Bills celebrate after making the playoffs(video)

It’s been a long time since the Buffalo Bills have made the playoffs. The Bills have not been in the playoffs since 1999.

After beating the Dolphins on Sunday, the Bills needed some help.

Well, help was on the way in the form of the Cincinnati Bengals. The Bills needed the Bengals to beat the Ravens, and they did.

Here is how it looked in the Bills’ locker room after the Bengals beat the Ravens:

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4th

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Playoffs!!!!!!!🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌

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Iloka and Smith-Schuster suspended one game by NFL


JUJU SMITH-SCHUSTER
 of the Pittsburgh Steelers and GEORGE ILOKA of the Cincinnati Bengals have been suspended without pay for one game each for violations of safety-related playing rules in Monday’s game.

NFL Vice President of Football Operations JON RUNYAN issued the suspensions.

In his letter to Smith-Schuster notifying him of the suspension, Runyan noted that Smith-Schuster violated Rule 12, Section 2, Article 7 which prohibits unnecessary contact against a player who is in a defenseless posture and Rule 12, Section 3, Article 1 which prohibits unsportsmanlike conduct.

Runyan wrote:

“You are suspended for the dangerous and unsportsmanlike acts you committed during the fourth quarter of last night’s game.  Specifically, with 7:10 remaining, on a passing play to a running back, you lined up a defender and delivered a violent and unnecessary blindside shot to his head and neck area.  You then “celebrated” the play by standing over him and taunting him.   The contact you made with your opponent placed the opposing player at risk of serious injury and could have been avoided.  Your conduct following the hit fell far below the high standards of sportsmanship expected of an NFL player.”

In his letter to Iloka notifying him of the suspension, Runyan stated that Iloka violated Rule 12, Section 2, Article 7 which prohibits forcibly hitting a defenseless player’s head or neck area with the helmet, facemask, forearm or shoulder.

Runyan wrote:

“On a play which began with 3:55 left in the game, you violently struck a defenseless receiver in the head and neck area.  The Competition Committee has clearly expressed its goal of ‘eliminating flagrant hits that have no place in our game’ and has encouraged the League office to suspend offenders for egregious violations such as the one you committed last night.”    

Both Smith-Schuster and Iloka will be eligible to return to their team’s active rosters on Monday, December 11 following the Baltimore-Pittsburgh and Chicago-Cincinnati games on December 10.

Under the Collective Bargaining Agreement, the suspensions may be appealed within three business days. Appeals are heard and decided by either DERRICK BROOKS or JAMES THRASH, the officers jointly appointed and compensated by the NFL and NFLPA to decide appeals of on-field player discipline.

Week 7 of NFL: Bengals-Steelers moved to 4:25

The NFL announced today a scheduling change for Week 7 on Sunday, October 22.

The Cincinnati Bengals at Pittsburgh Steelers game will move from 1 PM ET to 4:25 PM ET on CBS.

The Carolina Panthers at Chicago Bears game at 1 PM ET will be cross-flexed to CBS.

The following is the final Week 7 NFL schedule (all times ET):

Thursday, October 19

KANSAS CITY AT OAKLAND

8:25 PM

CBS/NFLN/AMAZON

Sunday, October 22

TAMPA BAY AT BUFFALO

1:00 PM

FOX

CAROLINA AT CHICAGO

1:00 PM

CBS

TENNESSEE AT CLEVELAND

1:00 PM

CBS

NEW ORLEANS AT GREEN BAY

1:00 PM

FOX

JACKSONVILLE AT INDIANAPOLIS

1:00 PM

CBS

ARIZONA AT LA RAMS (LONDON)

1:00 PM

FOX

NY JETS AT MIAMI

1:00 PM

FOX

BALTIMORE AT MINNESOTA

1:00 PM

CBS

DALLAS AT SAN FRANCISCO

4:05 PM

FOX

CINCINNATI AT PITTSBURGH

4:25 PM

CBS

DENVER AT LA CHARGERS

4:25 PM

CBS

SEATTLE AT NY GIANTS

4:25 PM

CBS

ATLANTA AT NEW ENGLAND

8:30 PM

NBC

Monday, October 23

WASHINGTON AT PHILADELPHIA

8:30 PM

ESPN

T.J. Houshmandzadeh on Bengals: ‘It’s easier to get rid of a coach mid-season than a starting quarterback’

The Cincinnati Bengals are off to a terrible start. They are 0-2 and have not scored a single touchdown in two home games, and because of their poor offensive play, the Bengals fired offensive coordinator Ken Zampese on Friday and replaced him with Bill Lazor, who was the team’s QB coach.

Who’s to blame for this mess? Former Bengals WR T.J. Houshmandzadeh gave his thoughts on the Bengals offensive woes:

“I’ve always been a believer that quarterbacks get way too much blame when things go bad, but they get way too much credit when things are going great. If we’re going to hold everybody accountable, and that’s the case, you gotta look at Andy Dalton,” Houshmandzadeh told TMZ Sports. “You have to look at Andy Dalton because yesterday (against Texans) in the game Brandon LaFell is wide open for a touchdown and he missed him; last play of the game (Alex) Erickson did not create any separation, he did not give Andy Dalton a target. Andy Dalton had to make a perfect throw and he didn’t.”

“And you look at the quarterback and say he is not making plays, or is he not comfortable with the play being called. It’s a combination of the coordinator and the quarterback there not on the same page, and Andy Dalton just not getting it done right now,” said Houshmandzadeh.

Because of the changes, Houshmandzadeh believes the pressure is completely on Dalton:

“It’s easier to get rid of a coach mid-season than a starting quarterback. A lot of pressure now is on Andy Dalton to perform, and it doesn’t get any easier because they going to play Green Bay; the next game they go play the Packers, so it does not get any easier. They don’t score points you might be seeing AJ McCarron in the lineup,” Houshmandzadeh said.

If the Bengals don’t fix their issues on offense, both head coach Marvin Lewis and Andy Dalton might be elsewhere next season!

Bengals coach Marvin Lewis takes medical leave of absence

Cincinnati Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis will take a leave of absence to focus on a “minor” health issue, the Bengals announced today.  According to the NFL Network’s Stacey Dales, Lewis is dealing with a blood clot in his ankle.

Lewis could be back later in the week, according to the team.

Special teams coordinator Darrin Simmons will lead the team until Lewis is able to return. 

The 58-year-old Lewis has coached the Bengals for the past 14 years. Lewis has led Cincinnati to the playoffs for five straight years, and seven times in total. However, Lewis has not been able to win a playoff game for the Bengals. 

Lewis is the all-time winningest coach in Bengals history.

NFL suspends Bengals’ Adam “Pacman” Jones for one game

The NFL today notified Adam Jones of the Cincinnati Bengals that he will be suspended without pay for the first 2017 regular season game for violating the league’s Personal Conduct Policy.

In May, Jones entered a plea of guilty to obstruction of official business stemming from a January 2017 incident. The state court imposed a sentence of time served (two days’ confinement) and court fees.

The NFL explained in a letter to Jones that it considered the “extensive video documentation of the tone, tenor and nature of your interactions with law enforcement at the site of your arrest, during transportation to the jail, and during the booking process. As you acknowledged, your post-arrest words and actions reflected poorly on you and your family, the Cincinnati Bengals football club, and the NFL. While it is our understanding that appropriate apologies have been publicly extended, they do not completely negate your behavior and admission of culpability for the underlying conduct.”

Jones will be eligible to return to the team’s active roster on Monday, September 11 following the Bengals’ September 10 game against the Baltimore Ravens. Jones is eligible to participate in all preseason practices and games.

Jones may appeal this decision within three days.

Former NFL RB Corey Dillon: ‘You’ve got O.J. Simpson in the Hall of Fame and my numbers are better than his’

Former NFL RB Corey Dillon put up some great numbers during his 10-year NFL career with the Bengals and Patriots. Dillon rushed for 11,241 yards and notched 82 rushing touchdowns.

The 42-year-old Dillon feels he belongs in the Hall of Fame.

Dillon, who was a guest of the Bengals Beat Podcast, compared his career to O.j. Simpson:

“I’m just bringing up this guy football-wise, nothing else, nothing whatsoever. You’ve got O.J. Simpson in the Hall of Fame and my numbers are better than his. Why can’t I be there is my question? What validates him being there and I don’t. I’m not talking about his transgressions off the field, that’s on him,” Dillon told the Bengals Beat Podcast

Dillon also compared his career to Hall of Fame inductee Terrell Davis:

“I see Terrell Davis get in, and I’m like, ‘Two Super Bowls, an MVP. This guy only has at the most 9,000 yards.’ I’m thinking, ‘I’ve got a Super Bowl too. I look at this too, you played for the Broncos, okay? Any running back that got in that system, they were good. Tell me one running back that played there that didn’t have stats.”

Does Dillon have a point? His numbers are better than the above-mentioned players, and he won a championship. At times, Dillon did not always have the best reputation, and maybe that’s what is holding him back. However, numbers don’t lie! 

Dillon belongs in Canton!Â