How The Cincinnati Bengals Changed NFL History Part II: The Zone Blitz

Fulcher-2-Stay. It only took three words and one simple play call to forever change the way NFL teams played defense.

In 1984, the Cincinnati Bengals hired new head coach Sam Wyche. Wyche, who would help develop the no-huddle offense (which you can read about here), was an innovator in the most literal sense.

He had coached under Bill Walsh and he had been around the legend when Walsh began planting the seeds for what would become the West Coast offense.

Shortly after Wyche’s hire, he knew he needed a defensive coordinator and he wanted someone as innovative as himself. Instead of bringing in a new face, Wyche decided to promote Dick LeBeau, who had been the Bengals defensive backs coach for the prior four seasons.

The move made sense. The 1983, Bengals defense was ranked first in the NFL, thanks in large part to the 23 interceptions that LeBeau’s defensive backs pulled in. 

In his first three seasons as defensive coordinator (1984-86), Lebeau struggled. Ironically, one of the biggest headaches for LeBeau was Walsh’s West Coast offense.

It wasn’t just the Bengals though, defenses all over the NFL were having a tough time adjusting to the quick timing routes.

Blitzes were exposed when the quarterback made a hot read. The West Coast offense was thriving and there was nothing anyone could do to slow it down.

In 1986, the Bengals drafted a strong safety out of Arizona State that changed everything, a junior named David Fulcher. Chef LeBeau began to devise new ways to cut up an NFL offense and David Fulcher was his key ingredient. 

Fulcher had the speed of a safety, but the size of a linebacker. LeBeau watched for two seasons (1986-87) as ‘The Rock,’ as Fulcher was known, terrorized opposing receivers.

With Fulcher leading the way, LeBeau led his first ever top-10 defense in 1987 when the Bengals finished the season at No. 8.

However, just as the no-huddle had almost ceased to exist following the ’87 season, the zone defense almost wasn’t born either. A 4-11 showing by the Bengals in 1987 almost cost every Bengals coach their job.

It was on a cross-country flight following the team failure of 1987 where LeBeau drew up the Gutenberg bible of NFL defenses. With his tray-table down and a pen in hand, LeBeau began doodling on a napkin.

The doodles turned into safeties blitzing, but that had been done before. Then another doodle: defensive linemen dropping back into pass coverage to make up for the blitzing safeties exposed area.

Several doodles later, LeBeau thought he was onto something. His new defense was going to fix two problems.

One of the biggest complaints about the vaunted ’46’ defense is that it was susceptible to the big play. If a defensive player were to blitz and not make the play, his portion of the field would be open for a big gain.

The next problem was the hot read. LeBeau wanted quarterbacks to have to think faster but with less information. Usually, on a blitz, a quarterback could hit his wide receiver for a quick curl, but in LeBeau’s new defense, that becomes a risky move because there might be a defensive linemen in coverage to pick it off.

LeBeau ran his new defense by Wyche, which was a mere formality. In 1988, the Bengals were destined for the Super Bowl, they were using a defense no one had ever seen and an offense that had never been run for a whole game (Wyche devised the no-huddle in 1984 but didn’t put it into extensive use until 1988).

The combination took the league by storm.

In the Bengals opening game against the then Phoenix Cardinals, they came out in their custom 3-4 defense, however, unbeknownst to Phoenix, LeBeau threw in a few kinks that no one had ever seen before.

The NFL changed forever when Bengals linebacker Reggie Williams took the call from the sideline, “Fulcher-2-stay, Fulcher-2-Stay.”

Fulcher blitzed from his strong safety position, something that Cardinals quarterback Neil Lomax had probably seen hundreds of times before.

However, Lomax probably dropped his jaw when he realized that Bengals nose tackle Tim Krumrie was dropping back into coverage.

Lomax would throw two interceptions on the day and the Bengals would win 21-14 thanks to a fourth quarter goal line stand put together by a hungry defense. The victory was the first step on the march to Super Bowl XXIII.

After the Bengals struggled through the 1991 season, LeBeau left for Pittsburgh where he became the defensive backs coach. 

The rest, as they say, is history. With guys like Carnell Lake, Greg Lloyd, Kevin Greene and Chad Brown, LeBeau perfected his new system.

Because of the Steeler’s success with the scheme, LeBeau’s creation is now associated with the steel city. Giving Bengals fans everywhere one more reason to abhor their hated rivals from the keystone state.

Surprise: Cincinnati was the birthplace of the no-huddle and the zone blitz. What else was created in the Queen City? How about the West Coast offense, part III will take a look at that sometime next week.

Dan Reeves Says Matt Stafford Should Have Stayed in School One More Year

Apparently former NFL Head Coach Dan Reeves thinks Matthew Stafford, the first overall pick in this year’s draft, should have stayed in school.

While addressing a crowd of just over 200 people Tuesday morning (6/23) at the Atlanta Athletic Club in Johns Creek, Ga., Reeves turned some heads with his thoughts on Stafford, the top pick in April’s NFL draft. 

“I just thought he should have taken another year [in school],” the former Falcons, Broncos and Giants coach told the crowd. “He was a true junior. If you look at [Joe] Flacco or [Matt] Ryan, they have one thing in common, they were there (in school) at least four years.”

Reeves, who is a native of Georgia, followed Stafford’s career closely at UGA.

The former Cowboys Assistant Coach let everyone in attendance know his thoughts on what an extra year could have done for Stafford, “One more year in college doesn’t sound like a lot, but it is, especially when it comes to maturity at the quarterback position.”

The man who coached John Elway for 10 seasons also thinks Stafford may have a hard time winning a Super Bowl in Motown. “Detroit is going to be a difficult place for him to win,” Reeves said. “And I say this as affectionately as possible, but people don’t want to live in Detroit.” That statement received a hearty laugh from an admiring crowd.

Reeves was quick to add that he wasn’t necessarily making fun of the city, it was just that most players in his experience don’t want to be up there. “Guys don’t want to spend the offseason there [in Detroit],” the one-time Cowboys running back said.

“When [the players] play that last game, they’re ready to leave Detroit, their bags are already packed, they’re not staying.”

Reeves’ point was that it’s going to be hard for Stafford to keep guys in town during the offseason, an important time for QB’s to get in a rhythm with the rest of the team.

However, Reeves did say that Stafford is definitely capable of turning the Lions around, “If anyone can do it [win games in Detroit], Matthew can, but it is going to be difficult because of where he ended up.”

 

The complete story on Dan Reeves’ appearance will be available here on Sunday. For a less serious take on this story, you can check out my blog.

(Photo by John Breech)

 

 

How the Cincinnati Bengals Changed NFL History: The No-Huddle Offense Turns 25

Thanks to the Buffalo Bills, the no-huddle offense is in the limelight again.

Two months ago, ESPN and several other outlets reported that new Bills offensive coordinator Turk Schonert was busy installing his version of the no-huddle for the upcoming 2009 season.

The announcement came at the perfect time because unbeknownst to many, the high-flying no-huddle offense will be celebrating it’s 25th birthday this year.

It all started on December 29, 1983, when the Cincinnati Bengals announced the hiring of a new head coach, Sam Wyche. 

Midway through the 1984 season, his first in Cincinnati, “Wicky Wacky” Wyche (as the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette called him) had a revelation as he watched his team prepare for a third down and long situation. The coach couldn’t understand why anyone with half a brain would let the defense sub out slow linebackers for speedy nickel backs.

“We’re going to go back here and [huddle] for 20 seconds and let them get all of their best rushers and best cover people in?” Wyche posited in a November 2008 interview with the Roanoke Times. “And [then] we’re going to line-up and do exactly what they thought we’d do—throw the ball.”

Wyche knew there had to be a better way. So the mad scientist in him began experimenting.

First, the Bengals started running a basketball type huddle from the sideline. During timeouts, 15-20 players would huddle around Wyche listening for the next play. As soon as the referees whistled the ball in-play, 11 players sprinted to the line of scrimmage.

This strategy made sure the defense didn’t have time to match up with the Bengals personnel on the field.

It wasn’t long before the No Fun League put a hamper on the Bengals brilliance by limiting the tactic.

Next up, the team developed what was known as the “sugar huddle,” it was given this mouthwatering moniker because it was supposed to be “short and sweet.”

At the time, most teams were spending about 20 seconds in the huddle, the Bengals cut that down to five. The short-lived sugar huddle proved to be to the forefather to the now-famous no-huddle.

The no-huddle, like most great inventions, was born out of necessity. Wyche needed an offense that the NFL wouldn’t punish, “They changed [the rules] every week for almost four years,” Wyche says of the NFL. “Every week they had a different rule, I’m not exaggerating, it was so frustrating.”

In 1986, Wyche brought Bruce Coslet to Cincinnati to coordinate the Bengals offense. With Coslet’s help, Wyche was going to turn the no-huddle into something of legend.

One of the main reasons Wyche brought in Coslet is because they were both disciples of Bill Walsh. Both had been around for the advent of the “Cincinnati Offense” (Later dubbed the West Coast) and both had creative minds when it came to exploring the nuances of what you can and can’t do with an NFL offense.

Boomer Esiason, who would benefit from the no-huddle’s success as the Bengals quarterback, said on America’s Game: The Missing Rings, that he saw the roots of Coslet’s and Wyche’s brilliance, “We took Bill Walsh’s 49ers West Coast [offense], very cerebral system, to another level of thinking, it was remarkable.”

As the Bengals headed to Pittsburgh for week six of the 1986 season, talk of the no-huddle hit a fever pitch. The Bengals went into the Monday Night showdown at 3-2, but in those three wins, they had scored a remarkable 36, 30, and 34 points.

“We’ve had more success with it then people realize,” Wyche said in an interview with the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette before the game. Many outside observers however, claimed that the offense seemed to confuse the Bengals more then the opposing defenses, but Wyche would have none of that talk.

“We actually know what we’re doing,” Wyche said at the time. “Sometimes we use it to keep personnel off the field, sometimes to change the tempo of the game, and sometimes to force defenses out of a certain coverage.”

He also mentioned a few more reasons why he likes it, “It’s a different wrinkle, it’s something we give people that they don’t see every week and it’s difficult to practice against.”

Although the Bengals would win the week six battle with the hated Steelers, they would fall just short of the playoffs, finishing the season 10-6.

After the team’s first 10-win season in five years, Wyche and Coslet both felt they had a potential success on their hands with the no-huddle.

However, since the team was only employing the offense for less then 50 percent of their plays, most coaches were convinced that it wasn’t the no-huddle that was causing the Bengals success. Ere-go, no one copied it.

In 1987, the no-huddle was on the verge of extinction. Thanks to a player’s strike, the Bengals had to use replacement players for three games. Wyche wasn’t about to teach an impossibly complicated offense to scabs, so he didn’t.

Once the strike was over, the Bengals went into a free fall and they finished the season 4-11.

Everyone in Cincinnati thought Sam Wyche was done and that his pink slip was in the mail. But Paul Brown, one of the game’s earliest innovator’s and the Bengals owner, decided to give Wyche one more chance. And his huge risk paid off.

The no-huddle made it’s name as the Bengals made their Super Bowl run during the 1988 season.

No team had an answer for the no-huddle. The Bengals jumped out to a 6-0 start while averaging 28.5 points per game.

The team would finish the season 12-4, lead the NFL in scoring and take home the AFC Central Division title.

However, during the playoffs, a controversy reared it’s ugly head thanks to the no-huddle.

Before the AFC Championship game between the Bengals and Bills, Buffalo Head Coach Marv Levy made it apparent that he had a problem with the Bengals offense. “When you break the huddle—and I know he’s not huddling so maybe it’s hazy—they are not to come out with 12-13 players on the field,” Levy told the Toledo Blade four days before the game.

Levy thought the Bengals were skirting the rules. There was talk that a Bills player would go down injured after every play to slow the game down so that the Bengals couldn’t run their beloved offense. The Seahawks had used the legal tactic, with no success, in the prior week’s divisional playoff game.

As Levy continued to draw attention to the situation, tension grew. The day before the game, the New York Times interviewed Tony Veteri, then an assistant supervisor of officials. Veteri told them, “When there’s no huddle, it’s okay to have more than 11 players on the field as long as they’re off before the ball is snapped or before the clock runs down.”

Veteri would also add, “We would never, never interfere with his game, as far as a new interpretation [of the rules].”

Veteri’s words would prove to be anything but prophetic.

Two hours before the AFC Championship was set to kickoff, the league office called the Bengals and told them if they went no-huddle, they would be hit with a 15-yard flag every time it happened. The Bengals won anyway 21-10.

Wyche told Sports Illustrated after the game, “The heck with them, we play by their rules and we still beat them.”

It took Wyche four years to perfect it, but it paid off with a Super Bowl run.

Levy would take the no-huddle offense he hated (probably because he didn’t think of it), modify it into the Jim Kelly led K-Gun, and go to four Super Bowls with it.

And don’t think Wyche didn’t notice what Levy did, “Marv Levy’s headline is that ‘The No-Huddle is No Fair,’ and the next year they’re running it and actually the next year is when they ‘invented’ it,” Wyche said in America’s Game: The Missing Rings.

As Buffalo looks to implement the no-huddle in 2009, Wyche will surely be wishing success upon the Bills, mainly because Schonert, the Bills offensive coordinator mentioned earlier, was the back-up quarterback on the Bengals 1988 team.

As a result of the no-huddle, the NFL was forced to change several rules: If a player goes down injured, he must leave for the following play. Also, in a no-huddle situation, the defense is only allowed to substitute if the offense does.

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In the coming weeks, look for How the Cincinnati Bengals Changed NFL History, Pt. 2: The Zone Blitz and How the Cincinnati Bengals Changed NFL History, Pt. 3: The West Coast Offense.

2009 Bengals Schedule Part III: Cincinnati-Pittsburgh Top Five Ever

For those of you reading this for the first time, here’s the deal, since June is historically a slow time for NFL news, I’ve decided to put together the Bengals historic schedule.

What does this mean?

It means that I’m going week by week through the Bengals 2009 schedule and looking at their top five games versus each opponent. If you’d like to catch up, here’s what you have missed:

Week 1: Bengals vs. Broncos Top Five

Week 1 Highlight: Bengals get first win in franchise history.

Week 2: Bengals vs. Packers Top Five

Week 2 Highlight: The first chapter in the Brett Favre bible is written.

 

Week 3 has the hated Pittsburgh Steelers headed to Cincinnati. Since the Bengals and Steelers play twice a season, I’m switching up the formula for part three of this series.

This week, I’ll look at the top three wins for the Steelers, when the teams meet again in Week 10, I’ll look at the top three wins for the Bengals (And yes Steelers fans, the Bengals have beaten you three times in team history).

Fun Fact: On Mon. Oct. 19, 1992, a Steelers 20-0 win ended the Bengals then NFL record 186 game scoring streak. The Bengals were shutout for the first time since Nov. 16, 1980 and kicker Jim Breech was held scoreless for the first and only time in his 14-year NFL career.

 

All-time Series: Steelers Lead 48-30 (Including postseason)

Let’s start the countdown (remember, these are Steelers wins only).

 

3. Nov. 2, 1975, at Cincinnati

There have only been four occasions in NFL history when both the Steelers and Bengals both finished the season with double digit wins and 1975 was one of them.

For this November showdown, the Steelers came into the game with a 5-1 record, but they weren’t in first place. The upstart Bengals had shot their way to the top of the division with an undefeated 6-0 record through the season’s first six weeks.

Not only did the game live up to its hype but the big stars produced.

Steeler quarterback Terry Bradshaw threw two touchdown passes (both to Lynn Swann) and ran for another. Bradshaw’s effort gave his team a 30-17 fourth quarter lead.

Bengals quarterback Ken Anderson one upped Bradshaw in the TD pass department, with three. The final one was a 22-yard pass to Chip Myers that cut the lead to 30-24.

The Bengals would get the ball back after the score, but they wouldn’t be able to punch in a potential game-winning touchdown.

Pittsburgh would finish the season as Super Bowl Champs with a 12-2 record and an AFC Central Division crown. The Bengals regular season ended with an 11-3 record and a first round 31-28 playoff loss to the Raiders.

Result: Pittsburgh 30, Cincinnati 24

 

2. Jan. 8, 2005, at Cincinnati

There’s almost no need to recap this game, if you’re a fan of either team you know what happened.

On the second play from scrimmage, Carson Palmer took a low hit from the Steeler’s Kimo Von Oelhoffen as he threw a 67-yard completion to Chris Henry.

To this day Bengals fans believe two things: A. the hit was cheap and B. the Steelers lose this game if Palmer doesn’t get hurt.

Cheap or not, did Von Oelhoffen’s hit win the Steeler’s the Super Bowl? It’s certainly debatable.

Result: Pittsburgh 31, Cincinnati 17

 

1. Dec. 31, 2006, at Cincinnati

If you’re a Bengals fan, this loss had to sting more then the playoff loss. Why? Because after Carson Palmer went down, most Bengals fans knew deep down inside that any hopes of winning went down with Palmer.

Bengals fans had almost four full quarters to accept the playoff defeat.

This game was different though. A win against the hated Steelers in the final game of the 2006 season would have kept the Bengals playoff hopes alive (and because Denver would lose later on in the day, a win would have clinched a playoff berth).

With under 30 seconds left in the fourth quarter of a 17-17 game game, Bengals kicker Shayne Graham pushed a 39-yard field goal attempt just right.

The missed field goal set up an overtime that would eventually result in the most depressing New Year’s Eve in city history, which coincidentally would be one week after the most depressing Christmas Eve in city history (See Denver-Cincinnati top five, number two).

In overtime, Steeler quarterback Ben Roethlisberger hit future Super Bowl MVP Santonio Holmes on a short slant route that Holmes turned into a 67-yard yard game-winning touchdown pass.

Only a Pope’s funeral could be described as quieter then Paul Brown Stadium after the Holmes score.

Result: Steelers 23, Cincinnati 17

 

Here’s what I want to know from Steelers fans; which victory made you feel better: beating the Bengals in the playoffs or eliminating them on the last week of the season?

Bengals fans, which loss hurt more?

And for everyone, was the Carson Palmer hit a cheap shot or an accident by Von Oelhoffen?

Bengals’ Chad Ochocinco Makes Like Mike Tyson and Tattoos His Face

First it was touchdown dances, then it was changing his last name, and now it appears the Bengals’ Chad Ochocinco has one upped himself again—No. 85 just got tattoos on both sides of his face.

Around 6:30 p.m. (Jun. 10), Ochocinco laid this bombshell on his almost 5,000 Twitter followers:

“Yall might not believe me but my tatoo guy is here and I getting my face done, looks cool to, don’t be mad just accept the Ocho please.”

Forty-five minutes later, Ochocinco proved that his tweet was no joke when he posted two pics of his freshly tattooed face (one is above, the other can be seen here).

For anyone that doubts the authenticity of the Twitter account, it only takes ten minutes of reading tweets to realize that this is no one other than Ochocinco.

The tattoo in the photo above is the state of Florida, while on the other side of his face, it looks like two crosses.

Most Mike Tyson fans remember Kid Dynamite for two things: biting off Evander Holyfield’s ear and putting a tattoo the size of Rhode Island on his face.

Ochocinco’s tattoos are much smaller, but has No. 85 finally reached the crossroads of sanity, or is this just part of his grand plan to be the most famous football player on the planet?

Cincinnati Bengals-Green Bay Packers: Top Five Games Ever

Let’s face it Bengals fans, football news is scarce at the moment. Unless of course you call Chad Ochocinco skipping organized team activities and going to the NBA Finals news.

Since everyone is clamoring for something new and interesting, I’ve decided to take a historical look at the Bengals 2009 schedule. This means I’ll be highlighting Cincinnati’s top five games ever against each weekly opponent.

 

Week 1: Bengals vs. Broncos

Part two of the series means Week Two on the Bengals 2009 schedule. Bengals and Packers fans, grab a cup of coffee and get ready to relive the birth of Brett Favre, not his real birth of course, but his metaphorical football birth.

So, without further ado, let’s take a closer look at the all-time Cincinnati-Green Bay series.

Fun Fact: Most Packers fans know this, but Bengals fans might not. From 1953-1994, the Packers played up to three home games per year in Milwaukee. The Bengals are 2-0 in trips to Milwaukee.

All-time series: Tied 5-5

Let’s start the countdown.

5. Oct. 3, 1971, at Green Bay

The very first game in the Bengals-Packers series was a good one. Dan Devine, in his first season as Packers head coach, watched his team jump out to a 10-0 lead.

However, the Bengals jumped right back into the game thanks to a 65-yard interception return for a touchdown by defensive back Lemar Parrish.

At halftime, Bengals coach Paul Brown decided that starting quarterback Virgil Carter was not getting the job done, so he replaced him with rookie Kenny Anderson.

Anderson would throw the first touchdown pass of his storied career in the fourth quarter to wide receiver Eric Crabtree, but it wouldn’t be enough.

Devine would spend four years with the Packers before leaving to take the head coaching spot at Notre Dame.

 

Result: Green Bay 20, Cincinnati 17

 

4. Oct. 5, 1986, at Milwaukee

This game had then Packers coach Forrest Gregg emotionally torn. The 1986 meeting marked the first time that Gregg had faced off against the Bengals since leaving the organization after the 1983 season to take the Packers job.

When Gregg left Cincinnati, he was only two seasons removed from guiding the Bengals to Super Bowl XVI.

The Packers came into the game 0-4 (many think the 1986 team was one of the worst in Packers history) and really shouldn’t have been any sort of match for the high-flying Bengals. At the beginning of the game, they weren’t.

Behind three touchdown passes from Boomer Esiason, two of which went to Cris Collinsworth, the Bengals jumped out to a 34-14 lead.

The Packers would score two late touchdowns, but they wouldn’t be able to get the big win for the always emotional Gregg.

 

Result: Cincinnati 34, Green Bay 28

 

3. Oct. 5, 1980, at Green Bay

Once again, Forrest Gregg is the story. However, this time, it’s because he’s the Bengals coach.

The 1980 game represented the first time Gregg, who was a legendary lineman for the Packers in the 1960’s, returned to Green Bay as a coach to face the team he once played for (Gregg coached the Browns from 1975-77, but never faced the Packers).

Once again, Gregg’s team didn’t come out on top. Kenny Anderson threw two interceptions. Bengals Hall-of-Fame left tackle Anthony Munoz caught his first career pass but got dropped for a six-yard loss.

And to make things worse, Munoz didn’t even have the worst stat line among receivers. Fullback Nathan Poole took that honor as he managed one catch for negative seven yards.

Kicker Ian Sunter would score all of Cincinnati’s points, but the difference in the game proved to be Packer quarterback Lynn Dickey, who threw two touchdown passes, one of which went to James Lofton.

 

Result: Green Bay 14, Cincinnati 9

 

2. Oct. 20, 2005, at Cincinnati

No self-loving Packers or Bengals fan will forget this game any time soon. Brett Favre threw five interceptions, got stripped by a Bengals fan, and still almost willed his team to a win.

Favre’s five-pick performance wasn’t completely out of character considering he was in the middle of one of his worst seasons as a pro.

Not to mention the Bengals had picked off both Daunte Culpepper (Vikings) and Kyle Orton (Bears) five times earlier in the season (the Bengals were the first team since the 1970 Chiefs to have five interceptions in three different games). 

The biggest shocker of the game came with under two minutes left in the fourth quarter. As the Packers were driving to tie the game, Bengals fan Greg Gall ran out of the stands and onto the field. He didn’t stop there though, Gall ran right up to Favre and took the ball out of the right hand of the startled superstar.

Thanks to the smart-thinking fan, the Bengals defense caught a breather and kept Favre and his offensive friends out of the end zone.

Carson Palmer’s three touchdown passes would end up being just enough for the win.

 

Result: Cincinnati 21, Green Bay 14

 

1. Sept. 20, 1992, at Green Bay

Where did the legend of Brett Favre begin? It all started on a sunny September day in 1992 against the 2-0 Cincinnati Bengals.

Packers fans, this game is the genesis of the Brett Favre bible, the first step in his soon to be Hall-of-Fame career.

This game was also a crossroads for both franchises. The Bengals came into the Week Three game undefeated, while the Packers were 0-2.

As the game headed into the fourth quarter, 33-year-old rookie Bengals coach Dave Shula looked like a boy genius. He was only minutes away from starting his coaching career 3-0.

On the other sideline was Packers first-year head coach Mike Holmgren. The Packers had gone 4-12 the year before Holmgren’s arrival and an 0-3 start just might have been enough to put him on the hot seat.

Fast forward to the fourth quarter.

Bengals kicker Jim Breech nails a 41-yard field goal with 1:11 showing on the clock, his second one of the fourth quarter, and it puts his team up 23-17.

The kick is huge for one reason; if he had missed, the Bengals would have been up 20-17 and a rookie head coach (Holmgren) desperate for his first win would have surely played for a tie.

As it is though, the Packers know they need a touchdown or the games over.

Favre is in an impossible situation; with 1:07 left, he’s on his own eight-yard line with no timeouts knowing he needs a touchdown to win.

Right off the bat, Favre hits Sterling Sharpe for a 42-yard gain that has the cheeseheads at Lambeau going crazy. However, Sharpe would injure himself on the play and have to leave the game.

Undeterred, the Packers run two more plays that advance them to the Bengals 35-yard line. From there…

Favre splits the Bengals corner and safety with a 35-yard laser down the right sideline. Kitrick Taylor catches the ball in full stride at the two-yard line and walks into the end zone. Chris Jacke completed the improbable comeback with the PAT.

Even more improbable, Taylor would only catch two passes on the season, one of which was the aforementioned touchdown.

As for Bengals fans, it was a nightmare relived as it wasn’t the first time a quarterback finished a 92-yard game-winning drive with a touchdown pass to somebody named Taylor (see Super Bowl XXIII).

 

Result: Green Bay 24, Cincinnati 23

Cincinnati Bengals-Denver Broncos: Top Five Games Ever

Lets face it: Cincinnati Bengals news is scarce at the moment. With the latest round of organized team activities wrapping up, there’s not much to write or read about unless you want to hear for the 15th time how Chris Henry and sixth-round pick Bernard Scott have turned their lives around.

Since everyone is clamoring for something new and interesting, I’ve decided to take a historical look at the Bengals 2009 schedule. This means I’ll be highlighting Cincinnati’s top five games ever against each weekly opponent.

For instance, since the Bengals play their season opener against Denver, I’ll discuss the top five most exciting meetings between the two teams.

Part two of the series will do the same thing, except it will be the Bengals-Packers series, and so on. 

So, without further ado, let’s take a closer look at the all-time Cincinnati-Denver series.

Fun Fact: Most Bengals fans (and maybe Broncos fans too) are unaware that these two teams were actually division rivals in 1968 and ’69.

During Cincinnati’s first two season’s in the league, they played in the AFL’s West Division with Oakland, Kansas City, San Diego, and Denver.

All-time series: Broncos lead 16-8.

Let’s start the countdown:

5. Sept. 2, 1984, at Denver

This 2009 season won’t be the first time these two teams have met in the opener. In 1984, expectations were high for both squads.

The Broncos were coming off their first playoff appearance in three years, while the Bengals were in the midst of a run that saw them get to the playoffs in two of the previous three seasons.

In his first game as Bengals head coach, Sam Wyche watched his team lose on a fourth-quarter touchdown pass—only second-year Broncos quarterback John Elway didn’t throw it.

Gary Kubiak, playing in one of only two games he started on the season, hit tight end Clarence Kay with an eight-yard strike that gave his team the lead late in the game.

The game was filled with errors. Broncos kicker Rich Karlis missed his first extra point attempt on the day. Bengals kicker Jim Breech uncharacteristically missed two field goals, and Bengals quarterback Ken Anderson threw a pick that set up Denver’s second touchdown.

The Bengals would finish the 1984 season at 8-8 and one game out of the playoffs, while the Broncos would take the AFC West with a 13-3 record.

Result: Denver 20, Cincinnati 17

 

4. Oct. 25, 2004, at Cincinnati

This game was big for one reason and one reason only: the return of Monday Night Football to Cincinnati. After a 15-year absence (MNF’s last visit to Cincinnati had been on Sept. 25, 1989) the Bengals returned with a vengeance.

Cincinnati was 1-4 going into the game, and ABC may have regretted bringing prime-time football back to the Queen City.

However, a 50-yard touchdown pass from Carson Palmer to Chad Johnson resulted in the first score of the game, and the Bengals proved their worth under the bright lights.

Result: Cincinnati 23, Denver 10

 

3. Sept. 15, 1968, at Cincinnati

This game could arguably be No. 1, considering its historical significance for the Bengals franchise. The 24-10 win over Denver represented both the Bengals’ first home game ever and the first win in team history.

Bengals quarterback John Stofa threw for 224 yards and two touchdowns on the day. Stofa’s TD passes were both long bombs. The first one was a 58-yarder to Bengals great Bob Trumpy, the second one a 54-yard beauty to Warren McVea.

Stofa only started seven games in his Bengals career, with this win over Denver undoubtedly being the highlight. McVea would end his lone season in Cincinnati with a mere two touchdown catches.

Result: Cincinnati 24, Denver 10

 

2. Dec. 24, 2006, at Denver

The very thought of this game makes most Bengals fans squirm. After Denver took a 24-17 lead late in the game on a Jason Elam field goal, it was up to Carson Palmer and the Bengals offense to prove that they were clutch as well as fun to watch.

Palmer did his part, running a perfect two-minute drill in the fourth quarter. He then capped the remarkable drive with a 10-yard touchdown pass to T.J. Houshmandzadeh, which tied the game at 24…

Hold on—no it didn’t. The Bengals still had to make the extra point. After a low Brad St. Louis snap was bobbled by Kyle Larson in the cold Denver snow, kicker Shayne Graham never got a chance to put his right foot on the ball.

Overtime averted, Broncos win, and Bengals fans spend Christmas Eve cursing Santa Claus.

Result: Denver 24, Cincinnati 23

 

1. Oct. 22, 2000, at Cincinnati

On paper, this game had all the makings of a blowout. The lowly Bengals came into the game 0-6, having already been shut out twice in the season’s first six weeks.

Denver, on the other hand, came into the game 4-3 and on its way to claiming an AFC Wildcard at 11-5. The wildcard slot would have been a division title if the Broncos had won this game.

However, with the Broncos’ front seven seemingly on a mental vacation, Bengals running back Corey Dillon exploded for a then-NFL record 278 rushing yards.

As the Bengals averaged a dismal 6.2 points in their first six games, nobody in the world could have seen this coming. Dillon scored on runs of 65 and 41 yards while averaging an unimaginable 12.6 yards per carry.

To put into perspective how bad this Bengals team was, this would be the first and only time all season Cincinnati scored more than 30 points. The offense would finish the season ranked 30th (out of 31) in the NFL.

Result: Cincinnati 31, Denver 21

If you have any other nominations, please leave them in the comments section.

Former Bengal Says Ochocinco Is Numero Uno in the Distraction Department

It’s probably safe to say that most Cincinnati fans have never been to KCChiefs.com, but now that Eric Ghiaciuc is in Kansas City, Bengals fans may want to start bookmarking the page.

The site published some interesting quotes Monday from the former lineman, who was asked about Chad Ochocinco.

Here’s the exact quote from the site: “As much as you try to focus on football with your day-to-day routine of meetings, lifting, walk-throughs, practices, games, you can focus, but it’s still there,” Ghiaciuc said of the distractions.

“It’s like when you turn your head, it’s still behind you. I think we were doing our best to focus on what needed to be focused on in our profession, but it was there and it was a bit of a problem.”

Most Bengals fans will simply shrug this off as sour grapes. Ghiaciuc, who spent four-years in Cincinnati before signing with Kansas City this offseason, doesn’t have a big following in the Queen City after he anchored a porous Bengals offensive line that surrendered 51 sacks last season.

If Ochocinco were so inclined, he could simply point out that the Bengals best season during Ghiaciuc’s tenure was 2005 when the then-rookie only started one game.

Ocho could also point out that the Bengals worst season during Ghiaciuc’s stay with the team was 2008 when Ghiaciuc started 16 games for the first and only time in his career.

It Ghiaciuc plays anything like he did last season, new Chiefs quarterback Matt Cassel may just want to go ahead and put himself on the disabled list.

Palmer Knows Ochocinco Would be Asset to 2009 Cincinatti Bengals

In case you don’t listen to the Petros and Money show on Fox Sports radio (and it’s very possible you don’t since their show just made its way to Cincinnati on April 29), Carson Palmer made a revelation to the Southern California-based duo on Thursday: The Bengals would love to have Ochocinco in camp.

For the first time all off-season, Palmer said something positive about his much maligned wide receiver. “He’s a damn good receiver,” Palmer said on the show Thursday. “That’s obvious, everybody knows that.”

However, Palmer did it admit, that he, like everybody else, is clueless as to when Ochocinco will start taking part in team activities, “When he shows up, he’ll show up and hopefully he’s in great shape and he’s ready to play.”

Palmer also elucidated on comments that he made earlier this off-season to Sirius Radio that maybe the Bengals don’t need Ochocinco. “I never once said anything about not wanting him and not needing him,” the former Pro Bowl MVP said.

“He’s a Pro Bowl reciever. He’s put up a ton of yards. He’s extremely dangerous to cover.”

Palmer finished by telling the large radio audience that, “We would love him when he comes here, but he’s not here right now.”

Whether or not you’re an Ochocinco fan, this is good news. Palmer coming out on a national radio show and fawning over Chad’s skills just may be what the star WR needed to hear to feel wanted.

However, as has been the case all off-season, Chad has remained silent. There is still no word on whether or not he will join the team for any remaining OTA’s or even if he’ll show up for the team’s mandatory mini-camp on June 18.

The next chance to look for Chad will be June 2-4 when the Bengals are back on the field for another round of OTA’s.

 

Bengals Offensive Coordinator Bob Bratkowski Burns Team’s 2008 Playbook

For the past six months I’ve been torturing everyone I know by asking them the same three questions every day; how do Matthew McConaughey movies make money, why is Keeping Up With the Kardashians still on television, and who decided it was a good idea to keep Bengals offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski?  

McConaughey hit his peak in 1993 with Dazed and Confused, Keeping Up With the Kardashians is the lowest form of entertainment that television has ever produced (this includes all reality shows, Hangin’ With Mr. Cooper and anything that ever starred David Hasselhoff) and finally, but most importantly, there is first grade reading material that is more complicated than the Bengals’ playbook. But it hasn’t always been that way.

In 2003, Bratkowski’s first season with the team, the Bengals had the 13^th best scoring offense in the league. Considering Jon Kitna was the Bengals’ quarterback, this showing was a minor miracle.

In 2004, with Carson Palmer starting for the first time, Bratkowski was able to open up the playbook and start looking downfield, something he couldn’t do with Kitna, who had the arm strength of a fourth-string high school sophomore. All of a sudden, the Bengals’ scoring offense was a top 10 unit at No. 10.

In 2005, the Bengals’ offense hit the NFL like a category five hurricane. Bratkowski threw out a variety of offensive sets that kept every defense on their toes.

If the Bengals weren’t running a three-receiver set, then they were going double tights, if they weren’t doing that, then they were in an I-formation. Out of the I, they could use two tights or go with two receivers.

The Bengals’ offense was like a 12 colored rubik’s cube that no defensive coordinator could figure out.

The 2005 unit finished fourth in the league in scoring and the Bengals made the playoffs for the first time in 15 years.

Alright, now that I’ve served up the appetizer for you, let’s get to the meat of this piece. In 2006, the Bengals dropped to eighth in scoring offense, in 2007, they dropped to 11^th, and last year they dropped to dead last. Ron Jeremy scored more often than the Bengals did last year.

In 2008, with Ryan Fitzpatrick, the Bengals’ playbook was more or less limited to the first two pages. Because of his arm strength, the Bengals couldn’t go deep and as defenses knew that, they stuffed the run.

The point here is this; between personnel and playcalling, it’s time for Bratkowski to make some big changes. And believe it or not, he might be doing it. The Bengals’ offseason exit list reads like a who’s who of incredibly bad offensive players.

Gone are Levi Jones, Chris Perry, and Fitzpatrick. The Bengals needed those guys as much as my cat needs feline AIDS. Perry fumbled more often than Fitzpatrick threw incomplete passes and I’m only slightly exaggerating.

So where are the biggest changes in the Bengals’ playbook going to be? The popular answer is that the play-action pass is going to make its triumphant return to Cincinnati (as most Bengals remember, “Boomer” Esiason perfected the play-action in the late 1980’s). Bratkowski is on record saying that the Bengals must re-establish the running game.

This means Cedric Benson has to have a career year and that shouldn’t be difficult since the 747 yards he gained in 12 games last season was his career year.

With the addition of fullback Brian Leonard, the Bengals’ I-formation plays should actually go for positive yardage this season, unlike last year when every running play (and most plays in general) seemed to go for around negative two yards.

If Benson—running veers, traps, and iso’s—can get opposing defenses to commit to the run, then the Bengals can unveil the fun and gun passing game that every fan has clamored for since 2005.

If chicks dig the long ball, then every Bengals player should have a hot girlfriend by the end of 2009. With Chris Henry, Chad Ochocinco, and Laveranues Coles, the Bengals will be able to run the three receiver sets that Bratkowski loves.

Coles will run the 7-10 yard slant, button, and hook routes that TJ Houshmandzadeh made famous, Chad will do whatever he wants (as usual), and Henry will go long.

Most teams zone up on the Bengals in Cover 2 which generally means no going deep. Think about it, how many plays over 50 yards did the Bengals have last year? You can count the answer on your fist.

With two healthy tight ends (Reggie Kelly, Ben Utecht) to keep opposing safeties and linebackers honest, someone in the Bengals’ passing game is going to have a big year, my guess is his name is Carson Palmer.

Even better, the Bengals can sporadically run four and five receiver sets, formations that have given the Steelers’ D trouble for the last five years. Jerome Simpson and Andre Caldwell will make this possible.

The return of Palmer opens a Pandora’s Box for opposing defenses. Kind of like Chad, Henry, and Coles, the Bengals playbook will be wide open in 2009.  

Oh and there’s one big difference between 2005 and 2009; the Bengals are going to have a defense that actually defends people this year. That should help the offense too.

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