Good call. So it took 6 years to get what we signed up for with Marvin Lewis. I loved the teams gameplan today. Very smart win.

Also loving Dennis Dixon. BAHAHAHAHAHA!
Whodey!

JT,

You and others have stated that the Bengals have lacked deep speed at WR, and that is even more evident since Henry is out. My question is what about Caldwell? He had one of the fastest 40 times for WRs in his draft class. According to NFL.com, he ran a 4.37 which is only .02 sec from Desean Jackson. On the other hand, his shuttle time was faster than Jackson’s and he has a higher vertical. Did Andre all of a sudden get slower? Why not use him on more deep routes? Have the bigger and more physical Purify take the shots over the middle and send Caldwell on the deep routes. Is there something about Andre that we don’t know?

Was good to see Andre out there but did not like the rotation of Roland for a play, Smith in for a play then Collins for a play. Roland is so tall that the defenders get under his pads and drive him right back into Carson too often. Time for Andre to prove he was worth the #6 pick over Michael Oher down the stretch this year.

The Browns looked bad on offense, it looks like they’ve started to copy what they Bengals have been doing with the extra Tackle, but didn’t really practice it much first.

It looks like other teams have started to figure out how to break through the OL, getting more pressure on Carson. I’m wondering if this is a change in the way the OL is playing, a change in the way the D is attacking the OL, or if it’s because Benson is out. If you go back to early in the season, the OL had similar problems. Evan Mathis took over at starting LG and Roland at RT and they started playing better, but that was also when Benson really started to gain respect as a top RB. Past 2 games, Benson is out, Livings is at LG, and they threw Smith into the rotation at RT.

Also, some of Benson’s comments have been a little alarming. I think someone needs to sit down and talk to him. Benson’s job is safe, make him feel safe, let him know he is the guy, but he needs to be okay with 15-20 carries a game so that he will stay fresh into the playoffs. Also, LJ is more of a threat to take away from Scott or Leonard than Benson. I’d be okay with Benson sitting out next week against Detroit so he will be sure to be ready for Minnesota. If Benson is active, who do the Bengals make inactive…Scott, LJ, or Leonard?

In NY, Coles has several long TD catches, not sure if they were bombs or yards after catch. Maybe Caldwell has speed and can do that too. It may not have as much to do with the WR and more to do with the plays called. They never threw to Henry long like they had in the past, we just assumed it was his injury. Maybe they are still using plays designed for TJ, or if they do go long, Palmer doesn’t throw there.

Oher looks to be the best OL in this draft and the second best player overall behind Percy Harvin. Coming out I didn’t think that he could play RT after playing LT at Ole Miss. But a lot of teams missed on him, including the Bengals. I’m not a big fan of Andre Smith at this point. He has a lot of making up to do.

The Ravens actually ran this extra OL offense last year, the Bengals are copying them And the Chargers did it a lot when Coach Cam was there. Anyway, I think Livings is better than Mathis. I don’t think Mathis played that well when he was in there. He gave up pressure and big hits on Carson. Go back and watch the Green Bay game and a few games after. But the whole OL was protecting pretty well until the 2nd Steelers game. And yes, Bensons comments surprised me. He knows better than anyone, just play. He is the starter, no need to tell everyone that. But he is feeling LJ on his back. Marvin did the right thing by bringing LJ in, now he needs to talk to Ced about being a pro.

JT- off topic but do you hear from Antwan Odom? How is he recovering? I know that the Achilles tear is not a difficult surgery but is a difficult recovery.

JT, what is the rule on IR players with respect to playoffs? Are they allowed to bring anyone back that was on IR once playoffs start, or are they totally lost for the season? How is Chris Henry doing? Any contact from him?

Nope, IR guys cant come back. C Henry won’t be healthy by then anyway. He’s about 8 weeks out.

I honestly felt very bad for him Sunday. Fans were really giving it to him, still mad about the horse collar and all, but he’s still a person. could tell by his face, he knew it was pretty bad. Side of the game I don’t care for.

it was a heat of battle thing, really i think. I think the rule is kinda stupid, just like the Kimo rule is. Goes totally against what players are taught from peewee ball, you make the tackle. Safety is fine, but what rule is there that keeps a guy like Odom’s injury from happening? They just say its part of the game. Probably should have let the CP injury go that route too.

Well, both Ochocinco and Coles are up there in age for a WR, and Henry’s contract is up, given it can take 3 years for a WR to breakout, they need to draft another one this year or next, or do they?

Right now we don’t know if Simpson will work out. I would assume Coles will be kept another year at least due to salary cap hit. Ochocinco’s contract is up after 2011 season, and assuming he stays happy in Cincy we’ll assume he plays out the rest of his contract but is not resigned. I would also assume the Bengals will try to bring Henry back. So the plan for 2012 might be to have Henry and Caldwell as the starting WRs with 3-4 other guys that may or may not be on the team right now. Next year, they may have Ochocinco, Coles, Henry, Caldwell, Simpson, Cosby, Purify…. I doubt there is room for a high draft pick unless Henry is not resigned or Ochocinco or Coles is gone.

I don’t know who’s contracts are up at the end of the year (Peko, Joesph, Fanene?), I think there were a bunch, so it all depends on who they resign and what the needs are. Assuming they do resign thier core, S and TE should be high on the list of needs.

I was at the game Sunday and watched Andre Smith play and on just about every play he did not even engage with the defender (lookout block), needless to say I was not impressed. I certainly hope this is not what is to come in the future. JT your thoughts?

I don’t think Tank comes back. Not really giving you much this year…Pat should take the next step and be the starter next year if he is in shape.

Coles didn’t have it when they signed him. He was in decline. The Jets were unloading him and the Bengals signed him to send a message to TJ IMO. Bad deal, way too much money. No other team was offering that. Buffalo tried to sign him for less and the Seahawks were scared away.

Here’s a little scoop you will on;y find here…don’t tell anyone jk. McDonald would have made the team over Rucker if he was healthy in camp. He was the reason they moved Shirley to OG…he was hand picked by Marvin at the end of the draft because Marvin wanted a DT that could run and play tough inside. When he was hurt in camp, it actually helped the Bengals because no other team could see him play. They can keep him on practice squad and let him get better. The Bengals only use three true DT’s during the games because on passing downs they go with DE’s as the DT’s. Harris is here because he is a solid player, but also they can release him if they need the roster spot and not worry about anything. If it were McDonald, they would have to keep him and release another position….make sense? McDonald could be the 3rd guy next year. and they can draft another DT or two.