“You Smellin’ Me?”

Thursday Night Preview
At Cincinnati -3 Baltimore 44.5

Not content with squeezing out every possible dollar on Sunday afternoons, evenings and Monday nights, the “NFL Network” now brings forth a post-Thanksgiving Thursday Night schedule. But, if you don’t have a digital box, forgetabouit, you'll be catching the highlights later on, as the game is available for “digital subscribers only”…I love football, but not as much as to incur an additional monthly expense for the approximately 200+ useless channels that come with a digital box. There’s no need to go on a rant about the ethics involved in requiring viewers to pay extra fees for a product that has already made billions via VHF programming for the last 50 years, just call it what it is: monumental greed. This move didn’t happen overnight, when games started going to cable a few years back, it was a simple progression to this phase. The pinheads and beancounters on Madison Ave. are rubbing their hands with glee. The next phase will be exclusive coverage via digital, leading toward the ultimate destination of pay-per-view. Think I’m joking? Wait about 7-10 years when, if you want to watch your favorite team on Sundays (or Mondays or Thursdays), it’ll cost you.

But it’s time to get off the soapbox and talk about the game. The Bengals had a convincing win against Cleveland last week, and that sort of performance was sorely needed for a talented team that hasn't played consistently capable. The Ravens are not Cleveland, hence my skepticism at going with the home team. The NFL is now headed for the home stretch, and the Ravens are healthy and on fire, and they are in The Killin’ Zone. Unlike past years, there is balance on both sides of the football. And, other than the last couple of weeks, the Bengals have not shown anything in the way of discipline and character this year. That they’ve seemed to discover it now is great, the problem is they’ll be going up against a crew that’s had “it” all year. This is a “statement game”, and it will be Chesapeake Bay Boys who’ll be making it.

Projected Final Score: Ravens 27, Cincinnati 20.