Rudi J returns to power

Tj is primed for big season and "Solid as hell"

Harvey and Rivers trying to break the bank

Mario Urruita trying to earn his stripes

Chad Johnson is focused on the season

New Defensive Coordinator Mike Zimmer is trying to bring passion back to the defense.

TJ sat out practice with leg soreness. Sounds like a little camp-itus, but TJ is a veteran that can use the rest.


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Frostee Rucker has a chance to show he is ready to play now that Antwan Odom is out.

TJ says he is not going to be distracted by his contract which expires after this season.

A look at the 3rd receiver situation and Daniel Coats at fullback.

During Oklahoma drills, Stacy Andrews dominated rookie Jason Shirley.

Chick Ludwig discusses the right tackle situation between Big Willie and Stacy Andrews.

CJ still can't practice.

Chad talking to ESPN and not local media. Says he wants to hit Palmer in his bad knee.

Marvin thinks Odom should be ready for week one.

Another fantasy site tells you which Bengals are "Draftable"

Where is Sam Wyche now?

Palmer gets a gift from Tressel

5 fighting for third wide out spot.

These idiots do predictions. I predict they will be sadly disappointed.

TJ has been a workhorse.


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Pro football talk thinks Chad will get a new deal if he behaves.

It's your stadium, you can win tickets to see the Bengals.

Mario Urrutia and Glenn Holt have some history and are roommates at camp.

The Bleacher report tells you all you need to know about the Bengals for fantasy football.

Checking the books on Marvin Lewis, I wonder how much money he makes?

Day one of Camp, CJ sits out, Odom hurt. Also, Rivers has yet to sign.

Bleacher report is the latest to call the Bengals uniforms ugly.

Chick Ludwick writes that Jeremi Johnson reported to camp morbidly obese.

The Keith Rivers holdout continues.


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With the Brett Favre fiasco looming and the Redskins acquiring Jason Taylor I began thinking, when are the Bengals going to adopt a “win now” attitude. Every preseason certain teams posture themselves as trying to win now instead of planning for the future. Playoff teams, such as the Redskins, will add a few free agents or make trades that will give them the edge for this season. They are not sure how long Jason Taylor will play, but they do not care because they are trying to win now. Of the possible Brett Favre scenarios, his choices are limited to teams that can win now. Carson Palmer will turn 29 at the end of this season which means the Bengals will have a top-flight franchise QB for 5-7 more years. That should make Bengals fans optimistic and happy for the future. However, the rest of the offensive standouts are coming to the end of their prime. Chad, TJ, Willie, Levi, and Bobbie Williams are each over 30 and in the last years of their effectiveness. I did not include any of the running backs because I do not believe there is a consistent 1,000 yard rusher left in the current group.

Should this be the Bengals win now season? I do not know, that is why NFL General Managers (Or owners acting as General Managers) make the big bucks. The Redskins traded 2nd round and 5th round picks for Jason Taylor. Would you trade Jerome Simpson(2nd) and Jason Shirley(5th) for Jason Taylor and an attempt to win this year? As it stands now, Simpson and Shirley are projects that will not help the Bengals this season and perhaps not even next season. So that leads to the next question, are the Bengals hoping to retool the defense around Bjork for a few seasons and make a run in 3 years with Simpson, Caldwell, Whitworth, Stacy Andrews, Anthony Collins, and future draft picks as the offensive firepower? We will see. All we know is that the current offense’s window is closing and the Bengals do not seem to have the urgency of a win now season. Let’s hope the Bengals try to open a new window while they still have Palmer to lead them to the Super Bowl. Unless, of course, the future plan is to hand the reigns to Jeff Rowe who will add 10 years to the Carson Palmer window.

====>On a side note, nobody has brought up the Packers nuclear option with Brett Favre. Everyone says the Packer’s options are to allow Brett on the team, trade him, or cut him. However, none of the football pundits have discussed the possible timing of the cut. It may not win them any Public Relations points, but the Packers are well within their rights to invite Brett to camp, let him play all preseason, and then cut him on the final cut day. They would owe him zero dollars, and it would be too late for Brett to join another team, a win-win for the Packers.


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It’s time to wake up Bengals fans, mini-camp is just a week away. To help you get started, let me tell you about my new favorite Bengal. His name is Carl-Johan Bjork and he plays linebacker. That’s right, he has a dual first name combo of Carl-Johan, and when you see number 45 in the Bengals preseason opener on August 11th, the name will say Bjork. Based on the awe-inspiring details we know, I will assume he has a dual middle name of Sebastian-Reggie or Larry-Wolfgang. Bjork is a native of Stockholm, Sweden, and is part of the NFL’s program to include international players. Therefore, Bjork does not count against the Bengals roster cap and will probably be kept on the team all preseason. His chances of making the team are about the same as Whodeyfans being a popular website in Sweden, but that does not mean we should not support him. Also, the NFL international roster exemptions extend to the practice squad, so Bjork may be part of the Bengals practice squad once the season begins. So far, Bjork has played three seasons (2005-07) in NFL Europe with the Amsterdam Admirals, and was an International Practice Squad player for the Dallas Cowboys in 2006 and the Green Bay Packers in 2007. He also has a facebook page Carl Johan Bjork. Now I do not have a facebook page and have no idea how it works, but if you are a member of facebook, please give Carl-Johan a nice hello from Cincinnati. Let him know how many friends he has in town and that we are all pulling for Carl-Johan to make the team and solve all of the Bengals linebacker problems.


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Couple of interesting things today in Bengal-land. Nothing that makes me change the way I’m thinking about this season (which I will tell you all about in an upcoming post, probably sometime during the preseason). Just a couple of those things you pick up on the internet that reminds you, “Hey, we’ve got another football season coming up. I need to start getting in the mood.”

First, Carson Palmer has finally said something that doesn’t make you want to pull the sheets up and settle in for a good night’s sleep. He was talking to a radio station in L.A. about the supposed rivalry between USC and Ohio State. Here’s what he said, or at least part of it:

“I cannot stand the Buckeyes, and having to live in Ohio and hear those people talk about their team, it drives me absolutely nuts”

Now I’m sure they are some Buckeyes fans out there that are not happy to hear that. But I’m all for it. The guy played against the Buckeyes in college, and I don’t want him to start going against his alma mater just because he lives in Ohio now.

That’s like when Jimmy Fallon said that he likes both the Yankees and Red Sox when he did the craptastic Fever Pitch. I don’t want my QB to be anything like Jimmy Fallon.

I would caution against anyone reading too much of an insult in these comments. He was in L.A. On sports radio. He was exaggerating for effect. I don’t think he means to say that he hates Buckeyes fans, just hearing all the talk about Buckeyes fans.

The other thing that was interesting today was that Chad Johnson hosted a chat on ESPN.com (Insiders only). He’s pimping some DVD of highlights of impact NFL players.

The chat seemed pretty tame, I’m sure he was choosing not to post the questions that called him out for his behavior this offseason. But he didn’t ignore all of them:

“Frank (Cincy): If I buy your DVD will you stay in Cincinnati?

Chad Johnson: Frank, I will be in Cincy. And please do not misunderstand the point of what went on this offseason. To me, I call it somewhat of a wake up call to get things done. That is all I was trying to do.”

He only answered a few questions, but he did send us off with this nice thought:

“Chad Johnson: Everyone, I love you. I am sorry for what went on this offseason, but please understand this is a business. You will get 100% from me this year, as you do every year...actually, make it 200% this year. Cincinnati I love you; to all the fans I love you, and enjoy the show this year!”

God, it pisses me off so much when I hear athletes talk about giving more than 100%! It is mathematically impossible to give more than 100%!

Other than that, I think these few things are cool. Not a great mea culpa, but an apology. He’s obviously putting his spin on the situation.

I have no doubt that he’s frustrated with the direction of the team, but I have trouble believing this offseason was about a wake-up call. He wanted to go. But now that he’s staying, he seems to be serious about it.

I think he’s got too much pride and ego not to give it his all. Which equals exactly 100%.


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Bengals mini camp is 10 days away and a lot of talk is circulating about people falling off the Bengals bandwagon and Marvin Lewis being on the hot seat. While a disappointing previous season and offseason infighting have led many to doubt the success of the coming season, let’s not forget the Bengals past so quickly. Is Marvin Lewis on the hot seat? No Way Jose, unless something monumentally horrible happens this season; such as the Bengals going 0-16, Marvin Lewis getting arrested for armed robbery with Jason Shirley, or the slow economy combines with bandwagon jumping and the Bengals average 10,000 fans per game. In Marvin’s 5 years, he has compiled a regular season record of 42-38, for a winning percentage of 52.5%. In Mike Brown’s tenure as Bengals owner, this is the first time the Bengals have a .500 record over a 5 year span. Mikey’s overall winning percentage in 17 seasons is a robust 35.7%, taking away Marvin and making it 12 seasons, it drops to 28.6%. While many ponder Marvin’s place on the hot seat, Mr. Brown is sitting back and basking in his ultimate success. The last time the Bengals had a 5 year winning percentage over .500 was 1986-1990. In fact, from the Bengals inception in 1968 to the end of the Paul Brown era 23 seasons later, the Bengals had a regular season record of 171-168-1. They were an average team that had their ups, downs, playoff appearances, high draft picks, and Super Bowls. Living in the Mike Brown era, 42-38 is by far the best stretch the Bengals have had within the 97-175 mess.

“You’re doing a heck of a job there, Brownie!!” - President George W. Bush

Knowing Mike Brown is still running the show does not make many people cheery-eyed and hopeful going into this season. However, Marvin has shown an ability to fight the odds and raise the Mikey Bengals to slightly above average. If Mike Zimmer’s defensive philosophy takes hold with this team, some young guys step up, and injuries do not hit too hard, this team is more than capable of winning the AFC North. Every team in the AFC North has major issues going into this season, and slightly above average can secure a home playoff spot with a Division win.


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