Archive for February, 2011

After putting in a lot of time at the Combine last week, Joe Reedy gave an interesting synopsis of the more talked about possibilities for the Bengals. It is worth a minute of your time. He reports that Ryan Mallett was the best QB to work out, but feels that Christian Ponder of FSU displayed the best fit for Jay Gruden’s style. Then he made this speculation for the Bengals’ first two picks: Unless Newton is there, I think a QB with the fourth pick would be a stretch. However, A.J. Green in the first and Ponder in the second [...]

A few days ago, CincyJungle floated the idea that third quarterback Dan LeFevour could gain some ground in the team’s quarterback derby by working out with the wide receivers during a lockout. Today, I’ll float another one – he could be a great fit in Jay Gruden’s new West Coast offense. The West Coast offense is predicated on accuracy more than anything else. Get the ball to the receivers in stride. Let them make the plays. Well, Dan the Man is pretty darn accurate. He completed more than 60-percent of his passes for four straight years in college. He topped [...]

As the NFL Combine focuses our attention on the draft, we have spent a lot of time talking about the guys we want to see the Bengals take high in the draft to address the big needs they have. And wow are there plenty of needs. Quarterback. Tailback. Guard. Safety. Wide Receiver. (Too bad the Bengals don’t have 6 picks in the first 3 rounds like the Patriots do.) But there is one more position of need that we aren’t talking about but should be: Linebacker.

One player that intrigues me in this year’s draft class is Alabama running back Mark Ingram. The Bengals could clearly use a between-the-tackles grinder with Cedric Benson getting older and developing fumbling issues as well. Mel Kiper put Ingram at No. 11 on his latest big board. Other reports (I believe from ProFootballTalk) have mentioned that Ingram has lost  weight in an attempt to impress at this week’s NFL combine. Thus, it’s possible that he may not be considered a reach when Cincinnati picks at No. 4 overall. And quite frankly, I’d rather have him than Georgia receiver A.J. Green. [...]

Time is running out for the Bengals to get something done to keep Johnathan Joseph, arguably their best defender, on the team roster. Both sides have said that they want to get a new deal done, but it isn’t done. The deadline to use the franchise tag is tomorrow, which no one expects the Bengals to use. A week after that, he becomes an unrestricted free agent. The issue here is settling on Joseph’s true value to the team.

PFT is reporting that Steelers RT Willie Colon is unlikely to return to the team this season. All in favor of settling the tumult at right tackle with Colon, say Aye. Don’t worry, it won’t happen anyway. 1) Colon will want top dollar as it is. Add on the customary “dealing with Mike Brown’s stupidity” fee, and the Bengals would have to overpay big time. MB’s wallet will say no. 2) The Bengals already have a ton of bad money tied up at RT in Andre “I Just Swallowed A Honda And Broke My Foot” Smith. MB won’t put even [...]

Here’s what makes the most sense for both the Bengals and Carson Palmer. Read on. One more year. If Carson Palmer really retires this season he’ll be walking away from about $11 million in salary. He’ll be leaving the Bengals without a legitimate quarterback in an offseason destined to be disrupted by labor unrest. He’ll be sitting out a season in the prime of his career, wasting time that can never be reclaimed. It doesn’t make much sense. Thus, the best course of action – for both Palmer and the Bengals – is simple. One more year. Cincinnati can draft [...]

I posted last week that I was not sold either way, for and against, Cam Newton.  I’m for filling other needs at #1 anyway. He’s now officially off my list after seeing this headline on profootballtalk.com: “Cam Newton sees himself as football player, entertainer, icon” Haven’t we learned our lesson here? Pass.

“Stupid is as stupid does.” Was Forrest Gump talking about Mike Brown? Maybe, but not just him. Yes, somehow, there is worse out there. BallHyped.com decided to look into the big 3 American sports and see who’s existences over the last 30 years have been the most futile. To no one’s surprise, the Bengals are on that list. In all, four NFL teams made the list. (Think you know who the other 3 are?) The Bengals actually sport the highest win-loss percentage of the four at .422. But sadly, those numbers are being bolstered by the 80′s, Paul Brown’s final [...]

There’s a lot of Bengals news going public today. The team hired a new wide receivers coach and shifted responsibilities a bit among the defensive backs and the defensive quality control coach. Joe Reedy had a nice roundup of those moves. I am more concerned with the recent developments in the Carson Palmer saga. Cincy Jungle passed along a report from Peter King saying that the Bengals’ management is “laughing uproariously” at Palmer’s trade request. While I doubt that  is true (or maybe I’m just hoping it isn’t), unfortunately perception is too often reality. So the Bengals PR team needs to [...]