49ers 20, Bengals 13
Bengals 19, Rams 10.
The Bengals are a monkey who can’t pull an apple through the opening of a jar, so the monkey walks around with the jar around its arm because it wont let go of the apple.
During the off-season, players who don’t make a difference will be resigned (J. Smith, Madieu). Free agents will use us as bait and get better offers from teams they’d rather play for. Rudi and Dex Jackson will be back while DeDe will be lured back to Indianapolis. Our first round pick will pull something minor in training camp and miss the first six games. The league will finally admit they just don’t like Odell and suspend him for a third straight season. Marvin Lewis will move forward.
This square-peg-in-round-hole offense we’ve seen all year will continue to sputter as receivers run the same routes and as Rudi gets 14 carries for 28 yards. The defense will base their scheme on hope and good luck again next year. King Marv will never concede to adjustments.
This season was typified by the revolting loss at San Francisco Saturday. Frank Gore looked like an ore-hauler pushing whatever pile we stacked in front of him. The Niners knew every play we called and our best player of late, DeDe Dorsey, touched the ball twice. We’re now 1-3 against the NFC West and the win against the Rams is a forgettable one. The common sense advisor failed again on the challenge call late in the game, sacrificing a valuable timeout in the process.
The Bengals cannot handle pressure. In their only road win of the season, they choked seven times and had to kick field goals. The schedule is pockmarked with failed moments in crucial situations. Marvin has his team overanalyzing everything and it causes everyone to press more. When a team begins to press they collapse under pressure. They implode. We’re too big for our britches. We talk a lot about having so much talent but then look like a fancy car with no gas on game day. There’s not enough grit on this team. We need some silent workers who bust their asses when it counts and laughs about it when the jobs done. We should go back to the original uniforms of the seventies with the helmets that have BENGALS printed on the sides. Back to the basics.
Mojokong - Letting go of the apple
Thursday, December 20, 2007
Thursday, December 6, 2007
Week 13 recap
Steelers 24, Bengals 10
The year of the Bummer culminated Sunday night with another winnable game slipping down the drain pipe. Four turnovers, an average Willie Parker performance, and 30 plus pass attempts from Rothless are the ingredients one could hope for to escape Pittsburgh with a win. But, like we’ve seen throughout this season, when one piece starts to work another piece quickly breaks down. This time it came from Ol’ Faithful himself, marking the second time in three weeks where Palmer has struggled mightily.
We can cut him some slack Sunday night. Playing the first-ranked defense in the rain on a crappy field sounds like a battle scene from Lord of the Rings. ESPN commentator and super fan, Ron Jaworski, would bore you to death with his analysis of Carson’s throwing mechanics showing you film after film of exactly why he threw too high all night. He’d repeat words like ‘release point’ to you a thousand times and once ignored long enough, he would ramble off to his little room where he would continue his obsession of watching game footage. But the offense looked fine on their opening drive and the difference stems from play-calling more than Carson and a wet ball.
The Bengals started off with short routes and quick hitters. We used DeDe and Kenny Watson on screens and pitches. The line made holes for Rudi. We got in the end zone. It was working.
Then we got cute. All of a sudden we went back to the medium throws to the sidelines, the Rudi-for-Twodie and the long crossing routes. Bratkowski abandoned the short game with an insistence to run his style of offense instead of what the situation dictated. I realize that big-brained Dick Lebeau is gonna make the right adjustments in his coverage scheme, but why not come back to what worked? I liked that the Bengals went deep a couple of times to keep em’ honest. I didn’t mind some Rudi runs up the gut. I did mind that he had 14 carries and the other two running backs got a combined six. Rudi’s longest run was for a less-than-explosive four yards. On the year he averages less than three yards per carry. Every Bengal fan can see the play-calling revert back to the predictable set of 12 or so plays Brat is seemingly in love with. Defenses can see it too, and then stopping the Bengals becomes easy for them.. DeDe’s only carry was good for 15 yards. He averages six per carry. You can’t use Dorsey 20 times a game, but you can use him more than once.
The once laughable circus that was once the Bengal defense has moved along leaving a serviceable unit in it’s place. They’re causing turnovers again and aren’t being ax-murdered against the run anymore. They still need lots of attention in the off-season but at least fans and coaches have seen something they can work with. If the last four games have anything to keep an eye on it’s the butterfly version of this defense. If the caterpillar doesn’t surface again this year, it would serve as nice dose of optimism heading into free-agency.
Another thing I’d like to see happen the remainder of the way is to play some bench-warmers a bit more. Let’s see what the kids can do. We’ve got two rookie safeties that should be in the defense’s plans next year. We’ve got three huge Samoans still growing along the defensive line. Let’s not forget the ethereal Frostee Rucker who may or may not even exist. Playing these guys more also gives the vets a chance to get healthier and rest up some for next year. I don’t think that’s giving up, but it’s being realistic.
Mojokong - I guess I'll root for Jacksonville in these playoffs.
The year of the Bummer culminated Sunday night with another winnable game slipping down the drain pipe. Four turnovers, an average Willie Parker performance, and 30 plus pass attempts from Rothless are the ingredients one could hope for to escape Pittsburgh with a win. But, like we’ve seen throughout this season, when one piece starts to work another piece quickly breaks down. This time it came from Ol’ Faithful himself, marking the second time in three weeks where Palmer has struggled mightily.
We can cut him some slack Sunday night. Playing the first-ranked defense in the rain on a crappy field sounds like a battle scene from Lord of the Rings. ESPN commentator and super fan, Ron Jaworski, would bore you to death with his analysis of Carson’s throwing mechanics showing you film after film of exactly why he threw too high all night. He’d repeat words like ‘release point’ to you a thousand times and once ignored long enough, he would ramble off to his little room where he would continue his obsession of watching game footage. But the offense looked fine on their opening drive and the difference stems from play-calling more than Carson and a wet ball.
The Bengals started off with short routes and quick hitters. We used DeDe and Kenny Watson on screens and pitches. The line made holes for Rudi. We got in the end zone. It was working.
Then we got cute. All of a sudden we went back to the medium throws to the sidelines, the Rudi-for-Twodie and the long crossing routes. Bratkowski abandoned the short game with an insistence to run his style of offense instead of what the situation dictated. I realize that big-brained Dick Lebeau is gonna make the right adjustments in his coverage scheme, but why not come back to what worked? I liked that the Bengals went deep a couple of times to keep em’ honest. I didn’t mind some Rudi runs up the gut. I did mind that he had 14 carries and the other two running backs got a combined six. Rudi’s longest run was for a less-than-explosive four yards. On the year he averages less than three yards per carry. Every Bengal fan can see the play-calling revert back to the predictable set of 12 or so plays Brat is seemingly in love with. Defenses can see it too, and then stopping the Bengals becomes easy for them.. DeDe’s only carry was good for 15 yards. He averages six per carry. You can’t use Dorsey 20 times a game, but you can use him more than once.
The once laughable circus that was once the Bengal defense has moved along leaving a serviceable unit in it’s place. They’re causing turnovers again and aren’t being ax-murdered against the run anymore. They still need lots of attention in the off-season but at least fans and coaches have seen something they can work with. If the last four games have anything to keep an eye on it’s the butterfly version of this defense. If the caterpillar doesn’t surface again this year, it would serve as nice dose of optimism heading into free-agency.
Another thing I’d like to see happen the remainder of the way is to play some bench-warmers a bit more. Let’s see what the kids can do. We’ve got two rookie safeties that should be in the defense’s plans next year. We’ve got three huge Samoans still growing along the defensive line. Let’s not forget the ethereal Frostee Rucker who may or may not even exist. Playing these guys more also gives the vets a chance to get healthier and rest up some for next year. I don’t think that’s giving up, but it’s being realistic.
Mojokong - I guess I'll root for Jacksonville in these playoffs.
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Bonus Blog - Justin Smith
Justin Smith.
I have mixed emotions about this guy. I stand by my “worst franchise player ever” label of him, but he isn’t totally useless.
We all know he’s athletically, pretty solid. When he hits people, he usually brings them down. He runs down some fast guys on his trademark clean-up tackles. But he has no real impact to the games he plays in. We can pay a lot of guys less than $6 million to make plays eight yards down the field.
He hasn’t recorded double-digit sacks in a season and has two this year. He racks up a lot of tackles, but they’re always coming to the aid of a struggling defensive back clinging onto the ball-carrier for dear life. He’s constantly seen dropping back into coverage but hasn’t had a pick since he recorded two his rookie season, six years ago. He has an Anheuser Busch tattoo on his arm and looks like Larry the Cable Guy. He might drive a Jon Deer to the game and keep a stuffed ten-point buck head above his locker, I dunno.
I do know we pay him among the highest paid defensive ends, as the franchise tag dictates. I also know he isn’t playing anywhere near the level of Jared Allen, Osi Umenyora or even Xenia native and UC grad, Trent Cole - check that guy out sometime. Justin Smith was chosen fourth overall in the 2001 draft.
Smith does bring words like high-motor and effort-guy to the conversation. He has the kind of hustle Bob Knight strangles his players to get (Just kiddin’ Bob, ya know I love ya). He would run into brick walls if he had to. In fact, that’s all he does anyway. When does Justin Smith do a swim move or a spin to get to the quarterback? He sees red when the ball is snapped and bull rushes right at the opposing lineman every single time. As mentioned, he’s being dropped back into coverage a lot more lately. The thinking is that maybe Smith can don the Harry Potter invisibility cape and trick the QB into throwing it right to him. After all, a guy 280 lbs. dressed in bright orange, can be tough to locate.
I think Smith’s replacement can be a good start to retooling this defense. Who we settle on will tell us a lot about the future plans for this defense. Chances are, we wont convert a college defensive tackle into an end in hopes to transform the unit into a 3-4 defense. I would like to see Frostee Rucker do what most third-round picks do and that’s compete for a starting job at some point in their careers, but don’t hold your breath on that one. Instead I’d like a speed end with a variety of moves that can get to the quarterback. Like the Colts’ Robert Mathis. We have one of those guys already with Robert Geathers, the 117th pick in the 2004 draft. I’m not saying these guys grow on trees, but the tweeners who are too small to play end but can rack up sack numbers when they play, are available in every draft.
MK - Taxidermy is murder!
I have mixed emotions about this guy. I stand by my “worst franchise player ever” label of him, but he isn’t totally useless.
We all know he’s athletically, pretty solid. When he hits people, he usually brings them down. He runs down some fast guys on his trademark clean-up tackles. But he has no real impact to the games he plays in. We can pay a lot of guys less than $6 million to make plays eight yards down the field.
He hasn’t recorded double-digit sacks in a season and has two this year. He racks up a lot of tackles, but they’re always coming to the aid of a struggling defensive back clinging onto the ball-carrier for dear life. He’s constantly seen dropping back into coverage but hasn’t had a pick since he recorded two his rookie season, six years ago. He has an Anheuser Busch tattoo on his arm and looks like Larry the Cable Guy. He might drive a Jon Deer to the game and keep a stuffed ten-point buck head above his locker, I dunno.
I do know we pay him among the highest paid defensive ends, as the franchise tag dictates. I also know he isn’t playing anywhere near the level of Jared Allen, Osi Umenyora or even Xenia native and UC grad, Trent Cole - check that guy out sometime. Justin Smith was chosen fourth overall in the 2001 draft.
Smith does bring words like high-motor and effort-guy to the conversation. He has the kind of hustle Bob Knight strangles his players to get (Just kiddin’ Bob, ya know I love ya). He would run into brick walls if he had to. In fact, that’s all he does anyway. When does Justin Smith do a swim move or a spin to get to the quarterback? He sees red when the ball is snapped and bull rushes right at the opposing lineman every single time. As mentioned, he’s being dropped back into coverage a lot more lately. The thinking is that maybe Smith can don the Harry Potter invisibility cape and trick the QB into throwing it right to him. After all, a guy 280 lbs. dressed in bright orange, can be tough to locate.
I think Smith’s replacement can be a good start to retooling this defense. Who we settle on will tell us a lot about the future plans for this defense. Chances are, we wont convert a college defensive tackle into an end in hopes to transform the unit into a 3-4 defense. I would like to see Frostee Rucker do what most third-round picks do and that’s compete for a starting job at some point in their careers, but don’t hold your breath on that one. Instead I’d like a speed end with a variety of moves that can get to the quarterback. Like the Colts’ Robert Mathis. We have one of those guys already with Robert Geathers, the 117th pick in the 2004 draft. I’m not saying these guys grow on trees, but the tweeners who are too small to play end but can rack up sack numbers when they play, are available in every draft.
MK - Taxidermy is murder!
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Week 10/11 recap
Cardinals 35, Bengals 27
Bengals 35, Titans 6
Heading into the gooey quagmire of Heinz Field Sunday, the Bengals have demonstrated some calming improvements recently. First, the hemophiliac-like defense has momentarily stopped the bleeding. It had an episode in the first half to Arizona, but it surged with the momentum of Dorsey’s blocked punt the rest of the way. Last week the defense made Young look...well, young. They’ve stuffed the run as if they might be growing tired of always being criticized. Apparently they have feelings too. I’m proud of them.
All, but Dexter Jackson, that is. He’s beginning to smell like Ohalete, and that smells like moth balls and diapers. Two long completions to Anquan Boldin and Justin Cage can be directly traced to Dex’s heavy feet. When he’s sent on a safety blitz, he makes contact with a quarterback and then tries his hardest to pull the guy down to the ground. There’s no impact to his hits. His equipment is made of old couch cushions.
On a brighter side, the linebackers have elevated their status to serviceable. Dahani Jones and Schlegel also lack speed but they’re pretty good tacklers. Rashad Jeanty somehow makes a difference. Since he’s returned the unit has found some cohesiveness. Geathers is no longer needed to do anything but pass rush and that’s what he’s paid to do. We no longer mourn the loss of the fallen linebackers of yore. We’ll see if they can stop the Steeler steamroller in the soup Sunday (a little Suess action for ya), but they’ve certainly given us some much-needed optimism against the run. I’m so glad Ricky Williams is hurt for the year. I had visions of him racking up 200 yards or so and getting their only win of the year against the Bengals in the finale. I wish him the best next year though.
Hall and Joseph have held up nicely against the deep ball in the recent stretch too. Hall gets better every week and I feel pretty good about that pick. Joseph struggled mightily in the early games this year but must be healthier because he’s playing at around the same level he showed us last year. Deltha continues to make excuses for his mistakes and seems to be talking his way off of this team. He shouldn’t feel betrayed that the organization wants to start it’s two first-round corners. He still has good ball skills when it’s in the air and he occasionally still makes plays, but that’s the biz. Suck it up, Deltha. You’re a professional.
Who doesn’t love DeDe Dorsey? He’s what old-timers like to call “a football player”. Of course they’re all football players, but they say it as if that kind of a guy represents what a football player should be. A do-anything-you-ask kinda guy. A grunt who’s just glad to be playing at all. A Ryan Freel type of football player. DeDe plays with the youthful exuberance of his college days at...Lindenwood? Where in the hell is Lindenwood? Doesn’t matter. He is a different type of weapon for Carson and Brat that they haven’t really seen here before. He’s similar to the Irons/Perry/Watson kind of back, but is still unique in his punt return style of running the ball. He’s a hell of a find off of the scrap heap. One thing Marvin is pretty good at is finding nice buys at the dent and scratch sales of NFL free agency. He picks up a linebacker, examines it closely, wipes off a little dust and dirt, spits on it, polishes it, pats it on it’s head, and tell it to ‘go get em’. Schlegel, Dahani, Jeanty, Marshall, Dorsey, Glen Holt. Marv’s thrifty.
This Sunday night serves as the last hurrah for Bengal fans. Not for any playoff chances, we’re pretty much over that, aren’t we? The odds of a meteor strike seem safer than the playoffs right now. But it’s important because our genetically predisposed venom as Bengal fans surface when we think of the Steelers. Beating them would make a 7-9 season easier to digest. The sweetness from a beaten Steeler team is like no other. We take pleasure in their suffering. It’s sick, really.
But we know all too well that sting we feel from a loss to the Dark Side. We listen to Steeler fans talk their garbage around the office and at the bar. They’re smug little towels waving in our angry faces. We can’t have this happen.
With field conditions similar to those of trench fighting in WWI, our grit is going to be tested. This could be Willie’s last stand if he gives it a go. The aged battle hero slugging his way through the muck and mire may not have enough in the tank to come out of a game like that. Of course I want Willie to be the right tackle for the next 100 years, but the guy is a purple-hearted veteran with some ligament damage. You have to wonder what the last straw would be for a trooper like him.
Mojokong - releasing the inner-ape
Bengals 35, Titans 6
Heading into the gooey quagmire of Heinz Field Sunday, the Bengals have demonstrated some calming improvements recently. First, the hemophiliac-like defense has momentarily stopped the bleeding. It had an episode in the first half to Arizona, but it surged with the momentum of Dorsey’s blocked punt the rest of the way. Last week the defense made Young look...well, young. They’ve stuffed the run as if they might be growing tired of always being criticized. Apparently they have feelings too. I’m proud of them.
All, but Dexter Jackson, that is. He’s beginning to smell like Ohalete, and that smells like moth balls and diapers. Two long completions to Anquan Boldin and Justin Cage can be directly traced to Dex’s heavy feet. When he’s sent on a safety blitz, he makes contact with a quarterback and then tries his hardest to pull the guy down to the ground. There’s no impact to his hits. His equipment is made of old couch cushions.
On a brighter side, the linebackers have elevated their status to serviceable. Dahani Jones and Schlegel also lack speed but they’re pretty good tacklers. Rashad Jeanty somehow makes a difference. Since he’s returned the unit has found some cohesiveness. Geathers is no longer needed to do anything but pass rush and that’s what he’s paid to do. We no longer mourn the loss of the fallen linebackers of yore. We’ll see if they can stop the Steeler steamroller in the soup Sunday (a little Suess action for ya), but they’ve certainly given us some much-needed optimism against the run. I’m so glad Ricky Williams is hurt for the year. I had visions of him racking up 200 yards or so and getting their only win of the year against the Bengals in the finale. I wish him the best next year though.
Hall and Joseph have held up nicely against the deep ball in the recent stretch too. Hall gets better every week and I feel pretty good about that pick. Joseph struggled mightily in the early games this year but must be healthier because he’s playing at around the same level he showed us last year. Deltha continues to make excuses for his mistakes and seems to be talking his way off of this team. He shouldn’t feel betrayed that the organization wants to start it’s two first-round corners. He still has good ball skills when it’s in the air and he occasionally still makes plays, but that’s the biz. Suck it up, Deltha. You’re a professional.
Who doesn’t love DeDe Dorsey? He’s what old-timers like to call “a football player”. Of course they’re all football players, but they say it as if that kind of a guy represents what a football player should be. A do-anything-you-ask kinda guy. A grunt who’s just glad to be playing at all. A Ryan Freel type of football player. DeDe plays with the youthful exuberance of his college days at...Lindenwood? Where in the hell is Lindenwood? Doesn’t matter. He is a different type of weapon for Carson and Brat that they haven’t really seen here before. He’s similar to the Irons/Perry/Watson kind of back, but is still unique in his punt return style of running the ball. He’s a hell of a find off of the scrap heap. One thing Marvin is pretty good at is finding nice buys at the dent and scratch sales of NFL free agency. He picks up a linebacker, examines it closely, wipes off a little dust and dirt, spits on it, polishes it, pats it on it’s head, and tell it to ‘go get em’. Schlegel, Dahani, Jeanty, Marshall, Dorsey, Glen Holt. Marv’s thrifty.
This Sunday night serves as the last hurrah for Bengal fans. Not for any playoff chances, we’re pretty much over that, aren’t we? The odds of a meteor strike seem safer than the playoffs right now. But it’s important because our genetically predisposed venom as Bengal fans surface when we think of the Steelers. Beating them would make a 7-9 season easier to digest. The sweetness from a beaten Steeler team is like no other. We take pleasure in their suffering. It’s sick, really.
But we know all too well that sting we feel from a loss to the Dark Side. We listen to Steeler fans talk their garbage around the office and at the bar. They’re smug little towels waving in our angry faces. We can’t have this happen.
With field conditions similar to those of trench fighting in WWI, our grit is going to be tested. This could be Willie’s last stand if he gives it a go. The aged battle hero slugging his way through the muck and mire may not have enough in the tank to come out of a game like that. Of course I want Willie to be the right tackle for the next 100 years, but the guy is a purple-hearted veteran with some ligament damage. You have to wonder what the last straw would be for a trooper like him.
Mojokong - releasing the inner-ape
Thursday, November 15, 2007
Week 10 recap
Bengals 21, Ravens 7
Earlier this week, a cantankerous local sports columnist complained about the vast mediocrity we see in the NFL today, particularly at the quarterback position.
Parity in the NFL is what makes it great. The nostalgia of the 80's dynasties sometimes sickens me.
“There is one great team in the NFL now. The rest is just bad football.”
I’m sorry, but I don’t miss seeing the NFC East play San Francisco in the conference championship game every season. It was boring watching Jim Kelly’s sad-face year after year and I certainly don’t miss the days when the Bengals never stood a chance.
New England dominates the league now, and while we all agree they’re a bonafide dynasty, it gets old to watch. The fact that a team can climb out of the cellar to win the division the next year keeps people interested. It also, of course, makes the NFL an insane amount of revenue but you can’t fault good business. Attendance records are being made every week/year/decade. Compare that to the Reds who only sell out when the Yankees come to town and I’m not sure who would ever want to go to say, an Atlanta Hawks game.
Look at the NFC North. The Packers were bad and the Lions won two games all year, while the Bears made it a all the way to the Super Bowl (with a bad quarterback at that). This year the Packers and Lions combined have less losses than Chicago. Tony Romo, last year an average QB, this season has vaulted himself into my coveted top-five list. Steve McNair went from being pretty damn solid to pretty damn laughable in one season. Derek Anderson!?
True, a good quarterback makes up for a lot of other team inadequacies. Payton Manning has led his team to a ton of wins with some horrific defenses. Last year they ranked last and they won the Super Bowl. But the Bengals have proven to be a shining example of how a great quarterback can’t do it all, even with some decent talent around him. If it’s a quarterback’s league, why are we destined for a lottery pick?
The point is, the NFL season is a war of attrition and the best teams demonstrate good coaching and reliable depth. I don’t think that makes the games boring, it makes it heady. It becomes more of a thinking man’s game to watch with so much parity. The league has top five players at every position and then it gets pretty random after that. Mostly due to the effective salary-cap, a team can’t pay too many top-five guys to become like the old 49ers teams and the talent gets evenly distributed. It puts more emphasis on player development and game management, and at the end of the day, the coaches and GM’s are held more responsible than the players are. It’s beautiful.
College football is enjoying one of it’s most exciting seasons thanks to parity. To win in major league baseball almost always means you had to outbid someone for it. George Mason’s run in the tournament was thrilling because it proved that the parity of mid-majors had become stronger. The NBA is a better example of some gross mediocrity. You want to find a boring product in professional sports, check out a game. The San Antonio Spurs play with the excitement of C-Span.
Sports fans seem to love parity. Sports writers seem to love to gripe about it.
Mojokong - Cincinnati needs to cheer up.
Earlier this week, a cantankerous local sports columnist complained about the vast mediocrity we see in the NFL today, particularly at the quarterback position.
Parity in the NFL is what makes it great. The nostalgia of the 80's dynasties sometimes sickens me.
“There is one great team in the NFL now. The rest is just bad football.”
I’m sorry, but I don’t miss seeing the NFC East play San Francisco in the conference championship game every season. It was boring watching Jim Kelly’s sad-face year after year and I certainly don’t miss the days when the Bengals never stood a chance.
New England dominates the league now, and while we all agree they’re a bonafide dynasty, it gets old to watch. The fact that a team can climb out of the cellar to win the division the next year keeps people interested. It also, of course, makes the NFL an insane amount of revenue but you can’t fault good business. Attendance records are being made every week/year/decade. Compare that to the Reds who only sell out when the Yankees come to town and I’m not sure who would ever want to go to say, an Atlanta Hawks game.
Look at the NFC North. The Packers were bad and the Lions won two games all year, while the Bears made it a all the way to the Super Bowl (with a bad quarterback at that). This year the Packers and Lions combined have less losses than Chicago. Tony Romo, last year an average QB, this season has vaulted himself into my coveted top-five list. Steve McNair went from being pretty damn solid to pretty damn laughable in one season. Derek Anderson!?
True, a good quarterback makes up for a lot of other team inadequacies. Payton Manning has led his team to a ton of wins with some horrific defenses. Last year they ranked last and they won the Super Bowl. But the Bengals have proven to be a shining example of how a great quarterback can’t do it all, even with some decent talent around him. If it’s a quarterback’s league, why are we destined for a lottery pick?
The point is, the NFL season is a war of attrition and the best teams demonstrate good coaching and reliable depth. I don’t think that makes the games boring, it makes it heady. It becomes more of a thinking man’s game to watch with so much parity. The league has top five players at every position and then it gets pretty random after that. Mostly due to the effective salary-cap, a team can’t pay too many top-five guys to become like the old 49ers teams and the talent gets evenly distributed. It puts more emphasis on player development and game management, and at the end of the day, the coaches and GM’s are held more responsible than the players are. It’s beautiful.
College football is enjoying one of it’s most exciting seasons thanks to parity. To win in major league baseball almost always means you had to outbid someone for it. George Mason’s run in the tournament was thrilling because it proved that the parity of mid-majors had become stronger. The NBA is a better example of some gross mediocrity. You want to find a boring product in professional sports, check out a game. The San Antonio Spurs play with the excitement of C-Span.
Sports fans seem to love parity. Sports writers seem to love to gripe about it.
Mojokong - Cincinnati needs to cheer up.
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Week 9 recap
Bills 33, Bengals 21
We can’t keep talking about the same things every week.
Let’s see, we’ve covered the Old Rudi Is Dead thing. Everyone on the planet knows of the defensive woes, we’ve gone over the offensive line characteristics and discussed the many drops of Chad. What else is there?
The paper brought up the murky subject of a general manager which was immediately and expertly swatted from the podium by Mr. Lewis in Monday’s press conference. He’s a mysterious character by nature but the issue of what kind of GM roles he is responsible for remains somewhere in Area 51. What does Katie Blackburn, daughter of Bengals owner, actually do? What does her husband do? What does Brown himself do?
The legendary Paul Brown was a mind made for football. This man was ahead of his time with his play designs, player/coaching roles and innovations for the game. Did you know he had the idea of shortwave radio helmets to call in the plays with? In the 60's. But son Mike Brown, time and again, has exemplified his lack of any understanding of football talent. Apparently that apple got caught in a gale wind when it fell from the tree. So Brown continues to trust his family more than proven, trained eyes to scout and obtain talented players. And then he allows a person who married into the family to become a part of the brain trust in deciding who becomes a Bengal? Really? That’s all it takes to give your input into our draft?
Cincinnati has wanted Mike Brown strung up on Fountain Square a few times throughout his tyrannical rule here. He bought him some years until the next uprising by hiring Mr. Lewis, but without even mediocre results the new car smell wares off fast. The fuzzy-sweater feeling people had for the Christmas of ‘05 now feels like we’re back in that Viking ship rowing away and being whipped again like the 90's. Someone is gonna take the heat if we do (which I think we’re gonna) end up with six or less wins.
Could Mr. Lewis - that’s how I’m going to refer to him as until I like him again- be a decent GM? Would he be a better coach if that’s all he had to do? We hear these questions every time we travel to Baltimore because of the success their GM, Ozzie Newsome, has enjoyed there. I still think it’s a little early to light the fire to the feet of Mr. Lewis. Lets not be the knee-jerk fans that resemble lynch mobs in some cities. Instead, we take notes, observe and when we have a legitimate case, we take action. I still believe in Mr. Lewis’ abilities in running a football team and I don’t have a better alternative so we all have to live with a bad year of football. But notice has been served, Mr. Lewis. Notice has been served.
Mojokong- Available and interested in the general manager position
We can’t keep talking about the same things every week.
Let’s see, we’ve covered the Old Rudi Is Dead thing. Everyone on the planet knows of the defensive woes, we’ve gone over the offensive line characteristics and discussed the many drops of Chad. What else is there?
The paper brought up the murky subject of a general manager which was immediately and expertly swatted from the podium by Mr. Lewis in Monday’s press conference. He’s a mysterious character by nature but the issue of what kind of GM roles he is responsible for remains somewhere in Area 51. What does Katie Blackburn, daughter of Bengals owner, actually do? What does her husband do? What does Brown himself do?
The legendary Paul Brown was a mind made for football. This man was ahead of his time with his play designs, player/coaching roles and innovations for the game. Did you know he had the idea of shortwave radio helmets to call in the plays with? In the 60's. But son Mike Brown, time and again, has exemplified his lack of any understanding of football talent. Apparently that apple got caught in a gale wind when it fell from the tree. So Brown continues to trust his family more than proven, trained eyes to scout and obtain talented players. And then he allows a person who married into the family to become a part of the brain trust in deciding who becomes a Bengal? Really? That’s all it takes to give your input into our draft?
Cincinnati has wanted Mike Brown strung up on Fountain Square a few times throughout his tyrannical rule here. He bought him some years until the next uprising by hiring Mr. Lewis, but without even mediocre results the new car smell wares off fast. The fuzzy-sweater feeling people had for the Christmas of ‘05 now feels like we’re back in that Viking ship rowing away and being whipped again like the 90's. Someone is gonna take the heat if we do (which I think we’re gonna) end up with six or less wins.
Could Mr. Lewis - that’s how I’m going to refer to him as until I like him again- be a decent GM? Would he be a better coach if that’s all he had to do? We hear these questions every time we travel to Baltimore because of the success their GM, Ozzie Newsome, has enjoyed there. I still think it’s a little early to light the fire to the feet of Mr. Lewis. Lets not be the knee-jerk fans that resemble lynch mobs in some cities. Instead, we take notes, observe and when we have a legitimate case, we take action. I still believe in Mr. Lewis’ abilities in running a football team and I don’t have a better alternative so we all have to live with a bad year of football. But notice has been served, Mr. Lewis. Notice has been served.
Mojokong- Available and interested in the general manager position
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
Week 7 recap
Cincinnati 38, New York Jets 31
The Jets managed to outsuck the Bengals Sunday in a quagmire of turnovers and penalties. Chad Pennington swiss cheesed the Bengal secondary early with his wet noodle of an arm and proved once again that anybody can throw against Deltha and friends. A coat tree could tackle better than our corner backs. Bresnahan’s blitz calls have improved the last two games and the linebackers are limited but not directly losing games. It’s the secondary that continues to allow the blow up plays and we’ve invested two first rounders to dam that flood. We still have a good ways to go before the young tandem can become at all consistent. Down by 13 points in the second half to a lousy team at home, I thought we’d hit a new (recent) low.
Then things turned around in the second half when Bratkowski called his best game of the season, capped off by the shovel pass to Watson on 3rd and 7 inside the redzone in the fourth quarter. I’d been calling for that play all year. He stuck with the run behind by two touchdowns and that allowed the battered offensive line to get into rhythm. Behind Carson, Whitworth is the best draft pick under Marvin Lewis. For such a colossal guy he really moves down field well.
After two thorough drives to give us the lead, one thing became obvious; Watson is a more effective runner than Rudi. Remember when Corey Dillon got into a car accident on his way to the stadium in ‘03 against the Seahawks? Rudi came in and bashed Seattle and we never really saw Corey again. Now Rudi is on the outside looking in too.
Rudi has one style of running, straight ahead. If a play calls for a hole to be somewhere, Rudi either runs through it or tries to create his own hole if it isn’t there. The second Kenny Watson gets the ball, he scans the field and finds a hole even if it isn’t where it should be. He’s more patient than shifty, more finesse than power. He allows plays to develop in front of him and then squeezes through small openings to get him just enough for first downs, touchdowns, etc. Rudi puts his head down and tries to smash through walls.
But there’s more to it than just running style. With Watson’s ability to run to the outside, the Bengals play calling is opened up to a new set of possibilities. Maybe we’ll run a screen, a shovel pass, a draw, or a delay with Watson. When Rudi is back there, outside linebackers move in between the hash marks and wait for him to run right at them.
There’s also the style of the run blockers to think about. In ‘03 the Bengals had a smash mouth line who could push defenders backwards. Now we have some young athletic lineman who prefer to pull away from the line and get down field before laying a hat on somebody. Willie is older and not the same as his glory days, Levi has become 100 percent finesse, and Bobby Williams is just fat. But the youngsters, Ghaicuic and Whitworth, and even Stacy Andrews like running the screens, the pitches and the draws.
Watson is an older less explosive version of both Chris Perry and Kenny Irons. When one or both of those guys someday get back on the field, one can see how this offense can get back to the high powered days of old. Rudi may soon be watching the Bengals play on TV with Corey Dillon considering he’s due to collect over 6 million next year. It seems he’s reached his plateau as a Bengal and limits the play calling too much to remain effective. Running backs have a short shelf-life in the NFL especially for those considered a one-trick pony like Rudi.
Mojokong - Carting off workhorses to the glue factory.
The Jets managed to outsuck the Bengals Sunday in a quagmire of turnovers and penalties. Chad Pennington swiss cheesed the Bengal secondary early with his wet noodle of an arm and proved once again that anybody can throw against Deltha and friends. A coat tree could tackle better than our corner backs. Bresnahan’s blitz calls have improved the last two games and the linebackers are limited but not directly losing games. It’s the secondary that continues to allow the blow up plays and we’ve invested two first rounders to dam that flood. We still have a good ways to go before the young tandem can become at all consistent. Down by 13 points in the second half to a lousy team at home, I thought we’d hit a new (recent) low.
Then things turned around in the second half when Bratkowski called his best game of the season, capped off by the shovel pass to Watson on 3rd and 7 inside the redzone in the fourth quarter. I’d been calling for that play all year. He stuck with the run behind by two touchdowns and that allowed the battered offensive line to get into rhythm. Behind Carson, Whitworth is the best draft pick under Marvin Lewis. For such a colossal guy he really moves down field well.
After two thorough drives to give us the lead, one thing became obvious; Watson is a more effective runner than Rudi. Remember when Corey Dillon got into a car accident on his way to the stadium in ‘03 against the Seahawks? Rudi came in and bashed Seattle and we never really saw Corey again. Now Rudi is on the outside looking in too.
Rudi has one style of running, straight ahead. If a play calls for a hole to be somewhere, Rudi either runs through it or tries to create his own hole if it isn’t there. The second Kenny Watson gets the ball, he scans the field and finds a hole even if it isn’t where it should be. He’s more patient than shifty, more finesse than power. He allows plays to develop in front of him and then squeezes through small openings to get him just enough for first downs, touchdowns, etc. Rudi puts his head down and tries to smash through walls.
But there’s more to it than just running style. With Watson’s ability to run to the outside, the Bengals play calling is opened up to a new set of possibilities. Maybe we’ll run a screen, a shovel pass, a draw, or a delay with Watson. When Rudi is back there, outside linebackers move in between the hash marks and wait for him to run right at them.
There’s also the style of the run blockers to think about. In ‘03 the Bengals had a smash mouth line who could push defenders backwards. Now we have some young athletic lineman who prefer to pull away from the line and get down field before laying a hat on somebody. Willie is older and not the same as his glory days, Levi has become 100 percent finesse, and Bobby Williams is just fat. But the youngsters, Ghaicuic and Whitworth, and even Stacy Andrews like running the screens, the pitches and the draws.
Watson is an older less explosive version of both Chris Perry and Kenny Irons. When one or both of those guys someday get back on the field, one can see how this offense can get back to the high powered days of old. Rudi may soon be watching the Bengals play on TV with Corey Dillon considering he’s due to collect over 6 million next year. It seems he’s reached his plateau as a Bengal and limits the play calling too much to remain effective. Running backs have a short shelf-life in the NFL especially for those considered a one-trick pony like Rudi.
Mojokong - Carting off workhorses to the glue factory.
Thursday, October 18, 2007
Week 6 recap
Chiefs 27, Bengals 20
Whenever the Bengals are brought up in conversation these days, a roomful of people will furrow the brows, think a moment, and settle on one of many reasons why they aren’t winning games anymore. Eventually everyone agrees that nobody really knows why that is and go on to the next topic.
The fact nobody knows is the unsettling part. Surely somebody has to know or all hope is lost, right? No one wants to face that fact just yet.
If the conversation holds a minute longer on the Bengals, then we get the Time Machine Effect. First they think back to when winning seemed to fall into our lap (forty four times), and when Carson seemed to never make mistakes (101.1). 2005, the Should-have-been Super Bowl year!!!
Then they remember the dark ages when winning 6 games in a season seemed okay. Finally they just shrug at the mediocre team we seem to have settled on and again move on to another topic, usually Dusty Baker.
I don’t want to talk about the defense anymore. They aren’t getting much better no matter who gets healthy at linebacker. Losing Odell Thurman will continue to haunt this team until they can find a game changer. If we must indulge in the Time Machine Effect than he is the missing link from the limited (even pretty lucky) defensive success we enjoyed that season. He had five interceptions, five forced fumbles, over 100 tackles and most of all, everyone watching knew when Odell made the tackle. You rarely see players blowing up ball carriers so consistently. And he did all that his rookie season. He has been banished since and the absence of his impact still hurts two seasons later.
Now, the other major difference to an 11 win season is that of a dominating offensive line. What in the hell has happened to Levi Jones? I questioned resigning him to a big contract when negotiations were taking place and this is what I was afraid of. A friend of mine has for years warned me of buying into Levi, even when he was drafted. I never listened until he came with a $40 million price tag for six years! I do think he will get better and move forward though. Ask Marv.
Willie is literally falling apart before us. His body ages in dog years and he’s just too lovable to have him put down. I can see Willie being one of those decrepit retired players who becomes the example of how football destroys your body. Poor guy. And he’d play if he was missing both legs if you asked him to. Here are some Willie quotes from this week:
"I'm all right ... no one is 100 percent,"
“They said it's up to me to play with the pain,"
We love ya Ol’ Yeller. I hope Willie is the next Bengals coach for the 8 to 10 years that he can still walk.
Then there’s Steinbach. He got paid a boat load to go to Cleveland, but they seem to have a decent line up there. I laughed when I saw what they paid him. I’m not laughing anymore. Also Guicec is not Rich Braham. This line isn’t near the caliber of ’05 and it is exposing our superstars as seeming vastly overpaid.
Will Rudi be back? Would trading Chad set back the passing game all that much? Could he bring a first rounder or a good linebacker? Is Carson a really a top three quarterback? All of these questions would have been scoffed at before the season and now are worth at least discussing. Chad isn’t getting traded, Rudi will be back and Carson is fine. It’s just the kind of speculation that ensues after a series of bad losses. What else are we gonna talk about? Oh yeah, Dusty Baker.
Mojokong – asking for a third down conversion this Christmas.
Whenever the Bengals are brought up in conversation these days, a roomful of people will furrow the brows, think a moment, and settle on one of many reasons why they aren’t winning games anymore. Eventually everyone agrees that nobody really knows why that is and go on to the next topic.
The fact nobody knows is the unsettling part. Surely somebody has to know or all hope is lost, right? No one wants to face that fact just yet.
If the conversation holds a minute longer on the Bengals, then we get the Time Machine Effect. First they think back to when winning seemed to fall into our lap (forty four times), and when Carson seemed to never make mistakes (101.1). 2005, the Should-have-been Super Bowl year!!!
Then they remember the dark ages when winning 6 games in a season seemed okay. Finally they just shrug at the mediocre team we seem to have settled on and again move on to another topic, usually Dusty Baker.
I don’t want to talk about the defense anymore. They aren’t getting much better no matter who gets healthy at linebacker. Losing Odell Thurman will continue to haunt this team until they can find a game changer. If we must indulge in the Time Machine Effect than he is the missing link from the limited (even pretty lucky) defensive success we enjoyed that season. He had five interceptions, five forced fumbles, over 100 tackles and most of all, everyone watching knew when Odell made the tackle. You rarely see players blowing up ball carriers so consistently. And he did all that his rookie season. He has been banished since and the absence of his impact still hurts two seasons later.
Now, the other major difference to an 11 win season is that of a dominating offensive line. What in the hell has happened to Levi Jones? I questioned resigning him to a big contract when negotiations were taking place and this is what I was afraid of. A friend of mine has for years warned me of buying into Levi, even when he was drafted. I never listened until he came with a $40 million price tag for six years! I do think he will get better and move forward though. Ask Marv.
Willie is literally falling apart before us. His body ages in dog years and he’s just too lovable to have him put down. I can see Willie being one of those decrepit retired players who becomes the example of how football destroys your body. Poor guy. And he’d play if he was missing both legs if you asked him to. Here are some Willie quotes from this week:
"I'm all right ... no one is 100 percent,"
“They said it's up to me to play with the pain,"
We love ya Ol’ Yeller. I hope Willie is the next Bengals coach for the 8 to 10 years that he can still walk.
Then there’s Steinbach. He got paid a boat load to go to Cleveland, but they seem to have a decent line up there. I laughed when I saw what they paid him. I’m not laughing anymore. Also Guicec is not Rich Braham. This line isn’t near the caliber of ’05 and it is exposing our superstars as seeming vastly overpaid.
Will Rudi be back? Would trading Chad set back the passing game all that much? Could he bring a first rounder or a good linebacker? Is Carson a really a top three quarterback? All of these questions would have been scoffed at before the season and now are worth at least discussing. Chad isn’t getting traded, Rudi will be back and Carson is fine. It’s just the kind of speculation that ensues after a series of bad losses. What else are we gonna talk about? Oh yeah, Dusty Baker.
Mojokong – asking for a third down conversion this Christmas.
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
First Quarter Report Card
A solid D. That’s the grade the Bengals received for the first quarter of the season and not what they demonstrated on the field.
The offense gets a B, the defense a D- and the special teams an F.
The bad:
Cleveland Browns scored 51!!
Justin Smith was completely useless for the first quarter after being franchised in the off-season.
Leon Hall doesn’t pay attention in class.
Safeties can’t tackle.
Marvin treats Levi like an unwanted step child.
Willie looks like he can’t move after games.
Darren Simmons’ special teams are zombies with football helmets.
The good:
Kenny Watson doing all he can.
Our passing game.
Michael Myers
If you break the season into quarters, the Bengals need two quarters of 3-1 records and the other one they have to go 2-2 to end at 9-7. That seems tough. Take a hard look at this team and you can’t help but see another 8-8 season. They exemplify mediocrity. Marvin has had five years to construct a winner and it just isn’t happening. This team is all glamour and no backbone. It’s a yacht built out of ply wood and glue. These coaches don’t seem to prepare like other teams do either. We always hear the players saying that the opponent did “exactly what we thought they would”. Then why do we lose games when we know what’s coming?
This Sunday is the earliest must-win I can remember. It’s early October and we have to beat the Chiefs to have a shot at the season. While David Fulcher and Reggie Williams will not be returning for the Bengals defense this season, a few linebackers will. And even though that’s like bringing a band aid to Iraq, you never know what might save lives, or in this case seasons.
Mojokong - Ichabod Crane does my grades.
The offense gets a B, the defense a D- and the special teams an F.
The bad:
Cleveland Browns scored 51!!
Justin Smith was completely useless for the first quarter after being franchised in the off-season.
Leon Hall doesn’t pay attention in class.
Safeties can’t tackle.
Marvin treats Levi like an unwanted step child.
Willie looks like he can’t move after games.
Darren Simmons’ special teams are zombies with football helmets.
The good:
Kenny Watson doing all he can.
Our passing game.
Michael Myers
If you break the season into quarters, the Bengals need two quarters of 3-1 records and the other one they have to go 2-2 to end at 9-7. That seems tough. Take a hard look at this team and you can’t help but see another 8-8 season. They exemplify mediocrity. Marvin has had five years to construct a winner and it just isn’t happening. This team is all glamour and no backbone. It’s a yacht built out of ply wood and glue. These coaches don’t seem to prepare like other teams do either. We always hear the players saying that the opponent did “exactly what we thought they would”. Then why do we lose games when we know what’s coming?
This Sunday is the earliest must-win I can remember. It’s early October and we have to beat the Chiefs to have a shot at the season. While David Fulcher and Reggie Williams will not be returning for the Bengals defense this season, a few linebackers will. And even though that’s like bringing a band aid to Iraq, you never know what might save lives, or in this case seasons.
Mojokong - Ichabod Crane does my grades.
Thursday, October 4, 2007
Week 4 recap
New England 34, Cincinnati 13
The Bengals played the roll of underdog well on Monday night. They looked overmatched, uninspired and outcoached to the mighty Patriots. The Bengals locker room continues to look like M*A*S*H and everybody’s yelling at someone else. But ask Marv what he’s going to do about it and he’ll tell you this, “We’re moving forward.”
That expression has become Marvin’s daily mantra. We hear it every press conference multiple times. It can fit into an answer for any question thrown at him. How are you going to fix this team? We’re going to get better and move forward. Will any linebackers be back for KC? They’re moving forward. Hey Marv, how was traffic this morning? Moving forward. It’s a little ridiculous.
The mentality of this team has been so delicate the past five years that it seems they could never become the model of professionalism that is New England. Cheating aside, the Patriots never panic. They too have had years when injuries press third and fourth stringers into action on defense but they still get it done thanks to exceptional game planning and an occasional hidden camera. Cincinnati on the other hand simply can’t handle the pressure of stepping up when the chips are down. The coaches don’t have an answer. The players are either penciling themselves into the Super Bowl or are convinced they’re a bad team without any grounded perspective after every game. The media overhype the players reactions because the coaches are always mum on any subject of importance. And it all results in a team who can’t be counted on when it matters most.
Before we move forward to the point where we miss the playoffs and fire Marvin, let’s step backward for a moment. When the schedule came out, pundits and fans all agreed we could easily be 1-3 at this point. The schedule really loosens up after the bye week. Can we go 9-3 the rest of the way? Probably not. Eight more wins seem at first overly optimistic, but look closer. On offense, Rudi, Chris Perry, Tab Perry, Chris Henry, and Eric Guicheck are all coming back soon. On defense there’s Ahmad Brooks, Landon Johnson, Rashad Jeanty, Caleb Miller and maybe someday Frostee Rucker. That’s a lot of help on the way and coupled with the easier second half schedule , you have yourself a legitimate bright side.
Sure we’re moving forward but in what direction?
Mojokong - The Orangutan of Optimism
The Bengals played the roll of underdog well on Monday night. They looked overmatched, uninspired and outcoached to the mighty Patriots. The Bengals locker room continues to look like M*A*S*H and everybody’s yelling at someone else. But ask Marv what he’s going to do about it and he’ll tell you this, “We’re moving forward.”
That expression has become Marvin’s daily mantra. We hear it every press conference multiple times. It can fit into an answer for any question thrown at him. How are you going to fix this team? We’re going to get better and move forward. Will any linebackers be back for KC? They’re moving forward. Hey Marv, how was traffic this morning? Moving forward. It’s a little ridiculous.
The mentality of this team has been so delicate the past five years that it seems they could never become the model of professionalism that is New England. Cheating aside, the Patriots never panic. They too have had years when injuries press third and fourth stringers into action on defense but they still get it done thanks to exceptional game planning and an occasional hidden camera. Cincinnati on the other hand simply can’t handle the pressure of stepping up when the chips are down. The coaches don’t have an answer. The players are either penciling themselves into the Super Bowl or are convinced they’re a bad team without any grounded perspective after every game. The media overhype the players reactions because the coaches are always mum on any subject of importance. And it all results in a team who can’t be counted on when it matters most.
Before we move forward to the point where we miss the playoffs and fire Marvin, let’s step backward for a moment. When the schedule came out, pundits and fans all agreed we could easily be 1-3 at this point. The schedule really loosens up after the bye week. Can we go 9-3 the rest of the way? Probably not. Eight more wins seem at first overly optimistic, but look closer. On offense, Rudi, Chris Perry, Tab Perry, Chris Henry, and Eric Guicheck are all coming back soon. On defense there’s Ahmad Brooks, Landon Johnson, Rashad Jeanty, Caleb Miller and maybe someday Frostee Rucker. That’s a lot of help on the way and coupled with the easier second half schedule , you have yourself a legitimate bright side.
Sure we’re moving forward but in what direction?
Mojokong - The Orangutan of Optimism
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Week 3 recap
Seattle 24, Cincinnati 21
The clown car of a defense the Bengals rolled out against Cleveland settled down some in a tough loss to Seattle on Sunday. The defeat was a mixture of poor special teams play, a slow secondary and thousands of long haired blue people. The Seahawk’s helmets should have a mullet attached to the back. Those fans were great.
Hasselback missed three long attempts at Seahawk receivers that had their defenders beat deep. Joseph, who does have a reportedly broken foot, simply could not run with Burleson or Branch. And Leon Hall had speed concerns coming into this years draft which becomes more confirmed each game. These two are making Deltha look like a shutdown corner because defenders have no reason to test him. The safeties aren’t off the hook either. Both Dexter Jackson and Madieu would go for one of Brett Favre’s hook shot fakes. Sometimes the two look like they can tackle but they never look like they can cover. With inexperienced corners it’s a must that safeties occasionally bail them out with a nice play in coverage but I just don’t see it happening so far.
Our special teams might show up to practice on the special bus. The opening kick off? After last week?? Then kicking the ball out of bounds with two minutes and a four point lead. I don’t blame Shayne Graham as much as I blame the decision to squib kick it in that situation. (Read this sentence to yourself in a John Madden voice) A football can sure take some funny bounces out there sometimes, so why not just kick it to the guy and rely on your tacklers instead of a lucky bounce? I have to agree with John on that one.
Everyone saw Rudi leave the game with a pulled hamstring. He’s a tough guy who has stayed on the field four straight years now. What we didn’t see was him getting any yardage before coming out. The offensive line pass protects with the best of them and you can bet Paul Alexander, line guru and overall bad ass, will get his unit to create more run gaps soon. Then again, it seemed like a matter of speed beating power to those run gaps as opposed to scheme. Either way, it wasn’t working out for Rudi.
I realized Sunday that I take Carson Palmer for granted. An elite quarterback doesn’t come around all that often. The guy makes perfect throws. Our passing game is finely tuned right now and were missing two major components expected to join the team later this season. Once the offensive line finds a consistency, this team could be carried to a decent regular season finish by the offense alone. The second half of the Bengal schedule is noticeably softer with the Rams, 49ers, Browns, and Dolphins wrapping it up. Don’t panic.
Mentions:
Dahani Jones deserves a mention for what sportscasters like to call a gutsy performance. Signed on Monday and making some solid tackles on Sunday, he and fellow scrapheap linebacker Lemar Marshall are keeping this defense just ahead of the Bearcats’. Ahmad Brooks returns this week and it’s clear we need that guy if we have any chance to stop teams this season. I wonder why Hartwell isn’t being mentioned to return.
Also Mike Myers has been a bright spot among some shady territory. This defense will take sacks any way they can get them. Big ups to Mike.
Mojokong - Free Odell Thurman,Free Odell Thurman,Free Odell Thurman,Free Odell Thurm...,
The clown car of a defense the Bengals rolled out against Cleveland settled down some in a tough loss to Seattle on Sunday. The defeat was a mixture of poor special teams play, a slow secondary and thousands of long haired blue people. The Seahawk’s helmets should have a mullet attached to the back. Those fans were great.
Hasselback missed three long attempts at Seahawk receivers that had their defenders beat deep. Joseph, who does have a reportedly broken foot, simply could not run with Burleson or Branch. And Leon Hall had speed concerns coming into this years draft which becomes more confirmed each game. These two are making Deltha look like a shutdown corner because defenders have no reason to test him. The safeties aren’t off the hook either. Both Dexter Jackson and Madieu would go for one of Brett Favre’s hook shot fakes. Sometimes the two look like they can tackle but they never look like they can cover. With inexperienced corners it’s a must that safeties occasionally bail them out with a nice play in coverage but I just don’t see it happening so far.
Our special teams might show up to practice on the special bus. The opening kick off? After last week?? Then kicking the ball out of bounds with two minutes and a four point lead. I don’t blame Shayne Graham as much as I blame the decision to squib kick it in that situation. (Read this sentence to yourself in a John Madden voice) A football can sure take some funny bounces out there sometimes, so why not just kick it to the guy and rely on your tacklers instead of a lucky bounce? I have to agree with John on that one.
Everyone saw Rudi leave the game with a pulled hamstring. He’s a tough guy who has stayed on the field four straight years now. What we didn’t see was him getting any yardage before coming out. The offensive line pass protects with the best of them and you can bet Paul Alexander, line guru and overall bad ass, will get his unit to create more run gaps soon. Then again, it seemed like a matter of speed beating power to those run gaps as opposed to scheme. Either way, it wasn’t working out for Rudi.
I realized Sunday that I take Carson Palmer for granted. An elite quarterback doesn’t come around all that often. The guy makes perfect throws. Our passing game is finely tuned right now and were missing two major components expected to join the team later this season. Once the offensive line finds a consistency, this team could be carried to a decent regular season finish by the offense alone. The second half of the Bengal schedule is noticeably softer with the Rams, 49ers, Browns, and Dolphins wrapping it up. Don’t panic.
Mentions:
Dahani Jones deserves a mention for what sportscasters like to call a gutsy performance. Signed on Monday and making some solid tackles on Sunday, he and fellow scrapheap linebacker Lemar Marshall are keeping this defense just ahead of the Bearcats’. Ahmad Brooks returns this week and it’s clear we need that guy if we have any chance to stop teams this season. I wonder why Hartwell isn’t being mentioned to return.
Also Mike Myers has been a bright spot among some shady territory. This defense will take sacks any way they can get them. Big ups to Mike.
Mojokong - Free Odell Thurman,Free Odell Thurman,Free Odell Thurman,Free Odell Thurm...,
Monday, September 17, 2007
Week 2 recap
Browns 51, Bengals 45
The Bengals are like those dum-dum lollipops with the question marks on the wrapper, you don’t know what flavor you’re gonna get. Sometimes you get the six turnovers and shaky offense flavor. Then other times you get the best offense with no defense at all taste. Imagine the repercussions the Bengals have on Las Vegas. Jimmy the Greek would have gone mad trying to forecast this conundrum of a football team.
No point of discussing the offense this week. They looked like what we expect from them every week, efficient. It should be noted that Glen Holt contributed nicely as a third receiver and as a kick-returner.
Marvin says he wont explain to the world what happened on defense. No need to, Marv, it looked pretty obvious to us. What I saw was a defense running around out there lost. I saw 11 guys who each decided to run their own play. When a corner is playing zone and the safety on that side blitzes, Braylon Edwards happens. When linebackers play zone with they’re backs turned, Kellen Winslow happens. When the entire team runs to one gap during a run, Jamal Lewis happens. It’s pretty fundamental. When a defense doesn’t understand how to play it, you give up fifty points to last week’s worst team in football.
I can’t help but shoulder most of the blame on the coaches. They would tell me that they can’t go out there and play for the players but that wasn’t the issue yesterday. While there definitely were some missed tackles yesterday, the main problems were formation breakdowns and lack of clear communication throughout the entire unit. Blitzes came from areas where blockers waited to pick them up. The secondary seemed to bunch together around the sideline allowing the middle to be open every time. I realize Caleb Miller and Leon Hall were in there as replacement starters and most of the big plays could be tagged on those two, but the coaches need to adjust better for their inadequacies. Did they not watch the tape of Cleveland last week? Pittsburgh blitzed them for four quarters up the middle creating turnovers and chaos for young Derek Anderson. The Bengals blitzed from the outside and became immediately neutralized by tight ends and full backs. Sure Pittsburgh has the greatest defensive mind in the history of football in Dick Lebeau and they play a 3-4 set, but the vulnerabilities were exposed and we didn’t jump on them.
Marvin has already gone through one defensive coordinator in his short tenure here in Cincinnati. Bresnahan has to be nearing the axe after a showing like that.
Now for special teams. Darren Simmons has more starters than most teams playing special teams due to injuries. So in theory, they should be able to tackle better, but that’s not the case. When the Bengals used to be miserable, special teams lost us five or so games a year. Giving the opposition laughable field position regularly is an easy way to rack up avoidable losses. The great Dallas teams of the 90's prided themselves on their starters making their special teams great. We on the other hand, run into blockers and pave running lanes for quick returners to zoom through.
Consistency on this team has proven to be a far-fetched ambition. Our talent is too obviously lopsided on offense and it has killed us for five years now. It is still early and we don’t have to freak out just yet, but the mystery flavors better start tasting better than that. Gross!
Mojokong - disgusted.
The Bengals are like those dum-dum lollipops with the question marks on the wrapper, you don’t know what flavor you’re gonna get. Sometimes you get the six turnovers and shaky offense flavor. Then other times you get the best offense with no defense at all taste. Imagine the repercussions the Bengals have on Las Vegas. Jimmy the Greek would have gone mad trying to forecast this conundrum of a football team.
No point of discussing the offense this week. They looked like what we expect from them every week, efficient. It should be noted that Glen Holt contributed nicely as a third receiver and as a kick-returner.
Marvin says he wont explain to the world what happened on defense. No need to, Marv, it looked pretty obvious to us. What I saw was a defense running around out there lost. I saw 11 guys who each decided to run their own play. When a corner is playing zone and the safety on that side blitzes, Braylon Edwards happens. When linebackers play zone with they’re backs turned, Kellen Winslow happens. When the entire team runs to one gap during a run, Jamal Lewis happens. It’s pretty fundamental. When a defense doesn’t understand how to play it, you give up fifty points to last week’s worst team in football.
I can’t help but shoulder most of the blame on the coaches. They would tell me that they can’t go out there and play for the players but that wasn’t the issue yesterday. While there definitely were some missed tackles yesterday, the main problems were formation breakdowns and lack of clear communication throughout the entire unit. Blitzes came from areas where blockers waited to pick them up. The secondary seemed to bunch together around the sideline allowing the middle to be open every time. I realize Caleb Miller and Leon Hall were in there as replacement starters and most of the big plays could be tagged on those two, but the coaches need to adjust better for their inadequacies. Did they not watch the tape of Cleveland last week? Pittsburgh blitzed them for four quarters up the middle creating turnovers and chaos for young Derek Anderson. The Bengals blitzed from the outside and became immediately neutralized by tight ends and full backs. Sure Pittsburgh has the greatest defensive mind in the history of football in Dick Lebeau and they play a 3-4 set, but the vulnerabilities were exposed and we didn’t jump on them.
Marvin has already gone through one defensive coordinator in his short tenure here in Cincinnati. Bresnahan has to be nearing the axe after a showing like that.
Now for special teams. Darren Simmons has more starters than most teams playing special teams due to injuries. So in theory, they should be able to tackle better, but that’s not the case. When the Bengals used to be miserable, special teams lost us five or so games a year. Giving the opposition laughable field position regularly is an easy way to rack up avoidable losses. The great Dallas teams of the 90's prided themselves on their starters making their special teams great. We on the other hand, run into blockers and pave running lanes for quick returners to zoom through.
Consistency on this team has proven to be a far-fetched ambition. Our talent is too obviously lopsided on offense and it has killed us for five years now. It is still early and we don’t have to freak out just yet, but the mystery flavors better start tasting better than that. Gross!
Mojokong - disgusted.
Thursday, September 13, 2007
Week 1 recap
Bengals 27, Ravens 20
I just love the word opportunistic when referring to the Bengals defense. You heard that term tossed around a lot during the 05' campaign when they won 11 games and led the league in turnovers. Coming away with six turnovers in the opener is a good way to earn back the opportunistic label.
I’ve already heard the grumblings that Baltimore gave the game away. That the six turnovers weren’t forced and that the Bengals were lucky to escape with a victory. That’s nonsense. I’ll admit the one missed hand off was a gimmie. But jarring the ball from the quarterback’s hands on a sack and defensive lineman sprawling out to make shoestring catches are forced turnovers. The Bengals defense looked fast and physical. Players we were worried about coming into the regular season as untested or inexperienced showed lots of promise when it mattered. Leon Hall and Ahmad Brooks showed why Marvin isn’t as concerned as the rest of the world about this unit. They collectively did a good job against the run with some minor exceptions against Musa Smith and Bresnahan finally showed some backbone with an aggressive blitz scheme.
Of course the seven-play goal line stand sticks out as something to be proud of. I admit the push-off called against Todd Heap was a bad call and they should have tied it on that play. But the next play was a bad call too, an immediate make-up call, and the Bengals had to stop them three more plays.. It needs to be pointed out that the blitz called on the play where Madieu was called for illegal contact was a great blitz call. The question to me still remains, why did the Ravens pass so much inside the five? With Kyle Boller at that?
The Bengal defense still showed that soft zone coverage coming down the stretch. The philosophy of making the offense work for yardage continues by the defense allowing catches underneath and being quick to the ball to make tackles. Missed throws and dropped passes make the theory seem that much more plausible but against sharper offenses that style of defensive play calling will prove problematic. Still, I liked what I saw Monday night. It was one of the more blitz happy games for the Bengals in recent memory and both Geathers and Landon Johnson are ready to emerge as something more than just serviceable players. I’m not ready to make comparisons of Geathers to say, Dwight Freeney , but I’m comfortable comparing him to Robert Mathis. He was a good player to re-sign. Johnson is a faster Brian Simmons who will once again rack up over 100 tackles and hopefully continue to ball hawk. Also Lemar Marshall had a good game. He was a good waiver wire pick up.
I cant figure out what’s going on with Levi Jones. Here is a guy who at least was considered a top-notch tackle as of last season, a guy we re-signed for big money and lots of years who says he’s healthy and ready to go but is one of two players on the roster not to play Monday night. He hasn’t been told of why he’s a backup and he is quite obviously frustrated about it. Whitworth is a good player and Stacy Andrews seems to be a pretty decent guard, but Levi is a big-time talent who has protected Carson’s blind side very well when he’s in there and healthy. Just another enigma to the way Marvin runs his team.
That being said, the backup linemen played excellent against the ferocious Ravens defense. Steponovich coming in for Guicheck received little attention but it’s a very big deal when a backup center can come in and be immediately effective. Kooistra came in for Willie and did nice job. Whitworth and Andrews have been groomed for a while to play in situations like that and proved they’re both ready for it. The o-line could have opened up holes a little better for Rudi, and though the Ravens only had one sack, they did enough to disrupt the rhythm of the Bengals passing game and it really showed down the stretch. Still, for a back up unit on a big stage against maybe the second best defense in the league, they did a great job.
I didn’t like the play calling on offense in the second half. Carson threw three yard passes the whole second half and Bratkowski continues to call reverses on the first play of crucial drives. I realize there’s a lot more that goes into play calling and how the play actually develops but its frustrating to see the offense go three and out time and again in the second half down by a point. Also, deciding to kick a 54 yard field goal with an injured kicker on fourth and five on the 37 yard line is dumb. We need a healthy Shayne Graham to make the playoffs. Brad St. Louis, we’ve noticed you far too much in the past year and half. I don’t wanna hear your name called again this season. Just snap the ball and go home after the game.
Ed Reed will go down as one of the best special teams players in history when his career is over. Ray Lewis is a maniac who truly comes from another planet, a tougher planet. Ogden might not come back. I guess even human mountains have to hang it up someday. McNair looks old, but Boller still looks bad. I can’t understand Billick’s love affair for that guy, but it will cost him his job if he sticks with him after this year when McNair has retired. Leftwhich is still out there, Ravens. You may want to get him on the phone.
Great start to a tough season. Beating the division champs is important.
Mojokong- pleased
I just love the word opportunistic when referring to the Bengals defense. You heard that term tossed around a lot during the 05' campaign when they won 11 games and led the league in turnovers. Coming away with six turnovers in the opener is a good way to earn back the opportunistic label.
I’ve already heard the grumblings that Baltimore gave the game away. That the six turnovers weren’t forced and that the Bengals were lucky to escape with a victory. That’s nonsense. I’ll admit the one missed hand off was a gimmie. But jarring the ball from the quarterback’s hands on a sack and defensive lineman sprawling out to make shoestring catches are forced turnovers. The Bengals defense looked fast and physical. Players we were worried about coming into the regular season as untested or inexperienced showed lots of promise when it mattered. Leon Hall and Ahmad Brooks showed why Marvin isn’t as concerned as the rest of the world about this unit. They collectively did a good job against the run with some minor exceptions against Musa Smith and Bresnahan finally showed some backbone with an aggressive blitz scheme.
Of course the seven-play goal line stand sticks out as something to be proud of. I admit the push-off called against Todd Heap was a bad call and they should have tied it on that play. But the next play was a bad call too, an immediate make-up call, and the Bengals had to stop them three more plays.. It needs to be pointed out that the blitz called on the play where Madieu was called for illegal contact was a great blitz call. The question to me still remains, why did the Ravens pass so much inside the five? With Kyle Boller at that?
The Bengal defense still showed that soft zone coverage coming down the stretch. The philosophy of making the offense work for yardage continues by the defense allowing catches underneath and being quick to the ball to make tackles. Missed throws and dropped passes make the theory seem that much more plausible but against sharper offenses that style of defensive play calling will prove problematic. Still, I liked what I saw Monday night. It was one of the more blitz happy games for the Bengals in recent memory and both Geathers and Landon Johnson are ready to emerge as something more than just serviceable players. I’m not ready to make comparisons of Geathers to say, Dwight Freeney , but I’m comfortable comparing him to Robert Mathis. He was a good player to re-sign. Johnson is a faster Brian Simmons who will once again rack up over 100 tackles and hopefully continue to ball hawk. Also Lemar Marshall had a good game. He was a good waiver wire pick up.
I cant figure out what’s going on with Levi Jones. Here is a guy who at least was considered a top-notch tackle as of last season, a guy we re-signed for big money and lots of years who says he’s healthy and ready to go but is one of two players on the roster not to play Monday night. He hasn’t been told of why he’s a backup and he is quite obviously frustrated about it. Whitworth is a good player and Stacy Andrews seems to be a pretty decent guard, but Levi is a big-time talent who has protected Carson’s blind side very well when he’s in there and healthy. Just another enigma to the way Marvin runs his team.
That being said, the backup linemen played excellent against the ferocious Ravens defense. Steponovich coming in for Guicheck received little attention but it’s a very big deal when a backup center can come in and be immediately effective. Kooistra came in for Willie and did nice job. Whitworth and Andrews have been groomed for a while to play in situations like that and proved they’re both ready for it. The o-line could have opened up holes a little better for Rudi, and though the Ravens only had one sack, they did enough to disrupt the rhythm of the Bengals passing game and it really showed down the stretch. Still, for a back up unit on a big stage against maybe the second best defense in the league, they did a great job.
I didn’t like the play calling on offense in the second half. Carson threw three yard passes the whole second half and Bratkowski continues to call reverses on the first play of crucial drives. I realize there’s a lot more that goes into play calling and how the play actually develops but its frustrating to see the offense go three and out time and again in the second half down by a point. Also, deciding to kick a 54 yard field goal with an injured kicker on fourth and five on the 37 yard line is dumb. We need a healthy Shayne Graham to make the playoffs. Brad St. Louis, we’ve noticed you far too much in the past year and half. I don’t wanna hear your name called again this season. Just snap the ball and go home after the game.
Ed Reed will go down as one of the best special teams players in history when his career is over. Ray Lewis is a maniac who truly comes from another planet, a tougher planet. Ogden might not come back. I guess even human mountains have to hang it up someday. McNair looks old, but Boller still looks bad. I can’t understand Billick’s love affair for that guy, but it will cost him his job if he sticks with him after this year when McNair has retired. Leftwhich is still out there, Ravens. You may want to get him on the phone.
Great start to a tough season. Beating the division champs is important.
Mojokong- pleased
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Ravens Have Old Man Strength
NFL Pre-Season Power Rankings (one team at a time)
5. Baltimore Ravens: Every year I think to myself that the Ravens are too old to stay healthy enough to win and every time I do they prove me wrong. They're like the fifty year old bare knuckle brawlers that just won't go down. Well, I’m going the other way this season. Brian Billick somehow gets the most from his back ups when stars like Ray Lewis and Ed Reed go down. The problem is, those backups become too good to stay backups and find work as big time free agents for other teams. I don’t know why but Billick reminds me of Bill Murray from Kingpin.
This year they brought in slasher Willis Mcgahee to compliment their increasingly improved passing game. McNair has shown what he’s capable of when he stays healthy. He wont dazzle you, he’ll just beat you and that’s all Billick cares about. Todd Heap is a top 3 tight end. Desmond Mason also drinks from the fountain of youth Baltimore must have flowing in their locker room. Mark Clayton is a capable receiver and though the line isn’t the tops in the league anymore it still has Ogden and is smash mouth enough to get it done. This offense isn’t a sports car, it’s more of a reliable Volvo that simply does what it has to in order to win games.
The calling card to the Ravens has obviously always been its defense. No need to go on about the many stars this defense boasts every year. It’s the depth that most impresses me. Ozzie Newsome knows how to draft on defense. Even losing Thomas to New England the team finds new comers who make us forget who they lost. Take Prescott Burgess for instance. I liked Burgess in the Michigan games I caught last year. He seems fast and he hits hard. Antwan Barnes I know less of but the fact remains Baltimore loves to draft LB’s and almost all of them turn out to be contributors.
It’s also good to see them draft offensive lineman high in the draft. A team that prides itself on smash mouth football knows that starters in the trenches are one play away from being sidelined from too much smashing. I feel many teams over look quality offensive line depth for sexier picks in skilled positions. Grubbs will be an eventual solid starter that can make life easier for McGahee between the tackles. Yamon Figures was considered a reach, but the guy is lightning fast and is a definite return threat. The Bears Devon Hester has shown the world the impact a good return guy can have for a team. Particularly a team that wins with field position battles.
The biggest concern will always be health with such a veteran team. McNair has had his problems and Ogden had to be lured away from retirement. Ray Lewis and Chris McAlister aren’t spring chickens and even Ed Reed has had to be forced from plenty of games. If the injury bug bites this team more than usual, the solid depth will be tested more than ever and could be a major problem in a very tough division. All things considered this is a team who knows exactly what it takes to win. A nasty defense has traditionally proven to take teams farther in the playoffs than a dynamic offense with the glaring exception of the Colts last season. Many pundits, including myself, have gone against this team time and again and ended up eating their words at the end of the day. If they can stay healthy, there’s no reason to think we wont see the Ravens in January.
top 5 recap: New England Patriots Indianapolis Colts San Diego Chargers Chicago Bears Baltimore Ravens
5. Baltimore Ravens: Every year I think to myself that the Ravens are too old to stay healthy enough to win and every time I do they prove me wrong. They're like the fifty year old bare knuckle brawlers that just won't go down. Well, I’m going the other way this season. Brian Billick somehow gets the most from his back ups when stars like Ray Lewis and Ed Reed go down. The problem is, those backups become too good to stay backups and find work as big time free agents for other teams. I don’t know why but Billick reminds me of Bill Murray from Kingpin.
This year they brought in slasher Willis Mcgahee to compliment their increasingly improved passing game. McNair has shown what he’s capable of when he stays healthy. He wont dazzle you, he’ll just beat you and that’s all Billick cares about. Todd Heap is a top 3 tight end. Desmond Mason also drinks from the fountain of youth Baltimore must have flowing in their locker room. Mark Clayton is a capable receiver and though the line isn’t the tops in the league anymore it still has Ogden and is smash mouth enough to get it done. This offense isn’t a sports car, it’s more of a reliable Volvo that simply does what it has to in order to win games.
The calling card to the Ravens has obviously always been its defense. No need to go on about the many stars this defense boasts every year. It’s the depth that most impresses me. Ozzie Newsome knows how to draft on defense. Even losing Thomas to New England the team finds new comers who make us forget who they lost. Take Prescott Burgess for instance. I liked Burgess in the Michigan games I caught last year. He seems fast and he hits hard. Antwan Barnes I know less of but the fact remains Baltimore loves to draft LB’s and almost all of them turn out to be contributors.
It’s also good to see them draft offensive lineman high in the draft. A team that prides itself on smash mouth football knows that starters in the trenches are one play away from being sidelined from too much smashing. I feel many teams over look quality offensive line depth for sexier picks in skilled positions. Grubbs will be an eventual solid starter that can make life easier for McGahee between the tackles. Yamon Figures was considered a reach, but the guy is lightning fast and is a definite return threat. The Bears Devon Hester has shown the world the impact a good return guy can have for a team. Particularly a team that wins with field position battles.
The biggest concern will always be health with such a veteran team. McNair has had his problems and Ogden had to be lured away from retirement. Ray Lewis and Chris McAlister aren’t spring chickens and even Ed Reed has had to be forced from plenty of games. If the injury bug bites this team more than usual, the solid depth will be tested more than ever and could be a major problem in a very tough division. All things considered this is a team who knows exactly what it takes to win. A nasty defense has traditionally proven to take teams farther in the playoffs than a dynamic offense with the glaring exception of the Colts last season. Many pundits, including myself, have gone against this team time and again and ended up eating their words at the end of the day. If they can stay healthy, there’s no reason to think we wont see the Ravens in January.
top 5 recap: New England Patriots Indianapolis Colts San Diego Chargers Chicago Bears Baltimore Ravens
State of the Bengals Address
State of the Bengals Address
All is not well in Tiger Town. There isn’t a reason to panic per se, but a feeling of concern is definitely in order. Marvin continues to dish out the same rhetoric about needing to do better and make plays when it counts and coaching up the youngsters and blah, blah, blah. This is year five of his regime and his supposed genius for defense seems to have become worse over time. Call it stubbornness if you will but it’s clear Marvin will continue to run the team his way. What isn’t as clear is if that way actually works. Saying things like we’re not as bad as we were before he showed up doesn’t work anymore. The grace period given to Lewis has been more than fair to expect positive results.
Let’s not beat Marv up too badly here. We certainly aren’t a bad team destined for a lottery pick. The man hasn’t had a losing season here and even managed to make the playoffs once. But the fact remains that his troops have wilted under pressure time and again when it matters most. Even when Carson went down in the playoff game the Bengals had a halftime lead and blew it.
Alas, there are some bright spots going into this regular season. We do have a powerful offense, powerful enough to win games on their own. Indy won the Super Bowl with the worst ranked defense last year, and our team looks like the Colts junior. Bookends Levi and Willie are coming along nicely and change-of-pace back Chris Perry seems like he too will make an early regular season appearance. Chris Henry, as dumb as he is, has shown his big play ability in the preseason and will give the uber talented receiving corps a boost half way through the season.
But like always, it’s the defense that keeps us up at night worrying. Bresnahan and Marvin’s insistence on soft zone coverage platooned by a young unproven secondary makes us Bengal fans question the coaching philosophy. What I do understand is Lewis’ desire to bring in corners and safeties who can tackle. He has drafted guys who will allow receivers to make catches in front of them and come up to promptly bring them down. Within zone coverage this thinking does work. The problem is that these youngsters have traditionally allowed too much space between them and the receiver they’re covering to prevent first downs. The coaches’ perpetual phobia of allowing a big play has resulted in allowing a series of smaller plays with the same outcome. It’s as if Bresnahan and Lewis expect opposing offenses to stop themselves via bad throws or dropped passes. That kind approach may make sense in board rooms and film sessions but in reality we’ve seen the way offenses take what they need in crucial situations that result in Bengal losses.
Deltha O’Neil is a man with a lot to prove. On cloud nine one season and deep space the next, this veteran will be a significant determinant of the approaching season. For a position with a limited shelf-life, he is by all standards experienced bordering on old. He has two young, hungry corners prepared to not only take his starting job but eliminate any good reason the Bengals should keep him around at all. The man certainly has good ball skills and a good knowledge of opposing receiver routes but speed kills in this business and he hasn’t looked all that fast since 05’. He should be a positive veteran leader to the up and coming corners Joseph and Leon Hall. He should start this season with the mental preparation of them both soon taking over his role on this team. He should recognize that this is the twilight of his career, at least as a Bengal. Yet he hasn’t really demonstrated such a team mentality. He has grumbled about being overlooked of a contract extension. It’s been speculated of him not giving his best effort to the team because of it. He’s been in and out of Marvin’s doghouse the past year and a half and the message was made clear to him in the previous two first-round draft picks. If you can’t perform the way you did in 05’, we are prepared to move on without you. It would behoove him to listen to that message. Even if his future doesn’t lie within the Bengals plans, a good showing on the field coupled with a positive team mentality can only help his cause landing with another team. He’ll never see the kind of money he could have earned after his 10 interceptions in 05’ but there are plenty of teams still looking to bolster their secondary with a solid veteran (see New England). Whatever the case, the Bengals need successful defensive back play where ever they can find it. Hopefully Deltha can get on track.
The Baltimore opener looms much larger than when the schedule was first released. That was before Joey Harrington did his best Dan Marino imitation slicing up the Bengal secondary. A rookie backup safety blowing a coverage and missing a tackle in the preseason certainly isn’t the end of the world. After all, that’s what the preseason is for. But the general feeling that the Bengals D cant stop anyone smells like last year when the defense failed time and again to procure a playoff spot. Perhaps that isn’t fair. It was Shayne Graham’s leg that logistically kept us away from a wild card spot, twice. But those of us who watched every game last season knows that even a slightly better defense would have easily put us in. Going into the off-season every pundit in the world mentioned the need to improve that unit. I liked that we shed some dead weight in the form of slow, overpaid defenders. And realistically there weren’t many attractive free agents to bolster the defense. The last thing this team needs is to overpay a veteran at the end of his effective career. Marv grabbed a key defensive upgrade for the future in Leon Hall and has groomed Ahmad Brooks as a versatile linebacker/defensive end. Maybe it’s unrealistic to expect a complete facelift of a struggling unit in just one off-season, but the fact remains that Marvin has had five drafts to get better and I just don’t see it coming together that way. Some of it has been bad luck with injuries and suspensions. Some of it has just been misses (Ratliff, Askew, Rucker, Miller, ect.).
Preseason games matter little. We did beat the Ravens 13-6 last season in a defensive slugfest on a national broadcast last year. We are somewhat healthy at the start of this season. We do have more consistency in our coaching staff than most of the league. We are in the papers less for off-field issues these days. We do still have a top 3 quarterback and loads of weapons at his disposal. All is not lost, but there is still reason for concern. Here’s to hope.
Mojokong – keeping my fingers crossed.
All is not well in Tiger Town. There isn’t a reason to panic per se, but a feeling of concern is definitely in order. Marvin continues to dish out the same rhetoric about needing to do better and make plays when it counts and coaching up the youngsters and blah, blah, blah. This is year five of his regime and his supposed genius for defense seems to have become worse over time. Call it stubbornness if you will but it’s clear Marvin will continue to run the team his way. What isn’t as clear is if that way actually works. Saying things like we’re not as bad as we were before he showed up doesn’t work anymore. The grace period given to Lewis has been more than fair to expect positive results.
Let’s not beat Marv up too badly here. We certainly aren’t a bad team destined for a lottery pick. The man hasn’t had a losing season here and even managed to make the playoffs once. But the fact remains that his troops have wilted under pressure time and again when it matters most. Even when Carson went down in the playoff game the Bengals had a halftime lead and blew it.
Alas, there are some bright spots going into this regular season. We do have a powerful offense, powerful enough to win games on their own. Indy won the Super Bowl with the worst ranked defense last year, and our team looks like the Colts junior. Bookends Levi and Willie are coming along nicely and change-of-pace back Chris Perry seems like he too will make an early regular season appearance. Chris Henry, as dumb as he is, has shown his big play ability in the preseason and will give the uber talented receiving corps a boost half way through the season.
But like always, it’s the defense that keeps us up at night worrying. Bresnahan and Marvin’s insistence on soft zone coverage platooned by a young unproven secondary makes us Bengal fans question the coaching philosophy. What I do understand is Lewis’ desire to bring in corners and safeties who can tackle. He has drafted guys who will allow receivers to make catches in front of them and come up to promptly bring them down. Within zone coverage this thinking does work. The problem is that these youngsters have traditionally allowed too much space between them and the receiver they’re covering to prevent first downs. The coaches’ perpetual phobia of allowing a big play has resulted in allowing a series of smaller plays with the same outcome. It’s as if Bresnahan and Lewis expect opposing offenses to stop themselves via bad throws or dropped passes. That kind approach may make sense in board rooms and film sessions but in reality we’ve seen the way offenses take what they need in crucial situations that result in Bengal losses.
Deltha O’Neil is a man with a lot to prove. On cloud nine one season and deep space the next, this veteran will be a significant determinant of the approaching season. For a position with a limited shelf-life, he is by all standards experienced bordering on old. He has two young, hungry corners prepared to not only take his starting job but eliminate any good reason the Bengals should keep him around at all. The man certainly has good ball skills and a good knowledge of opposing receiver routes but speed kills in this business and he hasn’t looked all that fast since 05’. He should be a positive veteran leader to the up and coming corners Joseph and Leon Hall. He should start this season with the mental preparation of them both soon taking over his role on this team. He should recognize that this is the twilight of his career, at least as a Bengal. Yet he hasn’t really demonstrated such a team mentality. He has grumbled about being overlooked of a contract extension. It’s been speculated of him not giving his best effort to the team because of it. He’s been in and out of Marvin’s doghouse the past year and a half and the message was made clear to him in the previous two first-round draft picks. If you can’t perform the way you did in 05’, we are prepared to move on without you. It would behoove him to listen to that message. Even if his future doesn’t lie within the Bengals plans, a good showing on the field coupled with a positive team mentality can only help his cause landing with another team. He’ll never see the kind of money he could have earned after his 10 interceptions in 05’ but there are plenty of teams still looking to bolster their secondary with a solid veteran (see New England). Whatever the case, the Bengals need successful defensive back play where ever they can find it. Hopefully Deltha can get on track.
The Baltimore opener looms much larger than when the schedule was first released. That was before Joey Harrington did his best Dan Marino imitation slicing up the Bengal secondary. A rookie backup safety blowing a coverage and missing a tackle in the preseason certainly isn’t the end of the world. After all, that’s what the preseason is for. But the general feeling that the Bengals D cant stop anyone smells like last year when the defense failed time and again to procure a playoff spot. Perhaps that isn’t fair. It was Shayne Graham’s leg that logistically kept us away from a wild card spot, twice. But those of us who watched every game last season knows that even a slightly better defense would have easily put us in. Going into the off-season every pundit in the world mentioned the need to improve that unit. I liked that we shed some dead weight in the form of slow, overpaid defenders. And realistically there weren’t many attractive free agents to bolster the defense. The last thing this team needs is to overpay a veteran at the end of his effective career. Marv grabbed a key defensive upgrade for the future in Leon Hall and has groomed Ahmad Brooks as a versatile linebacker/defensive end. Maybe it’s unrealistic to expect a complete facelift of a struggling unit in just one off-season, but the fact remains that Marvin has had five drafts to get better and I just don’t see it coming together that way. Some of it has been bad luck with injuries and suspensions. Some of it has just been misses (Ratliff, Askew, Rucker, Miller, ect.).
Preseason games matter little. We did beat the Ravens 13-6 last season in a defensive slugfest on a national broadcast last year. We are somewhat healthy at the start of this season. We do have more consistency in our coaching staff than most of the league. We are in the papers less for off-field issues these days. We do still have a top 3 quarterback and loads of weapons at his disposal. All is not lost, but there is still reason for concern. Here’s to hope.
Mojokong – keeping my fingers crossed.
Saturday, August 11, 2007
Bears Not Grossed Out Yet
NFL Power Rankings (one team at a time)
4. Chicago Bears: It seems that nobody likes Rex Grossman. One could scour the internet for hours looking for nice things said about him and still come up short. Yet the fact remains is that he did lead his team to the Super Bowl last year and could definitely do it again. Sure, he wasn’t the most instrumental piece to Chicago’s success last season and he never looked all that in control in the huddle, but he could have blown it a lot worse and not beat the Saints in the conference championship. He will always be grouped in the Trent Dilfer/Brad Johnson category of average quarterbacks with tremendous defenses that carry a team into a Super Bowl. Historians will agree that Grossman had a fairly easy job in handing off to their two-headed running back monster and watching the defense score points in nearly every game. Occasionally he did throw a good deep ball to Muhammad, but the jury is still very much out for Sexy Rexy.
This season Rex has one less premier back to hand off to. Jones jetted to New York so now the emotional Cedric Benson gets to carry the load. The guy reminds me of Corey Dillon in the way they both carry the ball with such anger and ferocity. Benson needs to be successful to take the pressure off of Grossman. The receivers outside of Muhammad are pretty average in my opinion. Berrian has shown some ability but the back ups to the starting two are really random and the Bears don’t want to have to rely on those guys. The line is pretty much the same as last year and will pride themselves on run blocking again this year. I thought the Bears would go after Eric Steinbach in the off-season more than they did. He could have filled one of the tackle spots well in that smash mouth offense.
Defensively this team is hard as nails. They have their core returning with the addition of Denard Walker at DT filling in for the often-troubled gunrunner Tank Williams. Devin Hester probably wont return 7 or 8 kicks back for TD’s, but the guy is rated a 100 in speed in Madden ’08. He’s exciting. Convincing Lance Briggs to play this year was a huge break for this team. As good as Urlacher is, Briggs makes his job loads easier than it would be without him. Ogunleye is still a beast and I predict Mark Anderson will have a big sack total this year. Tillman and Vasher will add to sack totals by their superb coverage ability.
The Bears are clearly a good team, but playing in the NFC is just easier these days. In the AFC they might be a wild card contender. Their division is soft, Lovie Smith knows how to get the most from his team, and their stadium is awesome (I know that has little to do with wins but I like it anyway). I’m sure we’ll here more calls for Brian Griese throughout the year as soon as Rex throws an inexplicable pick and the Chicago media will question the entire organization for not benching him for it. The defense will likely bail out the offensive turnovers plenty of times this year, and they’ll need more special teams fireworks. But Lovie knows what he’s doing and I don’t see why they wont be back in the NFC title game.
Next: Baltimore Ravens
4. Chicago Bears: It seems that nobody likes Rex Grossman. One could scour the internet for hours looking for nice things said about him and still come up short. Yet the fact remains is that he did lead his team to the Super Bowl last year and could definitely do it again. Sure, he wasn’t the most instrumental piece to Chicago’s success last season and he never looked all that in control in the huddle, but he could have blown it a lot worse and not beat the Saints in the conference championship. He will always be grouped in the Trent Dilfer/Brad Johnson category of average quarterbacks with tremendous defenses that carry a team into a Super Bowl. Historians will agree that Grossman had a fairly easy job in handing off to their two-headed running back monster and watching the defense score points in nearly every game. Occasionally he did throw a good deep ball to Muhammad, but the jury is still very much out for Sexy Rexy.
This season Rex has one less premier back to hand off to. Jones jetted to New York so now the emotional Cedric Benson gets to carry the load. The guy reminds me of Corey Dillon in the way they both carry the ball with such anger and ferocity. Benson needs to be successful to take the pressure off of Grossman. The receivers outside of Muhammad are pretty average in my opinion. Berrian has shown some ability but the back ups to the starting two are really random and the Bears don’t want to have to rely on those guys. The line is pretty much the same as last year and will pride themselves on run blocking again this year. I thought the Bears would go after Eric Steinbach in the off-season more than they did. He could have filled one of the tackle spots well in that smash mouth offense.
Defensively this team is hard as nails. They have their core returning with the addition of Denard Walker at DT filling in for the often-troubled gunrunner Tank Williams. Devin Hester probably wont return 7 or 8 kicks back for TD’s, but the guy is rated a 100 in speed in Madden ’08. He’s exciting. Convincing Lance Briggs to play this year was a huge break for this team. As good as Urlacher is, Briggs makes his job loads easier than it would be without him. Ogunleye is still a beast and I predict Mark Anderson will have a big sack total this year. Tillman and Vasher will add to sack totals by their superb coverage ability.
The Bears are clearly a good team, but playing in the NFC is just easier these days. In the AFC they might be a wild card contender. Their division is soft, Lovie Smith knows how to get the most from his team, and their stadium is awesome (I know that has little to do with wins but I like it anyway). I’m sure we’ll here more calls for Brian Griese throughout the year as soon as Rex throws an inexplicable pick and the Chicago media will question the entire organization for not benching him for it. The defense will likely bail out the offensive turnovers plenty of times this year, and they’ll need more special teams fireworks. But Lovie knows what he’s doing and I don’t see why they wont be back in the NFC title game.
Next: Baltimore Ravens
Friday, August 10, 2007
Cruel Irony - Rookie RB tears ACL (and game observations)
Observations from Week 1 Pre-Season
Damn, it happened again. A rookie running back gets carted off the field with a feared season ending knee injury. A curse looms above the Cincinnati skyline prepared to doom the careers of Bengal draft picks. Kenny Irons, the latest victim, lasted four carries before being smote (or is it smitten?). He and Chris Perry can drink away their miseries together. Then again, I wouldn’t want to encourage any Bengal to go out drinking these days. With those two out, and Kenny Watson not a real every down kind of back, look for the Bengals to pursue a free agent running back, like, I don’t know…Corey Dillon? Fat chance. Even though it would be fun to speculate, Ol’ Sour Puss didn’t want to share carries with the best team in football so I doubt he’d want to do the same here.
Carson looked fine, Doug Johnson not so much, and Jeff Rowe had a great two-minute drill at the end.
Rudi is Rudi, Quincy Wilson is the exact same kind of runner as Rudi, and Kenny Watson is an older third-down back. Irons out.
Chad still can't, and never will be able to take a hit, but the guy is a cheetah. Chris Henry could be a top 5 receiver if he made better decisions, yet he too doesn’t bounce right up from tackles. Housh is on of the best guys across the middle. Brazelle is fast and jukie but dropped a couple. Skyler Green looks okay as a return guy but also dropped a couple. No Tab Perry or Antonio Chatman.
Tight Ends are really random and insignificant. Reggie Kelly could block till he’s 60.
Line was young last night. First team seemed okay. No Willie or Levi.
I was impressed with our defensive tackle rotation. New guys Michael Myers and Kendrick Allen made plays. Pekoe is a giant. Toeing ran an interception back, that’s always fun for a big guy.
Ahmad Brooks seriously has the tools to be a force. Last night he was running with Tatum Bell stride-for-stride. The guy is like 265! Hartwell looks like he takes good angles to the ball carrier. If he stays healthy, he’ll help that young line backing corps immensely.
Leon Hall couldn’t cover Calvin Johnson but he kept Johnson in front of him like he’s coached too. We saw the same instruction given to Joseph last preseason. Don’t give up the big plays is Marvin Motto #31. Hall did show some tackling ability. Something Bengal corners have been poor at the last few years. Speaking of tackling new safety draft picks Marvin White and Nuke look like some hitters. They too gave up a lot of passes over 15 yards in that classic soft zone coverage Marvin insists on, but they did pop people to limit YAC. Brandon Williams also made some big hits.
Special teams were fine with a couple of late rookie mistakes. Sugar Shayne Golden Graham had better get the bad juju out now in the preseason because we fans will not have our hopes dashed by a Ron Howard look alike kicker. He was 3 for 4 but missed the big one. Brad St. Louis is also not exempt from any lynch mobs. He was one job to do, do it.
Mojokong – Cursed!!!
Damn, it happened again. A rookie running back gets carted off the field with a feared season ending knee injury. A curse looms above the Cincinnati skyline prepared to doom the careers of Bengal draft picks. Kenny Irons, the latest victim, lasted four carries before being smote (or is it smitten?). He and Chris Perry can drink away their miseries together. Then again, I wouldn’t want to encourage any Bengal to go out drinking these days. With those two out, and Kenny Watson not a real every down kind of back, look for the Bengals to pursue a free agent running back, like, I don’t know…Corey Dillon? Fat chance. Even though it would be fun to speculate, Ol’ Sour Puss didn’t want to share carries with the best team in football so I doubt he’d want to do the same here.
Carson looked fine, Doug Johnson not so much, and Jeff Rowe had a great two-minute drill at the end.
Rudi is Rudi, Quincy Wilson is the exact same kind of runner as Rudi, and Kenny Watson is an older third-down back. Irons out.
Chad still can't, and never will be able to take a hit, but the guy is a cheetah. Chris Henry could be a top 5 receiver if he made better decisions, yet he too doesn’t bounce right up from tackles. Housh is on of the best guys across the middle. Brazelle is fast and jukie but dropped a couple. Skyler Green looks okay as a return guy but also dropped a couple. No Tab Perry or Antonio Chatman.
Tight Ends are really random and insignificant. Reggie Kelly could block till he’s 60.
Line was young last night. First team seemed okay. No Willie or Levi.
I was impressed with our defensive tackle rotation. New guys Michael Myers and Kendrick Allen made plays. Pekoe is a giant. Toeing ran an interception back, that’s always fun for a big guy.
Ahmad Brooks seriously has the tools to be a force. Last night he was running with Tatum Bell stride-for-stride. The guy is like 265! Hartwell looks like he takes good angles to the ball carrier. If he stays healthy, he’ll help that young line backing corps immensely.
Leon Hall couldn’t cover Calvin Johnson but he kept Johnson in front of him like he’s coached too. We saw the same instruction given to Joseph last preseason. Don’t give up the big plays is Marvin Motto #31. Hall did show some tackling ability. Something Bengal corners have been poor at the last few years. Speaking of tackling new safety draft picks Marvin White and Nuke look like some hitters. They too gave up a lot of passes over 15 yards in that classic soft zone coverage Marvin insists on, but they did pop people to limit YAC. Brandon Williams also made some big hits.
Special teams were fine with a couple of late rookie mistakes. Sugar Shayne Golden Graham had better get the bad juju out now in the preseason because we fans will not have our hopes dashed by a Ron Howard look alike kicker. He was 3 for 4 but missed the big one. Brad St. Louis is also not exempt from any lynch mobs. He was one job to do, do it.
Mojokong – Cursed!!!
You Stay Classy San Diego
NFL Pre-Season Power Rankings (one team at a time)
3. San Diego Chargers: If it weren’t for the coaching change in the off-season, this would be my number two team in the power rankings. I still think firing Schottenheimer was a mistake. How can such a productive season be construed as a failure, particularly with a first year quarterback? Either way he’s out and the franchise starts fresh with the mediocre Norv Turner. While he may be an offensive mastermind, his previous head coaching stints have been less than stellar.
The only real soft spot on this team is the receiving corps. With Eric Parker injured, first round pick Craig Davis will get a lot of attention in the pre-season. They lack that big play threat in the passing game, but having LT makes up for a lot of things. Their o-line is somehow underrated, and Phillip Rivers shows me no reason why he wouldn’t have a solid year again this year. Gates is the best TE in the league and I think Michael Turner could be the best back-up running back in the NFL. He’s also a really good return man.
One of the big question marks is can d-coordinator Ted Cotrell fit the 3-4 mold? They lost their two inside backers Edwards and Godfrey and are relying on backups to fill in. They have three huge front lineman who are built to stop the run and have maybe the best outside linebacking corps in the league. The secondary is getting better every year as well.
This team has all the makings. They have a tough schedule and likely wont win as many games as last season but they will almost definitely reserve themselves a spot in January. If everything comes together for them they may win it all.
Next: Chicago Bears
3. San Diego Chargers: If it weren’t for the coaching change in the off-season, this would be my number two team in the power rankings. I still think firing Schottenheimer was a mistake. How can such a productive season be construed as a failure, particularly with a first year quarterback? Either way he’s out and the franchise starts fresh with the mediocre Norv Turner. While he may be an offensive mastermind, his previous head coaching stints have been less than stellar.
The only real soft spot on this team is the receiving corps. With Eric Parker injured, first round pick Craig Davis will get a lot of attention in the pre-season. They lack that big play threat in the passing game, but having LT makes up for a lot of things. Their o-line is somehow underrated, and Phillip Rivers shows me no reason why he wouldn’t have a solid year again this year. Gates is the best TE in the league and I think Michael Turner could be the best back-up running back in the NFL. He’s also a really good return man.
One of the big question marks is can d-coordinator Ted Cotrell fit the 3-4 mold? They lost their two inside backers Edwards and Godfrey and are relying on backups to fill in. They have three huge front lineman who are built to stop the run and have maybe the best outside linebacking corps in the league. The secondary is getting better every year as well.
This team has all the makings. They have a tough schedule and likely wont win as many games as last season but they will almost definitely reserve themselves a spot in January. If everything comes together for them they may win it all.
Next: Chicago Bears
Tuesday, August 7, 2007
Manning must play defense too.
by Mojokong
NFL Pre-Season Power Rankings (one at a time)
2. Indianapolis Colts: The more I think about this team the more I don’t think they should be number two in my power rankings. They did win the super bowl and they have most of that team back so I guess it’s not that much of a stretch but the Colts seem less explosive coming into this season.
Concerns on offense are minimal. The offense is always the Rolls Royce of the league and it shouldn’t be much different this season. Not having a solid second RB like Dominic Rhodes might become a factor especially if Addai ends up on the DL at all. Drafting the speed burner Gonzalez as their 3 rd WR makes a lot of sense to be that Brandon Stokely, down field threat the Colts like having in the slot. The line always protects their franchise arm and Addai is a strong runner who hits the holes quickly. Dallas Clark has the best mustache in the NFL when he grows it out. Who ever heard of a cop as a TE? He looks like a Reno 911 character.
Defensively they have some glaring issues. With the recent release of Corey Simon and the torn patella tendon of Booger McFarland leaves this team with a thin rotation at a pivotal run-stopping position. Cato June’s departure leaves Gary Brackett as the only decent LB they have. Both corners are gone from last year. Marlin Jackson, who I have always liked, could step in and be pretty good. 3rd round pick Hughes may see more playing time than most rookie corners due to the lack of depth at that spot.
Overall, there is lot to worry about for this Colt defense. I see a plenty of gashing runs up the middle and veteran receivers toasting their young corners. It’s a good thing Peyton can score in the upper 20’s a game to protect slim leads that the defense won’t always ensure. The Colts are not a young team really and injuries could be more significant to this season than for most other teams. Having said all that, Peyton is good enough to win Super Bowls alone so we’ll give them the 2 spot for now, but they have a lot to prove to me.
NFL Pre-Season Power Rankings (one at a time)
2. Indianapolis Colts: The more I think about this team the more I don’t think they should be number two in my power rankings. They did win the super bowl and they have most of that team back so I guess it’s not that much of a stretch but the Colts seem less explosive coming into this season.
Concerns on offense are minimal. The offense is always the Rolls Royce of the league and it shouldn’t be much different this season. Not having a solid second RB like Dominic Rhodes might become a factor especially if Addai ends up on the DL at all. Drafting the speed burner Gonzalez as their 3 rd WR makes a lot of sense to be that Brandon Stokely, down field threat the Colts like having in the slot. The line always protects their franchise arm and Addai is a strong runner who hits the holes quickly. Dallas Clark has the best mustache in the NFL when he grows it out. Who ever heard of a cop as a TE? He looks like a Reno 911 character.
Defensively they have some glaring issues. With the recent release of Corey Simon and the torn patella tendon of Booger McFarland leaves this team with a thin rotation at a pivotal run-stopping position. Cato June’s departure leaves Gary Brackett as the only decent LB they have. Both corners are gone from last year. Marlin Jackson, who I have always liked, could step in and be pretty good. 3rd round pick Hughes may see more playing time than most rookie corners due to the lack of depth at that spot.
Overall, there is lot to worry about for this Colt defense. I see a plenty of gashing runs up the middle and veteran receivers toasting their young corners. It’s a good thing Peyton can score in the upper 20’s a game to protect slim leads that the defense won’t always ensure. The Colts are not a young team really and injuries could be more significant to this season than for most other teams. Having said all that, Peyton is good enough to win Super Bowls alone so we’ll give them the 2 spot for now, but they have a lot to prove to me.
Brady and Belches Top Rankin'
by Mojokong
NFL Pre-Season Power Rankings (one at a time)
1. New England Patriots: I’ve learned my lesson betting against this team. Last year I thought they were too old to make another run in the playoffs. Then I bet against them versus San Diego and lost (and of course lost again betting them to beat the Colts the next week – I’m not a very good gambler). They've caused me too much hard drinking and too many profanity-laced tirades to keep going against.
Belichick and Brady lead an organization that to me looks a lot like the old 49ers teams of the 80’s, with even less talent. New England wins with back-ups to star players more than any one in the league and their game plans are often times impeccable. The Belichick model of how to run an NFL franchise is by far the most successful in today’s game and is emulated by damn near every other coach in football. Frankly, I don’t know how the guy keeps it up every year. I think he keeps Yoda around as a consultant.
This season the Pats are loaded with new free agents. Randy Moss, Adalius Thomas, Wes Welker, Kelley Washington, Dante Stallworth, and um...Kyle Brady. Their top 2 picks, Brandon Meriweather and Kareem Brown, make a lot of sense when you look at their depth chart. With so many additions at receiver, Brady will finally have the kind of weapons that other top QB’s have enjoyed having at their disposal. Maroney will carry a full-time load this year and should blossom even more without the rain cloud Corey Dillon hovering around.
The only real concern for this team is their secondary versus top notch passing offenses. Samuel is really good, but on the other side is Ellis Hobbs backed up by Tori James (ick). Harrison is always a beast against the run but his speed in pass coverage, like all humans except for Daryl Green, declines every year. The Pats likely hope that Meriweather will be ready to replace Eugene Wilson sooner than later, but knowing the genius of Belches he wont rush any player into the game if he isn’t all the way certain that he’s the best guy at that spot.
I’m not going to go too far out on the limb this year and say that the Patriots win the Super Bowl. I know that’s a boring pick but I get the sexy picks wrong every year.
Up next: Indianapolis Colts
NFL Pre-Season Power Rankings (one at a time)
1. New England Patriots: I’ve learned my lesson betting against this team. Last year I thought they were too old to make another run in the playoffs. Then I bet against them versus San Diego and lost (and of course lost again betting them to beat the Colts the next week – I’m not a very good gambler). They've caused me too much hard drinking and too many profanity-laced tirades to keep going against.
Belichick and Brady lead an organization that to me looks a lot like the old 49ers teams of the 80’s, with even less talent. New England wins with back-ups to star players more than any one in the league and their game plans are often times impeccable. The Belichick model of how to run an NFL franchise is by far the most successful in today’s game and is emulated by damn near every other coach in football. Frankly, I don’t know how the guy keeps it up every year. I think he keeps Yoda around as a consultant.
This season the Pats are loaded with new free agents. Randy Moss, Adalius Thomas, Wes Welker, Kelley Washington, Dante Stallworth, and um...Kyle Brady. Their top 2 picks, Brandon Meriweather and Kareem Brown, make a lot of sense when you look at their depth chart. With so many additions at receiver, Brady will finally have the kind of weapons that other top QB’s have enjoyed having at their disposal. Maroney will carry a full-time load this year and should blossom even more without the rain cloud Corey Dillon hovering around.
The only real concern for this team is their secondary versus top notch passing offenses. Samuel is really good, but on the other side is Ellis Hobbs backed up by Tori James (ick). Harrison is always a beast against the run but his speed in pass coverage, like all humans except for Daryl Green, declines every year. The Pats likely hope that Meriweather will be ready to replace Eugene Wilson sooner than later, but knowing the genius of Belches he wont rush any player into the game if he isn’t all the way certain that he’s the best guy at that spot.
I’m not going to go too far out on the limb this year and say that the Patriots win the Super Bowl. I know that’s a boring pick but I get the sexy picks wrong every year.
Up next: Indianapolis Colts
Saturday, August 4, 2007
Least Likeable NFL Quarterback
Who’s the least likable NFL quarterback?
1. Michael Vick: dog fighting, hepatits C, Ron Mexico, general stupidity
2. Tom Brady: Republican douche bag dork.
3. Eli Manning: Bitched about playing in SD
4. Ben Rothlisburger: Bitches about OTHER teams playing dirty.
5. Dante Culpepper: Always sneering, is his own agent.
6. J.P. Losman: a bad Adam Sandler character who sees himself as gangsta.
7. Brady Quinn: too many drunk dancing pictures at random events.
8. Tony Romo: Found at a roadside carnival. Small hands, smells like cabbage.
9. Brett Farve: needs to draw attention to himself every off-season with hints at retirement.
10. Joey Harrington: not a lovable loser, just a loser.
Honorable Mention: Chad Pennington, Rex Grossman, Trent Green, Jon Kitna.
1. Michael Vick: dog fighting, hepatits C, Ron Mexico, general stupidity
2. Tom Brady: Republican douche bag dork.
3. Eli Manning: Bitched about playing in SD
4. Ben Rothlisburger: Bitches about OTHER teams playing dirty.
5. Dante Culpepper: Always sneering, is his own agent.
6. J.P. Losman: a bad Adam Sandler character who sees himself as gangsta.
7. Brady Quinn: too many drunk dancing pictures at random events.
8. Tony Romo: Found at a roadside carnival. Small hands, smells like cabbage.
9. Brett Farve: needs to draw attention to himself every off-season with hints at retirement.
10. Joey Harrington: not a lovable loser, just a loser.
Honorable Mention: Chad Pennington, Rex Grossman, Trent Green, Jon Kitna.
Thursday, August 2, 2007
Shake n Bake
Not trading Adam Dunn indicates the Reds are down for beer league softball. I've heard the arguments about not being able to replace his offense and how the team has been building around him but the guy is just not a baseball player. No need to get into strike out numbers, they're staggering. The most staggering in baseball history actually. What chafes me is the called third strikes. He walks a lot because he's overly selective at the plate. Just put the ball in play, Shake n Bake. His fielding is worse than Manny's. As the great Lonnie Wheeler pointed out, he runs the outfield like Ryan Freel is on his back. So true. This guy doesn't know where the wall is in the outfield and is still working on grasping the meaning of hustle.
I wished he would have driven his suped-up John Deer and his 13 million dollar option on outta here. A rebuilding effort needs to be initiated and the answer damn sure don't lie in the hands of ol' Shake n Bake. Pitching, defense, and smart baserunning win games in a little shoebox of a ball park like GAB. Wayne Krivsky has been good with his deals, but this non-deal is going to come back to hurt us. Dunn would have been worth any pitching prospect. Just get him out of here. We could have packaged someone like David Weathers or Scott Hatteberg to sweeten the deal. What we have simply isn't working. Change is necessary now. The Reds have some studs in their system who will soon be MLB ready. Not just solid prospects either. I'm talking about 3 top 20 minor league players. Jay Bruce, Joey Votto and of course Homer Bailey.
Griff isn't allowed to leave until he hits 600 HR's. Then we'll move him too or he'll just walk away to another team once his contract expires after next season. Arroyo has lost his stuff and would have been another guy to move. He may leave in the winter meetings. Let's hope so. I hate that guy. Taking local acoustic gigs away from struggling Cincinnati musicians. Focus on baseball first you mullet.
Mojokong - sick of it all
I wished he would have driven his suped-up John Deer and his 13 million dollar option on outta here. A rebuilding effort needs to be initiated and the answer damn sure don't lie in the hands of ol' Shake n Bake. Pitching, defense, and smart baserunning win games in a little shoebox of a ball park like GAB. Wayne Krivsky has been good with his deals, but this non-deal is going to come back to hurt us. Dunn would have been worth any pitching prospect. Just get him out of here. We could have packaged someone like David Weathers or Scott Hatteberg to sweeten the deal. What we have simply isn't working. Change is necessary now. The Reds have some studs in their system who will soon be MLB ready. Not just solid prospects either. I'm talking about 3 top 20 minor league players. Jay Bruce, Joey Votto and of course Homer Bailey.
Griff isn't allowed to leave until he hits 600 HR's. Then we'll move him too or he'll just walk away to another team once his contract expires after next season. Arroyo has lost his stuff and would have been another guy to move. He may leave in the winter meetings. Let's hope so. I hate that guy. Taking local acoustic gigs away from struggling Cincinnati musicians. Focus on baseball first you mullet.
Mojokong - sick of it all
Wednesday, August 1, 2007
2007 Season Preview
Bengals 2007 Training Camp Preview
August 1, 2007
It’s time we rid ourselves of that awful taste lingering from last season. The taste of missed kicks, arrests and Steeler fans talking more of that crap. It’s time to give up on the Reds for the year (which happened in late may this season). It’s time we read every shred of information that comes out of Georgetown and continue to pressure Time Warner Cable with threats and angry letters to provide us with the NFL network, dammit. Have you SEEN that channel? If you sometimes enjoy socializing and leaving your house then don’t get NFL Network. It’s outrageous. Anyway.
It wasn’t a glamorous off-season for the Bengals in 07. The emphasis seemed to be about getting rid of who we didn’t need rather than pursuing overpriced players in a thin free agent market. Brian Simmons, Kasevaharn, Sam Adams, Eric Stienbach, Tony Stewart, Tori James (thank God), Kelley Washington. That’s a lot of guys to lose without getting much in the off season to replace them with. It shows how Marvin, more than ever, relies on his backups to step up and become solid starters. While new defensive tackles Michael Myers and Kendrick Allen will help fill a deep rotation at a position that has proven to be dented every year with injuries, they aren’t likely to even be starters.
Neither is Ed Hartwell. His health and longevity are concerns for a 29 year old middle linebacker with previously major surgeries. He was signed very late in the free agent period, proof that most other teams weren’t willing to run the risk on him. I sensed once Marvin suspected Odell was a longshot to return, he needed a MLB that wasn’t a mental project to bring along slowly. He needed someone who could figure his system out fast and help the youngsters come along as well. I wouldn’t have complained too much about Joey Porter, but he hasn’t been the player we was three years ago and he was going to be overpaid no matter who signed him. Plus he’s a huge douche who had his boys jump our left tackle in Vegas a few months ago. I really dislike that guy.
We did add Leon Hall who I considered the best corner in college during the season last year. Sure Jarret beat him pretty good in the Rose Bowl, and then his combine numbers weren’t dynamite, but I saw him cover and tackle well in the games I watched. When you consider that he’s Tori James’ replacement, he looks even better.
Kenny Irons is a smart pick. It’s a tough fact to face, but Chris Perry isn’t coming back. I liked Perry a lot. I have his jersey. But the guy’s cursed. It just happens sometimes. Rudi has put a bunch of milage on those knees of his. He’s a consistent steam-roller but everybody breaks down eventually. You just never know when he’ll throw a rod in his engine. Irons is a polished SEC running back who isn’t dazzling but like Rudi, he’s consistent and a hard runner.
A lot of people like Marvin White. He’s one of those guys who can play either safety spot and is apparently a weight room madman. Kasevaharn had a big year but we Bengal fans know he can only bring so much to the table. White is an immediate upgrade from Kase this year. Dexter Jackson is no spring chicken and will likely need less snaps every year. This pick is one of those “Marvin knows what he’s doing” picks.
So we can go into ‘07 as a younger, faster team, particularly on defense. It’s a trend Marv has implemented more every year. It’s a bummer about Odell and Pollack. Those two set this defense back three years from becoming the force it could have been. Yet there’s a lot of hope about Ahmad Brooks becoming a certified beast at MLB. He’s at 270 lbs. and runs a 4.6. Think of a faster Jeremiah Trotter plugging RB’s at the line of scrimmage.
Deltha has a lot to prove this year. That San Diego game still sticks out in my mind as the downfall of Deltha. I don’t even remember the guys name that roasted him in the second half and allowed the biggest meltdown in recent memory. Joseph could become a big time corner this year but I thought Madieu would be a pro-bowler by now so I’ll wait and see on Joseph. The guy has what it takes though, that’s for sure. Madieu is capable of big things this year too. He’s gonna be relied upon more as the secondary becomes younger and the veterans back there seem really old compared to last year. Dexter Jackson needs to stay healthy or he’s not worth having around. Look for Peko to improve. We’ll look at Frostee Rucker for essentially the first time. I’m not putting much faith in players like EJ Henderson and Earl Everett. Fans and team websites like getting all excited for these kind of guys when all they do is linger on the practice squad all year. If we get killed by injuries in the linebacking corps than maybe they play but otherwise they’re still undrafted free-agents.
Offensively we look like last year. Our line is less veteran but maybe that means it can stay healthier. Resigning Stacy Andrews was a good idea. We need as many huge bodies as we can get and the guy has shown some promise at guard and tackle. We get a bunch of receivers back from injury. Tab Perry, Chatman, and Bennie Brazelle return to help with Henry missing 8 games. We have only one serviceable TE and our undrafted back-ups keep being carted off training camp in stretchers. We should have thought about drafting somebody at that spot. Lets hope the big three stay healthy and we’ve seen life without Housh and it’s not pretty. Injuries are the only thing that can stop this offense (and at this point suspensions). I’m concerned about Willie and Levi staying healthy. They both seem so delicate these days. Whitworth is the new Stienbach and that suits me just fine. Did you see the $ Cleveland dished out for that guy? Sure he’s stayed healthy but damn. Eight years?
Memo to Shayne Graham: Miss another clutch kick to keep us from the playoffs, and this city will string you up on fountain square. I’m just sayin’.
I like that the Bengals aren’t getting the Super Bowl talk like last year. This team has a fragile psyche. So do the fans and the local media. We were bad for so long that we still aren’t sure how to react to success. This year it feels like guys are less in the camera and more in the playbooks. Marvin seems a bit more under control right now and we still have most of our coaches back. I would have liked Bratkowski to have found another job, but at least he knows the players and the system. I’m gonna wait for season predictions until closer to opening night, but I like our chances of making the playoffs and winning a game.
Mojokong - Head down. Keep shoveling.
August 1, 2007
It’s time we rid ourselves of that awful taste lingering from last season. The taste of missed kicks, arrests and Steeler fans talking more of that crap. It’s time to give up on the Reds for the year (which happened in late may this season). It’s time we read every shred of information that comes out of Georgetown and continue to pressure Time Warner Cable with threats and angry letters to provide us with the NFL network, dammit. Have you SEEN that channel? If you sometimes enjoy socializing and leaving your house then don’t get NFL Network. It’s outrageous. Anyway.
It wasn’t a glamorous off-season for the Bengals in 07. The emphasis seemed to be about getting rid of who we didn’t need rather than pursuing overpriced players in a thin free agent market. Brian Simmons, Kasevaharn, Sam Adams, Eric Stienbach, Tony Stewart, Tori James (thank God), Kelley Washington. That’s a lot of guys to lose without getting much in the off season to replace them with. It shows how Marvin, more than ever, relies on his backups to step up and become solid starters. While new defensive tackles Michael Myers and Kendrick Allen will help fill a deep rotation at a position that has proven to be dented every year with injuries, they aren’t likely to even be starters.
Neither is Ed Hartwell. His health and longevity are concerns for a 29 year old middle linebacker with previously major surgeries. He was signed very late in the free agent period, proof that most other teams weren’t willing to run the risk on him. I sensed once Marvin suspected Odell was a longshot to return, he needed a MLB that wasn’t a mental project to bring along slowly. He needed someone who could figure his system out fast and help the youngsters come along as well. I wouldn’t have complained too much about Joey Porter, but he hasn’t been the player we was three years ago and he was going to be overpaid no matter who signed him. Plus he’s a huge douche who had his boys jump our left tackle in Vegas a few months ago. I really dislike that guy.
We did add Leon Hall who I considered the best corner in college during the season last year. Sure Jarret beat him pretty good in the Rose Bowl, and then his combine numbers weren’t dynamite, but I saw him cover and tackle well in the games I watched. When you consider that he’s Tori James’ replacement, he looks even better.
Kenny Irons is a smart pick. It’s a tough fact to face, but Chris Perry isn’t coming back. I liked Perry a lot. I have his jersey. But the guy’s cursed. It just happens sometimes. Rudi has put a bunch of milage on those knees of his. He’s a consistent steam-roller but everybody breaks down eventually. You just never know when he’ll throw a rod in his engine. Irons is a polished SEC running back who isn’t dazzling but like Rudi, he’s consistent and a hard runner.
A lot of people like Marvin White. He’s one of those guys who can play either safety spot and is apparently a weight room madman. Kasevaharn had a big year but we Bengal fans know he can only bring so much to the table. White is an immediate upgrade from Kase this year. Dexter Jackson is no spring chicken and will likely need less snaps every year. This pick is one of those “Marvin knows what he’s doing” picks.
So we can go into ‘07 as a younger, faster team, particularly on defense. It’s a trend Marv has implemented more every year. It’s a bummer about Odell and Pollack. Those two set this defense back three years from becoming the force it could have been. Yet there’s a lot of hope about Ahmad Brooks becoming a certified beast at MLB. He’s at 270 lbs. and runs a 4.6. Think of a faster Jeremiah Trotter plugging RB’s at the line of scrimmage.
Deltha has a lot to prove this year. That San Diego game still sticks out in my mind as the downfall of Deltha. I don’t even remember the guys name that roasted him in the second half and allowed the biggest meltdown in recent memory. Joseph could become a big time corner this year but I thought Madieu would be a pro-bowler by now so I’ll wait and see on Joseph. The guy has what it takes though, that’s for sure. Madieu is capable of big things this year too. He’s gonna be relied upon more as the secondary becomes younger and the veterans back there seem really old compared to last year. Dexter Jackson needs to stay healthy or he’s not worth having around. Look for Peko to improve. We’ll look at Frostee Rucker for essentially the first time. I’m not putting much faith in players like EJ Henderson and Earl Everett. Fans and team websites like getting all excited for these kind of guys when all they do is linger on the practice squad all year. If we get killed by injuries in the linebacking corps than maybe they play but otherwise they’re still undrafted free-agents.
Offensively we look like last year. Our line is less veteran but maybe that means it can stay healthier. Resigning Stacy Andrews was a good idea. We need as many huge bodies as we can get and the guy has shown some promise at guard and tackle. We get a bunch of receivers back from injury. Tab Perry, Chatman, and Bennie Brazelle return to help with Henry missing 8 games. We have only one serviceable TE and our undrafted back-ups keep being carted off training camp in stretchers. We should have thought about drafting somebody at that spot. Lets hope the big three stay healthy and we’ve seen life without Housh and it’s not pretty. Injuries are the only thing that can stop this offense (and at this point suspensions). I’m concerned about Willie and Levi staying healthy. They both seem so delicate these days. Whitworth is the new Stienbach and that suits me just fine. Did you see the $ Cleveland dished out for that guy? Sure he’s stayed healthy but damn. Eight years?
Memo to Shayne Graham: Miss another clutch kick to keep us from the playoffs, and this city will string you up on fountain square. I’m just sayin’.
I like that the Bengals aren’t getting the Super Bowl talk like last year. This team has a fragile psyche. So do the fans and the local media. We were bad for so long that we still aren’t sure how to react to success. This year it feels like guys are less in the camera and more in the playbooks. Marvin seems a bit more under control right now and we still have most of our coaches back. I would have liked Bratkowski to have found another job, but at least he knows the players and the system. I’m gonna wait for season predictions until closer to opening night, but I like our chances of making the playoffs and winning a game.
Mojokong - Head down. Keep shoveling.
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Additional Seating in the Bengal Bandwagon is Now Available
29 Aug 2006
Here's a feeble attempt to keep things in perspective.
Last night's Bengals game was easy on the eyes. A pleasure to watch; relaxing, fun, all the superlatives one longs for after a hard day's work. What couches and cold beers were originally intended to compliment. Carson seems like David Hasselhoff cruising around in Kit, just like old times. Our offense purrs with him at the helm and defenses don't appear to be giving it their best efforts against us.
But it's still the preseason, and it's still a shitty Green Bay team. I don't expect any of the Bengal's preseason opponents so far to have winning records this season. Indy will be great, but the fourth preseason game is always a dressed up practice and can't be used as any team barometer. Point is, we haven't faced a good team at its full strength yet; not even close. Still, we're the best team in the AFC, and probably all of football. Forget perspective.
I think Cincinnati would go 9-7 with Anthony Wright starting all season. He's played better than average, and frankly, that's all I expect from a back-up. Our offense is an arsenal of cluster bombs and bunker busters and missile-defense kill vehicles and all that other lethal shit. No defense can match up, none of 'em, and we have two of the top 5 defenses in our division. With Carson's wherewithal and his arm, we'll go at least 12-5.
The defense looks faster than I've seen under Marv (or anybody else, I guess) and that's reason enough to cultivate Super Bowl aspirations. Big Sam looked mobile enough for me and the defensive ends have been noticeably speedy. Bryan Robinson has been most impressive. He played D tackle last year, made the switch to end and looks five years younger. Thornton is everywhere, Geathers looks fast, Peko and Rucker have shined (although Frostee's been injured). The secondary is tackling better, the LB's are filling the run gaps. The system is working on defense. I would, however, like to see the corners, particularly Joseph play tighter on the underneath routes. I understand avoiding the big play is the main emphasis, especially when coaching rookies, but I'd kinda like to see him go for a pick and get beat for a big play in the preseason, just to know how it feels so he can avoid that stuff when it counts.
There's plenty of reason for optimism around these parts today. Steeler fans aren't feeling particularly comfortable right now, and Baltimore and Cleveland fans have just thrown up in their mouths a little. When have you ever felt so comfortable about an approaching Bengals season? Like I've said all along this off season, we'll be fine
Here's a feeble attempt to keep things in perspective.
Last night's Bengals game was easy on the eyes. A pleasure to watch; relaxing, fun, all the superlatives one longs for after a hard day's work. What couches and cold beers were originally intended to compliment. Carson seems like David Hasselhoff cruising around in Kit, just like old times. Our offense purrs with him at the helm and defenses don't appear to be giving it their best efforts against us.
But it's still the preseason, and it's still a shitty Green Bay team. I don't expect any of the Bengal's preseason opponents so far to have winning records this season. Indy will be great, but the fourth preseason game is always a dressed up practice and can't be used as any team barometer. Point is, we haven't faced a good team at its full strength yet; not even close. Still, we're the best team in the AFC, and probably all of football. Forget perspective.
I think Cincinnati would go 9-7 with Anthony Wright starting all season. He's played better than average, and frankly, that's all I expect from a back-up. Our offense is an arsenal of cluster bombs and bunker busters and missile-defense kill vehicles and all that other lethal shit. No defense can match up, none of 'em, and we have two of the top 5 defenses in our division. With Carson's wherewithal and his arm, we'll go at least 12-5.
The defense looks faster than I've seen under Marv (or anybody else, I guess) and that's reason enough to cultivate Super Bowl aspirations. Big Sam looked mobile enough for me and the defensive ends have been noticeably speedy. Bryan Robinson has been most impressive. He played D tackle last year, made the switch to end and looks five years younger. Thornton is everywhere, Geathers looks fast, Peko and Rucker have shined (although Frostee's been injured). The secondary is tackling better, the LB's are filling the run gaps. The system is working on defense. I would, however, like to see the corners, particularly Joseph play tighter on the underneath routes. I understand avoiding the big play is the main emphasis, especially when coaching rookies, but I'd kinda like to see him go for a pick and get beat for a big play in the preseason, just to know how it feels so he can avoid that stuff when it counts.
There's plenty of reason for optimism around these parts today. Steeler fans aren't feeling particularly comfortable right now, and Baltimore and Cleveland fans have just thrown up in their mouths a little. When have you ever felt so comfortable about an approaching Bengals season? Like I've said all along this off season, we'll be fine
Week 1 Preview
08 Sep 2006
Week 1 preview
Category: Sports
So I know the season started last night with those bastard Steelers punking out the chump-ass Dolphins, and that I'm late with my season preview, but who cares? Are you paying me? Than shut up.
Man, did the Dolphins look weak. The run defense is okay, but Fast Willie Parker dented them pretty good. The secondary is made up of some randoms who allowed Charlie Batch to put up Pro-Bowl numbers on them. Somebody needs to cover the tight end too, Spragan. Zach Thomas and Jason Taylor can't do it by themselves. One of these nobodies need to rise up from mediocrity if Miami wants a chance for even a winning season.
Offensively, the unit seem to have their timing off. Culpepper looks like he's on a different page than Chris Chambers and Marty Booker. Ronnie Brown is a hard runner but really didn't put together much of a night. Talented tight end Randy McMicheal either was ignored by Culpepper or just couldn't get open. It's easy to blame the offensive line for many of the evenings offensive woes, but coordinator Mike Mularky, who was once the coordinator for Cowher four seasons ago, had trouble aligning the right blocking schemes against the crazy linebacker blitzes Lebeau loves to throw at opponents. As talented as Ronnie Brown may be, he can't block Joey Porter and Mularky should know that. I expect the Dolphin offense to improve throughout the season with more reps and game situations, but that defense has a long way to go.
Conversely, the Steelers did what they do. Batch played a lot better than I expected. Fast Willie can bust an off tackle seam better than most, and Hines Ward just doesn't drop passes. But really, it's their O-line that smashes other teams into submission. Those guys are road graders who ware out defenses by the start of the third quarter. I predicted the Steelers would sorely miss Chris Hope but it didn't seem that way at all. Although I think Ike Taylor's somewhat overrated (Chambers dominated him briefly in the third), with Polamalu sniffing out every play call, they only need to seriously worry about down field passing teams - like us. Pittsburgh will continue to bruise AFC teams and likely win one of the wildcard slots.
As for our game Sunday, I'm not so worried. KC's a solid team and Arrowhead is a doozie of a home field advantage, but the Chiefs fans don't cover wide receivers or have to tackle Rudi Johnson. Frankly, the Bengals offense can only stop themselves. Ty Law and Patrick Surtain are one hell of a corner tandem, but Eric Warfield covering Chris Henry is a problem for them. And if you cover Henry, who's gonna look out for Antonio Chatman? Or even Tab Perry? Starting to get it? Too many weapons. I wish we had a healthy Chris Perry and all the match-up problems he creates, but the offense is still great.
All shit talking aside, it should be a pretty close match up. The Chiefs have an offense too and it's become a smash mouth one at that. Larry Johnson is a steam roller. His line is veteran and tough, though some question their athleticism and durability due to their old age. Willie Roaf called it quits before training camp and they replaced him with washed up Kyle Turley who reportedly weighs in at around 280lbs. Justin Smith will be licking his chops against a smallish tackle like that. Smith loves to bullrush and is strong as hell, so look for him to just try to push Turley over. Sam Adams should do his part in forcing Johnson outside where it will depend on our linebackers to make tackles and eliminate runs over six yards. Deltha O'Neal is listed as questionable and hasn't practiced, which in Marvin's camp means he's not going to play. They don't play if they don't practice-Marvin Motto #16. Enter Jonathan Joseph. A rookie corner to start an opener on the road...great. While the Chiefs receiving corps is by no means stellar (Eddie Kennison?), Joseph has had a hard time in the pre-season not allowing easy completions in front of him. Trent Green will smell a weakness and capitalize. It's gonna be up to Madieu and the covering linebackers to help him out.
The Bengal game plan should be fairly basic. Throw down field early, try to get a two-score lead early on, and force KC to throw against us. Wrap up tackles on defense, bend but don't break, no big plays, the usual Marvin talk. Offensively, avoid turnovers and penalties, protect Carson with your lives, and feed Chad early. Once a decent lead is established, pound Rudi again and again. He's got new knees this season, let's see them be put to the test. All Carson needs is one good half. Explode as soon as possible and then just manage the game to victory. The recipe is a basic one. Follow the directions on the box and taste the sweetness of an opening day win. The dark side has done their thing already. Now it's up to us keep pace. It's time people.
Mojokong the Prognosticating Primate
Week 1 preview
Category: Sports
So I know the season started last night with those bastard Steelers punking out the chump-ass Dolphins, and that I'm late with my season preview, but who cares? Are you paying me? Than shut up.
Man, did the Dolphins look weak. The run defense is okay, but Fast Willie Parker dented them pretty good. The secondary is made up of some randoms who allowed Charlie Batch to put up Pro-Bowl numbers on them. Somebody needs to cover the tight end too, Spragan. Zach Thomas and Jason Taylor can't do it by themselves. One of these nobodies need to rise up from mediocrity if Miami wants a chance for even a winning season.
Offensively, the unit seem to have their timing off. Culpepper looks like he's on a different page than Chris Chambers and Marty Booker. Ronnie Brown is a hard runner but really didn't put together much of a night. Talented tight end Randy McMicheal either was ignored by Culpepper or just couldn't get open. It's easy to blame the offensive line for many of the evenings offensive woes, but coordinator Mike Mularky, who was once the coordinator for Cowher four seasons ago, had trouble aligning the right blocking schemes against the crazy linebacker blitzes Lebeau loves to throw at opponents. As talented as Ronnie Brown may be, he can't block Joey Porter and Mularky should know that. I expect the Dolphin offense to improve throughout the season with more reps and game situations, but that defense has a long way to go.
Conversely, the Steelers did what they do. Batch played a lot better than I expected. Fast Willie can bust an off tackle seam better than most, and Hines Ward just doesn't drop passes. But really, it's their O-line that smashes other teams into submission. Those guys are road graders who ware out defenses by the start of the third quarter. I predicted the Steelers would sorely miss Chris Hope but it didn't seem that way at all. Although I think Ike Taylor's somewhat overrated (Chambers dominated him briefly in the third), with Polamalu sniffing out every play call, they only need to seriously worry about down field passing teams - like us. Pittsburgh will continue to bruise AFC teams and likely win one of the wildcard slots.
As for our game Sunday, I'm not so worried. KC's a solid team and Arrowhead is a doozie of a home field advantage, but the Chiefs fans don't cover wide receivers or have to tackle Rudi Johnson. Frankly, the Bengals offense can only stop themselves. Ty Law and Patrick Surtain are one hell of a corner tandem, but Eric Warfield covering Chris Henry is a problem for them. And if you cover Henry, who's gonna look out for Antonio Chatman? Or even Tab Perry? Starting to get it? Too many weapons. I wish we had a healthy Chris Perry and all the match-up problems he creates, but the offense is still great.
All shit talking aside, it should be a pretty close match up. The Chiefs have an offense too and it's become a smash mouth one at that. Larry Johnson is a steam roller. His line is veteran and tough, though some question their athleticism and durability due to their old age. Willie Roaf called it quits before training camp and they replaced him with washed up Kyle Turley who reportedly weighs in at around 280lbs. Justin Smith will be licking his chops against a smallish tackle like that. Smith loves to bullrush and is strong as hell, so look for him to just try to push Turley over. Sam Adams should do his part in forcing Johnson outside where it will depend on our linebackers to make tackles and eliminate runs over six yards. Deltha O'Neal is listed as questionable and hasn't practiced, which in Marvin's camp means he's not going to play. They don't play if they don't practice-Marvin Motto #16. Enter Jonathan Joseph. A rookie corner to start an opener on the road...great. While the Chiefs receiving corps is by no means stellar (Eddie Kennison?), Joseph has had a hard time in the pre-season not allowing easy completions in front of him. Trent Green will smell a weakness and capitalize. It's gonna be up to Madieu and the covering linebackers to help him out.
The Bengal game plan should be fairly basic. Throw down field early, try to get a two-score lead early on, and force KC to throw against us. Wrap up tackles on defense, bend but don't break, no big plays, the usual Marvin talk. Offensively, avoid turnovers and penalties, protect Carson with your lives, and feed Chad early. Once a decent lead is established, pound Rudi again and again. He's got new knees this season, let's see them be put to the test. All Carson needs is one good half. Explode as soon as possible and then just manage the game to victory. The recipe is a basic one. Follow the directions on the box and taste the sweetness of an opening day win. The dark side has done their thing already. Now it's up to us keep pace. It's time people.
Mojokong the Prognosticating Primate
Week 1 Recap
11 Sep 2006
Week 1 recap
Category: Sports
Week One Recap:
Let the chest pounding begin. The Bengals yesterday displayed to the rest of the league another reason to fear the tiger. Our defensive line will put you in the hospital. Racking up seven sacks and keeping the league's fantasy stud to sixty-something yards on 18 carries, the Bengal D flexed some big time muscle.
Let's address the Geathers hit. First of all, Eddie Kennison should be more to blame for Trent Green's brutal concussion than Geathers. He pushed a defender into his quarterback. He could ask Eric Stienbach what kind of impact that can have on a team. Secondly, Geathers hit him with his shoulder pad and that's what the league wants. Herm Edwards cried helmet-to-helmet after the game and that's bullshit. Obviously, KC has a jumbo-tron that replayed the hit in slow motion. We from our TV sets saw a clean hit, why can't he? I know a coach has to protect his players to the media, but don't stir-up suspension possibilities over a clean hit. It's a violent game played by huge, finely-tuned athletes who can take a man's head off if not careful. It's a risk one takes when paid millions upon millions of dollars to give it a try. I don't feel all that bad for Mr. Green. He slid late on the play, and like I said, he's an NFL quarterback. Get over it.
Back to the game.
I'm not sure what happened this training camp and pre-season, but the defense looks lightning fast. We still have some open-field tackling concerns (Tory James), but when players like Caleb Miller and Bryan Robinson are flying around the field as fast as they seemed, we as fans have to feel a lot more comfortable. Geathers and Justin Smith are maniacs. A lot of it has to do with the Chiefs soft offensive tackles, but they're very strong and very fast. Secondary covered well in the second quarter, and everyone did a good job of not allowing the big play. I told you this defense was for real, but I imagine the rest of the country wont get it until we shut down the Steelers in week 3. I'd say a defensive ranking between 8th and 13th or so, isn't all that unrealistic.
Offensively we grinded it out and played it safe. Nothing wrong with that. Carson played fairly relaxed and didn't put a lot of pressure on himself. Rudi has tree trunks for legs that come in handy when we get a two-score lead, and our O-line will come through when they need to. I think the offensive line still has some work to do to polish up a few things. Willie had a couple of early penalties and Levi got confused on a safety blitz which allowed to a big sack and fumble by Jared Allen. I'm not worried about our offense. In fact, I'm not worried about any part of our team. We played, dare I say, Steelers type football to get the win. If we can go into one of the toughest stadiums, and pound a perceived quality team into submission, then what's to worry about? 13-3 people...for real.
Impressions of the rest of the NFL:
The Ravens had a great opening game. I guess it was a good idea for Billick to ask the city to call a hotline if they see Ravens players out boozing it up over the weekend. They had two long run backs on turnovers so their offense is still a question mark. The Bucs probably are still gonna be okay defensively, but Chris Simms blows.
The Giants got jobbed by the refs over a lame offensive pass interference call on their comeback drive. I sense a point of emphasis by the refs concerning receivers pushing off. Great, more flags. Allow the players and coaches to win the games. Your new uniforms are whack too. Tiki Barber is amazing.
Reggie Bush isn't scared by the NFL. The Browns lost the easiest game they're gonna see all year. The old Poop Stains may never be good again.
The Patriots are declining and their whole division is generic. J.P. Losman may be the easiest NFL player to dislike.
MK= The Headhunter
Week 1 recap
Category: Sports
Week One Recap:
Let the chest pounding begin. The Bengals yesterday displayed to the rest of the league another reason to fear the tiger. Our defensive line will put you in the hospital. Racking up seven sacks and keeping the league's fantasy stud to sixty-something yards on 18 carries, the Bengal D flexed some big time muscle.
Let's address the Geathers hit. First of all, Eddie Kennison should be more to blame for Trent Green's brutal concussion than Geathers. He pushed a defender into his quarterback. He could ask Eric Stienbach what kind of impact that can have on a team. Secondly, Geathers hit him with his shoulder pad and that's what the league wants. Herm Edwards cried helmet-to-helmet after the game and that's bullshit. Obviously, KC has a jumbo-tron that replayed the hit in slow motion. We from our TV sets saw a clean hit, why can't he? I know a coach has to protect his players to the media, but don't stir-up suspension possibilities over a clean hit. It's a violent game played by huge, finely-tuned athletes who can take a man's head off if not careful. It's a risk one takes when paid millions upon millions of dollars to give it a try. I don't feel all that bad for Mr. Green. He slid late on the play, and like I said, he's an NFL quarterback. Get over it.
Back to the game.
I'm not sure what happened this training camp and pre-season, but the defense looks lightning fast. We still have some open-field tackling concerns (Tory James), but when players like Caleb Miller and Bryan Robinson are flying around the field as fast as they seemed, we as fans have to feel a lot more comfortable. Geathers and Justin Smith are maniacs. A lot of it has to do with the Chiefs soft offensive tackles, but they're very strong and very fast. Secondary covered well in the second quarter, and everyone did a good job of not allowing the big play. I told you this defense was for real, but I imagine the rest of the country wont get it until we shut down the Steelers in week 3. I'd say a defensive ranking between 8th and 13th or so, isn't all that unrealistic.
Offensively we grinded it out and played it safe. Nothing wrong with that. Carson played fairly relaxed and didn't put a lot of pressure on himself. Rudi has tree trunks for legs that come in handy when we get a two-score lead, and our O-line will come through when they need to. I think the offensive line still has some work to do to polish up a few things. Willie had a couple of early penalties and Levi got confused on a safety blitz which allowed to a big sack and fumble by Jared Allen. I'm not worried about our offense. In fact, I'm not worried about any part of our team. We played, dare I say, Steelers type football to get the win. If we can go into one of the toughest stadiums, and pound a perceived quality team into submission, then what's to worry about? 13-3 people...for real.
Impressions of the rest of the NFL:
The Ravens had a great opening game. I guess it was a good idea for Billick to ask the city to call a hotline if they see Ravens players out boozing it up over the weekend. They had two long run backs on turnovers so their offense is still a question mark. The Bucs probably are still gonna be okay defensively, but Chris Simms blows.
The Giants got jobbed by the refs over a lame offensive pass interference call on their comeback drive. I sense a point of emphasis by the refs concerning receivers pushing off. Great, more flags. Allow the players and coaches to win the games. Your new uniforms are whack too. Tiki Barber is amazing.
Reggie Bush isn't scared by the NFL. The Browns lost the easiest game they're gonna see all year. The old Poop Stains may never be good again.
The Patriots are declining and their whole division is generic. J.P. Losman may be the easiest NFL player to dislike.
MK= The Headhunter
Week 2 Preview
Week 2 preview
The upcoming match against the Brownies seems like the most winnable game of the season, and that may be the only reason to worry. With the Steelers game looming on the horizon, one could see the Bengals looking ahead to that game instead of the task at hand. But really, it's the Browns and the game should be over at halftime. A few match ups to look for.
Chad Johnson vs. Lee Bodden:
Bodden has played ChaJo well in past meetings, but the entire Cleveland secondary is somewhat beat up. With the return of Housh, and Henry returning to the slot, it will be hard for Cleveland to double Chad and should have at least six catches, and one should be deep. You know Carson want's to air a few out after pulling back the reigns last week.
Rudi vs. Andra Davis
Davis is easily Cleveland's best defender and is probably underrated league wide. Still, Rudi has gashed the Brownies in the past and should continue that on Sunday. If the Bengals can open up their passing game which I would expect they can, than Rudi will have little problem racking up 5 yards a carry against a prevent 3-4 defense. While Cleveland has installed some players that better fit Romeo Crennel's scheme, it's still a work in progress and that's scary for Browns fans against a potent offense. Rudi should reach the 125 yard mark.
Kellen Winslow vs. Brian Simmons
This is an actual concern for the Bengals. Winslow is a fast, dynamic receiving tight end. Simmons has had trouble cvering the likes of Steve Hieden in the past so Winslow should be a real problem. Look for the Browns to go to Winslow on third down and in the red zone.
Braylon Edwards vs. Deltha O'Neal
Edwards dropped a key pass last week that was intercepted and ultimately lost the game. He's recovering from an injury and has yet to really show his potential. Still, he's good sized and has the tools to be great. Deltha is also a little banged up but is probably healthier than last week and is a top 7 corner when he's in there. Chances are the Browns will be forced to throw when we get a lead and that's when our guys should start to pick a few off.
Overall I'm very optimistic. Marv should have the guys focused and cruise to a home opener. I can't wait to see the long, pouty faces of Cleveland fans file out of PBS being ridiculed by drunk who-deyers. No love for the Poop Stains.
Bengals 38-17
Mojokong - Flushin' Brown Stuff
The upcoming match against the Brownies seems like the most winnable game of the season, and that may be the only reason to worry. With the Steelers game looming on the horizon, one could see the Bengals looking ahead to that game instead of the task at hand. But really, it's the Browns and the game should be over at halftime. A few match ups to look for.
Chad Johnson vs. Lee Bodden:
Bodden has played ChaJo well in past meetings, but the entire Cleveland secondary is somewhat beat up. With the return of Housh, and Henry returning to the slot, it will be hard for Cleveland to double Chad and should have at least six catches, and one should be deep. You know Carson want's to air a few out after pulling back the reigns last week.
Rudi vs. Andra Davis
Davis is easily Cleveland's best defender and is probably underrated league wide. Still, Rudi has gashed the Brownies in the past and should continue that on Sunday. If the Bengals can open up their passing game which I would expect they can, than Rudi will have little problem racking up 5 yards a carry against a prevent 3-4 defense. While Cleveland has installed some players that better fit Romeo Crennel's scheme, it's still a work in progress and that's scary for Browns fans against a potent offense. Rudi should reach the 125 yard mark.
Kellen Winslow vs. Brian Simmons
This is an actual concern for the Bengals. Winslow is a fast, dynamic receiving tight end. Simmons has had trouble cvering the likes of Steve Hieden in the past so Winslow should be a real problem. Look for the Browns to go to Winslow on third down and in the red zone.
Braylon Edwards vs. Deltha O'Neal
Edwards dropped a key pass last week that was intercepted and ultimately lost the game. He's recovering from an injury and has yet to really show his potential. Still, he's good sized and has the tools to be great. Deltha is also a little banged up but is probably healthier than last week and is a top 7 corner when he's in there. Chances are the Browns will be forced to throw when we get a lead and that's when our guys should start to pick a few off.
Overall I'm very optimistic. Marv should have the guys focused and cruise to a home opener. I can't wait to see the long, pouty faces of Cleveland fans file out of PBS being ridiculed by drunk who-deyers. No love for the Poop Stains.
Bengals 38-17
Mojokong - Flushin' Brown Stuff
Week 2 Recap
18 Sep 2006
Week 2 recap
Category: Sports
There's no such thing as a free lunch in the NFL. While the Browns looked pathetic in the blowout they did manage to nick us up pretty good. The Bengals lost a few good men at a crucial point of the schedule. The way Marv and his staff handle this challenge could define his legacy as a coach.
The most serious on the injury report is Pollack with the broken vertebra. Out for the year and early reports of maybe longer. Every coach in the NFL talks about the importance of the backup's ability to rise up and fill in adequately, so the Bengals must put their faith in some youngsters at linebacker.
First off, Brian Simmons is playing better this year in the middle than he did last year on the outside. Odell will be able to return after week 4. That will move Simmons back outside anyway, so why not make that move now and start Caleb Miller in the middle? Miller has played very well when on the field and Jente hasn't shown me enough hustle to make me a fan thus far. The problem is this. Pittsburgh is smash mouth and Jente is maybe thirty pounds bigger than Miller. He's a more natural outside linebacker and Simmons is a free flowing middle linebacker. So it might make more sense to just shuffle Miller in on passing downs and let Jente play the run, at least for next week.
There's also the issue of Ahmed Brooks. The coaches raved about this guy in training camp and he made a few plays in preseason, though looked raw at times as well. We gave up a third round pick in next years draft for him and he's come with some lofty comparisons to beastly pro-bowlers like Julias Peppers and Julian Peterson. I'd like to see him at least be activated and thrown in on an occasional special teams play.
As for center, Eric Giucheck will have to step it up. He's young, sometimes confused, but I think he's gonna be a solid NFL center. It'd be nice if he had a little more experience going up against such a venomous defense next week, but that's how it has to be. He allowed a big time sack on Carson and we all know the magnitude of that. It'll be up to the other vets on that line to help him step it up. Whitworth looked like a comfortable fit at left guard yesterday. That makes me feel better about Steinbach leaving after the season. Whitworth is a massive, athletic guy under the supervision of legendary offensive line coach Paul Alexander. He was a good draft pick.
Dexter Jackson hurts a bit less. Not that Kasevaharn is on his level, but he isn't really a pro-bowl player and it's only a high ankle sprain. At least Kasevaharn is a capable backup and isn't named Herring, Beckett, or Ohalete. He played most of last year and showed he's a decent tackler, but also has coverage and speed issues.
I can't tell if the defense is playing this well or if the offenses we've faced are that crappy. Sam Adams seems like one of the best free-agent acquisitions in the NFL. He seriously makes a difference. John Thornton is probably Adam's biggest benefactor, and he's taking full advantage of this. He's playing great, like he's a young man again. Deltha O'Neal is showing all the signs of a legitimate shutdown corner. He isn't being thrown at, when he is tested he knocks everything down, and can open field tackle with the top corners in the league. His ball skills and hands are that of a receiver and once he has the ball he returns like a kick returner. Tory James looks slower every week and shows all the signs of a nickel back. Joseph is going to be great, but might not be better just yet.
Carson seems angry this season. He senses a Super Bowl and has no patience for anything in his way of that, himself included. He gets pissed at himself for not being perfect and we as fans love to see and hear that. The offense still hasn't looked like the war machine it has potential to be, and yet we're crushing inferior teams all the same. Theoretically, having Housh back will allow most of the pieces to fall back into place but it still has to actually work that way. Levi's gonna play next week and Rudi really is looking healthier and stronger than last season, so we can pound teams if we sputter in the air, but to beat the big dogs we'll have to figure out how to do both on demand. Chris Henry has to look the ball into his hands better and Kelley Washington isn't making mistakes so far this year. Washington might be a better slot receiver at this point and could challenge Henry for that spot next week. How can I say that after Henry has a 100-yard game? Kelley hasn't dropped anything and has played that spot well two weeks in a row. You want to win or collect stats? Big up to the tight ends, you guys haven't been a problem yet. Keep it up.
As for the Browns, well, it just doesn't look good. Maybe next year. Woof, woof your way to the basement, clowns. The whole city of Cleveland should just go away. Be sure to drop Lebron off in Chicago or somewhere.
Mojokong - woof, woof goes the poop.
Due to the length and timing of this entry, I'll have to do the observations from the rest of the NFL tomorrow or Wednesday. Sorry.
Week 2 recap
Category: Sports
There's no such thing as a free lunch in the NFL. While the Browns looked pathetic in the blowout they did manage to nick us up pretty good. The Bengals lost a few good men at a crucial point of the schedule. The way Marv and his staff handle this challenge could define his legacy as a coach.
The most serious on the injury report is Pollack with the broken vertebra. Out for the year and early reports of maybe longer. Every coach in the NFL talks about the importance of the backup's ability to rise up and fill in adequately, so the Bengals must put their faith in some youngsters at linebacker.
First off, Brian Simmons is playing better this year in the middle than he did last year on the outside. Odell will be able to return after week 4. That will move Simmons back outside anyway, so why not make that move now and start Caleb Miller in the middle? Miller has played very well when on the field and Jente hasn't shown me enough hustle to make me a fan thus far. The problem is this. Pittsburgh is smash mouth and Jente is maybe thirty pounds bigger than Miller. He's a more natural outside linebacker and Simmons is a free flowing middle linebacker. So it might make more sense to just shuffle Miller in on passing downs and let Jente play the run, at least for next week.
There's also the issue of Ahmed Brooks. The coaches raved about this guy in training camp and he made a few plays in preseason, though looked raw at times as well. We gave up a third round pick in next years draft for him and he's come with some lofty comparisons to beastly pro-bowlers like Julias Peppers and Julian Peterson. I'd like to see him at least be activated and thrown in on an occasional special teams play.
As for center, Eric Giucheck will have to step it up. He's young, sometimes confused, but I think he's gonna be a solid NFL center. It'd be nice if he had a little more experience going up against such a venomous defense next week, but that's how it has to be. He allowed a big time sack on Carson and we all know the magnitude of that. It'll be up to the other vets on that line to help him step it up. Whitworth looked like a comfortable fit at left guard yesterday. That makes me feel better about Steinbach leaving after the season. Whitworth is a massive, athletic guy under the supervision of legendary offensive line coach Paul Alexander. He was a good draft pick.
Dexter Jackson hurts a bit less. Not that Kasevaharn is on his level, but he isn't really a pro-bowl player and it's only a high ankle sprain. At least Kasevaharn is a capable backup and isn't named Herring, Beckett, or Ohalete. He played most of last year and showed he's a decent tackler, but also has coverage and speed issues.
I can't tell if the defense is playing this well or if the offenses we've faced are that crappy. Sam Adams seems like one of the best free-agent acquisitions in the NFL. He seriously makes a difference. John Thornton is probably Adam's biggest benefactor, and he's taking full advantage of this. He's playing great, like he's a young man again. Deltha O'Neal is showing all the signs of a legitimate shutdown corner. He isn't being thrown at, when he is tested he knocks everything down, and can open field tackle with the top corners in the league. His ball skills and hands are that of a receiver and once he has the ball he returns like a kick returner. Tory James looks slower every week and shows all the signs of a nickel back. Joseph is going to be great, but might not be better just yet.
Carson seems angry this season. He senses a Super Bowl and has no patience for anything in his way of that, himself included. He gets pissed at himself for not being perfect and we as fans love to see and hear that. The offense still hasn't looked like the war machine it has potential to be, and yet we're crushing inferior teams all the same. Theoretically, having Housh back will allow most of the pieces to fall back into place but it still has to actually work that way. Levi's gonna play next week and Rudi really is looking healthier and stronger than last season, so we can pound teams if we sputter in the air, but to beat the big dogs we'll have to figure out how to do both on demand. Chris Henry has to look the ball into his hands better and Kelley Washington isn't making mistakes so far this year. Washington might be a better slot receiver at this point and could challenge Henry for that spot next week. How can I say that after Henry has a 100-yard game? Kelley hasn't dropped anything and has played that spot well two weeks in a row. You want to win or collect stats? Big up to the tight ends, you guys haven't been a problem yet. Keep it up.
As for the Browns, well, it just doesn't look good. Maybe next year. Woof, woof your way to the basement, clowns. The whole city of Cleveland should just go away. Be sure to drop Lebron off in Chicago or somewhere.
Mojokong - woof, woof goes the poop.
Due to the length and timing of this entry, I'll have to do the observations from the rest of the NFL tomorrow or Wednesday. Sorry.
Week 3 Preview
24 Sep 2006
Week 3 preview
Category: Sports
Week 3 Preview
You know that Steelers banner that hangs above the Hard 2 Knock shop in Clifton? It's still there and it pisses me off every day I see it. After today, I hope I can take some smug enjoyment when reminded of how the Steeler fans cried over such a crushing loss by the Bengals.
Today's gonna be about the running game. It's up to the defensive line to keep Willie Parker inside the tackles. He's shown he's only effective bouncing outside and our linebackers should play wider to pressure him into the middle of the field. Their receivers don't scare me and like always if the Bengals get an early lead it will force Pittsburgh to throw it more which they've never been comfortable relying on. Heath Miller can be a secret weapon of sorts that defenses can occasionally forget about. It's up to Landon Johnson to cover that guy and not allow a big play made possible from blown coverage.
Look for Rudi to continue to pound the 3-4 defense with six yard gains up the middle. Guicheck will have to at least slow Casey Hampton down, and Jeremi Johnson will be key in creating interior holes for Rudi to blast through. I don't want to see Carson have to throw the ball thirty times. The Pittsburgh secondary is pretty average and getting Housh back will put even more pressure on their nickel and dime guys to cover the likes of Henry and Kelley Washington.
Traditionally the Bengals have had a hard time not turning the ball over to Pittsburgh. They're a defense that baits offenses into taking risks and in the past we've sprung a few of those traps. Polomalu seems to clone himself while on the field. He's everywhere. Joey Porter literally smacks people and the 3 other linebackers (Foote, Farrior, and Hagans) make up the best linebacking corps in the NFL. Reggie Kelly had better block his ass off today when they send the house on third and shorts.
I honestly am not picking the Bengals to win today, even though I think we have a better overall team. If the offense plays to their full potential then no team in the NFL can beat us. But they haven't demonstrated that kind of might thus far. That could be a good thing because sooner or later they're going to get it together. If the defense forces a couple of turnovers and doesn't allow the big forty yard run, then we walk away two games ahead of those bastards and the Ravens will become our next focus.
It's time to prove that the Bengals are the class of the division, the conference, and the league. We can only beat ourselves. Focus, concentration, and execution.
Pittsburgh
24-21 (it's tough to type that out)
MK - the playmaking ape
Week 3 preview
Category: Sports
Week 3 Preview
You know that Steelers banner that hangs above the Hard 2 Knock shop in Clifton? It's still there and it pisses me off every day I see it. After today, I hope I can take some smug enjoyment when reminded of how the Steeler fans cried over such a crushing loss by the Bengals.
Today's gonna be about the running game. It's up to the defensive line to keep Willie Parker inside the tackles. He's shown he's only effective bouncing outside and our linebackers should play wider to pressure him into the middle of the field. Their receivers don't scare me and like always if the Bengals get an early lead it will force Pittsburgh to throw it more which they've never been comfortable relying on. Heath Miller can be a secret weapon of sorts that defenses can occasionally forget about. It's up to Landon Johnson to cover that guy and not allow a big play made possible from blown coverage.
Look for Rudi to continue to pound the 3-4 defense with six yard gains up the middle. Guicheck will have to at least slow Casey Hampton down, and Jeremi Johnson will be key in creating interior holes for Rudi to blast through. I don't want to see Carson have to throw the ball thirty times. The Pittsburgh secondary is pretty average and getting Housh back will put even more pressure on their nickel and dime guys to cover the likes of Henry and Kelley Washington.
Traditionally the Bengals have had a hard time not turning the ball over to Pittsburgh. They're a defense that baits offenses into taking risks and in the past we've sprung a few of those traps. Polomalu seems to clone himself while on the field. He's everywhere. Joey Porter literally smacks people and the 3 other linebackers (Foote, Farrior, and Hagans) make up the best linebacking corps in the NFL. Reggie Kelly had better block his ass off today when they send the house on third and shorts.
I honestly am not picking the Bengals to win today, even though I think we have a better overall team. If the offense plays to their full potential then no team in the NFL can beat us. But they haven't demonstrated that kind of might thus far. That could be a good thing because sooner or later they're going to get it together. If the defense forces a couple of turnovers and doesn't allow the big forty yard run, then we walk away two games ahead of those bastards and the Ravens will become our next focus.
It's time to prove that the Bengals are the class of the division, the conference, and the league. We can only beat ourselves. Focus, concentration, and execution.
Pittsburgh
24-21 (it's tough to type that out)
MK - the playmaking ape
Week 3 Recap
28 Sep 2006
Week 3 recap
Category: Sports
I realize this is knda like old news but I've been busy. I'll have the Week 4 preview tomorrow, dont worry. I just have to keep things in order.
Week 3 Recap
We all saw it. The Bengals played poorly and still pulled it off against an overhyped Steeler team. Can we say we've played a good team yet? Rothlesberger has never been all that spectacular of a quaterback. Yes his QB rating has been very good. Yes he won a Super Bowl. And yes he doesn't typically make poor decisions. But couldn't we be talking about Trent Dilfer during the Ravens Super Bowl season. He has always looked a little shaky versus the Bengals and has never been the difference in a Steeler win against us. Then he creates excuses for his picks. What a leader.
Housh is, in Carson's favorite words, phenomenal. He impacts our offense more than Chad. Henry is improving every week even if he does continue to make an ass of himself elsewhere. I'd like to see a better effort from our verterans along the O-line. Times are a little tough for those guys thanks to injuries, so it's up to Willie, Bobby, and Steinbach to show the younger guys how to get it done when the team needs you to. I realize they were facing the big brained Dick and his insane 3-4 blitz schemes, but we re-upped our lineman to some big contracts and that shit had better payoff with three sacks or fewer in a game. Carson needs to get rid of the ball sooner too. I know he's more concerned about throwing a pick than taking a sack, but tuck the ball if you're settling for a sack.
Defensively I like our secondary, but I'm concerned with our lack of pressure when Bresnahan calls his blitzes. Almost all our sacks have either been coverage sacks or our ends outplaying opposing tackles. Tackling overall has been pretty good and I thought Kaesvaharn played pretty damn well too. Linebackers failed to pop Willie Parker a few times and couldn't get outside fast enough to slow his momentum down and cut off the seams.
Kenny Watson played well on special teams.
The best part is, is that those obnoxious Steeler hatemonger fans can finally shut the fuck up. Either sit there quietly and take the abuse for wearing your Big Ben jersey around my city, or just leave altogether. Bitches.
Mojokong - Shittsburgh
Week 3 recap
Category: Sports
I realize this is knda like old news but I've been busy. I'll have the Week 4 preview tomorrow, dont worry. I just have to keep things in order.
Week 3 Recap
We all saw it. The Bengals played poorly and still pulled it off against an overhyped Steeler team. Can we say we've played a good team yet? Rothlesberger has never been all that spectacular of a quaterback. Yes his QB rating has been very good. Yes he won a Super Bowl. And yes he doesn't typically make poor decisions. But couldn't we be talking about Trent Dilfer during the Ravens Super Bowl season. He has always looked a little shaky versus the Bengals and has never been the difference in a Steeler win against us. Then he creates excuses for his picks. What a leader.
Housh is, in Carson's favorite words, phenomenal. He impacts our offense more than Chad. Henry is improving every week even if he does continue to make an ass of himself elsewhere. I'd like to see a better effort from our verterans along the O-line. Times are a little tough for those guys thanks to injuries, so it's up to Willie, Bobby, and Steinbach to show the younger guys how to get it done when the team needs you to. I realize they were facing the big brained Dick and his insane 3-4 blitz schemes, but we re-upped our lineman to some big contracts and that shit had better payoff with three sacks or fewer in a game. Carson needs to get rid of the ball sooner too. I know he's more concerned about throwing a pick than taking a sack, but tuck the ball if you're settling for a sack.
Defensively I like our secondary, but I'm concerned with our lack of pressure when Bresnahan calls his blitzes. Almost all our sacks have either been coverage sacks or our ends outplaying opposing tackles. Tackling overall has been pretty good and I thought Kaesvaharn played pretty damn well too. Linebackers failed to pop Willie Parker a few times and couldn't get outside fast enough to slow his momentum down and cut off the seams.
Kenny Watson played well on special teams.
The best part is, is that those obnoxious Steeler hatemonger fans can finally shut the fuck up. Either sit there quietly and take the abuse for wearing your Big Ben jersey around my city, or just leave altogether. Bitches.
Mojokong - Shittsburgh
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