Growing up in Cincinnati, it’s hard to escape the one over-arching perception: “the Bengals suck.” My first memory of watching the Bengals was when they lost in the Super Bowl to Joe Montana, over 20 years ago. Since that loss, the Bengals had the WORST DECADE EVER in NFL history. This is not hyperbole, folks. This is the truth (granted, I just read that the Raiders now officially have the worst six-year span in history… but they’re still not the Bengals). So when people predict the Bengals as a dark horse candidate to make the playoffs, it’s understandable that there will be some people who will inevitably disagree. And that’s okay. You’re allowed to have an opinion about something in this country (even if you want to shout it out really loud at a town hall meeting). Of course I make the mistake of reading the comments below these articles predicting Bengal success and… well, they’re not very kind. One person, and I’m paraphrasing, wrote, “ARE U (expletive) STUPID. IF THE BENGALS MAKE THE PLAYOFFS I WILL NEVER WATCH ANOTHER NFL GAME.”

Good for you. I guess in today’s society, if you’re loud enough and contrarian enough, you will somehow get your opinion heard. Of course, what pisses me off about these yahoos on yahoo is that they go overboard on this matter. First off, it’s okay to doubt the Bengals’ chances of making the playoffs. Trust me, I know. Second, any team has a chance – a chance, mind you – of making the playoffs. Hell, the Lions, who didn’t win a game last season, has a chance – a slight chance – of making the playoffs. Do I expect them to? No. Look, this is not major league baseball, where all the talent pretty much goes to the Yankees, Red Sox, and any team not named Cincinnati or Pittsburgh. The NFL has what is called parity, which means that the talent level on the majority of teams is about equal. Okay, there are teams with seemingly more talent than others. But still, at this level, each roster has some talent on it. Plus, there are only 16 games in a season. A couple of tipped passes could mean the difference between 9-7 or 7-9.

With all that said, did Hard Knocks change any perception of the Bengals? Well, I didn’t watch it because I don’t have HBO. I did read about it in the reviews, though. And from what I read about Mike Brown… well, he’s a cheap ass. A penny pincher. Scrooge on steroids. Whatever. When Mike finds out that we lost a tight end, he asks the coaches if they can convert a defensive end to a tight end… Sigh… Mike Brown, cheapest man alive. Okay, I did read how Mike told the coaches to called Reggie Kelly after he had season ending surgery to let him know they are thinking about him. Awww… how nice. Mike Brown, you still stuck (he knew he had cameras there). Another negative from the show would be when they cut a guy at 5:30 a.m. So he wakes up, barely able to realize he’s existing, and is told his NFL dreams are gone, and that he’s not talented enough to make the team. Ouch.

Other than that, it sounded like the program was worth watching, and that it was not the “Chad John- Ochocinco” show, which is good. Chad’s not the only Bengal. It seems like everything else in the show, about all the meetings and workouts and whatever, was positive. Of course, the HBO show really won’t change a darn thing about the perception of the Bengals if they go out and lose their first 8 games like they did last year. It’s all about winning. If we go 16-0 and win the Super Bowl, I might ask Mike Brown to be the godfather of my first born son. And when my son grows up and tries out for the Bengals, he might get a coach to let him know that he’s cut from the team at 5:45 a.m., not 5:30. What a swell guy.