Thread: King's Bengals thread.

The Bengals have become both loudly (by bringing in questionable yet talented FAs like Pacman, Tank, and Bryant) and quietly (by drafting some real stud players and bringing in a guy like Benson who everyone else thought was finished) a very solid squad. They obviously owned a very tough division last year and proved they could play with anyone.

The only problem I have with the Bengals and the one thing I think will limit them the most and potentially keep them away from a Superbowl appearance is Marvin Lewis. I just don't think he's a very good coach. He's taken a lot of risks assembling that team but, IMO of course, doesn't seen to be the disciplinarian who can keep all those high-powered personalities focused and on track and keep all eyes on the prize at the end.

Now that everyone knows they are for real, nobody will take them lightly this season. The Ravens and Steelers will no longer look past them and the Bengals will have to keep their feet on the necks of the division. It'll be interesting to see if they keep it up or revert this season. I've always pulled for the underdog and the Bengals always seem to fit that bill to me.

Here ya go King

http://www.daytondailynews.com/blogs..._minicamp.html

The Cincinnati Bengals showed signs of being dominant this season during last week’s three-day minicamp. This is an early indication that the team is prepared to improve on its season from a year ago. Optimistically speaking, fans can be excited about what’s in store.

The Bengals have made some definite strives over the offseason by adding depth at nearly every position on the roster. The team is loaded with talent especially on defense. They have athletes with speed at each position and the other side of the ball isn’t too shabby.

Some new wrinkles have been added to the Bengals offense which should open up the passing game. Without giving away the team’s secrets, quarterback Carson Palmer could have a career year passing the ball. More importantly the execution of the offense as a unit was on point more often than not.

Here are a few things I took away from minicamp.

Who’s hot?

It’s time to put the kibosh on all the negative talk surrounding Palmer and his ability to play the game. The man still has it.

Palmer is among the elite quarterbacks in my book. Granted, he may no longer have a cannon for an arm, but he still possesses a high-caliber pistol capable of pistol whipping any secondary into submission when throwing the ball.

Palmer demonstrated that when he fired a bullet into heavy traffic for a completion. The window of opportunity in which he threw the pass was tight and closed rather quickly. Only a quarterback with a hair-trigger release could have made this throw. He did this on more than one occasion, even under duress. Palmer was consistently accurate and had a good showing in camp.

Who’s not?

Who needs Matt Jones when you have Jerome Simpson? That’s right, I would be flummoxed if Jones made the club over Simpson. There was not much to write home about regarding Jones’ performance in minicamp. He looked like just another guy and was outperformed by Simpson, who has struggled to see the playing field since being drafted. Both receivers are likely on the bubble considering the team’s depth at the position.

Jones is a long strider with little burst off the line and is not the most precise route runner. Not to mention he caught a lot of passes with his body rather than using his hands. You would also expect a guy his size to be more aggressive at the point of attack but that wasn’t the case.

The 6-foot-6, 218-pound Jones was pushed off his routes with little effort by smaller cornerbacks. The receiver made it easy for corners to jam him at the line of scrimmage. Jones is going to have to show the Bengals coaching staff more than adequacy in training camp if he’s looking to revitalize his career in Cincinnati.

Keep an eye on

Running back Brian Leonard shed a few pounds during the offseason and looked quicker than ever. He made a couple of nice darting runs that really showed off his quickness and acceleration. Leonard was also effective in the passing game and is expected to be an integral part of the offense this season.

High expectations

Defensive end Michael Johnson could have a breakout season in only his second year. He’s flashing signs of greatness with his ability to rush the passer, his athleticism, versatility and run pursuit. Johnson is becoming a disciplined pass rusher and will likely challenge some veterans for playing time. According to one of his teammates, Johnson is developing into a playmaker that appears to always be around the ball.

Fans will have a lot to look forward to in training camp.

i really think the bengals are gonna surprise people this year....i'm getting the feeling that palmer is tired of not being included in conversations with the league's top passer's.
they will be very good in 2010'.....and hopefully lose to the broncos in the afccg

I believe the Palmer, Benson and Johnson are a top 5 QB-RB-WR1 trio.

Unfortunately for King and his Bengals, Polamalu will be back for the Steelers. Him missing 11 games last year hurt them badly.

The Ravens, should still be solid and a real threat to win the division every year for the foreseeable future.

The Brown, a good opponent to allow your 2nd string to get some playing time against.

I love Ochocinco!

"WR Chad Ochocinco on his dating show: “Man, I haven’t seen this many girls on a football field since the last time we played the Steelers.”

http://twitter.com/espnafc_north

Apparently we are close to signing Terrell Owens.

I almost vomited when I typed out the first sentence of this post.

Originally Posted by King87

Apparently we are close to signing Terrell Owens.

I almost vomited when I typed out the first sentence of this post.

Whew, this is my new haven. Its a Tim Tebow free zone.

I love me some King.

It's getting to be a bit much isn't it clay.

I hate my life.

King, I'm so sorry...so sorry

With T.O. aboard, are you still a Bengals fan? May I ask why?

Maybe Terrell Owens and Chad Ochocinco will get along, maybe they won't. Maybe like the kindred spirits they say they are, they'll lead the Cincinnati Bengals to the Super Bowl -- or maybe, like the self-centered scorpions they really are, they'll stab each other in the back and leave behind a 6-10 husk of a 2010 season.

Maybe none of that is the point.

The point is, how can a fan of the Bengals be a fan of the Bengals? How do you still do it? How?

Go down the list of the biggest idiots in the NFL, criminal and non-criminal division. In recent years, that list would have to include Pacman Jones (now a Bengal), Tank Johnson (Bengal), Cedric Benson (Bengal) and Matt Jones (Bengal). That's the criminal division. The idiot list would also include Terrell Owens (now a Bengal), Chad Ochocinco (Bengal) and Antonio Bryant (Bengal). That's the non-criminal division. Biggest character risk in the 2010 NFL Draft? Probably Carlos Dunlap, the Florida defensive end who was arrested on DUI charges five days before the SEC title game. Who drafted him in April? You know who drafted him. The Bengals drafted him.

This, Cincinnati, is your team. These, Bengals fans, are your players.

What jersey do you wear to Paul Brown Stadium on Sundays? What player on this roster, by virtue of having his name and number on your back, will you say, This is me?

Who?

Quarterback Carson Palmer, sure. Swell guy. Linebacker Dhani Jones, absolutely. Good man. There are more, of course. The Bengals probably have more good guys than bad.

Probably. But only because they didn't re-sign misogynistic running back Larry Johnson, whom they picked up last season, and only because they recently released offensive lineman Jason Shirley, who was kicked off the team at Fresno State for DUI issues in November 2007, then drafted by the Bengals five months later.

The problem is the clown running this organization, Mike Brown, son of the legendary coach, owner and namesake of the Cleveland Browns. Mike Brown couldn't wear his father's jockstrap, so after years of turning the Bengals into the worst franchise in the NFL he has remade himself in the image of Al Davis. Just win, scummy.

Brown fancies himself a redeemer. He literally calls himself that, when the reality isn't nearly so rosy: He's not a redeemer; he's a tightwad. He can't, or won't, get top-dollar free agents -- so what he does is wait for them to hit the skids. He signs Terrell Owens when nobody else will. He adds Pacman Jones between arrests. He drafts first-round talent Carlos Dunlap on the cheap in Round 2.

Brown has been stingy for so long, he probably believes his own shtick -- that he's not an opportunist, but a "redeemer." So, fine. Let's go there, because second chances are fine and dandy. Me, I've come around on Michael Vick. Roger Goodell decided Vick deserved a second chance in the NFL, and that was enough for me. I wrote that last year, so don't tell me I'm incapable of forgiveness. I despised Michael Vick, but I forgave. Forgiveness is good.

But this much forgiveness? Mike Brown has turned so many cheeks, he's used up his face and moved on to his ass. Enjoy the view, Bengals fans. This is your team. It has been put together by an owner who honestly thinks he's smarter than everyone else despite ample evidence to the contrary. This is what he told the Cincinnati Enquirer about Terrell Owens:

"I met with him personally and privately he is not at all this public image is depicted," Brown said. "He's a pleasant person, a quiet person. I found him engaging and I do trust my eyes on this sort of thing."

Got that? Everything that happened in San Francisco and Philadelphia and Dallas, well, it didn't happen. Not the way we all thought it did. Terrell Owens isn't selfish or narcissistic or cancerous in a locker room. He's actually "a pleasant person." Mike Brown met him -- and Mike Brown does trust his eyes on this sort of thing.

Brown also trusted his eyes on Rey Maualuga, the Southern California linebacker who thought it would be a hoot to sneak up on a female reporter and pretend to have sex with her from behind. Childish prank, that. No big deal, Brown decided, when he drafted Maualuga 38th overall in 2009. How did Maualuga repay Brown? By starting 15 games as a rookie in 2009. And then getting arrested on DUI charges in January after driving into a parking meter and two parked cars near Cincinnati.

Brown also trusted his eyes on Cedric Benson, the running back who was released by the Bears after two alcohol-related arrests in 2008. Brown gave Benson a second chance, and Benson repaid Brown by running for 1,998 yards in 2008 and '09. And then getting arrested on assault charges stemming from a May incident when he was accused of punching a bar employee in Texas.

None of this is to say that Benson and Maualuga are horrible people, undeserving of their spots in the NFL. They've made mistakes, but not mistakes that cannot be forgiven. Same goes for Matt Jones, arrested with cocaine in his car. And Tank Johnson, arrested twice for firearm offenses. And Pacman Jones, I guess, despite his rap sheet. And Dunlap. And Frostee Rucker and Bernard Scott and Johnathan Joseph and, well, enough about those guys. Anyway, forgiveness also goes for the idiot brigade at wideout, guys who are fun to be around when the going is good, but heaven help everyone around them when the going gets rough -- Owens and Ochocinco and Antonio Bryant.

All of them are screwups in their own way, but all of them deserve a second chance. Or a third or fourth chance, in some cases.

But why are all of them getting that chance in Cincinnati?

And how can a Bengals fan be OK with it?

And whose jersey are you going to wear this season? Which of these idiots represents you?

http://www.cbssports.com/print/colum...-bar;btn-print

I'm not down with all of that article.

Ochocinco isn't a cancer and isn't an idiot. He's frustrating, but he's a good guy and a player whose HoF induction I look forward to.

Pacman is a disgrace to the league. Tank Johnson may have only had one run in with the law, but his was so disgusting that I think he's a disgrace as well.

To be Benson isn't a disgrace, and seeing how the reports are showing that he got jumped and sucker punched AND he called the cops, I'm not embarrassed he's in stripes.

Matt Jones isn't a disgrace, but that's irrelevant because he's not going to make the team.

As far as people whose jerseys you should wear? Um, What about Bobbie Williams, Whitworth, Leon Hall, Jonathan Joseph, Rey Maualuga, Dhani Jones or Palmer?

This is the frustrating part for me as a fan - I'm well aware and more concerned about the people we have on the team than most fans are about theirs. Reference the part of the offseason where the Bengals were linked to Brandon Marshall. Reference my disgust.

However, how guys with one criminal offense and Ochocinco, who is a clean dude get lumped in as idiots in the same league as Pacman and Johnson is beyond me.

Mike Brown sucks. His father was a true redeemer, you mess up and you got one golden chance to rectify it. A true chance. You mess that up, you're gone.

But Mike Brown isn't like his daddy, Paul. Mike Brown likes cheap talent. Tank Johnson is a pretty good player, Terrell Owens is still a pretty good player, Pacman is a cheap talent with a high reward factor. Benson was another one of those.

His draft picks over the last two or three seasons have been great. Hell, in 2005 we had the best draft class in the NFL - Odell Thurman should have been DROTY by a lindslide and Chris Henry was a beast.

Hey, we got Odell in the second and Henry in the third, those guys should have been first rounders! Odell was the best MLB prospect in the draft and some analysts had Henry ranked ahead of the only WR taken ahead of him in Braylon Edwards.

Wait, why did we get those guys in that round? Oh....yeah...damn..

That's no disrespect to Henry, who did change his life, or Odell, who isn't a smart man but not a vicious man either. Odell is currently in a lesser football league and is supposed to be clean, so good for him.

The point that I'm making is that it's a balance - I'm tired of not having the Bengals rack up wins and I've accepted the fact that all teams have 'thugs' and you can't entirely get away with that. The same things go for idiots.

I'm fine with giving guys like Benson a second chance. I'm ok with giving Matt Jones a second chance.

But Tank "machine guns with a pound of pot in my house with children" and Pacman? No.

And it's touch and go. A lot of it is how much have the athletes lost over their actions. Michael Vick being a Bengal wouldn't bother me because he's paid his debt, he lost a lot of time, friends and money.

And for the knock on Maualuga, give me a break. He danced up on Erin Andrews, wow. He got a DUI and voluntarily checked himself in rehab. Blow me.

At least you guys didnt waste a #1 on Alphonso Smith.

I still dont see signing TO as a reward for Cincy. I feel for ya King as i dont understand why they feel content with dealing with these idiots.

here ya go, dude. . . .

http://football.about.com/gi/dynamic...Frumormill.htm


kind of cool to see rod woodson coachin' 'em up, but i doubt many steelers fans feel very good about him doing it for the bengals. . . .