the As I sat on twitter during the final minutes of the Bengals 26-10 loss to the Indianapolis Colts, a lot of the heat was targeted at Dalton and Lewis which to a degree is deserved, but also uncalled for.

Dalton was expected to throw to Rex Burkhead, Alex Hewitt, Mohamed Sanu who thrives off of the double coverage team’s use on AJ Green. Don’t forget no Gresham either. Dalton had no playmakers to throw to, and everyone expected a rookie, ROOKIE Jeremy Hill to CARRY the Bengals to a win. Hill is a good running back, but not AP and DeMarco Murray good, at least not yet.

Bart Scott of CBS said this postgame that caught my attention, “Once again, we are talking about a backup player (Boom Heron) carrying a load, and not Cincinnati players carrying a load, we can’t make excuses for some of these teams playing with back up players, it’s the NFL, it’s the playoffs, you step up.” This is true, I’m saying the loss can’t be okay just because you have stars banged up. Those backups need to be saying, “It’s the playoffs, national attention, let’s try and make a name for myself.” What better time would it be to step up? You would think so.

Now, with the loss it makes Dalton 0-4 and Marvin 0-6 in the playoffs. When Dalton first came to Cincy, we had to deal with Carson “INT” Palmer, so we were glad they drafted a quarter back. Now that he has gotten us to the playoffs four times and come up with four losses, we are criticizing him. Why?

We have created an environment in this city, fan base wise that thinks mediocrity is okay, from the Bengals to the Reds. We were happy the first time he got us there, we lost. Okay, that’s alright it’s your first year. Then the second year came around and he lost. Okay, that’s alright will be ready next year. Then last year, the year which the stars in a sense were aligned. Playing at home, where we hadn’t lost all year. Playing a team we had beaten before, sure we got it. False, a loss. This year the monkey on the back was bigger than the past three losses. Dalton carries around this luggage of playoff losses that haunts the teams and city. He takes the heat, Lewis takes the heat. But what in my opinion goes unnoticed is the owner. Mike Brown is focused on making money and keeping money. I get that you want to keep a consistent leadership role in your organization, but you have let mediocre performance be accepted in the organization. I like Marvin, I do, and he has drafted well and gotten the team to the playoffs and turned the team from the Bungals to Bengals, but they are still the old Bungals when it matters.

By Mike Brown continuously expressing faith in his leader and all that he has accomplished, he has let mediocrity and “just average” be a staple of the team and the organization. You have let a man go 0-5 (up until the loss to the Colts which makes him 0-6) and not shaken the organization up, even a little. Dalton this year was just awful, and you still have him pinned as a “winner” and “our guy”. I thought your greatness was measured on how you performed when it mattered most? When it’s win or go home. Well if we count games that are non-playoffs he is 40-23-1, playoffs he is 0-4. It’s time to bring in some competition, because this guy thinks his mediocrity can and has up until this point gone “unpunished”.

Nothing will change until you make a change. And even though it would be hard to fire a guy like Marvin, you have to do it. No one can be safe, you need to make known that it isn’t okay to JUST make the playoffs, need to WIN in the playoffs. It is verbatim, everyone has been saying it, but it’s the truth. It’s time to put on the big boy pants, make a decision that rattles the organization for the good and not hide behind a glass window in a press box worrying how much money you made from the people in the stands.

Cough, Cough Mike Brown. Marvin, you did a great job turning the organization from a piece of crap to a threat for contending for the AFC North title. Some people (Dalton) needs competition because he thinks this job is his no matter what. Wrong, a little friendly competition wouldn’t hurt anyone now would it Mike?

This city needs, and DESERVES at least some of these things, not another year of the ever ending cycle of let downs in the Queen City.