CincySportsFan

55 minutes ago, Voice of Reason said:

Did @mcpapa get your login or does he now have control of BGP bullet point styles?

Hahaha...no.  He's a master, I am but a mere mortal.  I'm sure he would've done something better (1, *, C, IV, e, and - ...maybe?).

1 hour ago, ChickenWyngz said:

But then you have the argument that if this is driven by Brady, it never drags out and he never retires. He Tom Brady, if he says he wants a coach moved they will be... I don't think it would take retirement. 

You're skipping over the first part in my initial post.  Brady knew he still wanted to play, but retired in order to try to force a trade to another team.  I think it was initially...Brady wanting to play elsewhere, so he retired...Bucs called his bluff, by not signing any high profile replacement at QB...Brady realizes Tampa is not going to trade him, and capitulates into coming back, but has Arians "removed" as a condition.

Everything else done over the past 2-3 weeks has been dotting I's and crossing T's, and making the solution palatable (and to save face) for Arians.

15 hours ago, Voice of Reason said:

Will Smith was asked to leave the Oscars but refused. 

The Academy is currently holding a disciplinary hearing.

At the same time, Chris Rock on stage in Boston with his stand up comedy act. Will he comment on it?

According to one article I read this morning, he touched on it, but it was not "part" of the show.  Apparently he said something along the lines of "So, how was your weekend?", but told the crowd he had the show already written ahead of the Oscars.  Evidently he got a 2 or 3 minute standing ovation even before the show started.

Here's all I need to know about the situation.  Chris Rock apologized to Wanda Sykes (one of the 3 hosts for the show), for taking the attention away from them (as 3 women comedians), and that any attention was going to be focused on this event.  That's upper-level thinking right there.

Will Smith screwed up several times.  The first was laughing at the joke in the first place.  The second was feigning outrage over it just seconds afterwards.  Third was not obeying Oscar staff when they asked him to leave.  And fourth, was not apologize to Chris, by name, during his speech after the win.  Not a good look, at all.

37 minutes ago, MJAlltheWay24 said:

They made it seem like on the radio (ESPN 1530) this morning that Arians waited until now to force their hand more to give Todd Bowles the job.  But who knows what's true?

I'm not going to say he didn't draw things out in order to ensure Bowles got the job, or that he didn't do it more willingly knowing that Bowles would be his replacement...but, I think it (leaving as head coach, itself) was forced by Brady.

I just don't think you go thru... 1) Brady's retirement, B) the beginning of free agency, 3) the combine, d) Brady's unretirement, 5) multiple pro-days, and f) the league meetings...JUST to get your guy the HC gig less than a month away from the draft.

Bowles getting the job may have been a by-product, but I don't believe it was the initial motivating factor.

9 hours ago, PP1 said:

I was thinking about leasing a new car. The Kia I bought is just having issues and I’m having a hard time getting another one within my price range. Has anyone ever leased a car before?

I don't know if it was a separate thread or not, or if it was just brought up in something else, but there's been a discussion on BGP about leasing before.  I know there's been some strong advocates of it in the past.  Don't know if that's still the case, given the current economic state.

I know the first point I'd start at is how many miles do you normally drive.  Because if that number is over what's allotted on the lease (usually 12-15k per year), the penalty makes it rarely worth it.  I am traditionally in the 18-24k range, so it's never made sense for me.

11 hours ago, The Raven said:

Todd Bowles steps in as the Head Coach.  Wonder if this has Brady reconsidering his reconsideration?

Heck no.  We'll never know, but this smacks of it being a condition for Brady to return.  I think he retired, hoping that the Bucs would quickly find a replacement for him, and then he'd be able to force their hand into trading him elsewhere (San Fran, Miami, etc.).  But, since they slow-played that, he was left with little choice.  The one thing he could still "demand" is a different head coach.

If Arians was going to voluntarily step down, he wouldn't have waited until now.  This was pushed on him.  The front office position is a way for him to save face.

3 minutes ago, Voice of Reason said:

Positive or negative in the Russian closed society with no free media? How will the state media report that?

I'm sure it'll be spun into something along the lines of "unprovoked attacks" and they'll use it to justify ramping up their attacks as a "counter-offensive".

1 hour ago, ChickenWyngz said:

Just wanted you to know that I appreciate you @nWo.

I actually don't even check my own weather apps or local news anymore when big weather is coming. I just wait on your updates. 

Hear, hear!

1 hour ago, Jumper_Dad said:

If you win the coin toss, do you now choose defense instead of always taking the ball? I think you absolutely go on defense first now.

In my mind, THIS was/is the biggest fault of overtime.  Why in the world should the outcome of a game, regardless of the number of possessions guaranteed, play such a determining factor in who wins?

The best way to start OT, in my mind, is to pick it up exactly where it left off in regulation.  If Team A scores a tying FG as the clock expires, then they kick it off to Team B to start OT.  If they score with :45 seconds left in the 4th, and have already kicked off, and Team B has it 2nd and 8 from their own 27...then THAT'S where they start OT.

Overtime should not be a game amongst itself...it should be a continuation of the previous quarter...the same way the 2nd and 4th quarters already are.  It's honestly not that hard.

Play for an additional 10 minutes, max.  If it's still tied after that, then add another 10 minutes and continue playing.  In return, all regular season games end at regulation, tied or not.

16 hours ago, Jumper_Dad said:

This could end up being a bigger deal if TB12 forces a trade to Miami as has been rumored.

I don't see that happening.  Brady was involved in several FA's re-signing with Tampa Bay.  To get them to come back, just to jump ship would be the biggest baby-face to heel transformation since Hulk Hogan joined the NWO.  (And not how Brady is viewed by fans, but by fellow teammates.)

1 hour ago, Colonels_Wear_Blue said:

The first few months of 2022 made it tough to keep my head up about being a Reds fan. And it's hard not to say that I don't sit basically all of that squarely on the shoulders of Bob Castellini. I've told a lot of folks in the past month or so that I wish he'd just have stuck to selling lettuce.

Then yesterday rolled around. It was the 9th anniversary of my cousin's son Tobin dying at just shy of 7 months old. I think about that experience often...I know what I experienced throughout that was only a fraction of a fraction of a fraction of what my cousin and his wife went through emotionally. With that said, though, the experience of trying to be there for my cousin and his wife as emotional, physical and logistical support throughout the pregnancy, through Tobin's life at Children's Hospital (he never left the hospital, so one of his parents was there with him 24 hours a day for all 7 months of his life), and in grieving and mourning the loss of their son still weighs on me emotionally. It was the hardest thing I've ever been through in my life - hands down.

I keep in touch with my cousin very regularly. We probably exchange anywhere between 20 and 200 texts in any given week, depending on what we've got to chat about. Conversation on March 28 is always sparse, but I always make it a point to text him and check in in some way or another. Yesterday I sent him a pretty benign text about Spring Training, but he knew immediately why I was texting. He told me he was doing alright, without my having to ask, and then we exchanged some more texts about the Reds. At one point after he mentioned that the 2nd and 3rd-longest tenured Reds combine for 5 fewer years with the organization than Joey Votto, I replied with a profanity-laced text about Castellini. My cousin replied with, "Don't give up on 'em now," and for whatever reason, it immediately made me think of this thread.

I just thought I'd bring it up again for anyone else who's currently struggling with their Cincinnati Reds fandom.

Great story.  And no doubt there are good people involved with the Reds organization.  Bob may even be one himself.  That doesn't excuse his roster moves or on-field operating philosophy.  Good people can still do stupid things.  And that may very well be the situation we're going thru right now.

I don't suddenly hate the Reds, or even despise the new players we've gotten.  I just 100% believe that Bob will not be the owner that will lead us to success on the field.  In the mean time, I hope he (and the rest of the Reds organization) continues to be great off-the-field, in situations like your cousins.

On 3/28/2022 at 11:31 AM, theguru said:

According to CincyJungle.com here are six free agents the Bengals should be interested in:

Nate Ebner - Safety and Rugby Player

Solomon Thomas - DL tweener

Kevin King - CB

Tre Flowers - CB

Jordan Evans - LB

Larry Ogunjobi - DT

https://www.cincyjungle.com/2022/3/28/22997061/nfl-free-agents-2022-6-players-bengals

Solomon Thomas is signing with the Jets.  It seems like the Jets have a spy planted inside PBS. 

5 hours ago, futurecoach said:

I would think if they truly like his potential as a WR, they would have already tried to work him in a little bit more than they have. Instead he isn’t even the first WR in if one of the top 3 need a break. He only seems to be in when it’s a running play. 
 

I think he can potentially do more, but I just don’t think the coaches view him as that type of player. Hence why I think we see them draft a WR, most likely with some speed in the 3rd or 4th round. 

Possibly.  If you look at the rest of the receiving corps from last year, Mike Thomas had 11 targets (but only 5 receptions), Trent Irwin had 5 targets, Morgan and Tate each had 4, and Trent Taylor had 3.  Morgan was the only one of the bunch credited with a carry (just 1).  So, not a lot of experience to draw on. 

But, whether it's someone from the draft, or one of these remaining guys, it'd be nice to get someone somewhat involved in the mix this year, because I really don't see Boyd being here after this year.

Auden Tate has signed with the Falcons, so he won't be back.  Probably a smart move by him, given the suspension to Ridley probably means more chances at playing time.

WR Stanley Morgan Jr. re-signed to a 2-year deal.  Good to have him back for special teams, but it'll be interesting to see if they try working him in more as a sub on offense, as a potential replacement for Boyd after this year.

1 hour ago, theguru said:

According to CincyJungle.com here are six free agents the Bengals should be interested in:

Nate Ebner - Safety and Rugby Player

Solomon Thomas - DL tweener

Kevin King - CB

Tre Flowers - CB

Jordan Evans - LB

Larry Ogunjobi - DT

https://www.cincyjungle.com/2022/3/28/22997061/nfl-free-agents-2022-6-players-bengals

I won't get into these particular players over someone else, but I do agree with the positions they've targeted.  The one thing that you absolutely can't forecast from one season to another is health.  I don't know that, as Bengals fans, you can expect them to be as fortunate as they were last year.  After having addressed the glaring weakness in their starting O-line, the next best thing they can do is to build some quality depth.

38 minutes ago, ChickenWyngz said:

Many are discussing whether they believe it was staged. I was a firm believer that it was not, but about 10 minutes ago I saw a video from a different angle that appears to show Rock lean into the slap. That move makes me wonder and when you compound it with the fact that he held his composure so well I could see it being staged. 

Heard some conjecture on the radio this morning that said Chris may have been leaning in, anticipating Will saying something in his ear.

From a purely entertainment standpoint, I'd love to see him go to Arizona just for the drama.

Looks like the Bengals have officially cut Trae Waynes.  Saves them $10M in salary, but still take a $5M dead cap hit.

3 minutes ago, Voice of Reason said:

Greg, Clark, Wally are still doing it on CBS.

Put Seth back in with them, and let them do everything.  Give everybody else the month off.

I spent a good portion of Friday, Saturday and Sunday traveling, so I didn't get to watch a lot of games like I'd normally be able to.  So, I was dependent on the halftime shows of the games I did see, to catch me up on those that I had missed.

One thing that I've come to recognize is this...having announcers proficient with the "game" of basketball, is different than having announcers proficient with college basketball players.  Ernie, Chuck, Kenny, etc. do a whale of a job with the NBA.  But, they are not who I'd want giving a recap of the college games.

I long for the days of Greg Gumble, Clark Kellogg, Wally Szczerbiak, and (later) Seth Davis.  That was a well-oiled machine.  You could tell they not only knew the sport, but they knew the kids.

Hey CBS/TBS/TNT...more isn't necessarily better.

14 minutes ago, theguru said:

Do you see us going after either of those positions in free agency?

I believe I saw that, after the Collins signing, they only have about $13M left in cap space.  Now, if they release/restructure somebody else, that could free up some more.  And I believe that number also takes into account where their draft picks are slotted.  So, you may have enough money to sign a backup (or two), but you won't be able to go crazy for a high-profile player.

16 minutes ago, theguru said:

The AFC is loaded at the QB position.

This kind of thing gets me excited for the NFL to start again.  In about another month I will be ready. 

Who's the "easy" game(s) in the AFC?  Houston?  Jets beat the Bengals and Titans last year, and should be improved this year.  Likewise for Jacksonville.  The AFC is going to be an absolute gauntlet to get out of.  Certainly there are still going to be tiers, but I don't envision any cakewalks.

Colts don't necessarily need someone to go out and win games for them week after week...they just need someone to go out and not lose games for them.  In that aspect, I think Ryan may be a great fit for them.

39 minutes ago, Voice of Reason said:

Baker to the Colts perhaps. Baker's TD to INT ratio is not good and that might turn off the Colts. Bad turnovers are why they moved on from Wentz. But maybe Reich thinks he can help him.

If you're the Colts, which QB do you prefer...Jimmy G or Mayfield? Both are coming off of surgery.