SB Nation - Jerome Simpson

Bengals Banter: OK, so we could be over-reacting to the lack of a passing game

Kirkendall — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 17:43:01 -0000

23 days ago: Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer (9) passes against the Oakland Raiders in the first quarter of an NFL football game, in Oakland, Sunday, Nov. 22, 2009.(AP Photo/Ben Margot)

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Alright. One last thing about the whole Bengals offense is struggling thing and we'll let it go. Vikings week is over. Hasta la vista, baby. What happened, happened. However, sitting on the couch, flipping through the channels of another Bruce Springsteen song, the idea Cincinnati has no momentum weighs heavily. What happened against Oakland, the Browns, the Lions, and the Vikings is meaningless. Because the Bengals biggest test comes against the Chargers. That can't influence the team, or us (the fans) heading into the biggest game of the year. Those games happened which led us to this point. But so did sweeps against the Ravens and Steelers and a win over a very strong Packers team that's coming into their own. Now, wipe all that away and focus on this week, where the Bengals still hold onto their own destiny for a bye week -- and homefield advantage against every team not named the Indianapolis Colts -- during the Wild Card weekend.

Meaningless note of the week: Carson Palmer has thrown for 110 yards passing or less in two of his past three games.

The question asking for Marvin Lewis' assessment on the passing game was asked Monday.

“We've got to do a better job of executing. We have to protect. We have to be in the right spots at the right depths and give the opportunity to the quarterback. And I think we've got to go back and do a better job of manufacturing some balls down the field. When we had our opportunities yesterday, they (Vikings) just happened to be in the right spots, and so the ball couldn't get there. But we've got to continue to do that and keep fine-tuned in that area, until we get some opportunities to make some plays. Yesterday for whatever reason, the luck wasn't in, the opportunity didn't match up. We had some good throws in there. But we have to do it consistently and all the time, and that will help.

“If you just turn it around, look at their offensive production yesterday. Their passing game was about 150 yards, and four balls to the backs that converted another 70. So in that kind of game, where neither team is really getting the ball down the field, we've got to make some hay with some of these other things that occur. We didn't execute our screens very well when we had them. We had opportunities there. Brian (Leonard) made a great run for our first first down, but there's got to be better execution around the board.

“All that being said, we're right where we wanted to be (in the standings). That's the exciting part of it. That's what this job is all about, and that's what the NFL is all about, and here we go.”

Coach speak. Yes. We never expect to have exciting information during a press conference. I mean, it's not like Lewis is going to slam his fist on the podium and say, "Damn it" and go into Dennis Leary style rant on Bob Bratkowski. He said the right things. Execute better, being the oldest talking point from a losing NFL coach since man discovered the wheel, BBQ ribs and corny Mentos commercials.

This one stuck out at me. "And I think we've got to go back and do a better job of manufacturing some balls down the field." My gut reaction? You're crazy. We have to bring back the vertical game? This has been an old complaint from Bengals fans this year. Slinging passes 50 yards would be great. And in truth, it doesn't really matter if they're completed. At least spread it out, make it possible that the Bengals can score a touchdown inside of five plays on a drive. No. Actually score a touchdown before reaching the dreaded red zone.

In two of his past three games, Palmer's longest completed pass went for less than 20 yards. Only twice has Palmer connected for a pass 50 yards or more... this year. Furthermore, of Palmer's 390 attempted passes, 153 have fallen incomplete. Here's a breakdown of those incompletes, courtesy of Stats, Inc.

Type	Number	% Incomplete	% Overall Passes
Passes Dropped	21	13.7	5.4
Poor Throw	54	35.3	13.8
Passes Defensed	42	27.5	10.8
Passes Hit at Line	5	3.3	1.3
Other	28	18.3	7.2
Intercepted	10	6.5	2.6

But we're not here to pile on. This isn't the point of this post. I mean, it's not like we could activate Jerome Simpson and BAM, we're the New Orleans Saints. There is no easy fix, says Carson Palmer.

“If there was one reason we’d fix it,” said Palmer of the passing game. “All we can do is continue to get better. There’s no quick fix or easy answer. We have to try to find things to tailor to our strengths and improve.”

Paul Daugherty speaks plainly. Bengals receivers are simply not getting open. "Right now, Carson Palmer is hitting eighth and slapping singles the other way. It’s not necessarily his fault, only his problem. Palmer doesn’t have the personnel, and the personnel he does have isn’t getting open very much."

And you think to yourself that Paul is right. How many times has Palmer forced passes to Chad Ochocinco this year in tight coverage?

Then questions were raised about Palmer's health Monday night. Are they protecting Palmer's elbow by calling shorter routes? Or is that merely a coincidence based on the fact that the offensive line isn't built to allow deeper developing routes? I do believe that if the Bengals offense doesn't explode, then the Bengals offensive coordinator will be in Cincinnati for how many games remain this season. And I'm not speaking in emotional outrage.

Clearly this offense is starting to come under fire for lacking a threatening passing offense. Joe Reedy writes, "A day after losing 30-10 at Minnesota, the biggest question on the minds of everyone remained – what has happened to the Bengals passing game?"

Palmer isn't convinced that there is a problem.

“We’re a team that throws it about 20 times and run it 30,” Palmer said. “Because of one loss we’re not going to go back to the drawing board or change our identity or freak out like everyone else outside of this locker room is doing.”

Fair enough. Let's take that approach and examine from the world-not-ending perspective. How many times has the lack of a passing game really bitten the Bengals? Against the Broncos, the Bengals were leading 7-6 with 38 seconds left against the Denver Broncos. Right. We didn't blow them out but we were in position to win before luck and the football gods smote the Bengals.

Cincinnati was leading Houston 17-14 at Half Time. In the second half, Daniel Coats and J.P. Foschi fumbled, Palmer was sacked once, threw two incomplete passes and a game-ending interception with 1:55 left in the game. And you can't really blame Palmer too much here, because he's trying to lead Cincinnati to at least two scores with two minutes left. You have to take risky shots. Cincinnati led the Raiders 17-10 before Oakland's Bruce Gradkowski led the Raiders on a game-tying touchdown drive that went 80 yards on 11 plays. Then Andre Caldwell fumbled on a kickoff return that led to Oakland's game winning field goal.

So maybe the lack of a passing game hasn't cost the Bengals as much as we dramatically think. We could attribute that to the loss against Houston and Minnesota. Maybe it's half and half. Something in the middle.

We want answers. We want reassurances. It doesn't make us less of fan, nor does it question our loyalty. We've been in this really long relationship with a bunch of rocky roads and sometimes we fight. In the end, there's nothing better than a Bengals Sunday and whether be it passing or rushing, we really don't care how, just win. Because really, that's all that matters.

Now, onto the Chargers...

Inactive List: Detroit Lions (2-9) at Cincinnati Bengals (8-3)

Kirkendall — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 16:38:57 -0000

CINCINNATI BENGALS

Bengals_Helmet.gif" height="154" width="200" />
INACTIVE	DOUBTFUL	PROBABLE
Jordan Palmer	Jonathan Luigs	Laveranues Coles
Domata Peko	Domata Peko	Kyries Hebert
Bernard Scott	Bernard Scott	Tank Johnson
Jonathan Luigs		Rey Maualuga
Jerome Simpson		Frostee Rucker
Chase Coffman		Morgan Trent
Dan Skuta		Cedric Benson
Fui Vakapuna		Keith Rivers
		Tom Nelson

Lions_Helmet.gif" height="154" width="200" />
INACTIVE	OUT	PROBABLE
QB Drew Staton	S Kalvin Pearson	DT Grady Jackson
WR Eric Fowler	WR Eric Fowler	DE Andre Fluellen
S Kalvin Pearson		LB Zack Follett
FB Terrelle Smith	QUESTIONABLE	WR Calvin Johnson
LB Ernie Sims	G Daniel Loper	QB Matthew Stafford
G Daniel Loper	S Louis Delmas
OT Ephraim Salaam	LB Ernie Sims
DT Grady Jackson	DE Dewayne White

Six-Pack of Hu-Dey: Bengals passing game, Cedric Benson's expected return

Kirkendall — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 17:10:43 -0000

Perhaps expectations for Laveranues Coles were misplaced. When the Bengals signed wide receiver Laveranues Coles to a $28 million contract soon after losing out on the T.J. "ain't no way I'm staying in poor ass Cincinnati" Houshmandzadeh puppet show, we tried to justify that signing Coles was sensible because, while he brought different attributes to the table, the Bengals offense wouldn't miss that much. Boy, we nailed that one like Homer Simpson reroofing his house.

Through 11 games this season, Coles has recorded only 31 receptions for 379 yards receiving and three receiving touchdowns. At this pace, he'll finish the season with 45 receptions for 551 yards receiving. This would be, by far, his worst 16-game season in his career (he missed four games in 2007 and three games in 2000). Of the 61 times Carson Palmer has thrown to Coles, the 31-year old wide receiver has caught only 51% of his passes, of at least six being drops. And during the team's 16-7 ~~loss~~ win over Cleveland, Coles caught two of nine passes thrown his way.

Now, let's also be fair. Palmer hasn't been the most accurate passer -- especially under pressure where his completion rates dip considerably to under 54%. Cincinnati has changed philosophy to a much more aggressive rushing offense, reflective of Palmer's and Chad Ochocinco's season statistics compared to their 16-game averages.

However, the notable issue is cost over production. When Coles signed his $28 million deal earlier this year, we broke it down. His base salary this year is a lowly $1.9 million. That number significantly jumps in 2010 ($4.65 million), 2011 and 2012 ($6.4 million respectively). Furthermore, a majority of Coles' guaranteed money was reportedly earned already in 2009, making us conclude at the time that his four-year deal could be viewed as a one-year deal with three option seasons.

Cincinnati will have to answer the question if Coles is worth having on the roster next year, after a projected 45-reception season, with an increasing base pay, or if the Bengals will finally start showcasing some of their younger talent in Andre Caldwell, Jerome Simpson and Maurice Purify.

Can the Bengals finish the Trilogy of Terrible Teams with a winning record? The loss to the Oakland Raiders, while heartbreaking, wasn't totally unexpected. Having watched these Bengals for so long, and the NFL for that matter, games in which an underdog beats a heavy favorite is completely within the realm of possibility. Oh, and the Bengals have never won in Oakland and sport a .257 winning percentage when playing games in California. Hey, it happens. Even Ohio State University lost to Purdue. In 2005, the Cincinnati Bengals were 11-3 heading to Buffalo, only to lose by ten points to the 5-11 Bills. Hey, it happens.

Even though some called it the biggest loss of the season, I maintained that losing to Oakland was a mulligan. I believe it still. The entire division lost that weekend, including Pittsburgh to their own 2-7 opponent. However, the thing about mulligans in the NFL is that you only get one. While the score never reflected it, the Bengals dominated the Cleveland Browns the following week.

This week, the Bengals play host to the 2-9 Detroit Lions. If the Bengals lose Sunday, in one of the few potential trap games left this season, they'll lose all momentum at a very inopportune time with the Vikings and Chargers on deck. Now, this is the pessimistic old Bengals fan point of view where anyone associated with the Cincinnati Bengals would do something disastrous; like how a sneeze can set up a series of events that entire nations declare war on each other. With a win over Detroit and then two losses against the Chargers and Vikings, the Bengals will at least hold the division lead by way of tie-breakers if the sinking Steelers and Ravens win their next two. Win the games you're suppose to win.

Starting Cedric Benson against Detroit is the right choice. With the Lions coming into town this weekend, it's a sound decision to bring Cedric Benson back into the fold. But slowly. Detroit ranks 19th against the rush allowing 112.9 yards per game, a 4.3 yards-per-rush average and 13 20-yard rushing plays allowed, which is only two away from Oakland's league leading 15. Detroit will help Benson get his legs under him again, but more importantly, the team could rotate backs this weekend to ease Benson back.

After Detroit, the Bengals will play another critical stretch of games in Minnesota and in San Diego. Minnesota sports the league's second best rush defense and the Bengals are currently battling the Chargers for the second seed in the AFC. If Benson gets sporadic work against the Lions, he'll start getting into the offense's rhythm, to prepare for the Vikings, as well as be nasty once again against the Chargers.

Speaking of which. Is it time to air out the football against the Lions? Cincinnati has rushed the football 40 times or more in three games this year (Chicago, Oakland, Cleveland II). In two of those games, the Bengals averaged 4.7 yards rushing or more and won by at least two possessions, dominating the time of possession. Four times this year the Bengals rushed the football less than 30 times; they lost to Denver and Houston, beat the Steelers twice by less than a touchdown. As written above, the Detroit Lions sport a middle-of-the-road rushing defense.

On the other hand, Detroit has the league's worst passing defense, allowing 281.4 yards passing a game, an opposing quarterback rating of 111.8, a 70.5 completion percentage allowed, 13 passes of 40 yards or more and an average of 8.2 yards allowed per pass.

Chad Ochocinco jokingly said, "We would like to throw the ball 50 times." It's not egotism playing a factor. I think he knows what we know. The Detroit Lions can't stop the pass.

Where is Palmer's deep pass accuracy? Even though we think that the Bengals should air it out against the Lions, there is some general concern that Palmer's accuracy on the deep pass isn't what it used to be. For example, when passing beyond 20 yards, Palmer has completed six of 23 passes for 266 yards. More importantly, that's where three of his eight interceptions have come from.

An argument could be made that Palmer just doesn't have time to throw it deep. That's certainly been true the past two weeks. Another argument could be made that the Bengals simply don't have that deep threat outside of Chad Ochocinco, who is double covered and smothered on nearly every play.

Still, if the Bengals are going to go back to their old school explosive offense, they'll need Palmer to make better throws down field. Actually, the Bengals will just need to make more throws down field. Only 23 passes beyond 20 yards? That's surprising.

Note: five of Palmer's eight picks have come when he throws to his right.

How could Tennessee factor into the Bengals playoff race? The Bengals still hold the second seed for the playoffs with five games to go. The San Diego Chargers have the same record as Cincinnati, but are on the losing end of a tie-breaker that gives Cincinnati the edge. If we look at both team's remaining schedule, you'll see several similarities. Each team faces three teams with a losing record, one team with a winning record and each other. The Titans play a Wild Card in this because while they're 5-6, they're also on a five-game winning streak and could present the biggest problem for San Diego -- other than Cincinnati of course.

Here's a side-by-side comparison of the remaining games with the Bengals and Chargers.

Week	Bengals	Record	Chargers	Record
13	Detroit	2-9	@ Cleveland	1-10
14	@ Minnesota	10-1	@ Dallas	8-3
15	@ San Diego	8-3	Cincinnati	8-3
16	Kansas City	3-8	@ Tennessee	5-6
17	@ NY Jets	5-6	Washington	3-8

All stats provided by ProFootballFocus.com, Stats, Inc. and NFL.com. If you have a topic you'd like explored, email me.

Bengals worked out Joey Galloway, Ed Johnson and Mike Doss Tuesday

Kirkendall — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 16:27:58 -0000

More photos » by Winslow Townson - AP

4 months ago: New England Patriots wide receiver Joey Galloway hauls in a pass during NFL football training camp at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass. Saturday, Aug. 1, 2009. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)

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While the signing of Larry Johnson, and to a smaller degree, the release of Ben Utecht, were Tuesday's primary headlines, the Bengals weren't through, just yet. On Tuesday, the Bengals worked out three other players; wide receiver Joey Galloway, safety Mike Doss and defensive lineman Ed Johnson. Johnson was released by the Indianapolis Colts in October because he lacked production. In Joey Galloway's case, he just never caught on with the Patriots. Mike Doss, who played for Cincinnati at the end of last year, was released with Chris Perry, Eric Henderson, Nate Lawrie and Gary Russell in April.

The Bengals invited Galloway, who could be used as a deep threat on a core of wide receivers that are more possession receivers. Unless, of course, you play Jerome Simpson, who has speed. It appears that Ed Johnson is more trouble than he's worth. Johnson was arrested in September of 2008 when Indiana police pulled Johnson over for speeding and found he was in possession of marijuana. Along with lacking production, there's no benefit signing Johnson at this point. Doss was awesome in college. Since then, injuries have really slowed him down and he's, at best, a special teams contributor.

In the end, I'll be surprised if the Bengals offer anyone that visited a contract.

Bengals have eight players on Injured Reserve; Cincinnati has players to fill those roles

Kirkendall — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 16:41:15 -0000

Remember last year? I know, I know. Why bring up terrible memories of a team that started the season on an eight-game losing streak. Why bring up terrible memories of a team that actually finished a game in a tie causing the entire NFL world to shouting, asking why ties in the NFL? I remember when the active report came in during the fourth week of the season against Cleveland, seeing that Carson Palmer was inactive. It took weeks for me to fully comprehend the implications of Palmer's injury. I was in denial.

This week gave us a few reminders of how much better this team is, in terms of talent and pure luck, which is (if people want to admit it or not) critical to team's successes in a season.

The Bengals placed two players on Injured Reserve this week with arm injuries; wide receiver Chris Henry and safety Roy Williams. This brings the total to eight players on injured reserve since the start of training camp.

Player	Position
Antonio Chatman	WR
Chris Henry	WR
Reggie Kelly	TE
Ben Utecht	TE
Matt Sherry	TE
Antwan Odom	DE
Dan Santucci	C
Roy Williams	S

On November 28, 2008, the Bengals had just put Andrew Whitworth and Scott Kooistra on injured reserved, the 20th players lost for the season due to injury. In fact, I mused at the time that the Bengals could nearly fill out a starting lineup with players on Injured Reserve.

Oh, what a difference a year makes.

While the Bengals can't come close to filling out a starting roster, the biggest difference this year is that the team's depth is strong enough to replace those injured players -- except for maybe Tight End -- and lose limited production. Chinedum Ndukwe, the guy replacing Williams in the starting lineup, has 17 career starts. In the first game he started this season against Cleveland, Ndukwe recorded seven tackles and a quarterback sack. Against Houston, Ndukwe recorded a season-high 11 tackles. Along with Brandon Johnson, Ndukwe recorded a quarterback sack deep in the fourth quarter against Baltimore. NFL.com ranks Ndukwe fifth on the team with 35 total tackles.

Chris Henry is a loss in terms of taking advantage of match-up problems. However, through eight games, Henry only caught 12 passes -- then again, he averaged a team high 19.7 yards-per-reception. Based on the talent and depth chart ahead of him, Henry's loss, in terms of overall production, isn't very significant. The Bengals will likely replace Henry with the receiving committee of Maurice Purify and Jerome Simpson; two unproven players that could surprise/disappoint us.

Antwan Odom is perhaps the biggest injury this team has suffered. Through the first two games, the Bengals recorded nine quarterback sacks -- seven from Odom alone. After going down to injury against Houston, the Bengals production hasn't slacked much -- they've recorded five quarterback sacks in the past two games with the following combination of defensive players: Frostee Rucker (1.0), Brandon Johnson (1.5), Robert Geathers (1.0), Michael Johnson (0.5), Jonathan Fanene (0.5), Chinedum Ndukwe (0.5).

Even though Odom's injury was the biggest this team has suffered, in terms of season production coming to a premature end, the team's tight end spot was decimated by injury. However, there was never really any expectation that tight ends would become vital in the passing game, save for pass protection. J.P. Foschi and Daniel Coats are reasonably good when it comes to rush blocking and the biggest difference between the Foschi/Coats tight end era compared to the Kelly/Utecht era is the dropped passes -- admittedly, there's been a few but fortunately, they're not targeted as much.

Two of the biggest improvements this year over the 4-11-1 team in 2008, is that injury isn't crushing the team's chances and the depth chart is as strong as its ever been during the Marvin Lewis era. And the injuries suffered this season hasn't hurt the team's overall production.

Question of the Day: Maurice Purify or Jerome Simpson?

Kirkendall — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 15:02:47 -0000

The interesting unknown this week is whether the team will activate Jerome Simpson or bring up Maurice Purify from the practice squad to replace Chris Henry. One receiver thinks he has a shot, if not actually expecting it, while the other is hoping his time has come.

Maurice Purify: “It’s going to feel great (whenever I get the call),” Purify said. “I’ve been waiting for it for two years. I think I was game ready since Week 1 or Week 2. It’s about time I get a chance, if I get the chance. I’m still in a situation that a lot of people want to be in.”

Then read this blurb on Chick Ludwig's blog.

In the wake of Chris Henry’s season-ending injury (fractured left forearm), this has to be Simpson’s time, right?

“Nah,” Simpson said. “It still ain’t. Maybe I’ll get some more reps. It’s up to the coaches.”

I didn’t sense anger or frustration from Simpson. Only resolve. I looked him in the eye and asked, “How much does this opportunity mean to you.”

Simpson looked me in the eye and answered, “It means my life. This is my life. But you’ve got to roll with the cards and how the cards are dealt. I’ve just got to keep working hard and do what I always do. Just keep learning to play and keep opening up eyes every day.”

But Purify thinks that Palmer's endorsement last week helped his cause. “What Carson said was a big deal,” Purify said. “I appreciate that from him that he trusts me and is willing to step up front and say something like that about somebody.”

So if you make the call, who do you replace Chris Henry with? Jerome Simpson or Maurice Purify? Now there's something you need to keep in mind. Even if the Bengals call up Purify, it doesn't mean he'll play over Simpson. In truth, the Purify promotion would really mean the Bengals are back to their full six-receiver compliment. Then again, they wouldn't bring up Purify if they didn't think he was worth playing.

Poll

Who would you replace Chris Henry with?

Maurice Purify

208 votes

Jerome Simpson

99 votes

307 votes | Poll has closed

Bengals Banter: Head coach Marvin Lewis has Coors Light commercial potential. He just needs that moment.

Kirkendall — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 19:44:36 -0000

More photos » by David Kohl - AP

about 1 month ago: Cincinnati Bengals coach Marvin Lewis watches from the sidelines in the first half of an NFL football game against the Baltimore Ravens, Sunday, Nov. 8, 2009, in Cincinnati. Cincinnati won 17-7. (AP Photo/David Kohl)

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Three things happened. One, we posted a lengthy midseason review on Wednesday that we wanted to keep in your peripheral vision so that more readers will see and comment on it. Two. I got two brand spanking new video games within the past week. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and Dragon Age: Origins. Three. I was off work yesterday, which meant a whole lot of #2 (go ahead with your Peter Griffin laugh). All things considered, we have a lot to get through today.

Bengals players nominated. On Wednesday, player of the weeks were announced by the NFL. In the AFC Dallas Clark won on Offense, Tyrone Carter on Defense and Stephen Gostkowski on Special Teams. The Bengals did receive two nominations this week. Cedric Benson on offense and Johnathan Joseph on defense.

If we're forced to look at the Wild Card. Even if the Bengals lose to the Steelers, there's an interesting dynamic here that could reverberate for the rest of the season. The Houston Texans (5-4), Baltimore Ravens (4-4), San Diego Chargers (5-3) and New York Jets (4-4) would be fighting either the Bengals or Steelers for two wild card spots. The Bengals already lost to Houston, swept the Ravens and have the Chargers and Jets on tap.

While some call it an easier schedule, it doesn't make it any less critical. In fact, I feel I'd rather the Bengals have a tougher schedule. This team seems like the team that raises the ante when challenged. What we saw against Cleveland earlier this year scares me.

Time to start thinking about a contract extension for Johnathan Joseph. I felt very strongly naming Johnathan Joseph and Leon Hall as the team's Defensive Player(s) of the Midseason. Not only are they on one of two teams with "two players with at least four interceptions", they "are tied for second for most interceptions in the AFC behind Buffalo's Jairus Byrd, who has seven." Leon Hall has the third most tackles among cornerbacks and one could argue that their coverages have enabled pass rushers the additional time needed to get to the quarterback.

Johnathan Joseph will enter the final year of his five-year contract in 2010 and it's time to start thinking about an extension. I know what you're thinking. It's a bit soon. I disagree. Once the season is over and if the Bengals and Joseph go through an entire offseason without conversation, then Joseph will feel insulted. With players as young as Joseph, whose biggest contracts usually come after their rookie deals (save for the first five picks of any NFL draft and elite superstars), the Bengals should reach out to Joseph soon and, at least, get the dialogue rolling. Once his contract is up and he declares free agency, there's probably a very small chance the Bengals sign him back. If he does sign an extension, this offseason will be when he does it. And considering how slow the Bengals are to get things like this done, it's time to start thinking about that now.

We let one get away. There really isn't an award for something we meant to mention yesterday at our cyber-cafe awards ceremony. I suppose we could call it "Coach of the Midseason" and nominate all of the coaches, like Paul Alexander or Mike Zimmer (or god forbid, Bob Bratkowski). What we really wanted to honor is how Marvin Lewis has turned this team around a second time. In 2003, Marvin Lewis took a 2-14 team and made them 8-8. In 2008, Marvin Lewis took a 4-11-1 team, turned them into a team that's 6-2 and preparing to battle the Pittsburgh Steelers for the lead in the division. How does one award that type of turn around from a head coach twice? I'm sure you could nominate all of our coaches for something, but Marvin Lewis should get the bulk of the credit for this team's complete reversal of holy crapiness to holy crap, they're good.

Should we talk about another contract extension? Lewis' contract expires after 2010.

Quote of the Day:

"That's why they brought me here - get the ball in my hand on third down and pass-protect for the quarterback," Leonard said. "Of the two, protect the quarterback is my No. 1 job."

Lewis really, really, really defends Jerome Simpson. One of the more interesting notes from yesterday comes from head coach Marvin Lewis' defense of Jerome Simpson.

“Jerome is doing everything he can to try to prove that he can get out there and make productive plays for us,” Lewis said. “He hasn’t lost an ounce of his athleticism and so forth but he has a lot to learn in coming to the NFL.

“He’s working diligently. Hell, he’s got his own coach. Which is great. He’s getting personal tutoring on every single play, every single day. Just trying to get where we can be confident that the quarterbacks can be confident in him understanding everything. He’s working hard at it. But some guys come here and they have a little better knowledge of how coverages unfold and things work. And Jerome’s working extremely hard at it. The other part of it, shoot, I don’t know if there’s a guy at any position that has the skill level of Jerome.”

OK, OK, coach. Anyone else see Joe Reedy during the ~~Coors Light commercial~~ press conference? I don't think anyone has disputed this kid's talent. But the truth of the matter is that he's probably going to be the team's fourth receiver. He needs to get on the field sooner or later. And if he's still not capable of being on the field as the fourth receiver, then you have to do something to utilize that roster spot. The deeper the Bengals get into the season as playoff contenders, the greater the possibility is that they'll need that roster spot on the field.

Bengals, no longer a finesse team, will beat the crap out of you. I've always wondered how Football Outsiders obtain their analysis. I don't mean the people. They're brilliant. I mean, do they watch game tape? A recorded broadcast? Or do they have access to All-22 -- an angle that shows all 22 players throughout the play. Can you imagine if we had access to that?! The analysis would be ridiculous. That's all we'd do -- once we tire of Modern Warfare 2 and Dragon Age... of course.

"Hello."
"Yea, bossman?"
"What is it, Josh."
"Yea, got the tape from last week's game. Going to take off work to check it out."
"You've got to be kidding me."
"I know!! I actually got the tape."
"Josh."
"Well, it was a sloppy win. But a win is a win, right?"
"Josh."
"I really want to watch the pass coverages and how offenses react. I need one of those video tape dial thingys that slows and rewinds the plays."
(sigh) "Fine. I'll see you tomorrow."
"Actually, can we make it two days."

With that said, Football Outsiders wrote a piece on the Cincinnati Bengals' offensive line.

It's typical to think of teams with great passing games and previously ineffective power blocking as "finesse", but any opponent harboring that assumption about the current Bengals is making a very big mistake. This is as much a power team as any AFC North bully could be, with its stacked lines and inside running, and the schematic variations tell the story of a line with great confidence and continuity. If the Bengals capitalize on their hot start down the stretch, the line will be a major factor -- with or without Andre Smith.

More, more, more.

All Bengals fans should read this Bob Labriola piece on Steelers.com, briefly explaining that the history between Pittsburgh and Cincinnati is a lot richer than you might think.

I was a part of The League panelists on Wednesday talking about Larry Johnson. I wrote that if Johnson wants to get back into the league, he should follow Cedric Benson's lead.

Laveranues Coles isn't very open with the media. “Uh, I don’t really speak (to the media),” Coles said. “I’m just chillin’.”

James Walker's biggest disappointment in the Bengals on his Midseason Report is that Andre Smith hasn't played yet. That's it? That's it.

Chick Ludwig thinks of ways to bring Maurice Purify to the 53-man roster, no matter what.

Steelers vs. Bengals: AFC North Game of the Year

Congradulations for Bengals fans, who donated "9,234 pounds of non-perishable and canned goods, 1,604 pounds greater than in 2008. In addition, Bengals fans gave $11,061 in cash donations to help feed the hungry in our community, a $3,041 increase over 2008."

Remember when we remarked that Ed Reed missed a lot of tackles last week against the Bengals? We weren't the only ones that noticed.

Steve Wyche handed out some love for the Bengals in his mid-season review. Cedric Benson was named as the Comeback Player and Andrew Whitworth was "Most critical to teammates' success".

Picture of the day. A reader sent this picture (a bit blurry) of a man wearing an Odell Thurman jersey... in France! And here we thought Steelers fans traveled well.

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Bengals sign former draft pick Freddie Brown to the practice squad

Kirkendall — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 17:08:47 -0000

When the Bengals put Chris Henry on Injured Reserve, there was some speculation on what the team could do, which largely depended on what they wanted to do at wide receiver. Do they find a replacement? Do they restock the position after Andre Caldwell? Instead, they re-signed utility offensive lineman Scott Kooistra, giving the Bengals a full 53-man roster. Kooistra is expected to earn $620,000 in 2009.

However, with Henry out for the year, the Bengals felt there was enough of a shortage at the position that they signed former seventh round draft pick Freddie Brown to the practice squad. To make room, they released rookie tackle Gerald Cadogan. Here's a listing of the team's wide receivers under contract and not on IR (like Henry and Antonio Chatman):

Receiver	Roster	Notes
Chad Ochocinco	53-Man Roster	Bengals leading receiver with 44 receptions, 639 yards receiving and five touchdowns.
Laveranues Coles	53-Man Roster	Played in all eight games, caught 22 passes for 227 yards receiving. Tied for second on the team with three touchdowns receiving.
Andre Caldwell	53-Man Roster	Second on the team in most receiving categories. Caught two game winning touchdowns against the Baltimore Ravens (first time) and Pittsburgh Steelers.
Jerome Simpson	53-Man Roster	Yet to be activated in any game this season.
Quan Cosby	53-Man Roster	Primarily a punt returner. Average 12.4 yards-per-return ranks fifth in the NFL with ten punt returns or more.
Maurice Purify	Practice Squad	Caught four passes for 46 yards receiving during the 2009 preseason.
Freddie Brown	Practice Squad	Brown was the 11th pick by the Bengals in 2009 NFL draft, selected 43rd in the seventh round.

Henry placed on IR after season-ending surgery; Kooistra to re-sign.

A Pragmatic Bengals Fan — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 19:21:08 -0000

Chris Henry had season-ending surgery on his broken forearm today and was placed on Injured Reserve. Evan Mathis is considered week-to-week and Scott Kooistra is reportedly to be re-signed shortly.

Per the Bengals' official Twitter account, first reported by C. Trent Rosecrans of CNati.com. Rosecrans' Twitter account can be found here. @ctrent

Please continue to debate the merits of Chase Coffman vs. Jerome Simpson vs. Maurice Purify in the event that the discussion is once again relevant when Evan Mathis is fully healthy after getting shaken up yesterday, I don't expect Kooistra to be around for very long. This seems to be a stop-gap type of move to get the team through the next couple of weeks. I still hope to see either Purify, Simpson or Coffman soon.

Question of the Day: Who replaces Chris Henry as the number four receiver for the Cincinnati Bengals?

Kirkendall — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 17:03:27 -0000

Chris Henry, playing the final season of a two-year deal, caught a 20-yard pass early in the second quarter. He broke his forearm while falling to the turf. In one respect, it was sad to see Henry suffer a season-ending injury (likely) during a year in which he worked so hard to recast his image. Henry finished the season with 12 receptions (tied for fifth on the team) for 236 yards receiving (third) and two touchdowns. His 19.7 yard-per-reception average led the team.

With Chris Henry likely out for the year, the Bengals will likely look for someone to step up into that role. But what role? A fourth receiver? A deep threat? The Bengals have Chad Ochocinco, Laveranues Coles and Andre Caldwell as their first three receivers, so there's no real desperation after Henry's injury. Furthermore the Bengals are a run-first offense, rushing the football on 47% of their offensive plays; their 245 attempts is seventh in the league and Cedric Benson leads the NFL with 198 rush attempts -- by 23 carries.

So is there really an urgency to implement a fourth receiver that's integrated into a game plan that requires more than ten snaps? Not likely. But the question remains. When the Bengals go four-wide, or need someone to replace one of the top three receivers either injured or needing a rest (I refuse to say "blow"), who do you go with?

While saying that Jerome Simpson is close, Carson Palmer says that the "guy who’s closer is Maurice Purify." Purify is on the team's practice squad. And if the Bengals elect to put Chris Henry on Injured Reserve (and there's no reason why they wouldn't), that opens a spot on the team's 53-man roster for Purify. Another alternative, especially if they want to use the open roster spot for another position, is Quan Cosby. But who knows how he's coming along as a wide receiver. This brings us back to Jerome Simpson, who is taking up room on the 53-man roster.

On August 1, I wrote a piece about Simpson asking if his time was already running out. Simply based on numbers and the talent ahead of him, I questioned if he'd even get any playing time. And if he's not ready to become the team's fourth receiver by now, with a Roy Williams destroying Maurice Purify waiting, one has to wonder if he'll ever make his own luck and become a contributor for this offense. The problem for Simpson is that he's lost every opportunity to improve his standing on the team's depth chart. It might even make more sense if the team makes a move to take Simpson off the 53-man roster if he's not the guy that replaces Henry in the lineup.

But he's young and needs time. How much time? And when will opportunity suddenly appear? I would expect the Bengals to bring Chris Henry back next season if they can. Chad Ochocinco, Laveranues Coles, Andre Caldwell are all signed. Where exactly would Simpson fit? He might still have an impressive NFL career. But with the Bengals? Where does he fit?

I even made the suggestion on Sunday that Chase Coffman could be an option, a hybrid tight end/wide receiver in the shape of Dallas Clark. Lines up outside on four wide receiver formations and becomes the second tight end in double tight end formations. Just a thought.

Who do you guys think should take the number four wide receiver spot?

Poll

Who is your pick to become the number four wide receiver?

Quan Cosby

95 votes

Maurice Purify

289 votes

Jerome Simpson

184 votes

Chase Coffman (hybrid TE/WR)

466 votes

1034 votes | Poll has closed