It was the right play to make. Like Marvin Lewis said, Hill gained 6 yards on a first down carry on that play. You can't realistically expect a better outcome than that. The problem was specifically letting Hill be the one to carry it, not the playcall itself. The playcall was very sensible. Every person in the world watching in that instance knew that above any possible outcome, holding onto the ball was paramount, and Hill let it go anyway.

That's the play that should be living infamous in Bengals history. As an opponent that's a dream scenario.

Nobody is going to believe me. I've been watching Hill critically all year. When I saw him in the backfield for that play, I had a sinking feeling in my gut. I knew the fumble was going to happen. I just knew it. It wasn't pessimism.

I know the team had to run the ball in that instance. I knew Gio was out because of the bounty Shazier collected earlier. I thought to myself, "Okay, just run it, but make sure Hill stays on the bench. Put in Peerman or Burkhead and just hold on."

Then I saw hill in the backfield and knew it was doomed. And sure enough, the ball came out. Completely foreseen. I've been disgusted with him pretty much all season. I've been very vocal about it on this very forum. And then he goes out and drops the biggest win of the modern era.

I'm sure the coaches and players around him are invested. They have a different confidence in him than I do. I think they lost objectivity and hoped for the best. What is sports in general if not playing slim margins?

The call was right. The team did the right thing in every way except allowing Hill to touch the ball again in that game. Kneeling would have been foolish.