It’s time to give the Bengals a little credit. We were harsh in our initial assessment of the Bengals free agent efforts, especially Moriarty who is a miserable human being. But after analyzing the coming and going of players in free agency, the Bengals have not done a bad job so far. First, the Bengals decided to let Justin Smith and Madieu Williams leave. Whether the decision was made by shrewd personnel judgment or just plain being cheap, the Bengals were correct on both counts. Smith signed a 6 year contract for $45million dollars to join the 49ers. The deal equates to $7.5million per year which is more than the $7million per year deal that the Bengals did no match for Eric Steinbach last season. As Bengal fans know, Justin Smith is not worth more than Eric Steinbach. So unless the 49ers see a way to use Justin Smith that the Bengals missed, this is a bad deal on their part. Madieu, meanwhile, signed for 6 years and $34million which is an average of $5.6million. The franchise tag number for a safety this year is $4.4million. So the Vikings essentially paid a non-Pro Bowl safety to a contract with an annual average greater than the franchise tag; another bad move. The Bengals will miss Madieu’s presence on the field, in the locker room, and in the community, but they won’t miss him to the tune of $5.6million per year.
On to the trade debacles. Media outlets, including Bengals.com, announced that the Bengals had agreed to two trades, both of which fell through. Both added to the perception that the Bengals are inept and still the laughing stock of the league. However, after further examination, the Bengals did the best they could under the circumstances. It’s obvious the Bengals are desperate for an impact fatboy, and Rogers and Robertson were being shopped for trades. The Bengals made a run at both, but were shut down for different reasons. In the Rogers case, the Lions were trying to avoid paying Rogers a $1million bonus by trading him away before the bonus came due. The deal with the Bengals was not consummated in time so the Lions were on the hook for the money. The Bengals offered to reimburse the Lions for the bonus, which is illegal, and why the league stopped the trade. The Bengals and Lions then asked Rogers to restructure his contract and delay the bonus so that the Bengals could pay him directly, and Rogers refused. Then the Browns stepped in with an offer and Rogers agreed to restructure his contract to join the Browns. For Robertson, he has 2 years and $18million left on his current contract with the Jets. Like the Lions, the Jets are trying to trade Robertson to get away from his contract. The Jets, however, have let it be known that if they can’t trade Robertson, they will cut him from the team. So the Bengals tried to renegotiate a contract extension with Robertson before completing the trade, to which Robertson said no. Robertson would rather take his chances on the open market after being cut than deal exclusively with the Bengals. So the Bengals may still get Robertson in free agency and without having to trade for him. In the end though, both cases show that the Bengals have yet to shake their reputation as a cheap and poorly run franchise. Many players, given the choice, would still choose to play for teams other than the Bengals, unless the Bengals are willing to offer substantially more money.
Signaling a shift towards the positive though, the Bengals were able to sign free agent defensive end Antwan Odom to a 5 year $29.5million contract. The Bengals may have overpaid a little bit, but Odom is a strong free agent signing. For $1.6million less than Justin Smith per season, the Bengals get a younger, more athletic, and better pass rushing defensive end. While Odom may not have the ‘motor’ of Justin Smith, defensive ends do not earn their money with a motor and downfield tackles. Defensive ends are paid to wreak havoc in the opposing team’s backfield, which Justin Smith could not do, and Odom can. The Bengals can also use more of a rotation with the defensive ends to keep Geathers and Odom fresh to use their athleticism in the 4th quarter. Opposing teams playing from behind will have a horrible time dealing with Geathers and Odom.
The Bengals work is not done yet. Even with the strong signing of Odom, they still need help at all 3 level of the defense. To improve the defense, a starter still needs to be added before the Bengals go to the draft, and as said before, Robertson is still an option. There are also many useful free agents still on the blocks for the Bengals to sign for added depth:
DT:
Jimmy Kennedy, CHI
LB:
Clark Haggans, PIT
Boss Bailey, DET
Remember Landon Johnson?
S:
Marlon McCree, SD
Eugene Wilson, NE

Add a starter, a few low end free agents, and the belief that the Bengals will get 10 draft picks to play with, and the team is in good shape. As of right now, the Bengals offseason grade would be a C. But if they can add Robertson or trade for or draft Glenn Dorsey/Sedrick Ellis, add depth with a free agent or two, the Bengals could move into B+ territory. With a B+ effort, we could actually say the Bengals improved their defense in the offseason.


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Paul Daugherty said it best today, about the Bengals signing of Antwan Odom. It’s not often that Daugherty gets it right, so let’s at least send him some link juice when he does. What he says is right: Odom might not be as big a name as the two D-Lineman that the Bengals lost out on, but he doesn’t carry the same red flags either.

The funny thing is, the Bengals signing Odom is really a failure on their part. They swung and missed at two guys and got their third choice. Is it me, or was Odom the best choice? Considering the player and the money—and what Justin Smith got in S.F.—I’m pretty happy with this.

There’s a story telling device called the impressive failure—best represented by the Indiana Jones movies. Indy keeps trying to achieve his goals, and keeps finding himself on the losing end of situations and in worse and worse situations. But simply through his dogged determinedness and a little luck, he still seems to win out in the end. He’s a little beat up, but he’s come out on top.

Maybe that’s why we get a kick out of the Bengals. For all of their failings, they keep going, and one of these days they’re going to come out on top. Hopefully.


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Antwan Odom (by several published reports) is a Cincinnati Bengal. The press will gather at Paul Brown around 10am for him to make his first appearance as a Bengal.

I think this is a good signing. I am surprised Scrooge Brown would make a play for a 4 year NFL starter who had 8 sacks last year. It is a big deal for a big player. If you look at it like a trade for Justin Smith then I think we have definitely upgraded our D-Line.


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