Game #88- Cincinatti Bengals

Cincinatti Bengals vs. San Diego Chargers September 20, 2015 Paul Brown Stadium I had to travel for work again, finding myself in the city of Indianapolis which now feels like my second home. The advantage is that Indy is central to a lot of sports towns, that is why I had the ability to drive the 1.5 hours to see the Bengals game. I tried to hit up this team last year but the polar vortex was slamming the Midwest and I realized if I drove to Cinci…I wouldn’t be able to get back. This year was the exact opposite, blue skies, warm weather, and a beautiful stadium sitting on the Ohio River. I also had a little more invested in this game because the Chargers were playing, and I could wear my powder blue Antonio Gates jersey. I have been so used to seeing the Bengals at the bottom of the standings for so many years, it was a bit unexpected to see them come into the game undefeated. In fact, they have a really good team in 2015. Lead by “fire crotch” Andy Dalton at QB, pro bowl contender Giovani Bernard at running back, and a stingy defense the Chargers were in for a difficult day. On the other hand the Chargers players don’t look so good and proved it by starting the game horribly. Keenan Allen fumbled a punt on the Bengals opening series and two plays later Dalton threw a 16 yard touchdown to A.J. Green. It doesn’t get any worse when it comes to the SD QB…it is no surprise to friends and family I am no fan of Phillip Rivers. I honestly think he is the most over rated quarterback in the league (I could have started for San Diego if I had Antonio Gates, Malcolm Floyd, Vincent Jackson, and LaDanian Tomlinson over the past decade) and he showed it in this game. He started off great in terms of stats, 20 for 20, but the passes were short and lead to very few first downs. That being said Rivers did throw his 255th TD in the second half to surpass hall of famer Dan Fouts for the club record, but again Fouts didn’t have countless receivers that towered over defenders. The rest of the game was filled with dropped passes, fumbles, and a ton of penalties. In the end the Chargers had a chance to come back and win the game but of course Rivers threw an interception and the game ended at 24-19 Bengals. The best part of the game was the drunk dude in front of me. He passed out in the 1st quarter and was asleep for 90% of the game. His buddy was taking pictures, putting stuff in his ears, and even called his wife via Facetime to show her what her husband looked like in his seat. Too funny. Other than that, besides the really cool view of the river the stadium didn’t have much to offer in terms of fan experiences. They had some inflatable slides on the concourse for the kids, but no pictures or trophy cases. But the atmosphere outside the venue was pretty cool, the city shuts down East Freedom Way by the Reds stadium for bands, beer and food.