The negativity in the sub is getting a little hard to bare so here are some lights at the end of the tunnel for all of you who need it.

Since Mike Brown took over the Bengals in 1991, this was the team’s record through 2001:

48-102 w/ 0 playoff appearances; winning percentage of 32%

Since Katie Blackburn took over as VP of the franchise in 2001, this has been the team’s record through 2019:

179-188-4 w/ 7 playoff appearances; winning percentage of 48.2%, 0-7 in the playoffs w/ a winning percentage of 0%

Since Elizabeth and Caroline Blackburn have gotten involved in the organization in 2020, this had been the team’s record through today:

44-38-1 w/ 2 playoff appearances; winning percentage of 53%, 5-2 in the playoffs w/ a winning percentage of 71.4%

For an organization that has practiced patience to a fault and a fanbase that has had to survive on relentlessly painful optimism for too long, things might be slowly changing for the better, even if it is at glacier speed. If they replace Tobin after this year and get lucky with the right hire or if they use this season as the catalyst to bring a higher budget for the scouting department (think Stewart is raising more eyebrows and could be a last straw), there is reason to believe that the next 5-10 years could be another step in the right direction.

TR;DR – Big picture, the Bengals are slowly getting the right people into the front office and there are genuine reasons to be optimistic about the future.

“Hope is like the sun. If you only believe in it when you can see it you'll never make it through the night.”

Who Dey!

26 comments

  1. Yeah, I think fans are mad because our defense gave up about ~1000 yards in the last two games.

    We just want something to change.

  5. Firing Tobin in the off season is too late, we need change now. You can’t scout and prep for the draft starting in January, you need to have already built a list of players and be scouting them already.

  6. Pretty sure the Blackburn girls have nothing to do with player personnel. Their involvement coincided with a guy named Joe Burrow getting drafted

  7. They’re better. But they have the chance to be great and refuse to do what they can. There are so many financial levers they can pull to manipulate the cap that they refuse to pull. The keep Duke around even though he has produced 2 good teams in 10 years and most of his recent success comes from making the team so bad that he could make the two most obvious first round picks ever.

  9. I bet with my heart of hearts if they asked every bengals fan to send in their mock drafts for the first three rounds with explanations and their scouting department just went through those, saw the names they didn’t immediately recognize and then watch some tape it would work. “if your player gets drafted by us you get a bengals hat” (joke is that the draft pick has been pulled out of a hat).

    that would be awesome in my opinion, packers fans are owners but if your fan base is your scouting department that’s a whole different level of commitment to the team and the fans.

    it’s what all “family businesses” do. they find where they can’t compete with the big guys with their walmart money and find creative ways around it. the best marketing the titans ever did was the man on the street interviews in nashville for their schedule release. that probably cost $50

  11. Probably better to look at the team’s record since they implemented a salary floor in 2013. We only had winning records in 4 of Katie’s first 12 years. Then had winning records in 7 of the next 12 after it was implemented. We started doing better when the league forced Mike to spend money.

  12. Katie has shown the ability to waste careers on the level of the Browns. In the 90s, we had fewer careers to waste.

  15. Here’s the plan. We need someone to get on the inside. So somebody is gonna have to marry into the family and become our advocate.

  17. I wouldn’t call winning just over 50% of your games after 30 years of winning less than 50% of your games a big mark of success…..

  18. The entire defense needs to be cut. This includes the coaches and players. The defense sucks and is the worst in the NFL. They can’t tackle. They made a scrub running back look like Walter Payton last week.

  19. Bottoming out and getting Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase had nothing to do with. Bizarre coping.

  20. We have 3 of the best players we have ever had at qb and 2 of the arguably most important positions. And they are pissed off because their talent is being wasted. That IS big picture. We don’t have time for things to move at glacial speed

  22. I like the positivity. Something we need more of on a global scale even when it’s so very difficult to do so these days.
    Who Dey

  23. “Big picture, the Bengals are slowly getting the right people into the front office and there are genuine reasons to be optimistic about the future.”

    Interesting perspective.

  24. I agree with you that the negativity is getting a little hard to bear and I understand the negativity but like good grief it’s almost every fcking post.

    That aside I think part of that reason is because ever since we went in the super bowl our expectations have been risen high. And knowing we can probably get back there again if we had the team we have it on offense just not on defense.

    I’ve said my peace.

  25. NFL is win now not in 30 years. We need a change, now. Respect to everyone involved but it’s time for a change.

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