First off, I would like to say that I am not giving up on my team. And I love the Bengals dearly and there’s nothing I want more than to get into the Playoffs and make some noise.

Well, the reality of it is, we have one of the youngest teams in the NFL, and we will probably have back-to-back winning seasons. But this loss just really sucks as we all know because we could have had a one game lead over our least favorite team, Pittsburgh.

It just seems like it’s not meant to be, when we win, they somehow beat a top AFC team with Charlie Batch; and when they get destroyed by the team we just defeated, we lose to a beat up Dallas team and make crucial mistakes in the process.

As a firm believer in the football gods; it just seems, barring a huge win streak miracle, we will not make the Wild-card. It hurts, it really does, like I said, I’m not giving up, and and I dearly want to make the playoffs.

But we’ve all seen this bad movie before, when we just don’t make the cut. Like last year, there is hope; we have some high draft picks, and we can make some roster moves to re-sign some key players to put us in great position. But we all know that the NFL is right here, right now, we have to win with this team. We’re still in this, but that 4 game losing streak is really haunting us. Let’s hope they prove me wrong, Who-Dey!

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After losing to the Bengals this past Sunday, the Oakland Raiders have released two former top 8 NFL Draft picks. Respectively, the #4 and #8 picks are both linebackers.

Aaron Curry in 2009 was drafted by Seattle, and Rolando McClain by the Raiders in 2010. As we’ve all seen before, the Bengals love good deals, whether it’s signing an aging well-known veteran, or a troubled star player with off the field issues. Though McClain hasn’t been officially released yet, it looks a though it’s a matter of time before he get’s the axe.

At first, our linebacker play killed us, but as of late, we’ve had some great results. And this may be just me speaking as a measurable nut, but these guys are physical specimens that I would take any day over Vinnie Rey and Dan Skuta. But it’s obviously not that easy, Rey and Skuta may not have been drafted, but they do good things, even though they don’t start they are special team aces and get the job done.

But within the lines of scrimmage, they both leave something to be desired, they both lack agility to hang around in coverage, and don’t make flashy plays against the run (tackles for loss, big hits, etc.).

We don’t know if McClain or Curry can play special teams, but we do know that they are athletic freaks that can run. I know we aren’t letting Rey and Skuta go, they are to important to our all important “chemistry”, but…

I would love to see them last until the off-season, it’s not entirely far-fetched seeing as how teams have most of their lineups intact and don’t like to make late moves. Perhaps we can pick one or both of them up and give them a while to learn the system and get ready for training camp, we wouldn’t lose anything, and once again would have an extreme amount to gain if Marvin could light a fire underneath these guys.

Manny Lawson’s contract ends after this year, so does Rey Maualuga’s. I truly think if they play sound and keep Mike Zimmer’s techinque, they can be leaps and bounds better than these two.

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We’ve heard it all season long, and we’ve bragged about it, the fact that the Bengals have 6 first round drafted defensive backs.

Our secondary has had its ups and downs (Up: Chiefs, Giants, Down: Ravens, Steelers), but for the most part they have been productive.

But we all know what’s going to happen in the Off season, many of our corners’ contracts are up after this year: Terrence Newman, Adam Jones, and Nate Clements. So my question to you is, If you could only keep one, who would it be?

I may be wrong and Mike Brown may re-sign all of them, but we all know that is highly unlikely. Here’s what they all bring to the Table:

1. Terence Newman: Leads the team in Interceptions, has made some big plays other than that, probably grades out as the teams best corner, still has pretty good speed considering his age. Speaking of age, he’ll be 36 next year, is it possible to stay successful? Only time will tell.

2. Adam Jones: Youngest of the group, huge playmaker on defense and as a returner, vocal and passionate leader, starting to become technically sound which makes him a better player. hasn’t made an interception yet but that comes with the Territory in a Mike Zimmer defense.

3. Nate Clements: Started games at both Corner and Safety, made some plays at both positions, but has also struggled more than any other in my opinion. He hasn’t made the same plays he made last year (forced fumbles, clutch p.b.u’s) He does have one interception however and he is a vocal leader.

There are certainly other factors to put into perspective, they all bring different things to the table, but like I mentioned, Mike Brown certainly won’t keep all 3 of them, possibly 2, but not all 3.

If I had to choose, I would pick Adam Jones, he can return and is a solid cornerback, I think he still has a few good years left.

Newman was a close second, I figure if he’s still this good at 35, he’ll be similar at 36, and maybe he could have a role similar to Charles Woodson or Ronde Barber at their respected ages. No offense to Clements but I think this may be his last year.

So Bengals fans, now it’s up to you! Who would you choose?

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