Training Camp Tracker: Week 1 Review

There will be no practice at training camp today. So take a look back at the first week at Georgetown College.

OFFENSE:
Quarterback: (usually retain 3)
#14 Andy Dalton: First Week: Had a great opportunity to take 60%-70% percent of the snaps while Jordan Palmer and Bruce Gradkowski were waiting to play. His first practice was impressive; he showed his calmness and confidence and knowledge of the playbook. In his next few practices, he struggled when blitzes were first thrown at him and underthrew a few receivers when he had to make quick decisions. Late in the week, he “bounced back” and was much better against the blitz. The positives so far are short range accuracy, his knowledge of playbook, his leadership, and the quickness at which he seemed to learn.

#7 Bruce Gradkowski: First Week: Began Practice on 8/4. Was very rusty in his first practice, including a a long ball that “looked like a wounded duck and was intercepted”. In his second practice, he greatly improved. In his third practice, he actually moved the ball better than Dalton in 2-minute drills.

#5 Jordan Palmer: First Week: Began Practice on 8/4. Has seen limited repetitions with Dalton taking most, then Gradkowski, then Palmer/Lefevour taking the rest. But has been fairly solid in his few snaps. He said that he studied a lot of tape of his brother, Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, and others in the offseason. His greatest attribute over the other QBs is his arm strength and his experience with the receivers on the team.

#8 Dan Lefevour: First Week: Had an opporunity to step up with Jordan Palmer and Bruce Gradkowski out for the first 4 practices. Didn’t seize it. He’s been inconsistent and generally has not made good decisions with the ball. All too often, he just gives up on a play and tries to run with it. Only in Saturday’s practice did he finally seem to be improving.

Runningback: (3-4)
#32 Cedric Benson: First Week: Began Practice on 8/4. In his first three practices, he’s not been allowed to carry the ball much, as the coaches want to “ease him in”. He’s done quite a few individual workouts on the side, and didn’t see a whole lot actual RB snaps until Saturday’s “mock game”.

#27 Bernard Scott: First Week: Scott only practiced on the first day. Has been sitting out ever since due to tightness/soreness in his hamstrings. Marvin Lewis made it clear that the decision to sit him for so long is a precautionary move due to the shortened offseason. He’s been working the stationary bikes on the sideline.

#40 Brian Leonard: First Week: Began Practice on 8/4. So far he’s taken a few snaps, and has done generally as expected. The only thing to report is that he was stoned by undrafted rookie linebacker DeQuin Evans at the goal line.

#30 Cedric Peerman: First Week: Began Practice on 8/4. Had an absolute great first practice. He looked very good in reading the right holes. He found the endzone several times.

#33 Jay Finley: First Week: For the first 4 practices, Finley saw a lot of playing time while Benson/Scott/Leonard/Peerman were all benched. He took advantage of this opportunity. Marvin Lewis was impressed with his running. He ran a lot to the outside, and did a lot of sweeps. He also has knocked a few defenders over.

#34 John Griffin: First Week: Marvin Lewis has also been impressed by this undrafted rookie RB. He has ran well, juking defenders and making many people miss. He’s a bit of a bigger back who’s definitely not afraid of contact. He also has caught he ball out of the backfield well.

#38 Jonathan Williams: First Week: Another rookies RB who has impressed Marvin Lewis. He had some fumbling issues early on, but quickly fixed them. Like Finley, Williams has been running a lot of outside runs and sweeps, and doesn’t drop the ball when he received out of the backfield. Joe Reedy of the Cincinnati Enquirer has dubbed him one  one of the top five players in camp so far also “Offensive College Free Agent to Watch”. The only concern with Williams is that he is a very similar RB to Bernard Scott.

Stephen Robinson: 8/4 cut. 

Fullback: (0-1)
#36 Chris Pressley: First Week: With Vakapuna on the sideline, he has taken a large majority of the FB snaps; he has generally done a good job of blocking and receiving out of the backfield, though not stellar.

Fui Vakapuna: First Week: In an identical scenario to Bernard Scott, he only practiced on the first day, and has sat out ever since. He’s been working the stationary bikes on the sideline.

James Develin: First Week: Develin has had a nice opportunity at some playing time with Vakapuna sitting out. He has done fairly well in blocking and receiving, and his height (6’3″) makes him stand out really stands out.

Wide Receiver: (6)
#18 AJ Green: First Week: AJ Green has been the absolute star of training camp so far. He makes one or two highlight catches per practice. He’s incredible, and the videos don’t do his skills justice. Coaches, fellow players, fans, and everyone but himself is thrilled with his performance (he, of course, thinks he’s never perfect). Green has lined up with the first team opposite Simpson, but generally lining up everywhere, including slot; he’s burned almost every DB on the team and can really jump up and get the ball; he’s also developed a nice chemistry with Dalton. In addition, his blocking has been great, and Marvin Lewis noted that he “He can make the Quarterback look good on every play”.
He was also dubbed the “First Five Days Offensive MVP” by the Cincinnati Enquirer’s Joe Reedy.

#89 Jerome Simpson: First Week: After a slow first two days, when Marvin Lewis chewed him out for being the last one on the field, he has really showed up and done his best to match the incredible play by Green. He’s been lining up at the first team opposite Green, and his athleticism has really helped him develop a relationship with Dalton, who’s passes haven’t been perfect every time. Starting LT Andrew Whitworth even said, “I could take a chair out to seven-on-seven and just watch 18 (Green) and 89 (Jerome Simpson).”

#87 Andre Caldwell: First Week: Similar to Simpson, after a bad first two days when Marvin ripped on him for his bright orange shorts (apparently there’s a new team rule that doesn’t allow exceptions to the training camp outfits), he finally showed up on the third day of practice and used his speed to make some great catches. He isn’t lining up with the first team, but the general consensus is that he is having a great training camp so far, with very few drops.

#12 Quan Cosby: First Week: Seems pretty comfortable in practice, though he hasn’t made any highlight plays.

#11 Jordan Shipley: First Week: Shipley has made a few crowd-pleasing catches, and done very well overall but has not been perfect. His routes have been very crisp and it seems that he has taken a mentor role to Ryan Whalen.

#88 Ryan Whalen: First Week: Whalen looks like a carbon-copy of Shipley, though a bit taller. And he may be doing better than Shipley in camp. He hasn’t dropped almost anything, he’s made some outstanding catches and has generally impressed everybody.

#19 Andrew Hawkins: First Week: He was signed on the fourth day of practice. He is the shortest guy in camp at 5’7″, but he isn’t a bad blocker, and he’s very, very quick.

#17 Jamere Holland: First Week: After a bad first two days where he dropped quite a few balls, he has greatly improved. His athleticism really shows, and he has grown much more comfortable in camp.

#16 Landon Cox: First Week: Has been solid at receiver but hasn’t raised a whol lot of eyebrows. At the end of the week, he sat out with an unknown injury.

#13 Bart Johnson: First Week: Similar to Landon Cox, Bart Johnson has been fairly solid and reliable, but hasn’t done a whole lot to impress.

Tight End: (3)
#84 Jermaine Gresham: First Week: Gresham has quietly had a very good training camp. He has been living up to his first-round status, catching almost everything and plowing through would-be tacklers. Marvin Lewis also commented that he is pleased with Gresham’s growth.

#80 Chase Coffman: First Week: Coffman has had a great training camp so far. He isn’t the wide-eyed rookie he once was and hasn’t dropped many balls either. At the end of the week, they signed Bo Scaife, who may quickly replace Coffman at the TE2 spot.

Bo Scaife: First Week: Hadn’t arrived yet.

#81 Colin Cochart: First Week: Cochart has actually raised a few eyebrows in camp. Has generally showed that he has all the physical tools to catch and block, but has struggled with the playbook (often corrected by Andy Dalton when lining up). Marvin Lewis noted that Cochart has been one of the CFAs that has really impressed him.

Garrett Mills: First Week: Mills has had a walking boot on his foot since the second day of training camp.

John Nalbone: First Week: Arrived at practice late in the week.

Offensive Line: (9-10)
Left Tackle:
#77 Andrew Whitworth: First Week: Whitworth has played the mentor to a few players, such as Andre Smith & Matt O’Donnell. Other than that, there’s been no news from camp. He’s one of the Bengals best players and he’s expected to start at Left Tackle. His job is in no danger.
#73 Anthony Collins: First Week: Early on, was taking snaps at the starter with Roland (free agent rules) and Smith (foot recovering from surgery) on the sideline. In an interview, he also revealed how proud he was to have started the last few games of 2010 at RT, and admitted that he really, really wants to start. He had been rotated in at first line at the Right Tackle position at the end of the week, but the Bengals official depth chart has moved him here to Left Tackle.
#76 Matt O’Donnell: First Week: This 6’10” towering athlete from Canada really hasn’t made a big splash at camp. The odds are stacked against him to make the team.
Left Guard:
Nate Livings: 8/4: First practice.
#66 Max Jean-Gilles: 8/4: First practice.
Clint Boling: 7/30-8/3: He was starting at LG with both Livings and Jean-Gilles waiting to play. He has done well as a rookie iin his first few days and already impressed OL coach Paul Alexander.
Center:
#64 Kyle Cook: 8/4: First practice.
Reggie Stephens: 7/30-8/13: Had started at Center while Cook was unable to play. Showed some potential, as he did in the 2010 Preseason too.
Clint Boling: Listed again at Center.
Ryan McKnight: 8/5: cut.
Right Guard:
#63 Bobbie Williams: 7/30-8/3: Playing well, always smiling, and is clearly a true veteran leader on this team. He’s the oldest on the team by three years in what may be his last season. He also remarked that the new offense is “a breath of fresh air”.
#60 Otis Hudson: 7/30-8/3: OL Coach Paul Alexander has really been impressed with Hudson’s play, naming Hudson and Andre Smith the most improved lineman.
Chris Riley: no news.
Mark Wetterer: 8/8: cut.
Right Tackle:
#71 Andre Smith: 7/30-8/3: After sitting out for the first few days with a boot on his foot (still recovering from surgery), he finally practiced for the first time ever at Georgetown College on 8/2. He has his weight way down to 333 (he was reportedly 370-380 the last two years), and even looked “lightning fast” (from OL coach Alexander) in drills, though has a lot of work to do. 8/5: Hobson: Continues to improve, Alexander really pleased with what he sees, but isn’t pressuring too much work on Smith due to his past foot issues. Reedy: Lining up with the second team, but did well overall, especially at run-blocking. 8/6: Started with the first team at RT.
#74 Dennis Roland: 8/4: First practice. 8/5 Hobson: Started at RT with the first team (OL Coach Alexander is rotating all three potential starters in)
Andrew Gardner: no news.

DEFENSE
Defensive Line: (8)
Defensive End:
#93 Michael Johnson: no news.
#91 Robert Geathers: 7/30-8/3: Geathers has been taking first team snaps, and has been emerging as a veteran leader on this defense. Same with Peko, Hall, Crocker. 8/5: Hobson: Was very active in Friday night’s scrimmage, around the ball often.
#96 Carlos Dunlap: 7/30-8/3: Marvin Lewis has pleased with his growth thus far. Marvin also recalled that Dunlap didn’t practice well last year, and claimed that he has greatly matured in practice. 8/4: hurt his foot and had to leave practice. But returned shortly and had a tackle in his first play. 8/5 Hobson: Several stops against the run; even ended up covering TE Chase Coffman 25 yards down the field on one play. 8/6: sitting out for practice; hopefully this is just a precautionary measure to keep his foot from seeing too much activity.
Frostee Rucker: no news.
Victor Adeyanju: no news.
#67 James Ruffin: no news.
Defensive Tackle:
#94 Domata Peko: no news.
#99 Tank Johnson: 7/30-8/3: On 7/31, Tank had to take a “veteran’s rest”. He might have put on a little weight. 8/5: Another veterans’s rest. Perhaps some knee issues. 8/6: back in practice.
#97 Geno Atkins: 7/30-8/3: Atkins looks like he’s put on a little weight. He also seems a bit slow in a few drills. Hopefully, he whips himself back into shape soon, because Sims is out and Tank is taking”veteran’s rests” every other day.
#90 Pat Sims: injured, out for unknown time. 7/30-8/3: Knee is not ready to go. On the Active PUP list. Sims says he “won’t be out long”. On 8/2, he was doing upper body workouts on the sideline. 8/6: Still sitting out.
#70 Jason Shirley: no news- though, he’s got a nice mohawk.
Clinton McDonald: no news.
#98 Lolomana Mikaele: no news.

Linebacker: (6)
Strongside:
#50 Manny Lawson: 8/4: First practice. 8/5: Hobson: Lawson has already stepped in and made some highlight plays. Disruptive in both the run and pass game.
#52 Dontay Moch: 7/30-8/3: Moch has been around the ball-carrier often. He’s made several tackles in the backfield and has been very active. He looks fast and the rookie RBs had a hard time blocking him. Bengals.com’s Geoff Hobson noted that Moch has a “long way to go with switch to LB, but drips with the traits”. 8/4: Reedy: Again, Moch was very active, several tackles for loss. 8/5: Hobson: Continues to find the ballcarrier often; was very good in Friday night’s scrimmage.
#41 Stephen Franklin: no news.
Middle:
#58 Rey Maualuga: 7/30-8/3: He still has some coverage issues, but has been stopping the run and been overall impressive at his new position. Marvin Lewis noted that Maualuga is taking over his new role in the middle well. The Cincinnati Enquirer’s Joe Reddy noted that he has been the “First 5 Days Defensive MVP”.
#51 Dan Skuta: no news.
#54 DeQuin Evans: 7/30-8/3: Evans has been one of the best college free agents in camp. He has been very solid in his switch from DE to the MLB position, and has emerging as a crowd-favorite because of his big hits (also, he graduated from UK). He did great in goal line situations, having stops on both Jermaine Gresham and Brian Leonard. He’s also been Joe Reedy’s “Defensive College Free Agent to Watch”. 8/5: Hobson: He’s studying hard; “Morning, noon and night he’s in linebackers coach Jeff FitzGerald’s room, whether anybody else is in there or not.”
Roddrick Muckelroy: injured, out for year. 7/30: Tore his Achilles tendon on the first day of practice. What a shame, he was an emerging second-year sure to see some playing time.
Weakside:
#59 Brandon Johnson: 8/4: First practice. He and Manny Lawson are by far the tallest LBs out there at 6’5″, and both of them have already been great in coverage.
#53 Thomas Howard: 8/4: First practice.
#57 Vincent Rey: no news.
#55 Keith Rivers: injured, out for several games. 7/30: on the Non-football Injury List. Had surgery on wrist during the offseason. It’s rumored he may not be ready to play until October.
Keith Darbut: cut on 8/2

Defensive Backs: (10)
Cornerbacks:
#29 Leon Hall: 7/30-8/3: Leon Hall has already been burned several times by the star of training camp, AJ Green. Hall and Green are usually lined up against eachother as the best players at their respective positions, which really helps them grow together. Hall usually starts training camp slowly. 8/5: Videos: Outran Jerome Simpson to position himself for a nice over-the-shoulder interception.
#22 Nate Clements: 8/4: First practice: 8/5: Videos: Did a good job of engaging AJ Green at the line.
Adam Jones: injured, out for most of training camp. 7/30: Still recovering from neck surgery in the offseason. On the active PUP list. Claimed he will be ready for the season opener Sep. 11.
Morgan Trent: 7/30-8/3: Had been sitting out in practice due to a sore knee. 8/4 back in practice, his knee looked fine in drills. 8/5 Hobson: Delivered the “hit of the night” in Friday night’s scrimmage on rookie RB Jay Finley.
#23 Fred Bennett: 7/30-8/3: Fred is having a decent training camp so far. He’s dropped two easy interceptions and the coaches were not pleased, but his coverage overall has been good.
Jonathan Wade: 7/30-8/3: Has been sitting out with a sore shoulder. Had been taking first team snaps opposite Leon Hall on the first day of camp. 8/6: still sitting out.
#44 Rico Murray: 7/30-8/3: Had a nice strip and fumble recovery of rookie RB Jonathan Williams. 8/5: videos: Doing drills with the safeties; this Moeller HS graduate may not make the team, but if he does, it could be at either defensive back position.
#38 Corey Lindsey: no news.
Brandon Ghee: 8/5: sitting out with a possible hamstring injury. 8/6: still sitting out
#39 David Pender: 7/30-8/3: Pender had a nice pick six on Dan Lefevour in 11 on 11 drills. Marvin Lewis also mentioned Pender as one of the youngsters who have impressed him. 8/5: sitting out with an “undisclosed injury. 8/6: still sitting out.

Safeties:
#20 Reggie Nelson: 7/30-8/3: Has made a few highlight plays so far, including a nice diving interception when rookie WR Bart Johnson slipped on the turf and a huge hit when he sent rookie TE Colin Cochart sprawling.
#42 Chris Crocker: no news.
#49 Robert Sands: 7/30-8/3: With Gibril Wilson still out and Tom Nelson not practicing until 8/4, he has taken a lot of snaps. He’s very tall out there, and seems to have some nice potential.
Gibril Wilson: 8/4: injured, will be back next week. On the active PUP with a knee issue. 8/6: Hobson: “Coyle [Bengals’ Defensive Backs Coach] was pleased to report that safety Gibril Wilson is back to practice next week, 50 weeks after he suffered an ACL injury in a preseason game”.
#43 Tom Nelson: 8/4: First practice. 8/5: Had a nice interception of QB Dan Lefevour during a scrimmage.
#45 Jeromy Miles: no news.
Brian Lainhart: 8/8: cut.

SPECIAL TEAMS:
Kicker: (1)
#2 Mike Nugent: 7/30-8/3: 8 Months after ACL surgery, Nugent is healthy and taking kicks. In his first practice, he hit all field goals from multiple distances- 36, 39, 44. Marvin Lewis has been pleased with Nugent thus far, says he’s near 100 percent healthy. 8/6: Reedy: Hasn’t missed a FG in camp yet; made a 54-yarder today at the end of practice. Hobson: “Mike Nugent is the ‘Comeback Player of Training Camp'”.
Thomas Weber: 7/30-8/3: Has done well so far. He has a booming leg, but he’s not quite as accurate as Nugent. On 8/2: Nugent and Weber traded 49 yarders, with Weber’s actually having more power to it. 8/6: Hobson: Weber actually matched Nugent’s 54-yarder after practice.
Punter: (1)
#10 Kevin Huber: no news.
Long Snapper: (1)
Clark Harris: no news.
Neil Dahlman: 8/2: cut

Kick Returner:
Bernard Scott (2nd string RB)
Andre Caldwell (2nd string WR)
Quan Cosby (2nd string WR)
Cedric Peerman (4th string RB)
Jamere Holland (4th string WR)

Punt Returner:
Quan Cosby (2nd string WR)
Jordan Shipley (3rd string WR)
Jamere Holland (4th string WR)