39 Comments

The Bengals are better than last year. I think the score will reflect more than 3 points this year and a Bengal win.

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Beautiful song.

WAR is kinda bs. Overrates HRs, underrates BBs and OBP. Don't bother arguing with me. Just accept I did research and it reads like that to me. Using it over the eye test is stupid. I want my HOFers to be pretty damn great on one side of an inning, and very good on the other side. Either their offense or defense has to be spectacular, and the other has to be well above average. Only well rounded players deserve to go in. Spectacular defense with strong hitting should be equal to the opposite, and more than enough.

Brandon Phillip is one of the top 5 fielding 2Bs of all time. The eye test is enough proof. His hitting was strong, but not greatness level. He is Jeff Kent in reverse, maybe a stronger candidate than Kent. Edmunds was/is much stronger than Kent, but 2Bs have a lower standard to be compared to offensively. The whole thing is subjective on so many levels. Some guys are hated by voters, and they get shafted. The HOF is more an exercise in phantasy than reality. It really doesn't mean a lot to me. Give me guys like Hal Morris and Joe Oliver and Spuds and I'll get you to a World Series. Barry Larkin didn't succeed in a vacuum. Hard nosed competitors get you victories day to day. Louie Pinella knew that and made it a philosophy.

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Mahomes. High Ankle Sprain. We're all hearing it, way too much of it. Anyone, anyone at all talking about, or planning for Chad Henne? Just wondering. You know, because I sure do not want to see "Chad's Chiefs" take down Burrow's Bengals while everybody is wondering what happened to High Ankle Sprain Mahomes. Go Bengals!

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I guess it is like my business advisor says, "plan for the unexpected". Andy is a smart guy and will have surprises and plays we have never seen before. Zach is a smart guy too, so will see who can execute better, I suppose. I am sure Kelce will be looking for revenge from the last game so better be ready for that. I will be sure to sit in the same chair and wear the same clothes as last Sunday. :)

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Jan 26, 2023·edited Jan 26, 2023Liked by Paul Daugherty

Walter Brennan was one of the greatest actors of all-time. He played sidekicks, good guys, and black-hearted villains with equal greatness. Compare him in "Rio Bravo" to "Red River" to "My Darling Clementine". He and Robert Duvall are probably the two greatest character actors of all-time. As a matter of fact, Robert Duvall, to me, is the greatest film actor of all time. Not my favorite actor, but the greatest actor. "I'm not talkin' about dyin', Woodrow, I'm talkin' about livin'!!"

KC is now favored by 1. Stay mad, Mixon! Run angry all day!!

I don't care about WAR and all that new stat crud. I'm an old dog who has learned lots of new tricks, but when it comes to Baseball, I care about what I see with my eyes and the traditional box score. But, to each their own. Kent was a douche, but he's got many of the numbers to get in. But, he made Barry Bonds likeable by comparison.

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Put some Spicy BBQ Sauce on Patrick’s ankle!!

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Jan 26, 2023·edited Jan 26, 2023

"Maybe it was his career WAR, nearly 16 points fewer than Scott Rolen’s, whom some don’t see as a HOFer. Or maybe it was that I never looked at Jeff Kent and saw superstar."

How did you not see Jeff Kent as a superstar with the Giants in the early 2000s? MVPs are superstars, definitionally. Sure, his face appears designed to ask, "do you know why I pulled you over, son?", but his bat was ultra-elite.

If you ask 1000 retired big leaguers if they would rather have an MVP award or a 16 points higher WAR, 1000 would laugh at the question.

Since Mahomes isn't going to have the time to dance around, I'm sure Lou is prepping for quick release seams to Kelce. I can't wait to see Pratt jump one of those and give the Bengals a big turnover.

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There are 3 Reds that I believe are right there on the borderline of the HOF. Vada, Davey and Joey. I think the first 2 should be in. Joey's a hard one. If he could stay healthy and add some numbers, I'd say yes. I'd sure like all 3 in, though.

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Jan 26, 2023·edited Jan 26, 2023

Odd that Andy Reid announced Mahomes was playing so early in the week. I don’t buy it. The “secret” iPhone video released by a reporter of Mahomes “practicing” yesterday shows nothing but him moving forward. It’s the side to side motion that counts here in a high ankle sprain (Doc and I were classmates at the same medical school). If the Chiefs dare to ruin their franchise QB by letting him play, there are plenty of within the rules tackles the Bengals can use to test that ankle. Scrape it. Roll with it. Twist it. Pull on it. All legal in getting a player to the ground. I hope it doesn’t come to that but that’s Andy Reid’s decision to make.

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Jan 26, 2023Liked by Paul Daugherty

My guess is Mahomes will be relatively effective at the start, not so much as the hits and frigid cold take their toll(and whatever they shoot him up with wears thin). Also I suspect he and Mike Hilton will be close personal friends by the end of the game lol

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And then there was music. What is not to like about Carle Simon. Alas, she was a James Taylor protégé. Or perhaps protégé is the wrong word.

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The Bengals SHOULD win Sunday. That said, now that all the talking heads are all of a sudden on the Bengals train and the line is now in the Bengals' favor is enough to make one nervous. The Bengals have excelled as the underdog in the last 2 years, let's see how they start handling being labeled top dog. I don't think it'll faze 'em at all (I hope).

Kent's argument is that he is the best offensive 2B ever. Period. The HOF is awash with average defensive players that could hit. But like I said yesterday with Albert Belle, Kent's a bit of a meanie-pants, so we keep him out. Ultimately the subjectivity (and absurdity) of the HOF process and the "gatekeepers" therein provokes interesting conversation/friendly arguments, so maybe it's not all bad. If there were hard and fast rules and metrics to meet (or not meet), we'd have nothing to talk about.

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Jan 26, 2023Liked by Paul Daugherty

The Bengals beat 100% Mahomes three times already. Unless the wheels fall off, I think they'll be ready for whichever Mahomes shows up. Maybe he really IS ready for a jazz band!

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Regarding the Hall of Fame. It really is a dog and pony show. Everyone wants their favorite guy in and is soooo upset when he isn't "first ballot." I think your "Hall of Very Good," is the best analogy. Didn't you once suggest such a designation, like an "Honorable Mention," kind of thing? There ought to be some sort of middle ground between HOF and non-HOF, but I doubt it would ever come to pass.

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A poetic perspective ...

Patrick’s ankle has been quite the story,

While Bengals O-line may still be a worry?

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