This was LB Rashad Jeanty's take on what happened in the game against the Chargers:

You could hear the blatant disappointment of the loss in Jeanty's voice as well as seeing it in his eyes during my interview with the first-year linebacker.

"We work our tails off everyday, man. Coaches, trainers, to the players in this locker room, and for us to lose a game in this fashion, it's a disappointment," he said.

Not just one thing

Rookie CB Johnathan Joseph was so befuddled about what had taken place that he couldn't pinpoint what happened in the turnabout.

"Man, so much happened. I really just can't point out one particular thing," Joseph said. "That is something where you have to go back and look at film because I am pretty sure that it had to be many mistakes that we were making. The one thing that stood out is that they made more plays than we did."

Joseph said he felt they gave the game away and every guy in the locker room felt the same.

Joseph was on the money with that statement because you could have heard a pin drop, and the locker room has carpet.

Back in the game

Listen to what rookie LB Ahmad Brooks had to said about why the game changed.

"I think that one of the reasons why we lost is that we put them back in the game," Brooks said. They started gaining momentum, they started to feel more confident in running and passing the ball, and we let them back in the game. Once you let a team do that then they have all the confidence in the world and they feel as though they can beat you and they did."

So what does the team have to do to get better on defense? Brooks has the answer.

"As a linebacker unit, I think we need to communicate a little better. As a defense, I think we just need to want to make the play. People need to want to make the play instead of looking at the next man to make the play. Everybody has to want to make plays for themselves every play, every down. We need to come together and play as a team instead of playing as individuals and try to make a stand," he said.

Tough pill to swallow

There is no doubt in my mind that the Bengals were disappointed in themselves after the game. And there is nothing that can be said or written that will make these men feel any worse than they already do.

Believe me when I say that this was indeed a tough pill for the team to swallow. You know, it's easy for us as fans to be critical about what took place yesterday at Paul Brown Stadium, because we aren't the ones who suit up and face this type of adversity.

Instead, we should take a different approach and commend these players for fighting to the bitter end because let's face it, it's much easier to quit.