Andrews Move

Quick reaction to the move to tag Stacy Andrews. Clearly this is not the final move that will be made on the line. Even the Bengals aren't stupid enough to pay 7.5M to a guy who won't start. They had to use the tag by Thursday or they would lose it...just think of it as a long layaway program so the Bengals can try and hammer out something long-term before July 15th.

The other thing to consider is the farewell of Willie Anderson. Back in 05, the Bengals had a decision to make. They had Levi Jones, Eric Steinbach, and Willie Anderson. They couldn't sign all three. Plus, in the wake of the Steve Hutchinson deal, Steinbach wanted tackle money. After Levi locked up Dwight Freeney in the shootout loss to the Colts in November of 05, the Bengals figured he was worth the investment at left tackle. I have no problem with that move...he was a stud in 05. So now it's down to Willie and Steinbach. Being the loyal man that he is, Mike Brown chose Willie over wisdom. The Bengals signed Willie to a huge long-term deal, and essentially Steinbach was a dead man walking in 06. The only problem I have with that is: Willie was much older, and Steinbach could play any position on the line, and play them above average. Maybe Steinbach was a guard by trade, but you could (and the Bengals did) plug him in at either tackle or even center and Steinbach was very good. Hindsight is 20/20, but the Bengals blew it there. Again, they had a problem with identifying players whose time had come and gone.

My prediction? They announce they are cutting Willie at some point...and then they hammer out a long-term deal with Andrews for something in the 4.5-5.5M per year range over 5 years. So now the line looks something like: Jones, Whitworth, Ghiachic, Williams, Andrews. If everyone can stay healthy and if Ghiachic can get it together mentally...could be a solid line.