very true, especially on defense. the coaching staff studied Cinci's previous games and implemented the strategy to effectively exploit their weak points.
the Tampa 2 wasn't working, the D consistently got burned last week against Miami (admittedly a far better, faster team than Cinci) so they filled the hole in the middle of the defensive backfield to cut down on big plays and let our athletic front 7 handle the rest. they seemed to get a little gassed towards the end of the game, that and maybe a little bit of complacency after going into the 4th with a big lead, but it was good to see Lynch and Giddins get pressure on the QB and the LB's flying towards the ball on the run.
Eveld is still far from the ideal QB, but he showed definite improvement, was more nimble on his feet and made some excellent throws under pressure. most importantly he protected the ball.
when your D can get pressure, force takeaways and the offense can, at the very least, not shoot itself in the foot by giving the ball away, u will have a chance to hang around win the game. gotta give credit to the special teams also-- great kicking for long FG's and some great punts to keep Cinci from having good field position. don't recall seeing the coverage team give up any big plays on returns either.
this is what the team is now: an above average defensive team (even tho stats may not show the whole story after the 0-4 start) and a sub-par offensive team. they are going to have to lean heavily on that D, force takeaways and protect the ball. do that and we can squeeze out a few more wins from the teams left on the schedule.