SB Nation - Dennis Roland

Bengals lose to Vikings 30-10, but do a great impression of a UFL team in the process.

A Pragmatic Bengals Fan — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 04:36:27 -0000

Yep, that's about the expression I had on my face most of the afternoon too, Carson. (AP Photo/Andy King)

I said it weeks ago. Many of us said it. The words were received in some circles and less so in others, arguments were made. There were folk who said that ugly games are the team's bread and butter in 2009, that our defense was good enough to stop any offense in the league. The Kool-Aid was flowing freely in Bengal Nation.

I even took a sip here and there; I even took a healthy swig on a few occasions.

I tried to emphasize three or four weeks ago however that unless the passing game got on track, the Bengals were going to find themselves on the short end of the stick. I was concerned.

I am now alarmingly concerned. Is there any among us who thought today at four o'clock that this team was still going to make a Super Bowl run? I mean is there anyone out there who really seriously thinks that?

DISCLAIMER: I won't be talking much if at all about the defense, because as usual I find myself very satisfied with the way they performed today. Some missed tackles hurt them and they gave up a lot of points at the end of the game when they were physically exhausted. Being on the field for nearly the entire second half will do that to a defense. Jonathan Joseph and Hall played lights out yet again and for the majority of the game the Favres were held largely in check. Consider that my pat on the back for the Bengals today.

The game started pretty well, if by started you mean "Quan Cosby did a good job catching the kickoff." There was a penalty on the kickoff return. Then Dennis Roland promptly false started, sending the team back another five yards.

Before Carson Palmer even had a chance to hand the ball off or pick a receiver to whom to throw, he had walked fifteen yards backward. The team (primarily the offense) gave up yet another near football field's worth of penalty yards. At the conclusion of the first quarter they had more yards in penalties (25) than they had yards on offense (15).

The defense was able to keep up with a Percy Harvin-less Vikings Offense for two quarters. Going into halftime the score was 16-7 after one masterful drive by the Bengals offense drew within three of the Vikings only to give up successive field goals to end the half. The score should have been even closer than that, which typically falls right into the wheelhouse of the 2009 Bengals. Well, it fell into the wheelhouse of the early 2009 Bengals who scored all of their points in the second half. It doesn't suit the latter 2009 Bengals who have gone six straight second halves of games without an offensive touchdown.

I said it weeks ago and I'll say it once more. Something drastic needs to change, or these Bengals will be a one-and-done story in the 2009 NFL Playoffs. Once again, if you watched today's game it's going to be awfully hard for you to argue with that. As a matter of fact, unless the Chicago Bears beat the Baltimore Ravens next week it'll take until week sixteen for our guys to clinch the AFC North. If the team that played today comes out in a similar manner (and how could you expect any different at this point), there's absolutely no way they travel to San Diego next week and return to Cincinnati with a win.

They absolutely need to find a way to put points on the board. It's fantastic that they can run Cedric Benson all over any team. Really, they can. Had they not gotten themselves down by three scores late I'm certain that Benson would have carried once or twice more and gotten his 100 on the Vikings' defense today. As opposed to the 36 carries he took to get to 110 yards last week, he had 96 on 16 carries today for a nice little YPC average of 6. Yes, that 42-yarder helped.

All of that is completely irrelevant however if they can't put the ball into the painted area known as the "end zone." Whereas the Bengals held the ball for sig-ni-fic-ant-ly longer than their opponents the past three weeks, today the Bengals' defense was on the field for five minutes longer than their offense. Boy, did it show. By the end of the game our boys were completely gassed. Do you know what would help that?

More drives like that thing of beauty that happened in the second quarter.

Thing is, I no longer have any modicum of confidence that those drives are likely to happen more than once every game or two. Unless the Bengals can show me something next weekend (which I am loath to anticipate), I don't expect to see any of those Cardiac Cats-type drives in the fourth quarter to win a game for us, folks.

The procedural penalties keep piling up. Seriously, are they getting close to record territory yet? It seems like it's every bit as bad each week as it was the week previous.

There is nobody on the field that Carson Palmer trusts at this point to catch the football or run the correct route but Chad Ochocinco. Therefore he is seeing near-constant double and triple coverage. How bad are the other receivers on the field that they can't get open enough that we're still throwing the ball to Dan Coats? Oh, hey Dan. Good job making a couple of catches today. You made me smile. For a second.

Okay, I think I'm done ranting for now. Maybe I'll finish up later.

The good news? Our favorite football team is 9-4. I fully expect an 11-5 record at the conclusion of week 17, I really do. I'm not so concerned about getting to the playoffs at this point.

This team will make the playoffs for the second time since 1990. You can pretty much take that to the bank. You know what? I'm damn proud of them for that. I really am. For a team to go from 4-11-1 to 9-4 in a year (I can't remember the specifics, but our Bengals matched the greatest turnaround in the history of the NFL this year in regards to record through the first ten or twelve games).

I am very proud to call myself a Bengals fan, for the second time since I was nine years old.

The only problem? It's not enough anymore. I'm not a Bengals homer that is happy with the fact that we'll make an appearance on a football field the second Sunday in January.

I'm concerned because I'm pretty sure at this point that our boys will be able to make their vacation plans after that.

Listen, I could be wrong and I really, really hope that I am. I really do. All I'm saying is that unless some very serious issues (no deep threat other than Ocho who can't stretch the field like he did four years ago, Carson's accuracy and happy feet, pass protection issues, ALL THE FREAKING PENALTIES, etc, etc etc.) are resolved and soon, this is a one-and-done playoff team again.

I should be happy with that, I know. But I'm not.

Be a better team against elite competition next week and prove me wrong, boys. I'm proud of you, but you've got me wanting more. Really it's your fault for looking so good most of the year.

In the words of someone who knows an awful lot more about football than I would ever pretend to know, fix it. Reach down inside and be a ***ing pro.

A Pragmatic Bengals Fan

Five Good Questions with Cincy Jungle

Gonzo — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 14:58:28 -0000

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, the moment you've all been waiting for. . .the return of Five Good Questions! (We had actually set something like this up with the folks at Revenge of the Birds this past weekend, but real life kept interfering and prevented it from taking place.) However, this week I got to exchange some questions with Josh Kirkendall, the head man over at SBNation's Cincinnati Bengals' blog, Cincy Jungle. I know there's already an "Ask a Norseman" FanPost over there, courtesy of Grime (thank you very much), but I had a chance to exchange a few questions with CJ as well.

So, here are the questions I sent Josh's way. . .and the questions that Josh sent me for answering are now available right here. And away we go!

1) The Bengals have been one of the NFL’s surprise teams this season. Going into the season, did you think that the team had this sort of potential, and what part of the team has been the biggest surprise to you?

This is always a tough question, not because I don’t know the answer; rather there are so many variables that combined into making this team the most improved through 12 games in NFL history. But the biggest surprise has been the Bengals offensive line. Bobbie Williams was the only returning starting lineman that played the same position he played in 2008. Two starters were undrafted free agents a few years back and were molded while on the team’s practice squad. A third undrafted free agent, Dennis Roland, rotates with Anthony Collins and Andre Smith at right tackle as well as plays tight end during jumbo formations where the Bengals sometimes have four offensive tackles on the line

With so many changes, you wouldn’t expect the Bengals to have a rushing offense with three running backs who have combined for seven 100-yard rushing games and in the top-ten for least amount of quarterback sacks allowed. Bar far, the improved offensive line has gone a long way to from taking a last ranked offense in 2008 to one of consistency and stability in 2009.

2) You can’t talk about the Bengals without talking about Chad Ochocinco, who has already declared that when (not if) he scores this week, he’s going to get the Vikings’ mascot involved in the celebration. As a Bengal fan, what do you think of Eight Five’s antics and how does the fan base at large feel about them?

Bengals fans have a give and take relationship with Chad. Most of us just laugh and move on. Nothing he’s done this year has negatively impacted the Bengals and most players in this league realize that Chad is a jokester. As a fan, I stopped taking his antics seriously long ago and found myself enjoying them more than anything; he’s a far better player when he’s having fun and honestly, if he scores touchdowns, I don’t care what he does. Yea, it would be nice if he confirmed to the old school frame of mind. But that’s not the reality. So you take what you can and when he scores touchdowns, you just let his other antics be. Compared to other players whose antics involve the law, Chad’s are trivial at best.

3) Ever since blowing out the Bears and going on their bye week, the Bengal offense has appeared to be a bit out of sorts. What do you chalk this up to, and what do you think they’ll try to do against the Vikings to get the offense back on the right track?

Offensively, they’ve moved the football. Cincinnati’s offense has recorded 300 yards or more of offense in five of their past six games. But obviously, yardage isn’t translating to points. The red zone production is clearly down. Since scoring six touchdowns in seven red zone appearances against the Bears, the Bengals have scored five touchdowns in 16 red zone appearances in the five games since.

I think a lot of that has to do with broken pass protection schemes. I said earlier the unit that’s surprised me the most is the Bengals offensive line. However, they’ve struggled as of late giving Palmer a padded pocket. As a result, Palmer is being hit as, or after, he throws the football, often causing him to rush his throws or to just leave the pocket altogether.

Cincinnati is moving the football just fine, but we haven’t finished drives. And they could be looking to do that this weekend against the Vikings. Against a defense strong against the rush, the Bengals could gameplan an offense that stretches the field. However, we thought that against the Lions, Browns and Raiders and Palmer is still on a streak of not throwing for 300 yards or more in 16 straight games.

4) Who is a member of the Bengals that most Viking fans probably haven’t heard of that will have an impact on the outcome of this Sunday’s game?

Jonathan Fanene. He’s a defensive end that rotates some as a defensive tackle during third-and-long situations. He’s the guy that replaced Antwan Odom earlier in the year as one of the primary pass rushers. He only has five sacks, but one hell of a motor. Last week, rookie Michael Johnson tipped a Matthew Stafford pass at the line of scrimmage that fell into Fanene’s hands, scoring a touchdown. I would also keep your eye on rookie punter Kevin Huber. He can turn the field position game with just one kick from nearly anywhere on the field.

5) What are the keys for the Bengals this Sunday, and how do you see this game playing out?

It would seem to me that both teams have a point to make Sunday. After 12 games, the Bengals have only beaten one team that a winning record at this point (the Packers). Cincinnati needs to see how they stack up against one of the best teams in the NFL. The Vikings, it would seem to me, are in a similar boat, after losing by 13 to the Cardinals.

With both teams sporting a good rushing offense and a great rushing defense, this game is going to end with bloody noses. This is going to be a physical game, and that’s the way that Cincinnati needs it to go to beat the Vikings.

Thanks to Josh for taking the time to answer these questions. We'll have more as the day goes by, so stay tuned!

Bengals Banter: Should the Bengals go pass happy against the Vikings?

Kirkendall — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 16:17:42 -0000

Should the Bengals attack the Vikings through the air this weekend? It's not exactly a state secret that the Cincinnati Bengals decided to follow the same model that two successful AFC North teams have used in their own respective successes. Effective rushing offense. Strong defense. So when the Bengals rush the football more than they ever have on a Marvin Lewis team, is the question about balance all that necessary? Then again, what do you mean by balance? Do you mean yardage? Do you mean play calling?

The Bengals offense has rushed the football 51.2% of the time, while passing 49.7% of their 793 offensive snaps. Though, I feel you while your argument starts simmering about predictability. This isn't a Bob Bratkowski bash-fest.

But my primary question is, what philosophy is working best this year? The combined winning percentage of the top ten teams that have passed the most through 12 games this year, is 0.675 (81-39). The combined winning percentage of the top ten teams that have rushed the football the most this year is 0.625 (75-45).

The next question. With Cincinnati heading to the comforts of a warm dome in Minnesota, should the Bengals go from a rush-heavy offense to a pass-happy offense? The Vikings have one of the best tackle combinations in the league, which limits opposing offenses to 84.2 yards rushing per game -- third in the NFL -- with only three touchdowns rushing allowed all season. On the other hand, the Vikings are middle of the pack against the pass. They're passing defense ranks 21st, allowing 18 touchdowns this season with an opposing quarterback rating of 91.2. But they also sport the league's best pass rush, sacking the quarterback 40 times this season.

So if you're the Cincinnati Bengals' offensive coordinator? Would you game plan a passing attack? Keep the status quo and pound the football until the Viking stop you? Or would you do your best to have a balanced attack?

Bengals should have an indoor facility. There's some raising the issue that the Cincinnati Bengals are unnecessarily traveling to Mason during inclement weather to practice indoors. Joe Reedy writes, "It also throws another unnecessary wrinkle into the preparation for Sunday's contest at 10-2 Minnesota. Instead of having the extra time to watch film or refine game plans to face Brett Favre and company, the team spent at least 90 minutes going to and from Mason."

You mean to tell me that the only place that the Bengals can practice indoors in the entire Cincinnati region is all the way in Mason -- like we're taking a bus ride to Rhode Island?

Paul Daugherty wrote, "The Bengals had to practice in Mason, because they dont have a bubble. You know M. Lewis was steamed about that. The public will not tax itself to pay for it, and you can bet The Family isn't likely to open its vault. The Men lose an hour and a half every time they have to get on the bus. The Family's business is football. Not winning football. Never forget that."

Palmer says: "It’s a pain. It’s a drag, but it is what it is," quarterback Carson Palmer said. "Just sitting on the freeway for 45 minutes or an hour – we’ve actually sat on the busses for a couple hours one year because of the snow. It’s the situation we’re in."

I have no doubt that the Bengals SHOULD have an indoor facility for days like today and for preparation in games that will be played indoors. I don't know a single person that doesn't support the Bengals building an indoor facility. Really, there's no better way of saying it then the Bengals should have one.

But god forbid that people have to travel 25 minutes during inclement weather on the highway which has been totally clear during our snowy days this week. I'll play my little violin mp3 during my 40 minute one-way commute. And considering I have no reason to believe that the Bengals are spending their entire waking hours watching film, I'm sure the commute to and from Mason is easily packed into their working day.

But in the end, yes, the Bengals need to join the ranks of other teams with an indoor facility. It just makes too much sense.

Moving on...

Did you know that Carson Palmer is the best passer in the NFL on third and long? It's true. Of the 52 pass attempts he's made on third and longer-then-eight, Palmer has recorded 25 first down passes. That's nine percentage points over second place Tony Romo.

James Walker asks the question, are the Bengals elite? Scouts Inc.'s Matt Williamson doesn't think so. Why?

Williamson believes the Bengals have several holes that could be costly when they meet elite competition down the stretch. The two most glaring weaknesses Williamson points to are the Bengals' lack of depth at cornerback and their unwillingness to throw deep on offense.

We meant to do this earlier in the week. WhoDeyFans is having a gathering at Bar 71 this weekend for the Viking and Bengals game to "partake in dollar beers, cheap wings and great burgers". All Bengals fans are welcome.

Chad: "They’ll keep jacking up the fines, I’ll keep jacking up the celebrations." Should there be a worry that the NFL could suspend Chad if they finally discover that fines haven't really ever worked?

Domata Peko: "I’ll be fine. I’m feeling good. I wish I could have played these two games (against the Vikings and Chargers). These are big games, with the big running backs they have."

John Thornton weighs in on the rotating right tackle, saying "the Bengals should settle in on a guy and roll with it."

Reader smoormaniddy points out Sports Illustrated's Ross Tucker's piece about how the Bengals used the practice squad.

What you didn't know is that three of the linemen who have started at least five games up front for the Bengals are veterans of the practice squad, including two who have spent multiple seasons on what used to be referred to as the taxi squad. Center Kyle Cook, left guard Nate Livings and right tackle Dennis Roland have earned their playing time the hard way and they play like it.

Mike Zimmer on Bengals rookies: "I’ve played a lot of rookies before, but never this many on a team that was good."

Notes from first post...

Listed below is the top ten quarterbacks ranked by passing attempts and their team's record.

Quarterback	Attempts	Rating	Team	Record
Peyton Manning	460	101.9	Colts	12-0
Tom Brady	458	96.9	Patriots	7-5
Matt Schaub	434	97.2	Texans	5-7
Jay Cutler	421	75.3	Bears	5-7
Aaron Rodgers	420	103.3	Packers	8-4
Tony Romo	414	96.3	Cowboys	8-4
Joe Flacco	406	84.6	Ravens	6-6
Kurt Warner	404	97.0	Cardinals	8-4
Brett Favre	403	108.5	Vikings	10-2
Drew Brees	392	111.3	Saints	12-0
				81-39

Rushing offenses

Teams	Attempts	Yards	Record
New York Jets	432	2,023	6-6
Cincinnati Bengals	406	1,607	9-3
Miami Dolphins	398	1,805	6-6
Carolina Panthers	378	1,823	5-7
New Orleans Saints	374	1,711	12-0
Tennessee Titans	372	1,989	5-7
Minnesota Vikings	351	1,483	10-2
New York Giants	351	1,495	7-5
Denver Broncos	342	1,507	8-4
Jacksonville Jaguars	339	1,356	7-5
			75-45

Six-Pack of Hu-Dey: Time for a new contract extension for Marvin Lewis?

Kirkendall — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 17:11:27 -0000

Welcome to this week's Six-Pack of Hu-Dey. Today Jay McDonnell joins us. I (Josh Kirkendall, the Alpha Male) discusses why the Bengals should give Marvin Lewis a contract extension, why Leon Hall should be grouped with the league's elite cornerbacks and I ask whether the team's three-tackle rotation at right tackle should be changed.

Jay says that it's time to cut Daniel Coats, that it's time for Bob Bratkowski to become less predictable and that fans of our divisional foes (ah hum, the Steelers) should give a little respect to the Bengals this season.

Let's get to it.

The Bengals give Marvin Lewis another contract extension after this season. I believe in two things. If the moon had never existed, the complex living organisms that exist today simply don't exist either. I also believe that Marvin Lewis has developed a talent rebuilding teams. Theoretically, it would be nice that rebuilding projects were spaced out more with the Bengals and that the train keeps rolling year, after year, after year. Realistically, even organizations that pump out winners like the Patriots or the St... St... St... Steelers need periods to rebuild themselves. Marvin Lewis is now in his seventh season, finishing his second rebuilding project. This, just perhaps, could be his masterpiece.

After going 1-11-1 in 2008, the Bengals have remarkably won 13 of their next 16 games. These changes include, but are far from being limited to, a deep understanding of the team's personnel. Most notably, Lewis revised the team's entire philosophy to a powerful rush offense and a tremendously performing defense. This will be his second rebuilding project after taking on a team that was 2-12 in 2002 and delivering four straight non-losing seasons and a playoff appearance in 2005.

I really believe that Lewis, like any NFL player, is getting better every season. I'm not just talking about his record either. Controversy is being handled with ease. Adversity is a distant thing of the bitter past with this team. Even his draft picks are improving. And when the team is down and out (ala, 2008), they unified and matured like we've never seen, into this group that we're damned proud of in 2009.

Lewis' existing contract expires after the 2010 season -- the same time the CBA expires, which may be a factor in NOT giving him an extension. The Bengals' biggest mistake would be letting two people leave Cincinnati, namely Mike Zimmer and Marvin Lewis. Lewis could arguably be the most important of the two. After all, he's the face of this franchise.

Is it time to for Andre Smith to get his first start or is the three-tackle rotation working? Okay, I get it. Why mess with chemistry? Let's read into the facts. The Bengals are 9-3, sport the league's sixth best rushing offense and have allowed only 22 sacks (which is tied for eight-best in the league). Quite honestly, the Bengals offensive line is the most improved unit, of any unit, on this team. They deserve tremendous credit for the team's transition into one of the best AFC teams that's dismantled both teams that played in the 2008 AFC Championship game. Personal note: I still like writing that.

One of those success stories on the line is Dennis Roland, who has come from undrafted free agent, to starting right tackle, to the biggest guy in human history to go into motion causing safeties and outside linebackers to say under their breath, "oh f**k." Also, in truth, Roland is an accomplished run blocker, if not one of the better run blockers on this team.

But where he's strong with the rushing offense, he's weak in pass protection. At times he appears slow against defensive ends with a quick inside step. This also leads to the lack of communication or awareness when a stunt brings an outside linebacker or safety on a blitz. Slowly Anthony Collins has quietly won more playing time, especially on passing downs.

From our understanding, Andre Smith's playing time is growing. They started him slowly with basic packages and plays. As they expand the playbook for Smith, he'll keep experiencing an increase in playing time. Cincinnati's use of the jumbo packages (putting three, sometimes four offensive tackles on the line) has led to Cedric Benson's best rushing this year. Whatever the Bengals are doing with the offensive line, it's working.

So the question is should the Bengals keep doing what they're doing, or should they give Andre Smith his first NFL start soon?

Should the national media put Leon Hall in the same class as Darrelle Revis? The other day I had a healthy helping of Hamburger Helper that did a Flozell Adams on my stomach. With an older copy of ESPN shouting "hey, I'll help you kill some time," I flipped to an NFL report. Like it was destiny, I kid you not. One of those reports called Leon Hall "the irreplaceable cornerback". Look at the numbers of the receivers that he's shutdown.

Week	Receiver	Att	Comp	Yrds	TD	YPA
1	Brandon Marshall	2	0	0	0	0
2	Greg Jennings	4	0	0	0	0
3	Santonio Holmes	3	1	18	0	6.0
4	Braylon Edwards	1	0	0	0	0
5/9	Derrick Mason	4	1	12	0	3.0
6	Andre Johnson	6	4	39	0	6.5
7	Devin Hester	3	2	28	0	9.3

As I said, it was an older copy so that's where the list ends. We could go on and presume that Hall is strictly covering the opposing team's best wide receiver, but that would be factually incorrect. Leon Hall mostly lines up on the left and the opposing offenses can shift wide receivers anywhere on the field. Furthermore, when the Bengals call zone, he's not always covering a receiver; rather a specific area on the field. However, we do know that in the past four games against the Steelers, Raiders, Browns and Lions, only two receivers gained 80 yards receiving or more (Santonio Holmes with 88 yards and Calvin Johnson with 123 yards).

The Jets' Darrelle Revis is widely considered the best cover cornerback in the league. He leads everyone with 28 passes defensed with five interceptions. Hall is second with 22 passes defensed and four interceptions. At the rate that Leon Hall is shutting down opposing wide receivers he should without a doubt be considered in the elite group of cornerbacks in the league.

Want to know the most scary part? Johnathan Joseph could theoretically be in the same elite group. Third in the league with 21 passes defensed and five interceptions, Joseph is developing a nasty habit of being one hell of a tackling cornerback -- kind of in the league of Charles Woodson. Well, close to it at least.

Would it be a stretch to say that the Bengals have the league's best cornerback duo?

A decision needs to be made about Daniel Coats. At the start of the season the kicking game struggled, which cost the Bengals valuable points, putting the game in doubt and forcing us to constantly check our blood pressure. When executing an extra point or a field goal, the snap was either too high or mishandled due to a bad snap causing Shayne Graham to get out of sync. This led to missed field goals or extra points, weighing heavily on the outcome of the game. So to solve the problem the Bengals released Brad St. Louis and brought in little known long snapper Clark Harris to take over these duties. This seems to have largely solved the problem with the kicking game.

At the same time another problem exists with Tight Ends not being able to catch the ball, specifically Dan Coats who has dropped more passes in the end zone than any other receiver on the team. When he does catch it, the ball is prone to squirting out only to see it recovered by the opposition. These drops and fumbles have cost the Bengals as much as Brad St. Louis ever did.

The Bengals set the standard by releasing the usually reliable St. Louis, sending a statement that poor play is not acceptable. But somehow, they see fit to hang onto a tight end that cannot catch a ball that hits him in his hands over and over again. Yes, the tight end position is thin with Ben Utecht being released and Reggie Kelly out for the season with a ruptured Achilles tendon. That however is no excuse for hanging onto a player that is extremely inconsistent and costing the team valuable points. J.P. Foschi seems to have taken on the opportunity and showed that he is not only able to block, but able to catch and hang onto passes. The precedent was set with the release of St. Louis; with Foschi showing his worth I think it is time for the Bengals to continue their message that mediocrity is not acceptable. Cut Dan Coats.

It is time for the predictable Bratkowski to become unpredictable. Despite the Bengals 9-3 record and mostly the same ingredients of an offense that once established a reputation as being an explosive offense in the past, the Bengals have only one game this season where they routed a team by more than 20 points. The defense has been the unit doing the heavy lifting while the offense seems to only do what is necessary to win the game. To some extent that is fine, until they run into an offense that is able to put up points and quickly (read: the Minnesota Vikings). There appears however to be a reason the offense has not been as explosive as first thought.

In this article published on Cincinnati.com, Bob Bratkowski acknowledges that he is “getting a little too ‘run on first down, run on second” in his play calling. Really? When did he find this out? How many of us see his play calling develop a pattern that causes teams to load eight in the box on a weekly basis? Does he not see this and want to make some kind of adjustment?

This kind of play calling makes the Bengals offense predictable allowing the opposing defense to load up the box, trying to force the Bengals to be one dimensional. But so far, teams have been unable to accomplish this on a regular basis. There is a thought process that you keep calling the same play until the defense stops it. I am not saying this should continue, but I am sure Brat does this because it works and he will probably continue to do this until someone stops it. However, since Brat has recognized this problem I hope he is able to adjust and open up the passing game showing opposing defenses that predictability is no longer an issue.

How about a little respect from our division foes? My wife and I live in an area that somehow seems to have more Pittsburgh Steeler fans then those who support the local team, the Washington Redskins. We work with several Steeler fans as well. These fans are as loyal as any. They will defend their team no matter the record and performance. But when the discussion turns to how the Bengals have surged ahead of the Steelers, they immediately run behind the 6 Super Bowl Championships and how they won two of the past four. They even cite how they qualified as a wild card team in 2005 and went on to win the Super Bowl, never mind the fact that Carson Palmer had his knee torn up by the Steelers.

The results of this season are not new to those fans; they have suffered through tough seasons following Super Bowl appearances dating back to 1996 against the Dallas Cowboys. Now that the Steelers are struggling and their fans are watching their playoff hopes fade, those fans seem to refuse to accept the fact the Bengals are the better team this season. The Steeler fans my wife and I have come across have shown a bit of arrogance and seem to expect to make the playoffs despite the heavy odds against them. With their current record of 6-6, a playoff appearance seems slim.

The Bengals have the AFC North pretty much sewn up with the magic number being one. Ask any Steeler fan though, and they will tell you how they are going to make the playoffs because of the soft schedule remaining. Well, I have some bad news for those Steeler fans that visit our fair web blog to read what we may have to say. The Steelers are not going to make the playoffs. After losing four straight games and giving up 4th quarter leads in three of those games, the vaunted defense has proved itself unable to protect a lead. This, of course, does not bode well for the defending Super Bowl Champs any chance their fans insist they still have to enter the playoff club in 2009.

Bengals Banter II: Can you sing the Who-Dey Rap?

Kirkendall — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 19:51:17 -0000

First off, a classic.

Benson has 36 carries? He doesn't care. He'll just run it down your throat... again... and again... and again. Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis followed the script as it was written in regards to the team's running backs. If Benson is healthy, Benson plays. And boy did he. If you exclude November 15, when he left early because of an injury against the Pittsburgh Steelers, the last three games that Cedric Benson has started, he's averaged 35.7 rush attempts for 138.7 yards rushing per game.

Benson broken down by quarter against Detroit
	1st	2nd	3rd	4th
Yards	13	29	35	33
Carries	7	7	10	12
Avg.	1.9	4.1	3.5	2.8
Long	4	11	9	7

But if one thought crossed your mind, I'll bet it was the same as mine. With 8:15 left in the game, Shayne Graham converted a 23-yard field goal to take a 23-7 lead. Benson had 31 carries at this point. After Tom Nelson recorded his first career interception, it seemed to make more sense putting Larry Johnson in to finish the game, especially since this being the first game Benson returns from injury. In the five rush attempts that followed, Benson picked up a combined four yards rushing.

Bengals defense just keeps getting better. With a Monday Night game to play between the Packers and Ravens, check out where the Bengals defense ranks.

	Stat	Rank
Yards Allowed	293.2	4th
Points Allowed	15.6	1st
Rushing Yards	81.8	2nd
Passing Yards	211.5	13th
3rd Downs	32.9%	1st

I'll accept that the Bengals haven't necessarily played the greatest offenses in the past three weeks, which has helped their defensive numbers. However, they've kept opposing offenses to under 100 yards rushing in eight straight games, and ten of the season's 12 games. No offense has scored more than 30 and the only team to score more than Green Bay's 24 points in week two are the Houston Texans, who scored 28 on October 18.

Furthermore, the team's pass defense keeps improving. Through the first seven games, the Bengals pass defense allowed 253.3 yards passing per game. In the five games since, they've improved that average by 100 yards. Since the team's week eight bye week, the Bengals defense has allowed 153.0 yards passing per game.

Paging Andre Caldwell, paging Andre Caldwell. You home? Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer threw a first down pass to Andre Caldwell with 6:11 left in the third quarter. This was the first, and what would be the last, time that Caldwell had a pass thrown his way on offense. This isn't really the first time he's disappeared.

Since recording six receptions for 57 yards in a 28-17 loss to the Houston Texans, Caldwell has caught 15 passes in the past six games for 125 yards receiving.

Not to kick a dead horse because kicking a dead horse actually hurts your shins. I've praised the Bengals for their newly discovered winning formula of running the football and playing great defense. But I'm also not immune or ignorant of Carson Palmer's struggles this year. Instead on harping on a quarterback that just wins football games, there's a few notable struggles that Palmer has been dealing with this year.

Palmer...

...has thrown three touchdowns and three interceptions in the past five games.
...only threw for two touchdowns in the month of November.
...has only thrown one touchdown in the second-half in the past seven games.
...hasn't thrown for 300 yards since December 30, 2007 -- a streak of 16 games.

Then again, Palmer just wins football games. I guess that's important.

In 2005, the Bengals started the season 11-3 before losing three straight against the Bills, Chiefs and Steelers in the Wild Card round of the 2005 playoffs.

All of my life, the part I've loved most about football is the trenches. For the longest time, my favorite Bengals player was Willie Anderson. So when Dennis Roland goes into motion, I have this half-baked grin on my face. What a beautiful sight.

Bengals are playing winning brand of football with powerful rushing offense and dominant defense

Kirkendall — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 17:45:57 -0000

More photos » by David Kohl - AP

16 days ago: Cincinnati Bengals linebacker Rey Maualuga holds up a sign to fans after his team defeated the Cleveland Browns 16-7 in their NFL football game in Cincinnati, Sunday, Nov. 29, 2009. (AP Photo/David Kohl)

Browse more photos »

While watching Sunday's game between the Cincinnati Bengals and Cleveland Browns, I had this feeling I've never felt before. By the second half I felt so confident that the Bengals were going to win this football game, that I stopped moaning about failed pass protection schemes or the play-calling. Oh, we're going to punt it so our defense can play? The same defense that hasn't allowed any team to gain 100 yards rushing in seven straight games? The same defense that's allowed a third down conversion rate of 22% in the three games leading up to Sunday? The same defense that's only allowed two touchdowns once in a game since losing to the Houston Texans?

Please, bring it.

There's no doubt that the offense is struggling to put up points. Since scoring 45 against the Chicago Bears, the Bengals offense has scored an average of 16.8 points per game. The ten points scored in the second quarter against the Browns is the first time the Bengals have scored double-digit points in any quarter since the 14 points in the first quarter against the Ravens on November 8. Carson Palmer went 12 quarters without throwing a touchdown pass before completing a four-yard pass to tight end J.P. Foschi in the second quarter against the Browns. Palmer's on pace to record 3,384 yards passing, which is only 500 yards more than his career low his first season as the team's starter (not including injury-filled 2008). Even then, he missed three games. His efficiency is down. His touchdowns are down. His yards-per-attempt is down (6.9).

And yet, the belief has always been that the Bengals have to rely on Palmer's arm to win. My cousin called me Sunday night and asked me, do we rely on Palmer anymore? If Palmer were to go down to injury for the season, how much would this team lose? We saw what happened last year. But as he observed, the team was built around Palmer and the passing game. It wasn't until late in the season that a Palmer-less offense started to become efficient by successfully rushing the football with a rising defense.

What if Palmer would go down this year? It would hurt, because defenses still gameplan the Bengals passing game; always a threat, always able to score from anywhere on the field. The truth is, this Bengals team is built to succeed without Palmer. This team is built to run the football. You can see that with the talent they have at running back. You can see that with an offensive line that's built to rush block first. How many Jumbo formations have we seen with at least one extra lineman? Did you see Dennis Roland going into motion against the Browns?

My point, as some may irrationally conclude, isn't anticipating an injury to Palmer. My point is that this team can win any football game, no matter who's playing. Carson Palmer is off? Well, the Bengals only have three running backs with 100-yard rushing games under their belt (how many teams can claim that?). The offense has no rhythm and can't pick up a first down? Oh, there's that defense again, who since allowing 28 points in the loss to the Houston Texans, have only allowed 11.2 points per game and, check this out, only 232.8 yards-per game.

As of this posting, the Bengals have the best scoring defense in the NFL.

I just checked that again.

The Bengals have the best scoring defense in the NFL, allowing 15.8 points per game. There's a chance that New England takes that lead after Monday Night Football. However, the Patriots will have to hold the Saints to ten points or less. Fat chance.

If this isn't the most complete team that the Bengals have fielded since the Sam Wyche era, then I'm afraid I'll never know what a complete team is. More people stand up on this team, contributing towards a winning brand of football than we've seen in ages. This team isn't built or about a single person. This isn't about how well Palmer does, or how he's supposed to put up 30 points a game. Sure, it would be nice if the offense exploded every week. What fan in this world in any sport wouldn't love that? But that's not the reality right now. They're not an explosive offense. They are an efficient offense that consumes the clock, converts third downs and wins field position.

And then there's the defense, whose scoring defense still ranks first in the NFL. I just checked again.

What do most people say about championship football? You win by running the football and stopping the run. Again, this defense hasn't allowed any team to gain 100 yards or more in seven straight games. The Bengals offense has rushed for 100 yards or more in eight of the season's 11 games. Furthermore, the Bengals rushing offense has recorded 150 yards or more five times and 200 yards or more twice.

Powerful rushing offense. Dominant defense. Isn't that championship football? If you're still not convinced, or have a Christmas list of concerns, let's go quickly gloss over some reminders. The Bengals are 8-3. The Bengals are 6-0 in the division. The Bengals have won 11 of the past 14 games. The Bengals have a three-game lead with five games left. The Bengals, as of now, would have the second seed in the playoffs, which means a bye during wild card weekend and hosting at least one home game. Furthermore, the Bengals are a fluke pass and a fumble away from being 10-1. It's that close.

Now, that is what we've been begging for for 20 years. Soak it in. Enjoy it.

Wait. You want Carson Palmer to throw more? With five games remaining, Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer is on pace to record 489 passing attempts. As disbelieving as this may sound, that's only 20 less pass attempts than he had during the 2005 season where the Bengals made the playoffs.

	2005	2009 *
Attempts	509	489
Completions	345	298
Completion %	67.8	61.0
Yards	3,836	3,384
Yards/Att	7.5	6.9
Touchdowns	32	22
Interceptions	12	11
* Projected

Admittedly, the issue isn't just Palmer, if one can even make that assessment. No. It's all the parts. It's the offensive line struggling on stunts and blitzes on the outside. It's receivers not catching passes, or penalties that negate 15-20 yard passing plays because someone was flagged for offensive holding.

Take Sunday's game. On the Bengals first play of the game, the situation is first-and-ten at their own 20-yard line. The offense lines up off-set I with Daniel Coats motioning right. Cleveland brings their front three with eight sitting in coverage. Andrew Whitworth latched onto Robaire Smith, who took an outside step while the left tackle was clipped by Bernard Scott going into his route, knocking Smith free. Palmer, barely completing a five-yard pass to Laveranues Coles, was knocked down by Smith. A few Bernard Scott runs and a first down later, the offense lines up off-set I, strong side left. Kamerion Wimbley lines up at left outside linebacker over Dennis Roland. Wimbley took an inside slant on Roland who clearly lost the battle within the first two steps. Bernard Scott tried to help, but in his mind, he had his own blitzer to worry about in Mike Adams. Wimbley tackled Palmer as the quarterback released the pass to Jeremi Johnson for a for a five-yard gain. Furthermore, Browns cornerback Eric Wright was called for defensive holding. First down.

Two drop backs. Twice Carson Palmer is on the ground. It wasn't that Palmer was on the ground all game -- NFL's Game Center shows he was knocked down six times. However, it shows that Palmer was pressured all game long, most of the time making throws he didn't want to make.

After Larry Johnson's consecutive first down runs (more on that later), Palmer takes the snap under center. Matt Roth sprinted from the outside linebacker spot and sacked Palmer for a four-yard loss. The problem here is miscommunication by the offensive line. Defensive end Kenyon Coleman slanted in, which caused Dennis Roland to move inward with the end. Typically, Roland should have handed Coleman off to Bobbie Williams and picked up Roth, the blitzing linebacker on the outside. Williams saw the problem and pulled out as quickly as he could from his guard position take out Roth on the edge. It was a split-second too late, as Roth sped rushed far enough that there was nothing Williams could do.

Sometimes the issue was miscommunication between Palmer and the receivers. On first-and-15 at Cleveland's 29 yard line, Palmer dropped back threw it to the right with no Bengals receiver in the picture frame. Coles' route went in while Palmer looked for Coles to go out.

But mostly, it was pressure -- whether it was really there or not.

On third-and-17 at the Browns 31-yard line, Palmer takes the shotgun snap, feels pressured on the edges and scrambles up the middle. The Browns only rushed three guys. Wimbley took a wide angle around Roland, who locked up with the defensive end six yards behind the line of scrimmage. Wimbley used his upper body strength to make continued progress -- it was like Roland really wasn't there -- showing up in Palmer's peripheral vision. That was enough for Palmer, who ran for 12 yards, finished with a terribly uncomfortable dive into the turf, setting up the game's first score of the day.

And sometimes you can only say, it was a bad throw.On third-and-five at Cleveland's 47-yard line with 14:02 left in the second quarter, Palmer takes the shotgun snap. With a great pocket, Palmer overthrows Coles, nearly picked by Brodney Poole. Bengals punt. On first-and-ten at the Bengals 34-yard line, Palmer drops back and feels pressure that wasn't there. He rushed the throw to Coles running a crossing pattern, which also fell incomplete.

And sometimes you just take the hit. With 9:12 left in the first half, the Bengals lined up first-and-ten at Cleveland's 42-yard line. Palmer faked the handoff to Larry Johnson. Dennis Roland locked up with Matt Roth, who bull-rushed Roland into the pocket. Palmer saw the pressure, moved up and sidestepped behind Roland. Kamerion Wimbley lined up at the right outside linebacker spot, latched onto Daniel Coats. Once he saw the play-action, Wimbley shrugged off Coats, readjusted to Palmer stepping up and leveled him. Palmer tried to make a throw to the left in an area without any Bengals receivers -- except for Chad Ochocinco about eight yards away. Intentional grounding. On the next play, Palmer watched defensive back Mike Adams come off the edge, unblocked. Palmer let go of the football well before he was ready, forcing a terribly underthrown football to skip to a waiting Laveranues Coles. On third-and-20, Palmer drops back. Protection was very good. He had time. However, being knocked around that much that early in the game causes one to have alarm bells violently ringing in ones head well before they should. Palmer takes off, reaching the line of scrimmage and throwing across the field to Coles in the middle of the field. Incomplete. Drive comes to a merciful end. Thank the lord. Bengals punt.

And sometimes there's nothing left to do. With 11:43 left in the third quarter, Palmer completed a third-and-six pass to Chad Ochocinco for a 15-yard gain. Wimbley came off the right side, using his speed to put Whitworth in a predicament. Either hold the hell out of the defensive end, or let him crush Carson Palmer. Whitworth held, negating a 15-yard pass and a first down. Cincinnati would punt after a six-yard screen pass to Brian Leonard.

As mostly everyone else, I would love for this offense to explode. However, sometimes you have to take what you're given. And the Bengals have been given a powerful rushing offense that's working nearly every week, whereas the passing offense is struggling mightily. So the question shouldn't be why aren't the Bengals throwing the football more. We already know why. It's because it's just not working right now and forcing it to work would be -- in the great words of Mr. Mackey -- "bad, mmmkay?"

Carson Palmer said it best after the game.

“We came in with the game plan that we wanted to take some shots, but they were going to play a certain way and against two shells and have two high safeties. We had a couple plays where we were going to take some shots, but on one of them I scrambled on for seven or eight yards, and the other we took a check-down. They weren’t going to come out of what they were doing defensively. They weren’t going to give us single high looks and let us throw the ball over their heads. They let us run for 200 yards. We stuck with the game plan once we figured out what their game plan was and kept pushing the ball.”

Where the passing offense struggles, the rushing offense flourishes. Let's realize a few things. Cedric Benson has missed back-to-back games and the last 10 quarters. He's still in the top ten with 859 yards rushing. Benson's getting healthy again and when he returns, he's going to run with very, very fresh legs. If that's not scary exciting, then I don't know what scary exciting means. Actually, I don't know what scary exciting means anyway.

Benson has missed the previous two games. What have the Bengals done in Benson's absence? They've averaged 193.5 yards rushing -- which is the best two-game stretch all season. Let me put that further perspective. Before Oakland, the Bengals had the league's 11th best rushing offense, averaging 122.3 yards-per-game. With a Monday Night Football game left, the Bengals are now ranked seventh, averaging 135.3 yards-per-game. They've jumped four points in the rankings, and added 13 yards to their average.

All without Cedric Benson. In the great words of Cleveland, "that's nasty."

But as impressive as Bernard Scott was last week, Larry Johnson's performance against the Cleveland Browns was great. And guess what? It wouldn't have happened with the great effort by the Bengals offensive line.

On third-and-one at the Bengals 44-yard line with 8:34 left in the first quarter, Cincinnati lines up double tight end single back formation. Palmer does his funky right-handed exchange to Larry Johnson. Within the first frame after the ball is snapped, the Bengals offensive line had opened a hole at the point of attack. Daniel Coats and Andrew Whitworth sealed the right side. Bobbie Williams turned Shaun Rogers. Kyle Cook neutralized Cleveland's inside linebacker and the left side of the offensive line eliminated any trailing defenders protecting cutback lanes. Johnson squeezed through the hole between Williams and Whitworth on the right, dodged a tackle by Abram Elam and fell forward for a ten-yard gain and the first down.

On the next play, Johnson gets the handoff. Andrew Whitworth sealed the inside linebacker. Bobbie Williams and Kyle Cook slowed the defensive end and tackle respectively while Jeremi Johnson punishes the outside linebacker for the gull of trying to make a play in the backfield. Johnson sidestepped behind Jeremi, cut back to the right behind Williams' block and ran down the right hashmark for another 12 yard gain.

On second-and-ten at the Bengals 34-yard line with 10:59 left in the second quarter, Palmer hands the football off to Johnson. Cincinnati lined up big-formation with Andrew Whitworth outside of Dennis Roland at right tackle and Anthony Collins at left tackle. Every offensive lineman had a hat on a defensive player. The secondary made first contact on Johnson about eight yards past the line of scrimmage. On the next play, Johnson picked up another seven yards thanks to a kick out block on Wimbley by fullback Jeremi Johnson.

Even Bernard Scott had his moments. After Nate Livings was called for offensive holding, the Bengals were pushed back to their own 27-yard line with first-and-twenty. Every offensive linemen had a hat on a Browns defender. Not just that, the line was pushing back the Browns defense and not allowing the defender to shrug off the block. And it was Jeremi Johnson, once again, who made the initial block that kicked out an outside linebacker looking for glory on a stop in the backfield. Scott fought off a Mike Adams attempted tackle for ten yards, picking up 21 yards and a first down in the process.

When stargazing, you finally find the star named Andre Smith. The problem with watching the offensive line during a live game, is that you don't always know who is in the game before the snap. More than any team, the Bengals employ a rotation with their offensive tackles that no two plays will have the same personnel on the line. On the first play of the second quarter, the Bengals lined up at Cincinnati's 48 yard-line on first down. Andre Smith made his first appearance (that we could tell) at right tackle with Andrew Whitworth on Smith's outside shoulder. Kenyon Coleman was Smith's guy. At the snap, Smith rose and sat in pass protection, ready to receive Coleman, who was very slow off the ball. Smith allowed Coleman an outside move, keeping pace with the defensive end, who even resorted to a spin move. Good job, ol' rook. The play, however, did break down after outside linebacker David Bowens blitzed up the middle. Bobbie Williams did pick him up, but Bowens had already won the battle simply with a quicker step to the outside. Palmer sprinted down the right sidelines for a five-yard gain.

Smith would make sporadic appearances throughout the game. While not noticeable, he made quality blocks.

On first-and-ten at Cleveland's 32 yard-line, Smith lined up at right tackle with Whitworth on his outside shoulder. Smith attacked Robaire Smith with Bernard Scott coming from behind. While Andre didn't move Robaire, the Browns defender wasn't able to make a move on the runner either. Scott picked up 11 yards on the play. On the next play, the Bengals called a sweep to the left away from Andre Smith, who slowed Robaire's progress down the line of scrimmage, looking at the second level for any unsuspecting linebacker to break in half. Good day, ol' rook.

It's my firm belief that this is the most complete Bengals squad that Marvin Lewis has ever put together. It might be the best squad in 20 years of Bengals football. They are winning with a strong rushing offense and a powerful defense. There's things to fix. There always is. But I believe that this Bengals squad can beat any team in the NFL this year because their strengths always dictates championship football. Perhaps I'm banging the homer drum. I've done that before and I'm not afraid to show how proud I am of this squad. So I'm enjoying it. It hasn't happened a lot in my lifetime.

Six-Pack of Hu-Dey: Bengals rookies, offensive line and beating the rest of the schedule

Kirkendall — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 16:41:04 -0000

Chase Coffman's debut is more than just about being a receiving tight end.
All things considered, this year's rookie class has been a solid group of contributors to this football team. Players like Michael Johnson, Morgan Trent and Bernard Scott have improved the team's depth as backup and role players while Rey Maualuga and Kevin Huber already have a handful of starts underneath their belts. However, one high profile player who's being demanded by fans, and questioned by the media, is growing in urgency after an inconsistent run of critical errors by the Bengals tight ends in the past month.

With the Browns and Lions coming up, it makes sense to throw Chase Coffman into the fold. We're not talking as starters. We're not really talking about guys that will play half of the offensive snaps. We've read that Coffman is still struggling with his blocking technique. And if Coffman isn't going to be playing the bulk of the offensive snaps, then he'd at least have to contribute on special teams. Marvin Lewis has already said that he has to do one or the other. Block. Contribute on special teams. While the demand for Coffman is justified, loud and unified, he's going to have to do more than just catch passes in this offense.

Could Andre Smith's debut be coming after Scott Kooistra was released?
The idea is that the team's offensive line has performed far better than expectations. And quite bluntly, Smith isn't needed right now. With Anthony Collins and Dennis Roland playing right tackle, they've managed to do their job well enough to give Smith time to grow at his own rate. They did the same thing with Carson Palmer in 2003.

Here's food for thought. The Bengals released Scott Kooistra on Tuesday. He was active on game day. This could mean that Smith makes his NFL debut against the Browns in jumbo formations as the third offensive tackle?

It's the offensive line's performance that deserves the award for best team turn-around in 2009.
One of the biggest concerns coming into this season is how well would the offensive line improve. Last year's offense averaged 4.0 yards-per-play and 3.6 yards-per-rush. Bengals quarterbacks were sacked, on average, 3.2 times per game. Many, including me, criticized the offensive line. The demand to draft an offensive tackle in the first round was answered with Andre Smith.

They also promoted Kyle Cook as the starting center while electing not to sign Eric Ghiaciuc (best offseason move). After starting the final six games last year, Anthony Collins and Nate Livings impressed the coaches enough to keep them on as starters -- ironically, they've both been demoted as the year went on by Dennis Roland and Evan Mathis respectively. Andrew Whitworth moved back to his natural position at left offensive tackle.

What's the result?

They've cut the sacks allowed per game by half (1.7). Cedric Benson and Bernard Scott are averaging 4.2 and 4.3 yards-per-rush respectively and the offense's overall yards-per-play improved by 1.2 yards.

I think the defense is a great argument for best turnaround by a unit, but we had already known that they were improving at the end of last season. We had no idea what to expect with the offensive line heading into the season.

If Cedric Benson is out against the Browns, Larry Johnson's role should be expanded.
Bernard Scott has proven that once he builds endurance as a feature back, he could have even more potential; especially if he builds his strength to run between the tackles. Brian Leonard can fight for that extra yard as well as any running back on this roster. But Larry Johnson should have an expanded role against the Browns.

I understand the points that he shouldn't even be on the team. The reality is, he's here and the team should have enough confidence in his knowledge of the playbook to give him more than the two carries for five yards he rushed for against the Raiders.

Without Benson, the Bengals don't have a workhorse. And between Johnson, Scott and Leonard, the Bengals could have a three-headed beast, all of whom have different abilities and fresh legs. The stretch run is appearing to shape up nicely for the Bengals rushing offense -- especially when Benson makes his return.

The Bengals can beat the Minnesota Vikings... but the San Diego Chargers?
First things first. The Bengals have to beat teams that they should beat. If they don't, then don't be surprised if they miss the playoffs after a 7-2 start. With that thought in mind, the Bengals could be assured four wins at least, with tough games in Minnesota and in San Diego. This alone would give them double-digit wins for the first time since 2005. Provided they don't do what they did against Oakland, the Lions, Browns, Chiefs and Jets are games that the Bengals should win.

And I think Cincinnati will be tough as nails against the Vikings or Chargers. We might play down to the competition this year (like the Browns or Raiders). But we also play up to the competition. I think the Bengals chances of beating the Vikings are very good. We're a tough rush defense that can pressure the quarterback with tremendous cover cornerbacks. Offensively, we can wear down any defense, provided we do it unpredictably.

And it's not like I put the Chargers on a pedestal that I don't think they'll beat them. But we know how the Bengals do in the state of California. So I'm going on a limb. Bengals beat Vikings, but struggle against the Chargers.

The Bengals and Shayne Graham should move on after this next season.
Let me preface this. Shayne Graham has been a great person for this community. His charity has raised a lot of money and "resources to under served children and other charitable initiatives. Our mission is to lend assistance to those in need and be an organization that makes a lasting impression, empower those who want to make a difference, and strengthen communities."

And for six straight seasons with the Bengals, Graham has converted at least 83.3% of his attempted field goals.

Until this year.

This year Graham is on pace to record a career-low 70.6% of his field goals. Has already more blocks in one season (3) than he did his entire career coming into the season (2). However, it hasn't been entirely his fault. Brad St. Louis was in large part the problem with Graham's lack of success, making terrible snaps that, at the very best, caused Graham to stutter on his approach to the football.

Regardless, Graham has missed a field goal in five of ten games this season, including a missed 37-yard attempt that would have given Cincinnati a 7-point lead with 5:41 left in the third quarter. Furthermore, after Robert Geathers recovered a fumble and returned it 38 yards, Graham did convert a 25-yard attempt. However, if the missed field goal was converted, that's a 10-point lead.

I think Graham has done a lot of great things for this city and this team. But after season, with Graham hitting the free agency market, I think the Bengals should say farewell.

Six-Pack of Hu-Dey: Sign Mike Zimmer to a long-term contract as soon as possible

Kirkendall — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 23:59:31 -0000

Introducing to the inaugural edition to the "Six-Pack of Hu-Dey ", a selection of topics that we weigh in on. We hope to have this going weekly, but we'll need your help. If you have topics that you want examined or weighed in on, email them to me. Also, some veterans may recognize the spelling is actually correct. Hu-Dey beer once existed by Hudepohl Brewing Co.

Bengals need to sign Mike Zimmer to an extension as soon as possible. This is one of those topics that we tend not to examine simply because of the obviousness of the issue. You know, like John Madden saying football is played by football players or that Cincinnatians are from Cincinnati. But here's the truth. Mike Zimmer is coaching under the final year of his two-year contract. The Bengals need to sign Zimmer to a long-term extension as the team's defensive coordinator as soon as possible.

In 2007, the final year with Chuck Bresnahan as the team's defensive coordinator, the Bengals defense ranked 27th overall and 24th scoring. The Bengals signed Mike Zimmer in the offseason and the Bengals defense has steadily improved. In his first season, the Bengals total defense improved to 12th overall and 19th scoring. And through nine games in 2009, the Bengals have the 10th best overall defense, the second-best scoring defense and the league's second-best rushing defense.

With those accolades, Zimmer will be a hot head coaching candidate in 2010. Even if no head coaching opportunities are granted Zimmer, he could find himself a rich contract as a defensive coordinator with a powerfully rich team -- say the Washington Redskins. Give him a share of ownership with the team. Whatever. Zimmer will be the biggest free agent the Bengals have to sign back this offseason.

Brandon Johnson is the best backup player on defense. After Keith Rivers suffered a broken jaw during the seventh week of the 2008 NFL season, backup Bengals linebacker Brandon Johnson became the starting weak-side outside linebacker. He finished the season with 112 tackles, second on the team. Johnson's two picks also ranked second on the team and he was one of three defensive players in 2008 to record a sack and interception in the same season.

During the offseason, the Bengals offered Johnson a $1.545 million restricted free agent tender, which he signed on August 16. He waited a long time looking for another team willing to offer the Bengals second-round compensation if they signed Johnson. No takers.

Even though his overall numbers are down this year, considering he plays in mostly pass-obvious situations, Johnson's contributions for an injured Keith Rivers the past two weeks show that Johnson's play is no let-down by any means. He replaced Rivers in the third quarter against the Ravens and recorded a team leading nine tackles and sacked Joe Flacco 1.5 times. He leads the team with eight special teams tackles.

Anytime that Johnson is forced to replace Rivers, he not only matches Rivers' production, but he plays well enough to that Rivers' absence isn't as noticeable. Which brings us to...

If no collective bargaining agreement is created, then signing Brandon Johnson long-term isn't urgent. With all of that said, Cincinnati should still work on signing Johnson to a long-term contract after this year. Most likely, he'll look for an opportunity to start. And unless something happens from now until the start of free agency, more than likely, he'll find a place. In a perfect scenario, Johnson signs, plays the backup role one more season until Dhani Jones' contract expires. Then the Bengals could place Rey Maualuga at middle linebacker and place Johnson either on the weak-side or strong-side, based on the strengths of both he and Rivers.

That is, if the new Collective Bargaining Agreement is worked out and the same free agency rules apply.

There is a certain dynamic here. If the league doesn't replace the existing Collective Bargaining Agreement before free agency in 2010, then Brandon Johnson could be forced to stay in Cincinnati. Currently, the CBA says that players only need four accrued seasons to be an unrestricted free agent. In 2010, the CBA changes, based on the final year of the deal, in which players need six years to become unrestricted free agents. Therefore, Johnson would remain a restricted free agent and could be here for at least two more years.

The Bengals shouldn't start Andre Smith this year. What I think is astronomical is that the Bengals still haven't played their first round pick, Andre Smith. The current Bengals offensive line has played so well, that Smith has become a luxury rather than a necessity. Only time I can remember this applying is when the Bengals decided to bench Carson Palmer his rookie season in favor of developing him behind Jon Kitna.

The dynamic that Paul Alexander has created with this offensive line shouldn't be shuffled anymore than it already has been. As a unit, they've only allowed 14 quarterback sacks and have been a large part of Cincinnati's rushing success, which is ranked 11th in the NFL with 1,101 yards rushing.

Cincinnati's weakest part of the schedule is coming up at Oakland, Detroit and at home against Cleveland. Conventional wisdom may suggest that the team could take the opportunity to give Smith a start, at least, to see what we have. But the best solution might be to use Smith in a Dennis Roland/Anthony Collins role, which would essentially make Smith the third offensive tackle on rushing plays. This would allow Smith to ease himself into the speed and strength of the NFL, while not disrupting the cohesiveness that the Bengals offensive line already have.

Then again, there's working him in as an eventual replacement for Bobbie Williams at right guard...

Bengals now have to beat teams that they should beat. So, I'm a little melodramatic. But I strongly believe after sweeping the Steelers and Ravens (I'll never get tired of that term), with wins against the Bears, Packers and Browns, Cincinnati losing any of the next three games could run the risk of losing everything they've earned.

The next three games on the schedule are against teams with a combined 4-22 record (Oakland, Cleveland, Detroit). Losing any of those games not only hurts the team's legitimacy, as well as their confidence, but it would bring Pittsburgh right back into the mix. It's one thing to lose against a very good football team with a winning record. But they must beat teams that they should beat. That's what winning teams do.

Successes of others helps ease the fall of Antwan Odom's injury. Since Antwan Odom was injured against the Houston Texans, the Bengals defense has recorded 11 quarterback sacks (which includes the loss to the Texans). A large part of that success has come from the combination of Jonathan Fanene and Robert Geathers, recording a combined four sacks against the two divisional powerhouses Pittsburgh and Baltimore. Geathers has recorded sacks in back-to-back games.

More surprisingly is Frostee Rucker's successes dating back to Chicago where he his playing time increased because of Odom's injury. In that three game stretch, Rucker has a quarterback sack, an interception, a deflection and three quarterback hits.

Odom clearly set the season with seven quarterback sacks in the first two games of the season. The rest of the defense continues to follow suit.

Bengals beat the Bears 45-10: Finding the perfect angle; why a changed Sunday Morning isn't a cause for superstition

Kirkendall — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 14:11:56 -0000

More photos » by Ed Reinke - AP

about 1 month ago: Cincinnati Bengals running back Cedric Benson (32) flexes his muscles after scoring a touchdown against the Chicago Bears in the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Oct. 25, 2009, in Cincinnati. Kyle Cook, left, and Anthony Collins, top, join in. (AP Photo/Ed Reinke)

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When I woke up Sunday morning, I had an unexplained urge to change my Sunday morning routine. Instead of making coffee, taking a shower and cracking my knuckles anticipating the day's challenges, I left the house as soon as I hooked the sleepy crud out of my radish-shaded eyes. I stopped at a gas station and picked up a cappuccino. I love French Vanilla. It was fat free, meeting the requirement for my new healthy regiment that was burdened on me by something other than self preservation. But I decided to gamble. I was ready to take the bumps. My bruises always heal quickly. I picked up some Krispy Kreme donuts and it made -- almost -- everyone happy. I don't care for Krispy Kreme, but I did throw a chocolate glaze into the microwave for 15 seconds. I'm still rubbing my arm.

It was all in part to change my Sunday morning routine. I didn't think that way at the time, of course. It's occurring to me now, while the October cold forced a violent closure of our over-sized sliding glass window. Come to think of it, I've been involved in football for a long time. As coaches say, if you're going to foul someone, foul 'em big. I should have went all-out and bought a buffet-style order at McDonalds. But hindsight is a meaningless human act, and thus I moved on.

However, in my world, this doesn't equate to some acquisition of superstitious behavior, like Wade Boggs and his fried chicken, just because one action led to another. Admittedly, the day turned out completely different. I was allowed to watch several early football games. My ass imprint on the couch went un-fluffed for nearly seven hours. I ate a salad with French and bacon dressing. I had Sloppy Joe's in a bowl, with sour cream and shredded cheese. Crazy. Right? That's a damn fine meal. If I were any crazier, I would have went out and bought my Merit Fitness 725T Treadmill. Then there's the Bengals, who were obviously affected by my changed Sunday morning routine. I'm not superstitious; nor narcissistic for that matter.

Some called it a must-win. Others weren't so urgent. Here's the thinking. If the Bengals lose, they'll go into the bye week with a two-game losing streak, no momentum (at least positive momentum) and two tough division games against the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers afterward. If the Bengals win, they'll go 5-2 heading into back-to-back series finales against the two powerhouses of the division after the bye week. Even if they lose both games, they'll still have a winning record and the Bengals hit the easiest stretch on their 2009 schedule to rebound. After losing to the Houston Texans last week, the question this week was: can the Bengals find their focus? We've been saying for weeks that we're still waiting for the perfect game. Perhaps saying the game least flawed would be more realistic. So, why not lower the expectation and just hope that the Bengals get their kind of unimpressive through three quarters to pull out the win in the fourth quarter mojo back?

And the irony of many complex questions in life, it takes time for a complete answer to materialize. The Bengals have always played that way. The original question: who are these guys? The follow-up question: can they sustain this? The current question: will they put together the complete game? They wait, wait, and wait until it's time for them to strike. They have yet to take a game into their own hands, not playing down, or up, to their competition. They have yet to play to their capabilities. We've felt that way all season. We know this offense can, and will, explode. But when? In classic Jack Bauer, "we're running out of time."

So how do you angle a story that accurately describes how the Bengals played against the Bears on Sunday?

Maybe the word is owning, or pwning. An example of that would be the Bengals 45-10 win over the Chicago Bears Sunday. In the first half, the Bengals offense accumulated 292 yards of total offense. Cedric Benson hit the 100-yard rushing marker before half time -- then he lost three yards bringing his total down to 98 yards. Chad Ochocinco, with five minutes left in the first half, caught eight passes for 103 yards receiving. Carson Palmer completed 15 of 17 passes for 183 yards passing and four touchdowns -- all to different receivers. Psst. You and I know the truth. Everything today changed after I bought a cappuccino as soon as I woke up this morning. I still don't believe in superstitions though.

Yet, it wasn't just the offense. The defense held the Bears to 71 yards of total offense before Chicago recorded a field goal on a nine-play, 70-yard drive to close the first half. Leon Hall picked off two passes. Chris Crocker tipped a few passes and intercepted the team's third interception. Morgan Trent is a hitter. Michael Johnson is everywhere, from defensive line to outside linebacker in coverage. Dhani Jones and Rey Maualuga were as amped as I've seen them all season. Tank Johnson was noticeable inside. Then there was Frostee Rucker, who sacked Jay Cutler and recorded another stuff on the quarterback that wasn't officially a sack.

No, I have a better way of describing Sunday's win.

The Cincinnati Bengals beat the holy shit out of the Chicago Bears. There. Simple. Descriptive. Easy to remember.

Remember this date? September 16, 2007.

On Sunday, Carson Palmer recorded touchdown passes. The last time he recorded that many touchdowns as a six-touchdown performance against the Cleveland Browns on September 16, 2007. That was also the last time the Bengals scored 40 points or more.

Stat of the Game: Bengals only committed three penalties for 20 yards lost. Both are season lows.

They called it Benson Bowl 2009. They should have called it "Benson will run through you because he's a pissed off maniac bowl". Cedric Benson played against his old team, the Chicago Bears. Did you know that? There's some animosity there; mostly, it seemed, from Benson. There's definitely motivation. How does Benson say hello to his old mates, who he claimed wasn't a revenge game? Does he take Lovie Smith out to dinner, or have orange juice during bible studies with Lance Briggs? No. Benson, not thinking revenge, followed his lanes, rolled over people, side-stepped potential tacklers like Lance Briggs who tried a kung-fu leg sweep while he was laying on the ground. In all, Benson records a career-high 189 yards rushing (5.1 yards-per-rush) and a touchdown -- the third straight game with a rushing touchdown. Benson's 37 rush attempts fell one short of a career high 38 against the Cleveland Browns on December 21, 2008.

Breakdown of Benson's rushing per quarter
	1st Quarter	2nd Quarter	3rd Quarter	4th Quarter
Yards Rushing	70	28	54	37
Rushing Attempts	8	12	8	9
Yards/Rush	8.8	2.3	6.8	4.1
Long	23	14	26	14
Touchdowns	0	0	0	1

Benson was nasty good during the team's first two possessions, which set the tempo for the Bengals offense. On the team's first possession, Benson picked up 32 yards on four carries. Bengals scored a touchdown. On the team's second possession, Benson picked up 38 yards on four carries. Bengals scored a touchdown. If such a thing existed, you could seriously consider giving Benson the first quarter game ball.

And thus, a controversial, yet meaningless award. I believe that giving the game ball to Cedric Benson is a good choice. Not only for the emotional factor of playing against his old team, Benson had a career game. He's just not my choice for player of the game.

I'm giving my player of the game award to the guy that's responsible for five touchdowns. Five. Touchdowns. In the first half, Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer completed 15 of 17 passes for 183 yards passing. For the first time in the historic Chicago Bears franchise, someone threw four touchdowns in the first half. Palmer actually only made throws in the first three quarters, taking a break in the closing minutes of the game. In each of the quarters he played in, Palmer recorded a passer rating of 130 or better -- and it was 150 or better through the first two quarters.

Furthermore, Carson Palmer's passing on third downs was flawless. He completed all seven passes (which went for first downs), threw for 81 yards passing and recorded three touchdowns. Making it happen on third down is critical. And Palmer was perfect. Well, next to it. His quarterback rating on third down was 154.5. And of those third downs, only one was shorter than five yards to go. So the Bears defense knew that the Bengals were passing. And yet, Palmer and the passing offense came through.

	1st Quarter	2nd Quarter	3rd Quarter	4th Quarter
Yards Passing	76	107	50	--
Touchdowns	2	2	1	--
Completions	6	9	5	--
Attempts	7	10	7	--
Passer Rating	151.5	150.8	131.0	--

Like I said, Benson is a worthy choice. But my choice for Player of the Game goes to Carson Palmer.

Marvin Lewis versus the NFC North: 6-0

Bengals Drives				Bears Drives
Drive	Plays	Yards	Result	Plays	Yards	Result
1	8	77	Touchdown	8	26	Punt
2	8	80	Touchdown	3	-2	Punt
3	7	63	Touchdown	5	35	Fumble
4	12	66	Touchdown	2	12	Interception
5	4	6	Field Goal	9	70	Field Goal
6	9	61	Touchdown	10	33	Interception
7	7	53	Touchdown	4	21	Interception
8	12	49	Downs	8	60	Touchdown
9	3	7	Punt	3	7	Punt
Bears had two drives that went one-play while the first half and the game concluded.

Stat of the Game II : Bengals converted 67% (8/12) of their third downs.

If you say trends are meaningless, the Bengals offense says you're meaningless. On the first play of the game, Carson Palmer fakes the handoff to Benson, with Dennis Roland lined up at tight end, and hits Chad Ochocinco for a 19-yard gain. On the following play, the Bengals lined up with two fullbacks in the backfield, Jeremi Johnson and Daniel Coats, and handed off to Benson for a seven-yard gain. After an incomplete pass, Carson Palmer threw over the middle to Chris Henry for another 17 yards. Palmer hands off to Benson, who turns the right edge, runs down the right sidelines for a big 23-yard gain. The Bengals tried Wild Cat with Carson Palmer lined up wide left, and Cedric Benson taking the snap and gaining only three yards over the middle. Note: They never run the Wild Cat again. On third-and-eight at the Chicago Bears nine-yard line, Carson Palmer looks left, rolls out right and throws a floater to Chris Henry at the back of the endzone. Touchdown. And thus the slaughtering begins.

Stat of the Game III: Bengals had seven Red Zone trips. They scored six touchdowns.

Even special teams was special. A sad look at corny headlines: Johnny Knox came into Sunday's game averaging 33.7 yards per kickoff return. Against the Bengals, Knox averaged 21 yards per return with a long of 28 yards, which was five yards below his average. In fact, Knox didn't equal his kick return average once, returning kickoffs for 25, 23, 20, 12, 25, 18 and 28 yards. Also of note, Clark Harris didn't fumble a long-snap and Shayne Graham didn't miss a kick. How special is that?

Stat of the Game IV: The Bengals came into Sunday's game having given up a league-worst 25 passing plays of 20-yards or more. Against the Bears, the Bengals gave up one -- a 26-yard pass to Earl Bennett.

When Frostee Rucker warms up, he just chills your ass. With 1:02 left in the first quarter, the Bears lined up first-and-ten at their own 29-yard line. Jay Cutler dropped back, looked over the middle, rolled out right when Frostee Rucker sacked the quarterback for a ten-yard loss. After a quick six-yard pass to Matt Forte, Cutler fumbled the snap and Rucker tackled the quarterback soon after recovery for a limited gain. Technically, it's not a sack. Technically, Frostee Rucker will find you and technically he will tackle you.

Because the snap was fumbled and because Cutler never made an attempt to appear like anything more than a quarterback freaking out, finding yardage with his legs, Rucker was credited with a stuff rather than a quarterback sack. For the entire game, Rucker nailed Cutler at least three times, which doesn't include the quarterback sack.

Models and cheerleaders should go after offensive linemen. Because they're awesome. I've never hidden that watching the trenches is my favorite part of any NFL game. That's where football is, and forever will be, at its purest form. And if you don't think that the Bengals offensive line didn't play their best game of the season, you're nuts. That's right. You're nuts.

The Bears defense came into Sunday's game sporting the league's sixth best rush defense, allowing only 88.4 yards rushing per game. After rushing for only 46 yards against the Houston Texans, the Bengals offense recorded 215 yards rushing and a 4.8 yard-per-rush average. When you have deeper routes developing that the Bengals called on Sunday, you need quality, and sometimes extended, pass protection for those routes to develop. Not only did Palmer have all day to throw the football, he was only knocked down twice.

The Bengals offensive line should get as much, if not a majority, of the credit for the Bengals 448 yards of total offense.

Stat of the Game V: Bengals recorded 30 first downs (11 rushing, 16 passing and three via penalty).

Who do they think they are? When the Bengals win a big game, I get irritated at the ballsy nerve ESPN and NBC have by talking about other teams. When the Bengals lose a game, any game, I take a nap.

Remember when Chad Ochocinco used to be called Chad Johnson? It was reported heading into last year's regular season that Chad Johnson legally changed his last name to Ochocinco. All he got was a career low, both on the field and all of the bravado off the field. In 2008, Chad never recorded a 100-yard game and only four touchdowns. In fact, he went 18 straight games without a 100-yard game before recording 103 yards receiving against the Houston Texans last week.

Chad Ochocinco caught ten passes for 118 yards receiving and two touchdowns the following week against the Chicago Bears. In fact, he caught ten of the 11 passes thrown his way. The last time he caught ten passes or more was November 25, 2007 during a 35-6 win over the Tennessee Titans. Even more significant, Chad recorded his first back-to-back 100-yard receiving games since early 2007 when he recorded 209 yards against the Browns and 138 against the Seahawks.

So maybe the curse of changing last name to wacky catch-phrase of Spanish numerical system is finally dissolving.

And thus, Chad Ochocinco gets an award for himself. Outside the high school and college sob stories about making it into the NFL, rarely do sports figures prove everyone wrong. I'm talking about having already made it, doing things to make us conclude that he's worth too much trouble, only to have our minds changed about them later. Chris Henry would apply. Of all the things that we said in the offseason and last year about Chad Ochocinco, there's no one more deserving of a fanbase-wide apology than Chad. Maybe not an apology. After all, he forced us to conclude those things. Maybe forgiveness. In five of the seven games this season, Chad has recorded 89 yards receiving or more. His five touchdowns receiving leads the teams, as does his receptions (39) and yards receiving (573). In fact, Chad leads nearly every statistical receiving category. Except for drops. We know who that is.

So maybe in two weeks, when the Bengals host the Baltimore Ravens, I'll go out for another cappuccino in the morning. French Vanilla. Fat Free. I like it. It's not like I'm getting all superstitious or something. Maybe I should get the donuts too.

Andre Smith claims he's down to 330 pounds; limited practice on Wednesday

Kirkendall — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 03:11:22 -0000

More photos » by Tony Tribble - AP

about 1 month ago: FILE -- This is an Aug.30, 2009, file photo showing Cincinnati Bengals first round draft pick Andre Smith walking onto the field for practice, in Cincinnati. Smith is expected to practice with the team for the first time since he broke his foot before the season opener. (AP Photo/Tony Tribble, File)

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Months, we've waited. Actually, it seems like we've waited forever. Bengals draft Andre Smith. Smith sits out a long time during negotiations. Smith signs a month after training camp begins. Smith has noticeably gained weight. Smith goes to practice. A few days later, Smith breaks foot. Smith out until November. Smith nominated for the "I can't catch a break award". Pun totally intended.

Now, we can add, Smith practices with team. Sorta. It's probably foolish to think that Smith will start against the Chicago Bears Sunday. And it's probably just as unlikely he'll even play because he's still not cleared for contact yet. And boy, Paul Alexander doesn't seem happy.

“He can’t do contact. What is that? We saw him do the same things as last week,” offensive line coach Paul Alexander said. “I don’t know (how much progress he has made). I have to see him do something. I wish I knew. I wish I had some more information.”

In the meantime, Joe Reedy points out that Andre Smith has gotten his weight under control and his conditioning is improved.

Another thing that has improved, besides Smith’s conditioning, has been his weight. Compared to when he signed on Aug. 30, Smith is noticeably lighter and said that he weighs less than 350 pounds (“I’m way under that”) or 345 (“You’re off on that too”). He ended the guessing game when asked if he was at 330.

That's going to put a wrinkle for all of those that have nothing better to say about him than calling him fat. Still, 330 pounds? That's actually... impressive. Speculation is that we probably won't see Smith until after the bye week. Even then, it's suspect if he'll start so soon. Furthermore, there's going to be a brief competition at right tackle. All things being equal, Smith is probably the best choice out of Anthony Collins and Dennis Roland. But all things aren't equal. It's just a matter of when Smith is ready. He was classified as having limited practice on Wednesday. But as Reedy points out in the two links above, that's kind of generous.