Bengals Starting Defense(5-5-09)
May 5th, 2009 | Bengals
I keep getting asked who do I think will start this season for the Bengals, so I will take my non educated stab at it. Remember, it is very early in the off season. Players have to earn jobs, and this season there should be more competition than in years past.
I see the Defensive Line as the area having the fiercest competition, followed by the LB’s, then the Secondary.
DT: The arrival of Tank Johnson will push Pat Sims and Domata Peko. Jason Shirley needs to improve this off season. He’s a big guy but has to play quicker. If he takes the next step, he will give the team a different look. Orien Harris is a good player. Underrated, but can play the nose pretty well. I see these guys fighting for playing time on first and second down because the DE’s will move inside on third down. I see Mike Zimmer putting the best pass rushers on the field on 3rd and long.
DE: I’m not sure where rookie DE Michael Johnson will play, but he will figure into the mix somewhere. Robert Geathers is rehabbing a knee injury and looks to be back this summer. But if he needs more time, the team has enough to play with while he recovers. Antwan Odom will man the right DE position. He will give the team more in 2009 than he did a year ago. A foot injury during training camp ruined his season. Frostee Rucker and Jon Fanene are two guys that can play either end and inside on passing downs. If they both come into camp in shape and healthy, I like them to be the rushers inside on third down. Rucker is a free agent at the end of the season, so this role could be big for him to have a breakout season. Fanene is a strong guy who can fill in anywhere and get some pressure on the QB. Chris Harrington is a young guy with speed that came in at the end of the 2008 season and flashed a little. Looks like a young Justin Smith only quicker.(Justin would take offense to that)
LB- Rookie Rey Maualuga will get on the field in different packages. I think he starts out playing behind Dhani Jones at middle backer. Learning from a veteran like Dhani will be key and he can be a energizer bunny on special teams. No need to rush him on the field full time. Imagine adding Rey and Michael Johnson on the Kickoff team? Wow. Kieth Rivers will be back at his Will(weak) LB position and Rashad Jeanty will man the Sam(strong) LB position. Rashad is a tough man. Fights through pain and makes the defense tougher. I don’t see a rookie taking his job. Brandon Johnson is a solid Pro. Played real well last year, and if it weren’t for Kieth Rivers being a high pick, he probably would have held the starting job all season. Had a real strong camp and a good regular season. He will be in the mix as well. Darryl Blackstock will be a special teams beast and a third down blitzer. He can actually play DE better than he can play LB. If it were up to me, I would play him at DE full time.
DB- Johnathan Joseph getting back to his 2006 form is the key to the Defense. If he does, it will allow DC Mike Zimmer to be even more aggressive than he is now. Leon Hall is a tough guy that will show up everyday. Got better last year and should take it higher this year. David Jones will be the third corner. Played well at times as a starter last year but I think the Bengals will bring in another guy to compete with him. Maybe a veteran guy who can come in late in training camp if he gets released from another team. Chris Crocker will lead the safeties. The Bengals paid him to be the starter. Chinedum Ndukwe and Marvin White will battle it out for the other job. Both are great blitzers, but need to be better in coverage. Maybe Roy Williams will be brought in after the first OTA, after the coaches see if the safeties have improved from last season. But I think those young guys can get it done.
Lineup
LDE: Geathers
LDT: Sims
RDT: Peko
RDE: Odom
WLB: Rivers
MLB: Jones
SLB: Jeanty
CB: Joseph
CB: Hall
SS: Ndukwe/White
FS: Crocker
3rd Down DL- Johnson-Geathers-Rucker-Odom
22 Responses to Bengals Starting Defense(5-5-09)
Andy11
May 5th, 2009 at 7:44 pm
I think Rey will get more playing time than people think. Everyone talks about Marvin missing Ray Lewis in Baltimore, but when you hear Marvin talk about his defense in Baltimore he talks about missing Peter Bolware. I think ML sees Maualuga and sees a guy who can be a beast strong side linebacker, almost always playing down hill( run or pass). He thought he had that guy in Pollack, and he has been looking for it ever since. With that in mind, what are the chances of seeing Jeanty some at end instead of linebacker? He was known for his pass rush skills when he played in Canada, right?
JT
May 5th, 2009 at 8:33 pm
Come on….can’t compare Rey with Ray
I really think he will have to adjust to the Pro game. He was a free lancer at USC and that is well documented. Easy to do that at USC. But in the NFL, lining up 6 inches outside od where u are supposed to be, will create a crease for a 10 yard run. I say give him time and put him in on special packages. Like they did Pollack. Pollack didn’t do anthing until towards the end of his rookie year. Plus Pollack was a DE trying to play LB. Rey will get a shot to play, but I think Dhani will be the starter. Jeanty can play DE on third down, but he won’t beat out the other DE’s. He is good in his role now. Maybe he will blitz more this year if he is healthy.
John
May 5th, 2009 at 9:21 pm
I thought the team extended Rucker last year?
al smith
May 5th, 2009 at 9:31 pm
Im rly excited about what this defense can do!
JT
May 5th, 2009 at 9:34 pm
Nah it was Fanene
JT
May 5th, 2009 at 9:34 pm
Should be better. Need to rush the passer better and play deep ball better. They go hand in hand
Eddie
May 6th, 2009 at 3:54 am
I think you have it about right JT. What do you think about Rucker playing on 1st down? He is 290 and pretty good against the run.
I do see it a little different on 3rd down though, I think it’s Michael Johnson, Tank Johnson, Geathers & Rucker/Fanene/McDonald. I think 3rd down pass rush is the only reason we drafted McDonald.
Side Note: Was watching Georgia Tech Vs Virginia on ESPNU where Michael Johnson went against Eugene Monroe, there was one play where Johnson was so quick Monroe didn’t even get a hand on him. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KzKWDGf5-Hc Scroll to 7:25 in the video.
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May 6th, 2009 at 8:17 am
[...] Bengal John Thornton predicts the starting lineup on defense: LDE: Geathers LDT: Sims RDT: Peko RDE: Odom WLB: Rivers MLB: Jones SLB: Jeanty CB: [...]
Bill
May 6th, 2009 at 9:34 am
JT, I hope the Bengals’ coaches heed your advice and let Rey learn and grow into the middle LB spot rather than force him in at strong before he is fully ready. I know some fans will want to see him playing a lot starting in Game 1, but I think giving him some time will pay off for everyone. He should only unseat Dhani (or Jeanty) when he is truly better than them.
Patmo
May 6th, 2009 at 9:39 am
Looking for 2nd-4th year players to make a bigger improvement this year on both sides of the ball . Interesting that JT didn’t mention the effect that Huber would have on the defense.
His punts of distance and accuracy should help the defense considerably . If he’s as good as publicized , it should add some additional yardage per game that the opposing offense has to gain.
Agree with JT’s personnel evaluations . Jeanty is now an underrated NFL pro. Dhani is an established pro and Rivers should improve greatly . Work the rookies in and let them grow. Everybody,including myself, is thrilled to have Maualuga but I see flashbacks to Odell Thurman . Rey will have to learn the importance of discipline . Big hits offset by being out of position hurt more than they help.
Brad
May 6th, 2009 at 12:21 pm
Rod Hood is visiting the Bengals(veteran CB) and they just cut Levi.
Rob
May 6th, 2009 at 1:17 pm
I thought Brandon Johnson was terrific last season and I have a hard time believing that he won’t see the field somehow. In fact, I think he offers more versatility and range than Jeanty(who I also think is very tough, especially against the run).
What’d you think, John? Brandon Johnson a starter?
JT
May 6th, 2009 at 1:38 pm
Yes I think Brandon is a starter, but not is this lineup. Jeanty if healthy will be the starter. Jeanty is tough against run and can rush the passer on blitzes. Just need to be heathly. he had a rod inserted into his leg and came back in like 4 weeks two years ago. tough dude
Ron E
May 6th, 2009 at 1:50 pm
Do you see the Bengals sliding into a 3-4 sometimes, similar to what the Ravens do? Maybe do something like:
LDE: Fanene
NT: Peko
RDE: Rucker
OLB: Rivers
ILB: Jones
ILB: Maualuga
OLB: Johnson
JT
May 6th, 2009 at 1:55 pm
They use some 3-4 stuff, but mostly on 3rd downs. But you left out odom and geathers. They will be on the field somehow.
They have lots of depth on the D line and can play with different lineups
J Goods
May 6th, 2009 at 2:12 pm
yeah i would rather Geathers and Mike Johnson at OLB and Rivers and Maualuga at MLB in a 3-4. but we deff are a better 4-3 team right now. we just dont have the D-line to play in a 3-4.
JT, you say Ndukwe needs to be better in coverage and that he will be fighting Marvin White for the SS spot. But from watching what we can durring the games, it just looks like Ndukwe is that much better than White. He is one of the biggest playmakers on the Defense. But is that because hes wild and out of position? or is White better than i’m giving him credit for. And what do you think about Corey Lynch?
Mike in Chicago
May 6th, 2009 at 2:17 pm
JT, i’ve heard rumors of signing Rod Hood and Roy Williams, are we trying to strengthen our depth chart in order to get more fresh guys out there to help with the grind of the running games in the AFC North?
JT
May 6th, 2009 at 2:42 pm
Hood would be nickel back and compete with JJoe for starting corner
JT
May 6th, 2009 at 2:46 pm
Odom will be on the field. he got a cool $30 mill last year
Andy11
May 6th, 2009 at 5:01 pm
JT, you missed my point Brother. I wasn’t comparing Rey to Ray at all. I was pointing out that a lot of people seem to think that Marvin is trying to find the next Ray, when in fact it would seem that he is trying to find the next Peter Boulware. He said publicly that he thought he had found that in Pollack, and how much it set the defense back when that didn’t work out. Now you have to wonder if he thinks that he has found the next Boulware in Rey. I’m not saying that he has or that Rey is comparable to Ray or Pete, just trying to point out what Marvin appears to be looking for. I wouldn’t be so fast to think that Rey will eventually end up in the middle if they think his skill set translates better to sam. Not saying I agree, just observing. LOL
JT
May 6th, 2009 at 5:05 pm
Ahhh I see
my bad. I need to read before I respond LOL
Ron E
May 7th, 2009 at 6:57 am
I left out Odom and Geathers from my 3-4 above because Fanene’s size would fit more into the DE in a 3-4 than they would, and I had Rucker in there because you said he can play inside also. I figure you need to give Geathers and Odom a break sometime. I would stand Geathers up to play OLB, but then they have Johnson that they may want to put in that role. I kind of liked that I had all the USC and Somoan players in there at the same time, reports indicate that they are a little closer friends, which may motivate them a little more in being the first one to the QB. Call it the Trojan Somoan package.