Jeremy Hill remembers "on to Cincinnati" game, says he wasn't himself in final two years with Bengals

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Former Cincinnati Bengals running back Jeremy Hill was among his breakout rookie season when the New England Patriots rolled into town early in 2014.

Hill, who rushed for 1,124 yards and nine touchdowns that year with the Bengals, had only two rushes for one yard in the infamous “On to Cincinnati” game.

This game marked a crucial moment in the Patriots’ season that year. Just one week after being embarrassed by the Kansas City Chiefs on Monday Night Football, New England came in and crushed the Bengals in a score of 43-17 to move 3-2 on the year.

Hill remembers this game very fondly.

“We go to be blessed with the ‘On to Cincinnati’ game and that didn’t end well for us, so it’ll be good to be on the other side of that,” said Hill. “It started bad and it ended even worse. It was not good. Those guys came out fired up, locked in, very well prepared and ready to go. Like I said, it’s going to be good to be on the other side.”

Hill described the Patriots as “probably the most well-prepared team” he’s ever played, and he’ll finally get the chance to work with them. The running back signed a one-year deal with the Patriots in March.

He joins a group of running backs that includes Rex Burkhead, James White, Mike Gillislee and Sony Michel.

Hill is excited to move forward and work with the Patriots, after an ongoing ankle injury had him feeling like he just wasn’t himself in his final years with the Bengals.

"It was something I was dealing with for about two years and something I felt like, going into free agency, going into when the season was over, something I needed to get done," Hill said on Tuesday. "It's something I'm glad I got done then rather than when free agency started. But for me, I've been moving around really great and it's progressing perfectly and I'm excited for the opportunity ahead."

"I just wasn't myself [in Cincinnati]," Hill said. "I really didn't have the flexibility and the strength in (the ankle) that I needed to be the back that I wanted to be. So I'm glad that I got it done and I can get it back to 100 percent and be the back that I know I can be."

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