SB Nation - Anthony Collins

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!

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 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

25 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.

Presenting the CincyJungle Bengals Midseason Awards

Kirkendall — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 16:00:40 -0000

More photos » by Rob Carr - AP

2 months ago: Cincinnati Bengals' Bobbie Williams (63) celebrates after they defeated the Baltimore Ravens 17-14 during an NFL football game, Sunday, Oct. 11, 2009, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Rob Carr)

Browse more photos »

It's not that I actively bash Peter King. I find his view that the Bengals are a sideshow at a circus to be somewhat irritating. But in the end, my feeling about the national media is trivial. They don't pay obsessive attention to the Bengals day-in and day-out with teams like the Patriots or Cowboys, or players like Brett Favre, or Brett Favre, or Brett Favre around. It is what it is, and I leave it at that.

However, King did release his Midseason All-Pro team on Tuesday and while no Bengals player was listed, it got me thinking. Do the Bengals have one player that's above all else in the league?

The first player that comes to mind is Cedric Benson. King lists Chris Johnson as the league's best running back in 2009. That's a fine choice. But in my opinion, if you're a player that's deserved of being the best player at that position, then you should be on a team better than 2-6 and better than the 23rd best scoring offense in the NFL.

Other than that, I have a hard time replacing any of our players to King's list. Maybe Benson would fit better as Comeback Player of the Year rather than Brett Favre. But if Favre is considered for an award, you better believe he's getting the hardware. I just don't know exactly where Favre went. Didn't he play the entire season last year? Maybe it's the fact he came back. Get it? Comeback. Yea.

With that in mind, and with the first-half over -- can you believe we're already at the half-way point? -- I'd like to present this year's CincyJungle Midseason Awards.

The Cincinnati Bengals MVP. Being an MVP isn't just about stats or even earning weekly awards. In football, it's much more than that. In football, it's about heroics. It's about leadership. It's leading your team towards success and victory.

One of the knocks on Carson Palmer's career is that he hasn't been known for engineering come from behind victories. In fact, it seemed like if everything wasn't perfect, Palmer struggled. His old passing statistics in previous seasons were beautiful and glorious, but the Bengals needed one last thing from Palmer. He needed to lead the Bengals to victory, no matter the odds.

And boy, did he make that impression early.

Down 6-0 with 6:21 left in the fourth quarter, Palmer engineered an 11-play, 91-yard drive in 5:43 to take a 7-6 lead over the Denver Broncos during opening weekend. The Bengals ended up losing anyway on, well, you remember. Nonetheless, Palmer was foreshadowing. The Bengals were down 20-9 entering the fourth quarter against the Pittsburgh Steelers. In the past, the Bengals typically laid down at this point against Pittsburgh. So in somewhat surprise fashion, Palmer completed 10 of 17 passes for 96 yards in the fourth quarter. With 5:14 left in the game, Palmer engineered a 16-play, 71-yard drive that ended with a four-yard touchdown pass to Andre Caldwell. And on that drive, Palmer converted two fourth-downs to keep the game alive; a five-yard pass to Laveranues Coles and an 11-yard pass to Brian Leonard.

Against the Browns, the Bengals really struggled. Palmer most of all. With 6:38 left in the game, the Browns took a 20-14 lead. Palmer led a drive that went 70 yards on 10 plays to tie the game at 20. If it wasn't for a blocked Shaun Rogers point after touchdown (or a misfired snap by Brad St. Louis that caused Shayne Graham to hesitate), the Bengals likely win this game in regulation. Instead, with 3:23 left in overtime, Palmer captains the offense to Cleveland's 13-yard line on 13 plays. Shayne Graham converts the field goal with seven seconds left in the game for the win. Not only did Palmer put together a drive to tie the game, but he had to follow that up with a drive that setup the game winning field goal. What's more impressive is that Palmer and everyone else were way off their game and still came through at the end.

With 2:15 left in the game, the Cincinnati Bengals offense starts at their own 20-yard line, down 14-10 against Baltimore. Again, Palmer leads an 11-play, 80-yard drive in under two minutes to take a 17-14 lead with 22 seconds left in the game. I suppose we can thank the Ravens for a few timely penalties. Regardless, Palmer found Andre Caldwell running a seam down the middle, catching the 20-yard pass to win the game.

Palmer has largely improved as the season has worn on. Since the overtime win over the Browns, Palmer has recorded a passer rating of 80 or better -- 90 or better in the past two games, including a 146.7 against the Bears -- and an 8-2 touchdown to interception ratio.

With all of that said, I still don't think we've seen the best of Palmer yet.

For his late-game heroics and leadership, the 2009 Midseason Team MVP is Carson Palmer.

Offensive Player of the Midseason: An offensive player of the midseason means you're the best offensive player on the team. Even though Carson Palmer was the Cincy Jungle MVP, an argument could be made that he's not the team's best offensive player. We know where this is going, don't we?

It's hard to go against Cedric Benson. His 837 yards rushing ranks second in the NFL. He's scored a touchdown in six of the season's eight games. Eight times he's picked up gains of 20 yards or more (tied for third) and 35 of his rushes have picked up first downs. If not for Benson, many things don't turn out the way they do. Because of the threat to run on nearly every down, Palmer isn't dealing with overloaded secondary packages. Because of Benson, the Bengals can finally become like-minded in the general success of this division by rushing the football first.

Not only is he the best offensive player of the year, but Benson could be awarded the Comeback Player of the Year as well as Best Free Agent signing of the year.

Defensive Player(s) of the Midseason: If it wasn't for Antwan Odom's injury, he'd be the guy. It's hard to vote against anyone who picks up seven sacks in the season's first two games. I honestly wouldn't have a problem if you were to make that choice today. However, I'm going with the cornerback duo of Johnathan Joseph and Leon Hall. Combined for eight interceptions -- one returned for a touchdown -- the Joseph/Hall combination picked off Joe Flacco four times, largely contributing to the season sweep against one of the league's powerhouses. Johnathan Joseph's interception return for a touchdown against Pittsburgh in the third quarter gave the Bengals their first touchdown of the day and largely swung momentum into the Bengals favor that led to an unlikely (at the time) win over the Steelers on September 27.

Leon Hall (16) and Johnathan Joseph (15) rank in the top-four in the NFL with most pass deflections. Hall's 41 tackles rank third among all cornerbacks in the league; behind Cedric Griffin (48) and Champ Bailey (45). Both cornerbacks are already close to achieving career-high numbers this year.

The cornerback duo's play (and health) this year have enabled Mike Zimmer to employ different packages that keep opposing offenses guessing. Thanks to two former first round picks that are starting to play on their respective islands as we had hoped they would.

The Award for lowest expectation turning into team's greatest pride and Award for Comeback Unit of the Year. When the Bengals finished last season the offensive line was in turmoil. Palmer and Ryan Fitzpatrick had no protection and the Bengals rushing offense largely failed because the offensive line couldn't open lanes. Once Anthony Collins and Nate Livings joined the starting group because of injury, the line started stabilizing. But the question was strong enough in everyone's mind this offseason to be concerned. Kyle Cook replaced Eric Ghiaciuc, who wasn't offered a contract. Anthony Collins moved to right tackle. Andrew Whitworth moved to left tackle. Bobbie Williams stayed home. Nate Livings resumed left guard duties he earned at the end of last year.

I remember thinking at the time: there are no new faces! All of these guys were around last season. What makes me think they'll improve anything?

If we could nominate an entire unit for comeback unit of the year, it would be the Bengals offensive line. Even though Carson Palmer is on pace to be sacked 24 times this year, the Bengals offensive line hasn't just performed well above expectations, they've flipped all of us off and laughed for not believing. No one expected what they're doing now. No one expected that Palmer would only be hit 24 times (not sacks, being hit) through eight games.

Then there's the offense's 4.3 yard-per-rush average, which ranks 13th in the league. There's Cedric Benson, who doesn't exist if not for this offensive line; the same offensive line that helped Benson break gaudy defensive rushing streaks that the Ravens were riding.

This offensive line isn't the best in the league. But who cares? This offensive line is why the Bengals’ offense is playing as well as they are. And no one expected that.

Award for Best Team Performance of the Midseason. Anytime you win a game by 35 points, you had a damn fine game. Cincinnati took a 31-3 lead into halftime behind four Carson Palmer touchdown passes against the Chicago Bears. Cincinnati finished with 448 yards of total offense and the defense held the Bears to 279 yards on their way to a 45-10 victory.

Award for Winning The Big Game. Even though the Bengals swept the Baltimore Ravens, contestant in last year's AFC title game, the Bengals win over the Pittsburgh Steelers in week three was significantly bigger.

Award for Biggest Team Letdown of the Midseason. Awards are generally not handed out for disappointing feats. But I had to mention this for two reasons. The way Cincinnati dealt with adversity and how dangerously hard this team could fall if they play down to their opponents with a very weak stretch on the second-half schedule.

One could argue the team let down against the Houston Texans, losing 28-17. However, the Texans have a winning record this year, aiming for a wild card spot in the playoffs and nearly pulled off an upset over the Indianapolis Colts on November 8. Of their four losses, only one was lost by more than a touchdown. My pick for Letdown Game of the Year goes to a game that the Bengals actually ended up winning. Odd, eh? Coming into the game, the Cleveland Browns had the league's worst offense and 30th ranked defense. Other than it being an in-state rival, there was no reason why the Bengals couldn't obliterate one of the worst teams in the NFL. We were superior on offense. We were twice as superior on defense. Instead, the game was close. The Bengals played down to their opponent. Derek Anderson threw for 269 yards. Jerome Harrison rushed for 121 yards. J.P. Foschi and Daniel Coats were the team's leading receivers and Cedric Benson -- the guy that rushes for 100 yards against the Ravens defense -- only gained 74 yards through nearly five quarters.

The Bengals needed nearly 75 minutes to win this game, which is a signal of their growing (and impressive) level of maturity and ability to succeed through adversity. But if we had lost this game, it would have been a terrible loss.

Award for greatest third down conversion in team history. This isn't so much of importance as it is an example of how karma can play a role in games. The 31-24 win over the Green Bay Packers didn't start well at all. Carson Palmer had thrown a five-yard touchdown pass to Laveranues Coles on the team's first offensive drive of the game, taking a 7-0 lead. Aaron Rodgers answered with a three-yard touchdown of his own. Palmer threw a pick and the Packers scored another touchdown to take a 14-7 lead. Quan Cosby returned a punt 60 yards that setup an eventual one-yard quarterback sneak to tie the game at 14. Bengals force a three-and-out. On the second play of the next possession, Charles Woodson returns an interception for a touchdown, giving the Packers a 21-14 lead.

On the next possession, the Bengals line up at their own seven-yard line on third down. The first down marker sits at the 41-yard line. What do most teams do on third-and-34? Hope a screen pass or draw is unexpected enough to gain as many yards as possible. After catching a short dump pass out of the flats, Daniel Coats takes off. About 11 yards short of the first down marker, Cullen Jenkins knocks the football out of Coats' arm and it (the football, not Coats) bounces forward 15 yards where Laveranues Coles pounces and recovers the fumble. First down.

You knew the football gods smiled upon the Cincinnati Bengals that day when Green Bay only scored three points and Antwan Odom was on his way to having a career day (five sacks).

Nominations for Acid Reflux.

Brad St. Louis
Daniel Coats

Rookie of the Midseason. The Bengals had a good draft in the spring. Several players are contributors now, like Rey Maualuga, Michael Johnson, Morgan Trent and Bernard Scott. Jonathan Luigs may factor in the offensive line next season, depending on if the Bengals bring Bobbie Williams back.

But the rookie that's really contributed is a fifth round pick from the University of Cincinnati. With a tremendous ability to turn the field, Huber could be the team's Special Teams Player of the Midseason. His first five career punts landed inside the 20-yard line.

		Punts	In-20	Avg.	Long
2008	Kyle Larson	100	28	39.5	57
2009	Kevin Huber	49	13	43.7	61

He's averaged over 45 yards/punt in four games. Only 45% of his punts were returned. And in every game save for one he kicked at least one 50-yard punt. It might seem sad that we're awarding our Rookie of the Midseason Award to a punter, but that would only mean you haven't seen him punt.

However, we have to also acknowledge that Rey Maualuga could easily win this award. He's recorded 30 tackles, two forced fumbles and a quarterback sack. If you go with Maualuga, that too would be a fine choice.

Now it's your turn. This is where the community takes part. What do you think of the awards? What other awards would you create and hand out? Discuss.

Week in Review: Bengals must play the rest of the season like it's the playoffs

Kirkendall — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 16:23:54 -0000

More photos » by David Kohl - AP

2 months ago: Cincinnati Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis breaks into a smile after the Bengals scored against the Houston Texans in the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Oct. 18, 2009, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/David Kohl)

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Carson Palmer is calling Sunday a must-win. Hasn't it seemed like we've called every Bengals game a must-win this year? Beating Denver was a must-win to prevent another eight-game losing streak out of the gate like last season. We've called Pittsburgh, Cleveland and Baltimore must-wins for their division implications. Now, we're calling the Bears a must-win. And this could be the best example of that.

If the Bengals beat the Bears Sunday, Cincinnati heads into the bye week with a 5-2 record, regaining some momentum, still controlling their own destiny. After that, the Bengals host Baltimore and travel to Pittsburgh in back-to-back weeks. If, and that's always a big if, Cincinnati wins the next three games, they control their own destiny. After that three-game stretch, the Bengals play the Raiders, Browns and Lions. Now, we're 10-2 with the Vikings, Chargers, Chiefs and Jets to close out the season. So maybe the Bears isn't just a must-win. Maybe the Bears is the first of three-straight must-win games if the Bengals are going to make a championship run.

On the other hand, if the Bengals lose Sunday, they head into the bye week with a 4-3 record, a two-game losing streak, no momentum with games against the Ravens and Steelers on tap. Now, suggesting that the Bengals will win the next three, I believe, is a bit hopeful. The Steelers and Ravens, looking to take control of the division, will make it very hard on the Bengals. With that thought in mind, the Bengals beating the Bears could be the difference between having a winning record and a losing record by November 16. And realistically, if the Bengals are going to survive the rest of the season, they need to be assured of a winning record in case Baltimore and Pittsburgh have their revenge.

Furthermore, the Bengals can't go into the bye week on a two-game losing streak and no momentum. So is Sunday a must-win? I think so. If we were in any other division, I think the urgency is reduced a tad. But we know what the Steelers and Ravens can do and the Bengals will have to do everything they can to keep themselves from falling too quickly by two teams that could easily win out their games in which they're not facing each other -- which we've seen both teams do before.

We've heard the expression before by teams that make incredible runs to the playoffs and I believe it applies right now. The Cincinnati Bengals playoffs starts this Sunday and a loss could mean elimination.

Defensive line injuries could take a toll. Will they step up? Even though Domata Peko didn't practice on Wednesday and Thursday, it appears that the team's best defensive tackle will go on Sunday after fully participating during Friday's practice. Surprisingly he's listed as probable.

“Right now it’s feeling great,” Peko said. “I’m excited. I want to get out there and be with my dudes against Chicago but if it ain’t right I’m not going to go.”

This is great news at a time when the Bengals defensive line suddenly felt short-handed earlier this week. We lost Antwan Odom. Tank Johnson had missed two straight against Cleveland and Baltimore before returning against the Texans recording a season-high four tackles and a quarterback sack. Pat Sims was listed on the injury report this week with a bicept injury; he's also probable. What's worse is that due to illness, Jonathan Fanene missed practice on Thursday and Friday. Fanene, who's listed as questionable, could be giving way for rookie Michael Johnson. The Bengals also needed depth. After Odom went onto injured reserve, Cincinnati signed Orien Harris back.

With all the injuries and illnesses on the defensive line, guys like Robert Geathers, Michael Johnson, Tank Johnson and Pat Sims will have to step up.

They're calling it Benson Bowl. The local media is calling it "Benson Bowl." Benson isn't thinking of revenge, but he's motivated. Since joining the Cincinnati Bengals, Benson has found happiness. He feels accepted and says that his "Dreams are coming true." Benson also claims that the Bears were "blackballing" him when the Bears organization, from Benson's point of view, screwed him over.

"Even the Bengals told me all the things, that they would call and inquire about me and get nothing but negative things. Just that I didn't work hard, that I was I guess a prima donna or I didn't work hard on the field, just wasn't focused, just anything negative that they could say, it was said. I'm sure that contributed largely to me not getting picked up right away."

I like Benson a lot. He's a hard worker and gives the Bengals the best running back they've had since Rudi Johnson's prime. The Cedric Benson in Cincinnati isn't the same Cedric Benson in Chicago. However, you have to wonder why Benson is going off about what the Bears may or may have not done to Benson. Even though he probably felt insulted, I believe Benson should take some responsibility for what happened in Chicago. The off-the-field issues were a result of his own actions, not the Bears. From my understanding, Benson didn't like sitting behind Thomas Jones and older reports suggested that Benson made things just as tense in the lockerroom as others made it tense for him. So I'm not so sure if Benson is totally blameless about what happened in Chicago. But in truth, whatever actually happened while he was with the Bears, is meaningless now.

What does matter is that the Bengals need Benson to rebound after his season-low 44 yards rushing last week. And just for fun, here's our post on the day Benson was signed in 2008. Re-read some of your comments and tell me how he's changed minds.

Just how far away is Coffman from playing? Indirectly, Chase Coffman became a leading discussion. After back-to-back weeks of watching tight ends drop passes and fumble the football, the Bengals rookie tight end is still inactive. It will be telling if this week Coffman makes his debut, or if the Bengals are still refusing to reduce Daniel Coats' playing time. J.P. Foschi hasn't been bad, but he's not the tight end that the Bengals need. It's clear that the offensive philosophy was to use the tight ends more this year in the passing game, but it's not working out. Two fumbles by tight ends against Houston was one of several explanations to the Bengals loss. The dropped passes are ridiculous.

Why isn't he playing? What we hear is that Coffman isn't ready. He doesn't play special teams well and he's still struggling to become an NFL Tight End after a college career where he played more like a wide receiver.

Maybe Coffman will become something special in the Bengals offense. Time will only tell. The problem is that the Bengals are one game away from either fighting for the division after the bye week, or sinking. If the Bengals beat the Bears Sunday, they'll once again fight Baltimore and Pittsburgh for division supremacy. If the Bengals lose to the Bears, they run the risk of going 4-5 (quickly) if they don't beat Baltimore and Pittsburgh, which would end their chances of controlling their own destiny.

Of course, Coffman isn't the reason for all of that. But the Bengals desperately need better tight end play than what we saw the last two weeks if they're going to keep making a run.

And apparently the Bengals view it that way. It was reported earlier in the week that the Bengals attempted to trade for Dallas Cowboys tight end Martellus Bennett, which Dallas declined. Bennett isn't the type of tight end to fill the gap until Coffman is ready. He's the type of tight end that could become the future, which left the question, what about Coffman?

The Return of the Giant. Andre Smith's return, or actually making a debut, is happening. This week, Smith practiced on Wednesday, though it was only non-contact drills. On Thursday, Smith practiced limitedly, but had contact. On Friday, Smith practiced fully. Furthermore, Smith claims he dropped his weight to 330 pounds and most observers are saying he's "noticeably lighter."

All indications are, while still out this week against the Bears, that Smith will make his debut against the Baltimore Ravens on November 8 after the bye week. Unless Dennis Roland and Anthony Collins utterly fail against the Chicago Bears, it's unlikely that Smith starts against the Ravens. Knowing how the coaching staff has worked in the past, it seems more likely they'll ease Smith in during running downs in big packages, lining up at tight end, or weak-side tackle on big formations.

Something else needs to be observed here. When the Bengals rush the football to the right, they are actually one of the worst rushing offenses in the league. The following is a chart of the team's directional report on rushing plays by NFL Game Statistics and Information System.

	LE	LT	LG	Center	RG	RT	RE
Avg. Gain	6.0	5.17	7.0	3.86	2.39	3.3	3.14
NFL Rank	11	10	3	18	27	24	28

Is there where we prove something? I've always agreed that Bengals offensive coordinator makes questionable calls. However, I always say that the players need to perform first and foremost. Last week was an example of an offense that lacked focus. Now, I'm going to make some people happy; or at least give them direction in their complaints.

As you saw in the chart above, the Bengals are clearly a better rushing offense to the left between Andrew Whitworth and the combination of Nate Livings and Evan Mathis at left guard. The issue here is that the Bengals are rushing the football outside the right guard more than rushing between the strength of their offensive line on the left. The next chart is broken down to three directions. Up the middle, which is between the two guards. And outside both guards on the left and right.

Dir.	Left (outside LG)	Between LG and RG	Right (outside RG)
Plays	41	61	53
Yards	226	250	171
Avg.	5.5	4.1	3.2
Note: Six rushing plays are unaccounted for.

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

2 months 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.

Question of the Day: Should the Bengals think about rotating backup running backs more during games?

Kirkendall — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 16:28:17 -0000

More photos » by Gail Burton - AP

2 months ago: Cincinnati Bengals running back Cedric Benson, right, runs in a touchdown as Baltimore Ravens safety Ed Reed, left, and cornerback Chris Carr pursue during the third quarter of the NFL football game, Sunday, Oct. 11, 2009, in Baltimore. Cincinnati won 17-14. (AP Photo/Gail Burton)

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Unless Dolphins' running back Ronnie Brown records 119 yards rushing or more during tonight's Monday Night Football game against the New York Jets, Cedric Benson will lead the NFL with 487 yards rushing. He has six more yards than Adrian Peterson, arguably the most talented running back in all of football. Benson leads the NFL with 111 carries, ranks third with 20 first downs and second, behind speedy Chris Johnson, with four 20-yard rushing plays. Benson was the first running back to record 100 yards in 40 games against the Baltimore Ravens defense.

Benson has been very good this year. In fact, Benson's rushing total against the Broncos, Packers, Steelers and Ravens is the most yards rushing allowed by the respective defenses this year. Benson's 76 yards rushing against the Broncos is the most yards allowed to a running back this year against Denver's defense. Benson's 141 yards rushing against the Packers is the most yards allowed to a running back against Green Bay's defense. Benson's 76 yards rushing against the Steelers is the most yards allowed to a running back against Pittsburgh's defense. Benson's 120 yards rushing against the Ravens is the most yards allowed to a running back against Baltimore's defense.

The argument could be, and perhaps should be, made that the rebuilt offensive line is largely to thank. Kyle Cook has been holding his own against opposing nose and defensive tackles. From my non-scientific and non-statistical based point of view, Cook's performances across the board have been very solid. His biggest struggle came against a defensive tackle that many guards and centers struggle against. Cleveland's Shaun Rogers. It also helps that the Bengals have called the Big Packages more this year than I can remember, bringing in backup tackle Dennis Roland to play tight end, or moving Andrew Whitworth to the right side alongside Anthony Collins.

Even though the Bengals have the league leading running back, they're still only ranked ninth in NFL, averaging 126.6 yards-per-game. That's because Benson gets the bulk of the work, accounting for 77% of the Bengals 144 rushing plays. Combined, Bernard Scott and Brian Leonard have 15 rush attempts and 56 yards rushing. Carson Palmer is actually the team's third leading rusher, picking up 42 yards rushing on 12 scrambles.

Benson is on pace for 355 rushing attempts, six rushing attempts shorts of Rudi Johnson's franchise record 361 rushes in 2004.

On one hand, why not keep the train rolling? Benson's performance this year is great and the team's balanced offense is in part why they're doing so well. On the other hand, the Bengals run the risk of wearing Benson down as the season progresses, especially in December. Here's your question of the day. Should the Bengals keep going the way they're going? Or should they start thinking of relieving Benson more, giving Bernard Scott and Brian Leonard more playing time to make sure Benson is fresher towards the end of the season?

Bengals First Quarter Review: Saying satisfied like only Billy Dee Williams can

Kirkendall — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 20:27:55 -0000

Ah, another week in which Bengals fans (us) are granted an extension of a beautiful luxury having a win under our belts. Not just win, mind you. A division win. Do you know the impact of that? The Bengals are the only team in the division with a 2-0 record against the division.

AFC North Standings Through Four Games in 2009
Teams	Record	PF	PA	Div.	Conf.
Baltimore Ravens	3-1	124	80	1-0	3-1
Cincinnati Bengals	3-1	84	76	2-0	2-1
Pittsburgh Steelers	2-2	85	78	0-1	2-1
Cleveland Browns	0-4	49	118	0-2	0-3

The Bengals have allowed the least amount of points than any team in the division; Cincinnati's 76 points allowed is better than 11 AFC teams. You have to admit, that's like Rice Krispie treat covered in chocolate and peanut butter, or jamming out to an old school Guns N' Roses song where you actually think that you're as smooth and cool as Slash. As we noted earlier, the Bengals have started 3-1 only four times dating back to 1990; three times during the Marvin Lewis era, which includes this year's heart-stopping indigestion-filled (and in some cases, chain-smoking) season. So far we're a quarter of the way through the season and it's appropriate that we dive into quarterly reviews.

I've never subscribed to the school that you can grade a team using a variety of letters when summarizing the first four games of a 16-game schedule. When you got graded in school, the letters had meaning behind them. They are letters that fall within a range of numbers that represents the percentage of properly answered questions. When we use letters grading football teams, it becomes a little too arbitrary; they don't have any substance behind them. I don't mind others that do it. I really don't. Live and let live, I always say. It's their thing and we're but a small gear in the blogging world. But I don't like using them. Instead, we're taking a new approach with a grading system that goes outstanding, satisfactory, nervous, and terrible. I'm sure our system goes without saying, which is the most innovative and detailed system to date.

CARSON PALMER. There's two arguments with Carson Palmer. There's the ineffective through most of the game, Carson Palmer. Then there's the Carson Palmer that routinely puts the Bengals into position to win the football game. His numbers have been very ordinary and he's yet to eclipse the 300-yard passing mark. However, after beating Cleveland, Palmer is on the good side of a touchdown-interception ratio again. I've never been a believer in grades but I do subscribe that Carson Palmer is the Harvey Dent of NFL quarterbacks. This is why I have to grade Palmer on two levels. He's made me nervous during the game, but outstanding when it comes to winning the game.

Most important note: 3-1 when starting as team quarterback.
Stat of concern: on pace for a career low 57.7% completion percentage.

RUNNING BACKS: Grade: Satisfied. It's hard to argue with results. Through four games this season, the Bengals have racked up an impressive 491 rushing yards -- averaging 122 yards-per-game. Averaging 4.4 yards per-carry on 84 attempts, Cedric Benson alone has rushed for 367 yards -- 91.8 yards a game (which may be a result of a lack of carries lately, his average since the Denver game is nearly 4.8 yards per carry). Benson has done a good job consistently gaining yards, but he hasn't quite been explosive. His longest rush this year is for 23 yards (the touchdown against Pittsburgh). Interestingly, Benson has had exponentially more success rushing to the left side, averaging over 6 yards per carry. Up the middle and to the right, Benson is averaging between 1 and 3.5 yards per carry - that's just not very good, but this is a criticism of the right side of the O-line, that could surely benefit from the return of an in-shape Andre Smith. The rest of the running backs have been pretty decent. Jeremi Johnson hasn't been glaringly bad in the run blocking game, and hybrid back Brian Leonard has epitomized clutch - mostly as a receiver out of the backfield. Rookie Bernard Scott has flashed his talent early this season, but his big runs are also going to the left side of the line. He's been good when he's been used, but that's been rare. Scott has also been promising in the return game. I give this group a passing grade of satisfactory bordering on "good", but not outstanding. They don't get an outstanding mark from me because they aren't producing enough. That may or may not be their fault, though.

Most important note: 122 rushing yards a game is good news. If we can get Andre Smith working into the rushing game on the right side of the line later this season, that number could improve. We might finally be a solid rushing offense.
Concern: The concern is really with offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski and the offensive line. Brat has been too reliant on the pass (especially in the Browns game), and the right side of the offensive line is not opening holes for running backs.
- Jake (jsl413)

WIDE RECEIVERS

Ochocinco through first four games
	Rec.	Yrd	TD
2009	17	258	3
2008	11	116	1
2007	28	495	3
2006	18	201	1
2005	26	374	3
2004	20	297	1
2003	21	370	3
2002	18	221	1

Chad Ochocinco
Ranking: Outstanding
Chad is officially back. After a horrific 2008, Ocho has returned to the form that makes him one of the better receivers in the NFL. Not only is he talking the talk, he's walking it as well, something his three touchdown catches indicate quite well. Whether Chad is Lambeau leaping or being held back from Cleveland's Dawg Pound, Ocho is once again a terror for opposing defenses and fans alike. Sure, he's had a drop or two so far, and the fact he and Carson haven't fully integrated the long ball is cause for concern, but the flea-flicker play against Green Bay proves it's still a viable option. Maybe now they can use it a little more. Currently, Chad is on pace for a 68-catch, 1000-yard, 12 touchdown season. While I would expect the touchdown numbers to perhaps shrink, the opposite is true for his catches and receiving yards. Welcome back Ocho. Now go tweet your day away.
- Chris (IFChris)

Andre Caldwell.
Ranking: Outstanding/Satisfactory
Introducing the Bengals second leading receiver, yard/receptions-wise. Granted, I think many of us expected to see Laveranues Coles or Chris Henry here, but obviously, Caldwell has something to say about that. Caldwell, even though he's more of a slot-receiver, is proving to be a reliable number two to Chad's one. Caldwell has six more catches than Coles and eleven more than Henry. He's on pace for a 64-catch season, which would be a personal record, and would eclipse his before-this-season-started career total by 37 catches. The only reason Caldwell doesn't get an "Outstanding" is for that ugly fumble he had against Cleveland on Sunday.
- Chris (IFChris)

Laveranues Coles.
Ranking: Nervous.
Currently, Coles ranks third in the NFL with three dropped passes, something that does not inspire a great deal of confidence. When he was signed by Cincinnati, he was expected to fill the shoes left behind by T.J. Houshmandzadeh, however, it seems that job as gone to Caldwell. Coles can still get open and judging by last season's stats, he's still a very capable receiver; which is why I haven't completely given up on him. As long as Coles can keep his hands on the ball when Palmer throws it his way, we'll all be fine. Last season, Coles collected almost 900 yards and seven touchdowns. If he gets near that kind of production for the Bengals, his ranking would quickly move to the "Outstanding" neighborhood. Until he stops dropping the ball, however, his signing is going to be a disappointment.
- Chris (IFChris)

Chris Henry.
Ranking: Nervous.
After a brilliant preseason, I think all of us expected Henry to show the league just how good he can be. Alas, that has not been the case. Currently, the following Bengals (besides the ones listed above) have more catches than the one they call "Slim" -- Daniel Coats (8), Brian Leonard (11, Leonard is actually the third-leading receiver, catch-wise, on the Bengals), and Cedric Benson (6). Further, Henry is tied with J.P. Foschi, who has five. So what does this say about Slim? Is he not working hard enough or is something just not clicking? Or is it that Caldwell is simply outplaying him? Before the season started, Henry was looked at as the best deep threat on the Bengals offense, so what gives? Should the Bengals be using 4-wide sets more than they use 3-wides? Or is Henry -- who has thankfully stayed out of trouble -- simply the odd man out in a Ocho/Coles/Caldwell trio? As you can see, there are a lot more questions than answers here, and until we have a larger portion of the season to work with, I'm tempted to change Slim's grade to an "Incomplete."
- Chris (IFChris)

OFFENSIVE LINE. Grade: Satisfied. We could recap all that's happened in the past calendar year. We could say that the Bengals offensive line in 2008, with Levi Jones, Eric Ghiaciuc and Stacy Andrews were the "weakest links". Football Outsiders ranked the Bengals offensive line as one of the worst offensive lines in football. But we won't. Why dig up history when there's a better future, just over there, behind the mole hill. No, that's not the mole hill. That's the Bengals 2009 offensive line (was that a bit corny)?

Andrew Whitworth slides to left tackle. Nate Livings and Evan Mathis work time at left guard. Kyle Cook wins the job at center, with rookie Jonathan Luigs always in the background looking for playing time. Bobbie Williams and Anthony Collins holding down the right side of the fort with a WWE entrance soon coming for first-round pick Andre Smith. I won't call the offensive line Outstanding. But I'm more than comfortable to say that they've clearly been satisfactory -- and improving each week.

	Sacks	Yrd/Rush Avg.	Adj. Line Yards *	Adj. Sack Rate *
2008	12	3.46	3.22 - 32nd	8.6% - 27th
2009	9	4.5	4.33 - 10th	6.5% - 23rd

* Stats by Football Outsiders

Quarterback Sacks from D-Line
Antwan Odom	8
Jonathan Fanene	1
Pat Sims	0.5
Robert Geathers	0.5

DEFENSIVE LINE. Grade: Satisfied. Through four games, the Cincinnati Bengals defensive line are leading a pack of wolves that's recorded 12 sacks as a unit this year. Ten of those sacks have come from the defensive front four. Antwan Odom, the guy that will sack you at Krogers for taking the last box of Wheat Thins, not only leads the team with an NFL-high eight sacks, he's also the leading tackler on the defensive front. Against the Browns, Robert Geathers returned a fumble 75 yards for a touchdown (boy, that kind of sounded like an after-thought, didn't it?).

However, all of that said, I'm hesitant calling this defensive front outstanding. Maybe it's because we set the benchmark so high with Carson Palmer's late game heroics. Still, the defensive front, while it's played well, still lacks a constant pass rush and there were noticeable rushing lanes against the Cleveland Browns, who came into the game with a 71.3 yard-per-game rushing average (29th in the NFL).

Linebackers	Tackles
Keith Rivers	29
Dhani Jones	25
Rey Maualuga	19
Brandon Johnson	16
Abdul Hodge	3
Rashad Jeanty	3

LINEBACKERS. Grade: Satisfied. Our linebackers in 2007 consisted of Lemar ~~Parrish~~ Marshall, Landon Johnson, Caleb Miller, Andre Frazier, Anthony Schlegel and Rashad Jeanty. If it wasn't for the Ravens linebackers, the Bengals linebacker unit would still be bad. Several were lost early in the season, which opened a spot for crazy journey man (quite literally) Dhani Jones. Two years later, Jones is one of the leaders on defense and the most consistent tackler. They put guys like Keith Rivers and Rey Maualuga around him giving the team a promising trio of linebackers to start the season. Beyond that, the Bengals have two backup linebackers in Brandon Johnson, who plays in nickel packages and Jeanty who each recorded over 100 tackles last season. In terms of Maualuga, the rookie strong-side linebacker has forced two fumbles and a sack along with his 19 total tackles.

SECONDARY. Grade: Nervous. The Bengals secondary has been challenged much of the season, allowing 242.3 yards passing per game. They are 26th in the league. The secondary has had its issues preventing big plays, allowing 17 passing plays of 20 yards or more -- most in the NFL. Much of the blame could be brought on because of the team's safeties defense against slot receivers; hasn't been very good. It could also be softer coverage, worried about the 40-yard strikes instead of the 20-yard variety. Furthermore, Johnathan Joseph's two interceptions this season are the team's only interceptions through four games.

I think Leon Hall and Joseph have played well above satisfactory levels when defending the pass. And Joseph more so against the rush. However, I think outside those two cornerbacks, the secondary has work to do; especially against the pass.

Kevin Huber in 2009
Punts:	30
Long:	61 yards
Avg.	42.9
Net Avg.	35.8
Inside-20	10

SPECIAL TEAMS. Grade: Nervously terrible yet sometimes outstandingly satisfied. It took you a couple of times to re-read the grade, didn't it? It's complicated. Kevin Huber has been outstanding. Shayne Graham has been ordinary. The kickoff return teams is 25th in the league and the punt return team ranks in the top-five. Brad St. Louis is still on the team. It's almost like you have a good, a bad, a middle, a good and then another bad. Really. Is there a more roller coaster unit in the NFL than the Bengals special teams? So how do I grade the entire unit? Can one do such a thing? I'm nervous every time the Bengals attempt to kick. I yawn when the kickoff return team, you know, returns. Huber is the only punter in the known galaxy that actually makes me pump my fist and Quan Cosby is the first guy that returns punts on this team that makes it a realistic dream he could return it for touchdown.

What do you guys think? Where are we at the quarter point of the season?