home team needed only a win to reclaim first place in the AFC North from the foundering Ravens. What we got for our trouble, (and my ticket prices), was a team and coaching staff that seemed wholly unprepared to take what the rest of the AFC North was giving them.
Control.
Two wins and the division would be tightly in the grasp. However now, after two uninspired performances, we are left to once again wonder “what if”.
Where do we go now?
With the Bengals on the road at Empower Field at Mile High Stadium in Denver, in what should be an imminently winnable game against an opponent also jockeying for a playoff spot, what should we expect?
Will the Bengals once again come out flat and unimaginative only to rally furiously? Or will the team do what they did the last time they lost two straight, and come out on fire, focused, and potent?
Truly we shall see, but I am going to present three questions that MUST be answered in week 15 vs. the Denver Broncos.