burrrton wrote:I don't think we mailed anything in- we simply had an overmatched offensive line.
It's concerning to be sure, but I think the gloomy feeling surrounding the game is due to that single weakness. If they can manage to be merely mediocre against Cincy, I think we win.
That's a pretty damn big weakness. We're talking about 6 positions, not one or two. In previous years, we could get by with a patchwork OL as we could hold in a RB or a TE to help on one or two over matched positions. We could call plays that avoided a right tackle that was getting man handled by his opponent, but we have 4 or 5 guys that are overmatched on every play, and no strong blocking TE to help. It's pathetic.
I didn't get the feeling that we mailed anything in, either. We're simply not as good of a football team as we have been in the past 3 years. The defense is as strong as ever, but we can't expect them to pitch a shutout in every game. Even against weaker opponents like the Lions, our margin for error is much smaller than it used to be. Previous year's teams would have had no problem disposing a team like the Lions.
I'm a little less optimistic about the Cincy game than you are. I think we get beat, badly, by at least two touchdowns, probably more. Unless this offense, particularly the OL, undergoes some sort of metamorphous, we are not currently a playoff team, let alone a SB contender. Pete's years long neglect of a progressive problem along the OL has finally caught up with us. As the saying goes, the chickens have come home to roost.
I hope I'm wrong, but that's the feeling I get at this moment.