Bengals

[Guest Mad Dog]

So far the Bengals have signed Kevin Hardy, John Thorton, Carl Powell and Tory James.

 

Did Mike Brown actually let Lewis sign some defensive players? I mean that's a vast improvement to several spots. It also makes losing Spikes hurt less.

 

I don't think that they should draft Palmer though. I think they should draft another defensive player because Kitna's good enough.

[Guest starvenger]

It can't be bad because you can't lose games in the offseason...

[Guest kkktookmybabyaway]

LOL -- I wouldn't be planning those playoff tailgate parties just yet. And it's not like the Bengals can get any worse. They'll be better next season, but how better?..

[Guest Choken One]

I am feeling "it" that Lewis is being forced to sign Palmer but Brown has let Lewis sign these guys.

 

However, I am still expecting Dallas/Wash to trade a CB/ Linesmen for our spot...

[Guest converge241]

bengals have great players and they were much better on paper than their record indicated

 

i think they were better than a few teams last year

 

they need another recieveing threat to compliment johnson but of out the common current maligned nfl teams i think they have a better shot of making playoffs .im talking better than like the Panthers, Texans (who are building slow), Detroit, Chicago, Arizona, Jacksonville, Redskins

[Rob E Dangerously 0]

wait a minute.. I also got Kevin Hardy for my Bengals team..

 

mmmm..

 

odd

[Guest bps "The Truth" 21]

From what I hear Marvin Lewis has been given a huge amount of control over the team, especuialy for a first time coach.

 

It's his ball to run with.

 

I think he's going to get this team into the playoffs within 2 years.

[Guest kkktookmybabyaway]

"wait a minute.. I also got Kevin Hardy for my Bengals team.."

 

That's to replace Spikes, who left for Buffalo...

[Guest redbaron51]

if Cinncinati can get 5 wins in ONE year, then I declare them the most improve team of the year

[Guest Choken One]

Shit dude They had 6 two years ago and with less talent then what they got coming for 2003....They can easily get 7 with good motivation and 4th quarter exucution. Do you realize how many Games Bengals took to the final minute?

[Guest Mad Dog]

I think if the team plays well they could 6-10.

 

Then if the team gets the right pieces in 04 they could be looking at an 8-8 record.

[Guest Crazy Dan]

I thought it was funny when Jim Rome was pulling for perfection in the lost column. He mentioned how the Bengals would snatch defeat from the hands of victory. He was really disappointed when the Bengals finally won a game, because it killed his dream of an 0-16 season.

 

All kidding aside, the Bengals defiantely have the talent. But every year something goes wrong. If I was the Bengals, I would not draft Palmer, as their past history shows that any QB they take with their first pick turns out to be a bust. I like the idea of drafting a defensive player. Or they should trade down for more picks and avoid the first round QB curse which has stricken the Bengals.

 

And this was a franchise which was good in the eighties. Two Super Bowl appearances is nothing to scoff at, even though they ran into the goal line stand and the Drive in both of their appearances. So they did know how to win. Unfortuantely the nineties saw them lose the knowlege of winning.

Lewis is definately a good coach, so maybe that is what the Bengals need to at least win some games and then build towards getting to the playoffs.

[Guest Still Fly]

The Bengals should take Palmer, he proved that he was the best in the nation by routing Iowa in the Orange Bowl. Carson will be a good QB in the NFL. He needs good veteran teaching and hopefully Kitna can somehow provide that.

 

Bengal fans definitely have a reason to be somewhat exictied. A brand new head coach that drew up one of the best defenses in league history. Also a head coach with much control over the situation. New players, a good young core and a first pick.

[Guest AlwaysPissedOff]

Come on now... Palmer was playing against Iowa and the Hawkeye's defense was pretty bleh the entire season. The guy's only had one consistantly good season his entiore college career. That's a chance I wouldn't really want to take, so they probably should either trade down or go defense and let Kitna run the team.

[Guest Still Fly]

Not true APO, Carson was brillant his freshman year. The problem with Carson is that USC went through 2 coachs and bunches of Offensive Coaches. He pretty much had different coaches his whole college carrer. Always changing offenses never helps a qb.

 

Carson Palmer torched some pretty good defenses as well. Norte Dame, Oregon, Colorado just to name a few. He also went 10-2 playing the hardest schelduel in the nation. The guy is no fluke. He wasnt the Heisman winner playing powderpuffs (Im looking at you Miami)

 

I would take Palmer. Its a pretty good gamble. If he doesnt pan out you would have Kitna.

[Guest Flyboy]

Fuck Palmer.

 

Anyhow, the Bengals do not need Palmer. They have Kitna and he's just fine. They should trade their first round draft pick or just draft a great rookie defensive player to replace Spikes.

[Guest Mad Dog]

I think if they traded it to the Redskins for Champ Bailey and their No.1 I'd be very pleased.

[Guest Human Fly]

I think if they traded it to the Redskins for Champ Bailey and their No.1 I'd be very pleased.

That would be great, but the Redskins aren't going to do that.

 

It's all good to say that they should trade their pick, and they should, but the problem is that no one wants it. No one likes Palmer enough to trade up and pay him #1 pick money.

[Guest Flyboy]

That's why the Bengals should shock the World and pick someone like Stuggs with their #1 pick since they don't need a quarterback.

[Guest El Satanico]

Actually...the Bengals drafting Suggs wouldn't be that much of a surprise.

 

Everyone will chuckle at them drafting a RB in the first when they have Corey Dillon and say "they pulled a cincinnati".

[Guest MarvinisaLunatic]

See, I could see trading Champ Bailey to Cincy for a #1. Snyder is an idiot enough to want to do something that stupid. Bailey is one of the best CBs in the NFL. But hey, the Skins just let one of the best RBs in the NFL go away scott free so that really doesnt matter.

 

Given time (2-3 years) I could see the Bengals breaking even at .500, but they aren't going to turn it around overnight.

[Guest El Satanico]

Actually the Bengals are the type of team that COULD turn it around over night.

 

They aren't an amazingly talented team, but teams don't have to be amazing to have a .500 or better record. Bengals have enough talent that if they can get just a little luck to go their way for once they could make a quick turn around and become a respectable team.

 

Good motivation and alittle bit of luck when it comes to this years draft and player production would make a big difference for the Bengals and could turn them into winners this season. When I say winners I don't mean they will make the playoffs, just that they'd have a winning record.

 

 

However as we all know...something goes wrong for them every year and potential turns into the curse striking back.

[Guest kkktookmybabyaway]

"See, I could see trading Champ Bailey to Cincy for a #1. Snyder is an idiot enough to want to do something that stupid. Bailey is one of the best CBs in the NFL. But hey, the Skins just let one of the best RBs in the NFL go away scott free so that really doesnt matter."

 

LOL -- I've been telling people the same thing. Trade the pick away for Champ. I'd be impressed if Cincy was able to pull this off...

[Guest converge241]

bengals article from espn

 

Makeover gives Bengals

hope for rebirth

by Darrell Trimble

Send an Email to Darrell Trimble

 

 

Also Below: Pace isn't worth what he's asking for | Falcons' signing of Williams leaves cornerback crop thin | Peep Show

 

NFL Rumors: Vikings talking to Jeff George

 

Offseason Needs: AFC East

 

 

 

 

 

For the entire decade of the 1990s, the Cincinnati Bengals were the equivalent of the United Nations -- a collection of pushovers who were shown no respect. Their reputation as the worst franchise in professional football was well earned thanks to a collection of losing seasons, poor drafts and mismanagement by a frugal owner.

 

But that was the old Bengals. Now, the Bengals are hoping to renew a strong football tradition started by NFL legend Paul Brown. And though they're a long way from regaining their former glory, the Bengals are moving closer to respectability thanks to an offseason that has seen them begin to change their image.

 

Things started off with the hiring of new coach Marvin Lewis. Perhaps no move sent a greater message that the paradigm was shifting in the Queen City. Prior to the team's hiring of Lewis, the Bengals had never even interviewed a minority candidate for so much as a coordinator's position. And in a city that has long suffered from racial tension, the move was progressive.

 

Not that Lewis wasn't deserving of the shot; he had paid his dues and had nothing more to prove as a defensive coordinator. But it was more than just racially progressive. The Bengals hadn't signed a coach who other teams coveted since they hired Paul Brown as their first ever head coach.

 

The status quo was in further upheaval when owner and control freak Mike Brown decided to give Lewis more power than any of the other head coaches under his watch. That followed with the expansion of the league's smallest run scouting department. The team added the highly respected Bill Tobin as a consultant. It's the first time in team history the Bengals have gone outside the organization and hired someone with Tobin's NFL credentials for the scouting department.

 

To continue rehabilitating their image as cheapskates, the Bengals signed several free agents to big contracts. The Bengals parted ways with Takeo Spikes, but brought in Kevin Hardy to replace him. The team also signed defensive tackle John Thornton and cornerback Tory James to significant deals, giving the defense three new starters. But it also marked a little seen scenario -- players actually choosing the Bengals over other teams.

 

And the biggest sign that the corporate culture has done a 180 is the recent news that the Bengals actually willfully found a creative way to give quarterback Jon Kitna a $1.625 million playing-time bonus.

 

Kinta finished last season six snaps short of reaching the 80 percent plateau needed to reach the incentive, and a day after the season finale, Brown said, "If he gets it, he gets it. If he doesn't get it, he doesn't get it."

 

But according to the Cincinnati Enquirer, the Bengals contacted the NFL office and were given the discretion to credit Kitna for a pair of two-point conversions he participated in. In turn, the team chose not to increase the number of offensive plays. That equation gave Kitna 844 of 1,054, good for 80.076 percent.

 

That was likely a reward for finishing 2002 on a hot streak. Though his play in the last two games of the season wasn't memorable, over the last 10 contests Kitna completed 62 percent of his passes and had a quarterback passer rating of 86.7.

 

So while it still may be true that a leopard never changes his spots, the Bengals have proved that sometimes a tiger can change his stripes.