The Cincinnati Bengals went out sad on Sunday, the team’s playoff hopes dashed in the freezing cold while the Baltimore Ravens did whatever they wanted in the 24-0 rout.
For at least some Bengals fans, the effort seemed a little lacking from the players. No nice way to put it during and after that sort of beatdown.
After the game, even Ravens players seemed to say similar things.
Ravens defender Dre’Mont Jones, for example, suggested the Ravens could sense the difference between the teams right away.
“We knew we had them on their heels. Just by how they were calling it, how they looked, their demeanor. They didn’t feel lively to me. … I felt that play one they weren’t ready to play. It was too cold for them.”
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When the outside eye test matches what players then say after a game, it’s not a great look.
And to Joe Burrow’s credit, he was extremely self-critical of his play in the loss. But he was far from the only player to blame on the day, whether it was defensive miscues or those around him on offense struggling with the environment and other combinations of things.
It was the type of performance that felt like a team turning a page before an offseason of major change. We’ll see if that happens, but opponents on the field sure felt something. Or the lack of something, anyway.
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