WhoDeyRevolution

2008 vs. 2007 Personnel Comparison – Sorting out the Mess at Running Back

WDR continues with its analysis of 2008 personnel compared with 2007 personnel by position in an effort to determine whether we’ve done what it takes to return to the playoffs. This week, we tackle the messy situation at the running back position.

TAILBACK

2007 Starting Tailback: Rudi Johnson

2007 Backup Tailbacks: Kenny Watson, Dede Dorsey with Kenny Irons on Injured Reserve and Chris Perry on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list

2008 Projected Starting Tailback: Rudi Johnson
2008 Projected Backup Tailbacks: Chris Perry, Kenny Watson with Kenny Irons on the PUP list to start the season

2008 Heartbreaking Cut: Dede Dorsey

Rudi Johnson struggled mightily in 2007, which was in large part due to a pulled hamstring. Last year, his statistics amounted to only 497 total yards in 11 games played with an average of just 2.9 yards per carry. His longest run of the season was only 22 yards. While Rudi was definitely affected by a pulled hamstring last year, he did struggle a bit in the 2006 season as well. After averaging 4.5, 4.0 and 4.3 yards per carry 2003, 2004 and 2005, respectively, Rudi averaged only 3.8 yards per carry in 2006 and his longest run that year was just 21 yards. To top it off, Rudi developed a fumbling problem in 2006 with 6 on the year, as well as 3 in 2007 where he carried the ball about half the amount of times as in each of the previous three seasons. Rudi is healthy now and back on the field. His ability to be return to form will be an important factor in re-establishing the running game. However, he shouldn’t have to do it on his own. In a league where the running back by committee approach is being used by the majority of NFL teams, one (and preferably more) backs will also need to step up.

Helping Hobson

We've all wanted to do it at some point--answer questions posed to Geoff Hobson of bengals.com--well, now we here at WDR have a platform to do so.  In a new section called "Helping Hobson," we will take direct aim at some of the questions keeping Bengals fans up at night.  It should be noted that this is in no way meant to disparage Mr. Hobson, who we feel is one of the best (if not most productive) team writers out there.  Generally, we here at WDR feel that he is very fair when it comes to assessing the Bengals' strengths and weaknesses, even going so far as criticizing the organization (albeit mildly) on occasion.  However, I'm sure Geoff Hobson knows who pays his checks, which might lead him to be a little softer in his critique of the team than, say, our friend Ray, who is the biggest Bengals Hater (slash fan) of all time.  The WDR staff gets no money from the Brown family (although we are totally willing to sell out), so for now we will not pull any punches.

To avoid any legal ramifications, we are crediting this to www.bengals.com.  And our response comes from Biff Gobson, a dude who we know.  He lives in Canada--met him at Niagara Falls one year.

The first question we'd like to respond to comes from Dave C. of Cincy, OH: "Am I crazy for being excited about the coming season? I like how the defense is shaping up in terms of personnel and coaching. I see the offense, with or without 85 and 84, ready to wake up and be a dissecting offense with the re-growth of Rudi, with Perry back in the mix, as well as Utecht. The schedule is tough, but I find it difficult to swallow the thought that we cannot beat Baltimore, Tennessee, the Giants and Browns to start the year. If not, two or three of them."

Dave, you are not crazy, just delusional.  It's something that affects many, many Bengals fans.  Usually it peaks closer to last pre-season game, but it's not unusual for it to linger from pre-Draft days until the Bengals are mathematically eliminated from the playoffs.  Hobson was very diplomatic in answering this question--which is to say, he didn't really answer it.  But if you look at the Bengals' history under Mike Brown, in 17 years they have yet to win a single playoff game.  I'd say that does not bode well for the upcoming season, nor does our extremely difficult schedule. 

Small Market BS

A classic Bengals excuse for not spending money on free agents, facilities and staffing is because of Cincinnati's market size compared to other NFL teams. This was the same argument they used to negotiate one of the sweetest deals in the NFL. Former Hamilton County Commissioner Bob Bedinghaus, who was the cheerleader-in-chief to get public financing of the Reds and Bengals stadium’s said in 2000: “Their concern is, "We will always be operating in a smaller market than many of the other football teams in the NFL.'” 

Bedinghaus is now the Bengals Director of Development for Paul Brown Stadium. You can expect more on this issue soon.

Bengals fans need to stop accepting this reasoning to excuse the Bengals management from their constant griping and penny-pinching. The NFL revenue sharing agreement means that even Isiah Thomas could make money running the Bengals. Unlike other major sports, the NFL’s policy means that funds generated from tickets, merchandise, sponsorships and national media deals (such as the NFL’s TV and Radio contracts) are divided equally between all 32 teams.  

Major League Baseball, on the other hand, lets teams negotiate their own TV contracts, leaving the Yankees with their own TV network (the YES network) and the Reds on Fox Sports Ohio. Guess which team generates more money in this situation?

A recent article in the Enquirer detailed the financial arrangement of Bob Kraft and the New England Patriots. Kraft purchased the team in 1994 for a then NFL record $172 million, then put $350 million of his own money into their new stadium. To recoup this investment, Kraft sold the naming rights to new P&G brand Gillette and is building a mixed use development adjacent to the stadium, at an additional cost to Kraft of $850 million.

According to Clayton, Bengals Inaction at DT is among the Worst

According to John Clayton, one of the worst "non-moves" of the 2008 offseason was the Cincinnati Bengals' inability to get help at the defensive tackle position.  He notes the additions of Pat Sims and Jason Shirley through the 2008 NFL draft but focuses on the botched trades for Shaun Rogers and Dewayne Robertson, as well as getting outmaneuvered on draft day by the New Orleans Saints.  The Saints traded in front of us to get highly coveted defensive tackle, Sedrick Ellis, a player who many Bengal fans saw as a perfect fit for us.

Two initial thoughts come to mind.  First, Clayton does have a point.  Our refusal to trade on draft day and the inability to complete two trades was very frustrating for Bengals fans.  The sky seemed to be falling when we found out that the Shaun Rogers deal didn't go through and to make matters worse, he ended up with the Cleveland Browns.  Given our desperate need at defensive tackle, it is somewhat questionable that we weren't more active to get Sedrick Ellis (although it shouldn't have surprised anyone).  That being said, judgment shouldn't be rushed on the Bengals decision to take the best linebacker on the board, Keith Rivers, in the first round, especially considering that we were able to pick up Sims and Shirley subsequently in the draft.  Sims was highly rated and (whether proper or not), we got Shirley at a discount because of character concerns and he's roughly the size of a golf cart.  In grading the 2008 NFL draft in the future, we'll definitely be comparing the productivity of Sedrick Ellis to Sims, Shirley and Rivers.

Secondly, it's interesting that one of Clayton's seven moves is not the Bengals' decision to keep Chad Johnson rather than trading him for a 2008 first round pick and a 2009 third round pick (that potentially could have become a first rounder) from the Washington Redskins.  This decision has been blasted by many and praised by some.  It remains to be seen if the Bengals will trade him after June 1st but it's interesting to note that Clayton, a particularly respected ESPN analyst, does not blast the decision as much as some of his colleagues did just before draft day.

Marvin Lewis Takes First Steps Towards Joining Who Dey Revolution

In one of the most important developments of the offseason, Marvin Lewis has taken steps towards joining the Who Dey Revolution by telling his players that his goal for the upcoming season is to win the Super Bowl.

Marvin told his players in a closed door meeting:  "He said we have enough talent in the room - and he said right now - to win the Super Bowl," [Carson] Palmer said of Lewis' message to players. "Don't wait for things to happen. Don't think that we'll be a good team in years to come. Don't think that there's a Super Bowl in our future and you can take your time and be lackadaisical about it. You need to be aggressive. You need to want it. You need to be hungry for it. And now's the time."

To me, this statement by Lewis is more important than any Bengals free agent signing this year. 

This might seem to be a trivial matter - but the Bengals have a long and storied career of placing many other factors in higher regard than winning, such as loyalty to coaches who agree to play by Mike Brown's rules (Dave Shula, Bruce Coslet), to stubbornness and false pride in dealing with players (Corey Dillon, Chad Johnson) and squeezing every dollar out of the team possible to line the Brown families pocket (sweetheart stadium deal, no winter training complex, smallest scouting department in the NFL).

2008 vs. 2007 Personnel Comparison - Tight Ends

Finally...a position that has improved.  After the last two "Personnel Comparison" articles concluding that our offensive line will consist of the same six linemen as it did last year despite our poor running game the past two seasons, there seems to be a new golden nugget (or maybe even two) at tight end.  The Bengals have been in need of improvement at the tight end position for years.  The only two solid tight ends that I can remember during my 28-year old lifetime are Rodney Holman and Tony McGee.  And if you are thinking of Matt Schobel, then you either work for our favorite football team or your standards have been beaten down over the years because of our longtime inadequacy at the position.

TIGHT END

2007 Starting Tight End - Reggie Kelly

2007 Backup Tight Ends - Daniel Coats, Nate Lawrie

2008 Projected Starting Tight End - Reggie Kelly

2008 Projected Backup Tight Ends - Ben Utecht, Matt Sherry

To CBA, or not to CBA? That is the question.

NFL owners unanimously voted to opt out of the current Collective Bargaining Agreement on Tuesday.  Just two years go Mike Brown and Ralph Wilson were the only ones to vote against it.  What does all this mean?  Lets examine, shall we?:

As much good that the current deal brings to the league, it does have its fair share of flaws.  Brown and Wilson recognized this 2 years ago, but now it seems as though everybody does.  Here are a few reasons why the owners now want out:  Bonuses paid to players that later breach their contract are not recoverable.  Rookies are allowed to be paid millions more dollars than the proven veterans who have put in the time and won Superbowls for their teams.  Not to mention the ever increasing sums of money that must be spent on stadiums and such, when the players are getting a majority of the pool of money.  Not that the teams are going broke, but it does put a financial strain on them at times.  You can read the leagues official statement for opting out here.

Dear Anyone who is still mad at the Cincinnati Bengals for releasing Odell Thurman,

Shut up.  Just stop it. 

Let's not forget that Odell Thurman was a huge reason that we did not make the playoffs in 2006.  That year, we were a bad snap and a missed field goal away from making the playoffs for the second straight year.  We sure could have used Odell Thurman in some of our close games that season (Tampa Bay, Atlanta, Baltimore, Denver, Pittsburgh...all games decided by 6 or less points).  But Odell Thurman was useless to us as he was suspended for the whole season.  At first it was just 4 games for violating the league's substance abuse policy (failing a drug test or failing to take a drug test).  But rather than learn from this mistake, his suspension was extended for the whole season after being arrested for a DUI.  This wasn't just any DUI though. In this DUI, Odell was driving Reggie McNeal's car while Chris Henry was puking out the side door of it (two players that have also since been let go).  Still, even after this, the Bengals stuck with Odell.  Odell's suspension was then extended through the 2007 season because, according to the NFL, he was not proceeding how he needed to in order to get reinstated.  Whether this was correct for the NFL to do or not, it sure doesn't seem like Odell was proactive to get his life back on track and back on the football field.

Building Through the Draft - A Proven Failure

A constant Bengals refrain under the Brown Regime has been that the Bengals strategy to a Super Bowl is to build through the draft.  Shunning high priced free agents in favor of shrewd drafting, the theory goes, will lead the team to glory.  The recent Odell Thurman saga has proven this theory to be as sound as creationism.

The CW says to wait 3-4 years to judge a team's draft.  Well, ignoring the dark years from 1991-2002, Marvin's draft classes have largely proven to be tremendous busts, with the 2005 class coming in as perhaps one of the worst draft classes in Bengals history.  The Baltimore Sun has picked up on this, as well as Comrade Blog Stripe Hype, calling the 2005 draft a "Marvel of Ineptitude." 

Out of the 2005 draft, 5 of the Bengals 7 picks are no longer with the team: David Pollack, 1st round (17th); Odell Thurman, 2nd round (48th); Chris Henry, 3rd round (83rd); Adam Keift, 5th round (153rd); and Tab Perry, 6th round, (190th).  Eric Ghiacuic, the teams 4th rounder has moved into a starting role, but has impressed few.  7th rounder Jonathan Fanene has a total of 5 tackles in his three years on the team.  Talk about building a foundation for a champion!

Overall, only 21 of the Bengals' 42 picks of the Marvin Lewis Era (2003-2007) are still with the team. 

Thinking Inside the Box (version 2.01)

A little while ago I posted an article stating who I thought would be the starting linebacking corps on opening day as follows:

• OLB - Odell Thurman
• MLB - Keith Rivers
• OLB - Dhani Jones or Rashad Jeantucky

Wow, I could not have been more wrong.  This picture has changed drastically since the time I posted that article, now that Odell has been peaced and that they made the decision to put Rivers at his "natural" spot on the outside. It looks now like the starting lineup is going to be this:

• OLB - Keith RIvers
• MLB - Dhani Jones
• OLB - Ahmad Brooks or Rashad Jeantucky

This could very well turn out to be one of the better LB corps in recent history.  But this hinges on a few things:

1. Rookie Keith Rivers learns quickly and can step his level of play up to the NFL before too long.  Every great player in college has the potential to be great in the NFL.  But does Rivers have the attitude and drive that it takes to do so? It seems like he does, but we will have to wait and see.
2. Ahmad Brooks is fully recovered from his "sore" hamstring. If this turns out to be a lingering injury that keeps him from any amount of playing time, this could be a repeat of last year.
3. Dhani Jones starts acting like a football player instead of a rich frat kid from UVA. No but seriously, Dhani has never really played the middle for an extended period of time, so WDR does not know what to expect from him.  What we do know is that he is consistent, and can tackle well. What more can you ask for?

Also in order for any of these players to have success, we need solid play from our interior defensive line.  If just one of the two rookies pans out (Sims or Shirley) we should do OK.  If both of them show up and play to their potential, then watch out.  This defense could actually turn some heads this year. 

Stay tuned to WDR for the latest news and analysis of the Bengals.  And please join the revolution if you dont want to settle for a 5-11 record this year.