Kevin A. has the questions for the Bengals playoff game, with a shocking prediction!

The Bengals are on to the playoffs for the fifth consecutive season, but they have not won a playoff game since 1990.  It's against the hated Steelers in prime time, giving the Bengals a trifecta of demons to overcome.   On to the questions......

Historically, where does this rank among all time Bengals games?

You would think it ranks behind their two Super Bowl appearances, but it's been so long since they have won a playoff game I would say it ranks up there as the biggest game in team history.  Nobody even remembers those two games against the 49ers (unless you are old like us), but everyone remembers Marvin Lewis is 0-6 in the playoffs.  They need to win this game.  

The last time these two teams met, Bengals starting QB Andy Dalton left the game early with a broken thumb. The good news is that back up AJ McCarron got some quality reps against a Steeler defense that has been prone to some lapses. Should this a plus and what does AJ need to do to win this game?

It's definitely not a plus.  While Dalton is 0-4 in the post season, he is miles ahead of McCarron with his line reads.  In a playoff game that could end up being vital, especially against a blitzing team like Pittsburgh.    That being said, AJM (how I will refer to McCarron) is a smart player, and everyone in Cincinnati to a man says he has the "it" factor.  Adam Jones says he can tell a winner when he sees one, and he says AJM is one.   To win this game he must stay away from the turnovers, and in his three starts he has only committed one so far (late in the game at Denver).   He has played well, and if he can continue to to be error-free or close to it, the Bengals have a real chance.  

Bad blood spilled onto the field in the last matchup, as you feared it may.  Is it going to happen again?

I'd like to sit here and say the Bengals will keep their cool, but I don't know that is possible.  The hope is they don't do anything to draw 15-yard penalties, but I think that's going to be in store for both teams.   I would imagine the NFL has already spoken to both Mike Tomlin and Lewis, so we'll see what happens.   They put this game in prime time for a reason.

What is the most important area of this game the Bengals need to control in order to advance to the next round?

I wish there was just one, but really it's three.  Run the football effectively, don't finish on the negative side of the turnover battle, and keep AJM clean.  As of now there is a strong chance this game could be impacted by heavy rain, and that should favor the Bengals if DeAngelo Williams misses the game (and it looks like he might).    It's very important to take some pressure of AJM and keep him upright.  The Bengals are one play away from Keith Wenning playing QB, and you would have to google him to even know who he is.  That's not good.  

Heath Miller has torched the Bengals.  What can they do to slow him down?

The Bengals will try to put safety Shawn Williams on Miller, but even though Miller has 20 receptions in two games versus CIN, I think he's the least of their worries.   Pittsburgh will get their yards, but as long as the Bengals can limit the big plays to Brown and Bryant, they will be okay with the Miller receptions.   

So here it is.  The 3rd meeting, a playoff game, and in prime time.  How does this one play out?

On paper, this game looks in the Steelers favor, but in reality it isn't.   Fact of the matter is, Ben R. has not played all that great in two games against Cincinnati, and AJM now has three starts under his belt with two pretty good running backs behind him.   He also gets Tyler Eifert, who the Steelers knocked out early in the last match.  The Steelers struggle against the TE position, and A.J. Green has had a field day with that secondary.   Call me crazy, but I think the Bengals end the drought.  They run the ball well enough and AJM makes some big plays.  

 Bengals win 24-23 and cover the spread (+3)   

Bengals, Browns and David Price? Kevin A. Breaks it Down.

Bengals, Browns and David Price?  Kevin A breaks it all down with a bonus question.

Apologies for my two week ill-ridden absence.   Here's a quick recap of what you may have missed.

- The Bengals dropped a heartbreaker in Arizona, got back to their winning ways against the Rams, Geno Atkins is the best player on the field, and Tyler Eifert is injured (more on that in a minute).

What went right in both games was Andy Dalton.  Dalton is proving his critics wrong on a weekly basis, with one mediocre game (Houston) out of 11.  He's been really good.   The most noteworthy player, however. has been Geno Atkins.  Atkins is fully recovered from his knee injury and looks every bit the dominant force we have become accustomed to watching.    He's changing games, and that's a special trait owned by very few defensive lineman in the NFL.   He's leading The Men, even if he never says a word to the press.

Up next is volume two of the battle of Ohio.    On to the questions...

Tyler Eifert has a neck stinger and may not play against the Browns.  How worried are you this injury could linger?

Stingers suck, and from what I hear are very painful.  Eifert should sit this one out, plain and simple.  If I'm Marvin Lewis I don't even consider making him active this Sunday.   If they need Eifert to beat the Browns, something else went terribly wrong.    Could the injury linger?  Yes, and they sometimes do.   The positive track is that Eifert says he's fine, so I'm cautiously optimistic he will be ready to go against Pittsburgh.

The Browns are starting their 15th QB against the Bengals in the Marvin Lewis era.  I'll stop there.

It's amazing isn't it?  I think it's 15 QB's in 26 match-ups, which is insane.  Only Cleveland could manage something lame like that.   Austin Davis will be the man, but it shouldn't change a thing on the game prep.  Davis really isn't a bad QB though, so the Bengals need to take him seriously. They have a history of losing to new quarterbacks.

The Bengals play the Steelers after the Browns.  Is this a trap game?

No.  The Bengals have been focused all year, and frankly have beaten up on the bad teams in the league for the most part. Normally the Browns pose problems, but they are so bad I just don't see it. They don't do anything very well in the aspect of football, nothing to hang their hat on.  They don't tackle well, and they can't defend the run OR the pass for that matter.

Assuming Eifert doesn't play, how will the Bengals attack the Browns?

Jeremy Hill.  Hue Jackson slowly is starting to get Hill going for the playoff run, and he should see the ball quite a bit on Sunday.  Hill looked very good against a talented Rams front, and he should have no problem navigating through Cleveland's line.  I also think Marvin Jones is due for a nice game, so watch him as well.

The line currently sits with Cincy a 10 point favorite.  Too much?

Too little.  I guessed the line would be closer to 12 to be honest.  That being said The Men should have little problem covering the 10.   I'm not entirely positive Cleveland is trying that hard to win games in the first place.  Browns hang around early, Geno and Hill eventually wear their lines out, Bengals 31-10 is the call.

Here's a bonus. You love baseball and the Red Sox.  David Price has to make you pretty happy, no?

Funny enough, Brian Phillips said it was a great birthday present to me and it really was. Boston doesn't belong in last place and I think they have had enough.  Price is one of the games top pitchers, and they also traded for one of the top closers in Kimbrell.  Too early to predict anything, but yes.......  Very happy.     Stay tuned this summer for some baseball stuff from me. Already looking forward to it.

Can Dalton and Company Cut the Power on J.J. Watt? Kevin A. Has The Answer.

The Bengals went to 8-0 beating the Browns last week.  Is Andy Dalton over his prime time struggles?

Not only do I think Dalton is over it, he's a legitimate MVP candidate to this point.   He's won his last two games in prime time, and I expect this week's game will make it three in a row.   Next week he gets another at Arizona, but there's no shame in losing to the Cardinals if it goes that way.    

The Texans come in with former Browns QB Brian Hoyer, and he's beaten the Bengals before.  Does that make you nervous?

Not really.  Outside of their star WR DeAndre Hopkins, there isn't much there.  They can't run the ball and the OL has been awful.  They will probably try to do a lot of screen passes and hope for a big play or two from Hopkins.  Losing Arian Foster has really hurt them.  Hopkins will make some plays but it won't be enough.  

JJ Watt is one of the best players in the league.  Will the Bengals be up to the task?

The Bengals effectively took Watt out of the game in last years' win over the Texans, and obviously will try the same approach.   The key will be to stay out of 3rd and long, that's where Watts eats. The Texans lead the league in 3rd down defense, so it's important to make gains on the early downs. That being said, it's asking a lot to shut Watt out two times in a row.   Quite frankly it may be impossible.  

You said two weeks ago that Tyler Eifert was one of the biggest differences in the Bengals this year, and he went off on the Browns. How's he going to do this week?

Eifert leads all NFL TE in touchdowns and he's going to be good every week.  If he's not catching the ball  he's making key blocks, but he's also one of the best red zone players in the entire league. Get used to it, the kid is great. The mini-Gronk moniker handed to him isn't that far off.  

So how does the Texans game play out?  What's the prediction this week?

The Bengals should be able to run the ball effectively, and defensively it could be a field day for Carlos Dunlap and Geno Atkins.    These teams on paper simply don't match up, very similarly to the Browns last week.   The Bengals move to a franchise record 9-0.    

Bengals 31, Texans 17.

Can Andy Dalton Top Last Year's 2.0 QBR vs the Browns? Kevin A. is Back Talking Bengals

Kevin A. is back talking Bengals football, and the Browns are coming to town to play the undefeated cats. This week's questions come from Marco Scola in Chicago.  You can check out all of Marco's sports insights and podcasts at MarcoScolaMedia.com

A recent article on the players tribune website says the Bengals are the most cohesive team in the league.  Do you agree?

It's a hard thing to quantify.  The Bengals have been together a long time and Marvin Lewis has been the coach for 13 years, but its more than that.   Andy Dalton has really embraced his leadership role, and it showed during Sunday's win over the Steelers.   Players are constantly referring to Dalton when they talk of what's changed with the team, and its not just rah-rah talk.  Andy truly has the players believing they can win every game.  As far as most cohesive, I believe New England still owns that one. 

On Tuesdays podcast, I said the Bengals were the #2 team in the league behind the Patriots, but I questioned if they can get past New England.  Are you on board with a Pats/Bengals AFC title game, and if so, do you take the Bengals?

Well lets slow down a bit. The Bengals are very good but the fan in me still thinks they can blow this entire thing.   However I do agree they are the two best teams in the AFC, and also believe the Bengals overall posess more talent than the Patriots.   What the Bengals do not have is Tom Brady directing the ship.   While I think the Bengals are a threat to the Patriots should both teams get there, I'm not sure they can win that game quite yet.  It's not impossible, but we need to see how Dalton plays down the stretch. 

Of the remaining undefeated teams, would you say the Bengals have had the toughest schedule?

The Patriots seemingly have had it pretty easy so far. They got the Steelers without Le'Veon Bell and the rest is rather vanilla to date.  The Bengals have an impressive win at Oakland and came back to beat Seattle and Pittsburgh with fourth quarter comebacks, but I think the Broncos have had it as tough as Cincinnati with wins over Oakland, Minnesota and Green Bay.   I'll call it a push with Denver and Cincinnati, mainly because Denver is doing it with a rubber arm and defense.  Going forward however, the Bengals still need to play at Denver and Arizona, with another tilt against  Pittsburgh coming up as well, which should be very interesting considering the bad blood brewing between those two teams. 

The Bengals get the Browns and Johnny Manziel Thursday.  How does this one play out with Andy Dalton's prime time reputation?

It's no secret Dalton has lit it up during the day and struggled at night, and with flex scheduling he now faces three prime timers in a row.  Andy is just 3-7 in night games, including last years debacle against these same Browns where he posted a 2.0 QBR.   Sadly it wasn't anything the Browns did defensively, it was Dalton missing wide open receivers badly.     But this isn't the same Andy, and the Browns come in with a mash unit, missing stars Joe Haden and Donte Whitner, as well as their starting QB to name just a few.  Thursday night games tend to even the playing field with both teams on a short week, but the talent is undeniably in Cincinnati's favor in this one.

The Bengals should be able to stay on track and win this one fairly easily, moving to 8-0. Let's call this one 27-13. 

See you next week.  Have any questions for the next write up?  Send them to kmalbanese@yahoo.com or hit me up on twitter @kmalbanese

Is it Time to Believe in Andy Dalton? Kevin A. Answers Bengals Questions.

1) Andy Dalton is off to an amazing start. But, deep in your bones do you fear he will once again ruin the season with a historically bad playoff performance?

Andy's playoff struggles have been overblown.  In 2014 he was playing without Marvin Jones, AJ Green, Tyler Eifert, and a host of others.  In 2011 he was a rookie on a team many thought wouldn't win three games.  In 2012 we saw Jermaine Gresham drop seemingly every big throw he needed to catch, and the defense hasn't shown up for the most part every year.   That being said, he needs to play at a higher level when the bright lights are on, and having Eifert back healthy should bring the Bengals their first playoff win since 1991.

2) Who is more to blame for the Bengals playoff struggles: Andy Dalton, Marvin Lewis or neither?

If someone is to blame it's definitely Marvin Lewis.  His signature strength is defense, and that's been a huge failure in the post season.  Being brutally honest, AJ Green hasn't taken the criticism he deserves either.  He has vanished in many big games, not just the playoffs.

3) That said, this is an excellent football team. If they can stay healthy, how many wins are possible? 

When this season started, I felt having Eifert and Jones back was really under reported in the media, and we are seeing what kind of an offense this is when they are together.  This team can literally hit you from anywhere on the field, and defensively get back Vontaze Burfict possibly as soon as this Sunday against the Steelers.   13 wins is not out of the question, but I'm sticking to my pre season prediction of 12.

4) The game this Sunday almost has a playoff feel. Which team needs it more?

The Bengals currently sit as a 1.5 favorite on the road, and that can't sit well with a Steeler team that is already three games back in the loss column.  Definitely a bigger game for Pittsburgh, as another loss all but eliminates them from winning the division.  On the flip side, its a chance for the Bengals to step on the throat and end this race early.

5) Who do you see winning and how does it happen?

It will be a physical game for the running backs on both sides, and Le'Veon Bell should be playing with a chip on his shoulder after last year when Reggie Nelson ended his season early.  That being said, this game will also see plenty of passing with Dalton and the probable return of Ben Roethlisberger.

I will take the Bengals +1.5, with a score somewhere in the 27-23 range.  I don't think the Steelers will be able to cover Eifert, and I think he's the difference this week.

Kevin Albanese is an expert on the Bengals, Red Sox and KISS. He writes things sometimes.