The 9 yard line…
You can’t hold an exorcism just anywhere. For the Cincinnati Bengals, expelling the postseason demon that has haunted them for 31 years had to happen inside Paul Brown Stadium.
And while any spot on the PBS field would have sufficed, there was a symbolic, full-circle nature to the fact that the play which sealed their 26-19 wild-card victory against the Raiders began at the 9-yard line in the north end zone.
It was there, on that same 9-yard line, where Andy Dalton attempted to tackle Stephon Tuitt late in the 2015 season, breaking his thumb and shattering Super Bowl dreams in the process.
And one month later, that same 9-yard line is where the Steelers began their game-winning drive after Jeremy Hill’s fumble gave them — and the devil within — new life, which Pittsburgh capitalized on for an 18-16 victory.
There they were again Saturday evening. The Raiders had first-and-goal at that same 9-yard line with a chance to force overtime in the closing seconds after trailing for almost the entire game. A spike and two incompletions set up fourth-and-goal at the 9. Raiders quarterback Derek Carr dropped back and fired a pass toward Zay Jones, and Bengals linebacker Germaine Pratt intercepted the ball and drove a striped stake through the heartbreak of history.
Bengals v Raiders Game Thread.
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Re: Bengals v Raiders Game Thread.
Regarding the inadvertent whistle TD. I saw a tweet that sums this up perfectly. “The raiders got absolutely jobbed out of the Bengals not getting jobbed”
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Re: Bengals v Raiders Game Thread.
wow. what a freaking game!!!!
sorry so late, but my weekend was jam packed with activity.....
I thought we might have a 2nd half let down.... and we just about did....
the whistly play.... seemed like the whistle was JUST BEFORE boyd catches the ball... so im ok with the play. i dont think it affected anything.
that fourth down interceiption was... immaculate. i cried. twice. my wife hugged me. it was awesome.
and you know what? i aint skeered of no titans either. BRING EM ON
sorry so late, but my weekend was jam packed with activity.....
I thought we might have a 2nd half let down.... and we just about did....
the whistly play.... seemed like the whistle was JUST BEFORE boyd catches the ball... so im ok with the play. i dont think it affected anything.
that fourth down interceiption was... immaculate. i cried. twice. my wife hugged me. it was awesome.
and you know what? i aint skeered of no titans either. BRING EM ON
Re: Bengals v Raiders Game Thread.
Nice piece by Kevin Huber about the win: here
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Re: Bengals v Raiders Game Thread.
Ok, ok, who's chopping onions in here?? For those of us a bit older the pain goes way back to the 80's Superbowls. There is a lot of history sorting itself out here. Maybe a lot of wrongs being righted.
Seeking Superbowls
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