SB Nation User Blog: UpStateMike

The Bengals Helmet; no redesign needed.

UpStateMike — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 14:39:25 -0000

Who says work related emails don't pay off? Here's a very interesting take on NFL helmets from the eyes of a graphic designer. His summary: The Bengals have the best helmets. Period.

Penalty! Unnecessary Blandness! Redesigning the Worst NFL Helmet Graphics BY Ken CarboneMon Nov 9, 2009 at 2:26 PM

The conservative columnist George Will once said football combines the two worst things about America: violence punctuated by committee meetings. As a designer who occasionally gets caught up in the fury of the game, I'd like to add graphic design to what's wrong with football.

With the help of Skycam I spend as much time enjoying the color, patterns and graphics that add to the spectacle of the sport, as I do enjoying a deftly-completed pass. Now that the Yankees have won the World Series and the season shifts from batting balls to banging heads, I've been musing about NFL helmet design. For inspiration (and some truly bizarre helmet design), I visited the Art of the Samurai: Japanese Arms and Armor at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Created centuries ago, these designs (left) are more about shock and awe than waging battle but are truly extraordinary.

Today's high-tech helmet with its wireless headset and polycarbonate visor has come a long way from the padded leather ones of yesterday. It not only serves its essential protective function but is also a gleaming sign for a team's brand. Yet in many cases the graphics are blunt and formulaic, usually involving slapping the team's primary logo on both sides of the helmet.

This bilateral approach is sometimes successful for teams such as the Minnesota Vikings, St. Louis Rams and Philadelphia Eagles. Horns and wings usually come in twos making these symmetrical designs feel natural.

The Dallas Cowboys' blue star on a silver field is crisp and a clear reference to the Lone Star state. As for simplicity, I guess the Cleveland Browns score highest. They use no logo at all but why do the Browns have orange helmets?

However, the absolutely best team helmet belongs to the Cincinnati Bengals. The tiger stripe pattern embraces the whole spherical form. There is nothing else like it in the NFL. It looks fierce from any angle and boldly breaks from tradition.

Among the weakest designs are the Washington Redskins and Tampa Bay Buccaneers , whose visually complicated logos become a graphic mess when televised and, I imagine, even if you're sitting on the fifty-yard line. At the very the bottom of the list are the New England Patriots. The Patriots' helmet is plastered with their logo, which comes dangerously close to looking like a wind-swept John Kerry dressed up like a Minute Man. If there was ever a time to go with the obvious this is it. Why not really play the patriotic card and star and stripe the helmet?

Read the rest and check out his helmet redesigns in the link to the blog.

http://www.fastcompany.com/blog/ken-carbone/yes-less/penalty-nfls-helmets-kick-season-unneccessary-blandness?partner=homepage_newsletter

ODOM Defensive Player of the Week

UpStateMike — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 14:29:43 -0000

The NFL named Bengals right end Antwan Odom the Defensive Player of the Week Wednesday after he

tied a franchise record at Green Bay this past Sunday with five sacks in the Bengals' first win ever at Lambeau Field. The Bengals, who have compiled individual sack records since 1976, had seen such a performance only once previously, when left end Eddie Edwards logged five sacks against Cleveland in the 1980 finale.

Also Wednesday Tampa Bay picked safety Corey Lynch off the Cincinnati practice squad and the Bengals replaced gun with rookie cornerback Rico Murrauy.

According to the Bengals' Odom press release:

Odom produced 31 yards in losses with his five sacks of Green Bay QB Aaron Rodgers. Two of his first three sacks helped push the Packers out of field-goal range, forcing punting situations, and midway through the fourth quarter, he pushed the Packers into a third-and-15 situation at their 28, with a punt the result of that drive.

Odom also recorded two sacks vs. Denver in Game 1, and his seven-sack total leads by three in the NFL sacks race. Odom and Edwards now share the Bengals record for most sacks over any two-game span, as Edwards had seven over the last two games of 1980.

Elias Sports Bureau reports this week that since 1982, when individual sacks became an official NFL statistic, no player has matched that total for the first two games of a season. The previous record for Games 1-2 of a season was 6.5, by Detroit DE William Gay in 1983 (Gay finished ’83 with 13.5).

Overheard During Training Camp

UpStateMike — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 17:04:01 -0000

via cdn2.sbnation.com

"Mmmmhmmm....that place has good ribs, but go over two blocks...see that church steeple? Across the street is the best Waffles and Fried Chicken in town."

Found this today. Amusing, unless you're a Bengals Fan on the eve of the 2009 season:

'My summer vacation,' the Andre Smith edition

Wednesday September 2, 2009 12:54 AM By La Monica

We're going to kick it old school here and harken back to the days of going back to elementary school.

Remember that third-grade assignment to write about what you did during the summer? Well, here go with the Andre Smith remix of "My Summer Vacation."

For my summer vacation, I got a job. It is a very, very, very, very fun job. I like it a lot. Except, I didn't want to go to my job, so I didn't. I stayed at home and ran back and forth between some cones. I blocked air to show I can block people, too.

Then the big kids in the schoolyard made fun of me. On cable television. In more than 50 million homes. That wasn't very nice. I didn't like that. I almost cried.

Then I finally decided to go to my new job that I got a few months ago. The nice people in Cincinnati gave me a lot of money to work. I think it was about 42 ka-billion trillion million gagillion dollars.

Three days into my job, I broke my foot. And that is how I spent my summer vacation. Work is hard. Can I come back to school?

Early reports have Smith missing anywhere from three days to three weeks. Child, please.

(AP Photo)

(Editor's note: Great o have you back, La Monica.)

from: http://www.newsday.com/sports/football/glauber-s-nfl-hot-reads-1.811959/my-summer-vacation-the-andre-smith-edition-1.1415438

You know we'd all feel much better having Smith ready to go, at least in uniform. Still, I believe the Front office is loving it, because they don't have to pay him as much, cause you know he is not on TrimSpa. Could this have been avioded with an early signing? Will this send a message to Mikey Brown to be more aggressive and sign your 1st rounder earlier rather than later? Time will tell.

The one thing that I do like is that they named Collins the starter early, and that it was his job to keep or lose when (if) Andre actually begins practicing. I am hoping that Smith is able to heal quickly, get out there and be hungry to show his team mates that he WANTS to be there, and equally as important, DESERVES to be there. Perhaps he can look towards Rey - Rey for inspiration about how a rookie handles himself and earns the spot on the starting squad.

Know Thy Enemy - Game #1 Broncos

UpStateMike — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 15:55:40 -0000

Without getting into any sort of Sun Tzu tripe, one of the things I like about SB nation is to be able to check out what fans are saying about their beloved team, and gain better insight. It's kind of fun to see others drinking Kool Aid this time of year. But the point here is to learn who we face and how or if we can beat the tar out of them and get off to a good start this season.

There's a LOT of turmoil in Denver.

Coach Shannahan. Gone.

Jay Cutler. Gone.

Brandon Marshall. Gone?

They still have their beloved Champ Bailey though. They build snow and ice sculptures of him all the time.

Now, lets get to what their fans are saying. I'm going to throw quotes that are interesting, and site posts where they are at. Example #1 is going to be from a first time poster over there at Mile High Report http://www.milehighreport.com/

This guy seems like a good homer but knows his team.

http://www.milehighreport.com/2009/7/4/937876/optimism-abounds-in-d-town

O-Line: We have the best O-Line in the NFL. Period. Continuing from last year I expect dominance from our line and project that the emphasis will now focus more on a balanced run/pass scenario. Our pass protection is awesome with young talent in Clady/Harris at the left and right tackle positions respectfully. At guard I will give the nod to Hamilton but if his motor stalls like happened last year sporadically he will undoubtedly be pulled as our new coach is fearless and will play the best person always. Kuper gets the other spot as he has developed nicely and may even get better with the new guard pulling run attack McDaniels brings from NE. Of course that leaves us with Wiegmann at center which the resigning of made my day. Lichtensteiger is an awesome back-up at both center and guard and provides us with an insurance policy if age catches up with Casey. Adding our draftees of this year with those of last year and we have decent to solid depth for a line that is bordering on greatness.

D-Line- Now things start to get interesting. First a little history, sort of, Denver has drafted for speed on defense for generations and now that sometimes fault may provide us with an opportunity. Take Marcus Thomas for instance. Three years ago he came in over weight by Shannahan standards and was asked to trim up and put on more muscle. He has been increasingly more effective every season but now we switch to a 3-4 oh no. What this means to me is now we have a slimmed down DT that has been trained to be faster. Sounds like a pretty good 3-4 end doesn’t it. I have heard he is going for the NT position and I do believe the probable heavy rotation at that spot will include him but as with all of our defensive players left on the line the prior regimes system may make them even better prospects at their new positions. May I also point out that the 3-4 I put up shows us having close to 1000 pounds of angry players which is what we put out before but with 4 players. We are going big and fast.

Conclusion:
I see us in two ways. If our coach is as smart as I hope we are about to begin a dominating campaign that will lead to at worst a playoff appearance this season. I believe that the play-calling last year grew stale and predictable as the reason for it was not to win games but garner league attention with stats. I believe that while Bates was innovative at times he is still young in his football I.Q. Slowik is the worst D.C. EVER. I cannot speak on his on his other coaching abilities as they seem to be focused more on offense in the first place(I believe he was a QB coach before he was our secondary coach then our DC?) Anyway, I think that last year’s aberrations have been nullified and the holdover players are better than there disorganized play last season. I see potential in this team and every move made by McDaniels seems to have a purpose. If he is as advertised we will be dominating this division now and for the foreseeable future. On the other hand if what most of the so-called experts say is true then we just might be the new Detroit Lions/Oakland-L.A. Raiders.

So. Lets think about these quotes. DO the Broncos really have the best O line int he NFL? IS their D line Big and Fast? Or, as he says the so called experts think they are the new Detriot or LA?

Thoughts?

Utecht says we're good to go. And Chad like Pavarotti.

UpStateMike — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 14:29:14 -0000

While reading what seemingly was an irrelevant article about the NFC North, I found this little gem:

http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/9768964/7-Points:-NFC-North-has-interesting-QBs,-for-once

Point 3: Tight end Ben Utecht says there are plenty of reasons to be optimistic about the Bengals offense this year.

Even though the Bengals finished last in total offense in 2008, the Cincinnati tight end shared his insights and excitement with me during a phone call this week.

"Things are looking good in Cincinnati," he said. "Everybody's healthy, and I think that one of our biggest downfalls last year was that we had 21 guys on injured reserve, and a lot of those guys were starters and big contributors."

Utecht, who was a Bengal for the first time in 2008 after four seasons with the Indianapolis Colts, was bitten by the injury bug as well.

"It was the toughest year so far for me as a player," he said. "I had three pretty serious injuries throughout the course of the season that took me out of half of the games. But I'm 100 percent healthy, practices have gone great and I'm really solid with the offense."

Utecht noted that the return of quarterback Carson Palmer will make the offense much more efficient. And although the team lost star receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh to the Seahawks via free agency, he thinks the wide receiver corps will be tough to cover.

"The team made a great choice when they brought in (Laveranues) Coles, an extremely hard-working player who's got great hands. He's a tough player, so he's going to bring a lot to this team," Utecht said. "Chris Henry is an amazing talent. A few years ago he had some off-the-field instances, but those have ceased and he's really gotten his act together. And man, I've got to tell you, he's been fun to watch."

Of course, the wildcard of the group — in more ways than one — is Chad Ochocinco, a player who seems to be the polar opposite of the polite and humble tight end.

"I get along great with Chad," Utecht said. "I came into the weight room early one morning and we started listening to music together and it turns out he's got a bunch of classical music on his iPod. So before everyone got there, we listened to some Pavarotti on the team stereo system."

Say what? Ochocinco working out to Pavarotti? Maybe this is one Bengal who is sporting some different stripes in 2009 after all.

"One of the things I've seen different in him already this season is that he came in a week before minicamp with a different attitude, more about the team," Utecht said. "I think some of that has to do with him talking with Carson and really refocusing his mind and his goals for this year."

In Utecht, Reggie Kelly and rookie Chase Coffman, the team also has plenty of talent at the tight end position. But I told the former Colt that I thought the Bengals rushing attack was going to be the team's Achilles Heel this season with Cedric Benson leading the attack and not a lot of depth behind him.

That didn't dampen Utecht's enthusiasm one bit.

"I'm really excited about seeing what we can do on this team as far as the running game goes," he said. "We've made a lot of moves with personnel to put together a very strong offensive line.

"They brought Cedric in late in the game, but I've to tell you, he is really pouring it on. He was a huge talent coming out of college, and now that he's gotten his act straightened out, he's working real hard for the Bengals right now. Other people might be worried about it, but I'm not. I really think that Cedric is the guy we need to keep and put our trust in because he's a talented runner."

There was also something from Housh being big trouble for the seahawks opponents. Whatever, TJ.

Adam Rank says Palmer to Chad is going to be high fantasy value.

UpStateMike — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 18:17:49 -0000

While nosin around NFL.com I discovered this tidbit tucked away in the fantasy area. Fantasy players, be bullish on Palmer, Ochocinco

QB Carson Palmer told reporters that this current Bengals team is as good as any he’s had during his seven years in Cincinnati.

This time of year is full of hyperbole, but fantasy owners should take notice.

“The mindset of the team, the amount of distractions is down and the focus is where it needs to be,” Palmer said. “As far as talent wise, this is probably the best talent we’ve had but the most maturity we’ve had by far. We’re where we need to be, we’re headed in the right direction.”

What Palmer is basically saying is that he’s happy WR Chad Ochocinco finally got his butt into camp, isn’t complaining about being traded and is instead concentrating on being the best receiver in the league. Not happy enough that Palmer will invite Ochocinco to move in with him, but still happy.

And here’s the secret, if you have followed along with our NFL.com chats: Ochocinco’s name is most mentioned when the discussion turns to best receiver in the league. Cortland Finnegan (chat) and Darrelle Revis (chat) were two guys who said Ochocinco was the best receiver in the league. I’ll take their word for it.

Palmer is ranked No. 11 in Michael Fabiano’s fantasy rankings, though that seems a little low. Really, Jay Cutler ahead of him? Cutler’s top receiver is “Stonehands” from Neccessary Roughness. Palmer has Ochocinco. Palmer also went in Round 8 of our “experts” draft. I grabbed Tony Romo in Round 6, but would probably feel better about getting Palmer in Round 8. Ochocinco went in Round 4 of that draft, just prior to my pick, and I’m still seething.

Update your boards and keep an eye on Palmer and Ochocinco — it’s going to be a big year in Cincinnati.

– ADAM RANK

Replacing the Scotch with the Kool-Aid

UpStateMike — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 15:15:31 -0000

During last night's weekly poker game, someone at the table makes a comment about Chad's "prediction" of the playoff dream. While I had to agree with everybody there (Cowboys Fan, Patriots Fan,2 Bills Fans, Dolphin's Fan, Giant's fan) that a playoff berth is being extremely generous and very optimistic, I had to stick up for my team.

Then came the wager.

The Cowboys fan (btw he bets on sports regularly) says "OK, I'll bet you $50 that the Bengals can't finish .500"

My brain did some math, retracing dozens of posts and speculations from Cincy Jungle, and I took the bet. The Bengals are 8-8 or better, I win.

Like every fan in preseason, the hopes and aspirations of how well their team will fare is high right now. But being a Bengals fan is different. We're less optomistic normally, or at least we are in the back of our minds. I have been reserved talking smack, as the team needs to produce, but I just feel this year is different. This year the Great Striped Pumpkin will rise out the Pumpkin Patch and be respectable. In fact, I'd be just fine with 8-8, as we need to get out of the NFL doghouse and it's the only way to get over the thug jokes and the bungles monniker.

So, my question to you all, do you think I just gave my freind $50 or do we really stand a solid chance of being 8-8 or better?

Jon Kitna is a freakin

UpStateMike — Fri, 15 May 2009 20:09:33 -0000

LIGER

That thought just occurred to me. I'm a little slow sometimes, and I've had my fill of the Ochocinco, Andre the Agent Killer, Bengals from OZ news.

I'm also contemplating drinking the Kool Aid. In fact, I have my R.Johnson jersey on at work today, ready to take on all comers (aka Steelers Fans).

What's the point of this post? Well, I think that first, as Bengals fans we have had to put up with a lot of BS over the past 20 years since being a playoff team. We put up with the Bungles jabs, and have to grit our teeth everytime we even SEE a Steelers fan. Just seeing that logo makes me angry.

Secondly, The preseason is upon us. And this preseason is different. We actually have reasons to have hope.

Don't get too worked up by the press. Don't feel you have to comment on every stupid tired Yahoo "article" about the Bengals. Seriously... F-em! Let it go.

I think it's good that we will be on Hard Knocks. It will keep Ocho occupied. He's already thinking about what he's going to say and how he's going to act. The more he does that the less he'll be in the way. I hope. The plus side is that maybe all of the OZ prison jokes that have started will get old for everyone and they'll watch the show and realize this team is pissed and they are going to go out and want to dispel the Bungles attitude once and for all.

And if they don't realize it then, They just might take notice during the season opener.

Lastly, that season opener is a loooong way away. Lighten up, Relax! Have some fun. I'd be happy with 8-8. Estatic with 10 - 6. Cloud 9 with a playoff game.

Thoughts?