Head coach Marvin Lewis says of the offense for next season: "It's going to be a way different offense." What does that even mean? Is it the schemes? The personnel? Expected successes after closing the season with a strong running game? We still don't expect anything will change in terms of the team's offensive coordinator; position coaches, maybe. So that isn't it; though we're hardly confirmation on such matters.

Test. When did Marvin Lewis say this?

Oh, we haven't handled anything very good. We're not good enough. We haven't coached anything very good. We've turned the football over too many times. We've allowed explosive plays early on defense. We haven't played good enough on third down on either side of the football. We've had receivers drop passes. We haven't run the football effectively enough. We haven't handled anything very well.

It was after the 2007 season.

Along with having his jaw all jacked up, Keith Rivers had "arthroscopic surgery to clean out an ankle" and should be ready by late March for "offseason conditioning".

Every year, Cadillac gives away a free car to the Super Bowl MVP; like Dexter Jackson in 2003, nearly everyone picked the Escalade.

The Bengals Pro Shop is giving away free #85 jerseys with a $50 purchase. The Team's Pro Shop says it's giving away both "C.Johnson" and "Ocho Cinco" variations of the "85" jersey. We've always thought that the Chad Ocho Cinco name change was a one-year gimmick. Something for a little cash, from sales to publicity. That everything would return to normalcy after the season. The "C.Johnson" might just be over stocked (because of so many "Ocho Cinco" shirts); most popular player on the team, having a terrible off-season and regular season and no one wants to buy because no one is sure where he'll be in 2009.

Isn't there ever a point in time that one should leave a story alone? I don't care if Matt Millen is on television. It doesn't affect me, one way or another. I'm not even thinking to myself, "boy, his teams didn't do so well while he was a general manager." Sometimes people whom have been controversial in their own right, should sometimes just let things go. That's not to say I don't appreciate what PFT does; they bring up interesting stories that are otherwise buried. Sometimes they stir rumors, but you have to look past that. Differentiate the two; which is easy because they usually point those out early. On this one, no. I'm not on board.

Boston College head coach Jeff Jagodzinski is likely getting fired for interviewing with the New York Jets. It's being reported that Athletic Director Gene DeFilippo was informed of Jagodzinski's interview by a reporter; not the head coach himself.

Walter Sparrow is haunted by "The Number 23".

It's often easy to lose things in stats. For instance, you know that Ryan Fitzpatrick had eight touchdowns this season. But can you tell me which team his fifth touchdown was against? Considering how low that number is, you just might. Bad example. We love Crazy Legs. It wasn't as if he single-handedly lost us football games. No. That was Corey Webster. We don't forget.

Stats as a whole can picture the performance of a single player. Not the team. The team is the accumulation of stats with all players. It's the team stats that matter; the third down conversions, the yards-per-rush with all running backs, time of possession, etc. And, um, the score. Don't forget that; kind of important. There's another stat, specifically marked "To Cincinnati", with the only coherent response being "holy crap, how many?"

Throughout the season the Bengals lost 23 players to IR; several of whom left with an injury settlement. Carson Palmer went down early in the season, didn't play again. Stacy Andrews went down late in the season. Neither are included as the "23". Fingerling freaks. Andrew Whitworth, Scott Kooistra and Dan Santucci are three linemen that project on next year's roster (because they have signed contracts through next year). Marvin White, Johnathan Joseph, Keith Rivers, Robert Geathers and Dexter Jackson weren't just defensive players that went down, they were starters (yes, Jackson started three games). Along with several others, these players will be back next season.

If that's too detailed, the generic crack-the-stat version looks like this: starting left guard, primary backup at tackle and guard, backup center, starting defensive end, two starting safeties, a starting cornerback, and a starting linebacker.

It's granted, understood and accepted that injuries happen with all teams. Better teams have better talent lower in their depth charts creating a scenario where a backup player becomes a starter because he performed better while playing for the injured starter. We're also not telling you that you should expect an undefeated season, or even a playoff berth. However, when you have that many people go down, most of whom are returning in 2009, the team has to get better. Right?

So it's easy to say 23 players on injured reserve. After all, 23 is just a number, high enough that the context within the number begins to fade. The best part about the off-season and training camp, is that that number should default back to zero. Of course, like seasons before, we'll start watching a new crop of injured players suffer hamstring injuries during training camp that could miss the start of the season. But that's later.

What's the best thing that could be learned for Bengals fans? No, not Mike Brown stepping down. No, not Bob Bratkowski getting replaced. No, not winning a playoff game. While those would be nice (boy, they would be really nice), neither of those are going to happen relatively soon -- though the optimistic Kool-aid Bengals fan in me screams that the Bengals will be far better next season than 2008.

C Trent writes that Carson Palmer will NOT need surgery on his throwing elbow during the off-season. C Trent writes that "Palmer had an MRI the last week of the season and, according to Brennan, it revealed the healing process had worked on its own and Palmer should be ready for the team's entire 2009 offseason work."

That means voluntary camps, mandatory camps, training camps, pre-season, etc. That means the God of Golden Arms will become the golden messiah for redemption, invasion and occupation in the AFC North. It means that the poor will be rich, the starving with bullies full. And it means that the apocalypse of 2012 is simply scary promotion from the conspiracy-minded.

Did I lay that on a little thick?

The conventional wisdom with Bengals fans and the local media is that we desperately need to address the offensive line this off-season, while keeping both eyes on improving the defensive front. So what does Scout.com mock for the Bengals? Michael Crabtree. It's not that we think he's lacks potential, but, yikes. After picking up two wide receivers with the team's first four picks last draft, three total, along with four receivers still under contract, we actually see no reason to draft a receiver. None, whatsoever.

Talk about a let down. The Bengals finished the season 4-11-1. The Bearcats won the Big East, but lost the Orange Bowl. The two-loss Ohio State Buckeyes lost the Fiesta Bowl in the closing seconds. Having two Ohio teams in the BCS was nice and all, but shesh, can Ohio catch a break?

Even so, the Longhorns are unlikely to finish number one in the AP, with their best shot replacing the loser in the polls after the BCS National Championship game.

"It's not their fault."
"They deserve #1 as much as anyone."

Granted, it's unfair for Utah to go undefeated and have nothing but a perfect record to show for it. Still, the BCS IS about major schools, not cinderella stories. The BCS forbids it. That's their designs. If college football wanted cinderella, then there would a playoff system. There would be a way for non-BCS conferences to make the championship game; perfect records aren't enough. Utah going undefeated is a great story, but too many people question their conference before allowing them an overbearing reception that they should be considered the #1 team in the country. Ask yourself this, could they beat Oklahoma? Florida? Texas? Maybe. Maybe not. We'll never know. If Utah isn't the primary argument for a playoff system, then there's really no point in the argument itself. Then again, there's really no point anyway. Discussions about the playoffs are routinely blown off by the big dogs of the conferences, and there's not a thing to be done.

Alex Marvez says the two biggest draft needs for the Bengals are offensive tackle, and defensive end.

For all the reasons they listed, the Bengals should address the line, not whether or not they can pick up Chris "Beanie" Wells -- who I'm hesitant of picking up simply because of durability. I see little reason to believe he'll survive a 16-game season.

Dave composes his list of "Bengals on the Bubble", which includes Chris Perry.

Jeff Chadiha lists Houshmandzadeh among his ten scenarios where veteran players will be on the move.

WDR lobbies for an indoor practice facility (as part of their manifesto) like the one the Jets recently opened which convinced Brett Favre to join.

Coaches will be on notice that their seat is warming, with possible free agent coaches Mike Shanahan, Mike Holmgren and Bill Cowher possibly waiting for new gigs... which could, but unlikely, include Tony Dungy and Bill Parcells.

Vikings defensive coordinator is a candidate for the head coaching vacancy in Denver.

Even though he plays for the Steelers, I think James Harrison is a solid pick for Defensive Player of the Year.

The economy will affect the poker industry in 2009? Who knew?

Ten reasons the Gators will beat the Sooners Thursday.

Star Wars is perhaps the best trilogy of all time, and I have no problems saying that, fully aware that hot chicks think dork isn't yet... yet. So what happens when you take James Earl Jones' dialogue in Coming to America, and implant it in his scenes in Star Wars? Aha!

For those of you banking on the Bengals dumping Bob Bratkowski this off-season, turn away. Watch Jimmy Johnson chat during the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl pre-game show; it'll be easier on you, even with his pink shirt and tie. The Bengals coaching staff was invited to fill the ranks for the North at the annual Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama on January 24, 2008 2009 at 8 P.M.

Several things to note here.

If the Bengals were going to make a coaching change, it would have happened by now. It's one thing to replace a position coach, but an offensive coordinator is typically a highly complicated system that requires months, upon months of development and integration. Coordinators need to understand their players, so that roles can be established, and the system worked around the talent of the players. Based on that alone, it should be clear that the Bengals are sticking with Bratkowski.

Secondly, you're not going to take your anyone from the coaching staff if you don't plan a change. What's the point of taking the coaches to the Senior Bowl, to scout the seniors in the game, if they're just going to be fired anyway? That, in itself, makes it additionally clear. Even Geoff Hobson points out the obvious that this "announcement confirms the Bengals plan little change to their coaching staff."

C Trent, who also has the press release, points out several players in the 2004 Senior Bowl, the last time the Bengals coaching staff was in the game, ended up being drafted by the team: Keiwan Ratliff, Madieu Williams, Greg Brooks, and Kyle Larson. Larson remains. Yea. Me too, fellas.

The game will be on NFL Network; which means barely anyone will get to watch it.

We want to make this abundantly clear, for any site, coach or player we rip into: we're not addressing the person, just services (barely) rendered, the actual opinion given, etc... We're not blindly going around marching to the drum of firing someone simply because we're the displeased mob with torches during Access Hollywood (two points if you know the reference). We believe that the system is flawed, that being unable to plug players into the system, using the "talent" excuse, is a severe disadvantage. It means that if God of the Golden Arms isn't playing, that the Bengals can shelve whatever hope remains. No offensive system should be based on a single player.

We know that our argument is very weak. There's nothing to back it up. We complain generally about the plays, but specifics aren't readily published. So it should be up to the Consortium of Bengals bloggers to document it all; to throw a pile of papers on the demons desk to say, "this is why."

As Mark Curnutte steps aside, Joe Reedy comes in. He's the newest primary for the Bengals blog on Cincinnati.com and the Bengals beat writer for the Cincinnati Enquirer. This works well for us, we figure. You know, you always screw up 2-3 checks dating "2009" when you slap yourself in the head ("I could have had a V8") because of the new year. So, just to make sure you knuckleheads don't hammer me for misplacing Mark Curnutte's name with Joe Reedy, I'm preempting your attack with the acknowledgment that not only might I screw up, but I will screw up. That said, we wish Joe Reedy good luck, thick skin and an unhealthy desire to feed us information like Audrey II's appetite (think Little Shop of Horrors... then take a bath).

So, our first link of the day comes from Mark Curnutte Joe Reedy, who caught Bill Cowher's prediction on NFL Today: The Bengals will make the playoffs in '09. If Cowher said it, it must be true, right? Then again, Cowher has always been a dick to Bengals fans, hasn't he?

Eugene Monroe?

Curious as to who picked Keith Rivers for Rookie Defensive Player of the Year? Jay Paris of the North County Times. Paris writes to Fan House: "I wish I had a good insightful reason for it. But it was just a mistake that I didn't realize until after the vote came out. When it came time to turn in the votes Monday, I was working on a Chargers playoff piece on Philip Rivers at the same time. I switched back to my early DROY watch list, which included Mayo and Rivers, and was going back and forth from the two screens."

Matt quotes a source from Pro Football Weekly that Chris Perry won't be back in 2009. I'm seriously wondering if that would make as happy as the Bengals replacing their offensive coordinator.

Good luck to Andrew Whitworth getting married this spring in California with KTVE's Melissa Clark.

If Bengals fans are anything, they're dynamic. Today is a special posting; one united with several other Bengals blogs. Dave Wellman from Stripe Hype, Showtime from Who Dey Revolution, Eric Gambill from BengalsZone, and Mickey Mentzer from Who Dey Fans all joined into brief discussion about 2008, and what to expect through 2009. Thanks to those that contributed, and recognition to Adam (Bengal Stripes) and Matt (BengalsGab) who wanted to contribute, but couldn't. We're going to continue efforting contributions from other bloggers to solidify the foundation of the tremendous talent associated with Bengals bloggers, who are strong and unique in their own right, to help bring different perspectives, if not some serious barroom brawling banter.

Continue reading this post »

Cincinnati Bengals beat writer, Mark Curnutte, after nine seasons, is leaving the beat to do "general assignment/enterprise" stuff "with a concentration on social issues."

I feel intellectually stagnated and burned out by the 24-7 requirements of an NFL beat. I'm worn out by chasing dead air - comments made by Bengals players or a coach on ESPN or a radio station in Los Angeles or Atlanta.

Curnutte generally conveys his experiences, his frustrations, and an "epilogue" in his final, yet personal, piece on the Bengals beat. For as long as I've done this blogging thing, I've referenced my share of his pieces. It was information. Information. I didn't need someone to confirm my own opinion; which is to say a point of view that I don't share with commenters on that site, nor with others unrelated.

Constantly under fire for limiting, if not totally disavowing, opinion, his beat was primarily focused on providing you with information. Injuries. Practices. Game recaps. Interviews. Dorks like us take it from there.

Being able to define the difference between a beat writer, and a columnist, is critical; if anything for one's own sanity. Expecting opinion, rather than fact in all other subject matters, spoils what's written. If there's a political issue, covered by a "beat", that formulates an opinion somewhere on the fifth paragraph, uproar by the opposition is often screamed, and the true context, the stuff that's actually fact, gets grouped with opinion; often disregarded. Fans of either CNN or Fox News easily represents this. Slant, spin, are often descriptions by the opposition. Sports is different. Too many people are relying on the opinion of guys like Curnutte to confirm their own. Trust me, if you rely your opinion on ANYONE else, much less a beat reporter, then the problem isn't a guy like Curnutte.

To a degree, I'm defending Curnutte from the shotgun blasts pointed at him. Why? I've always known what to expect. Facts, information, etc., that helps dorks like me succeed; formulating an opinion based on the relevant information that's presented. Without Curnutte, or the position that exists like Curnutte's, then we're in the dark. Constantly. Guys on the beat discover the information, while guys like Dustin Dow (who we also really like for different reasons) fails to get the answer due to representations of a question that stirs emotions and outbreaks. That doesn't help us, even if we giggle for no reason other than having a non-coach speak world, if only for a day.

Guys like Paul Daugherty exist to fill that need for readers; to formulate an opinion, make others feel better that their opinion is in the majority, and the uphill battle against those that oppose your opinion is few, limited and easy. Yet, ironically enough, when your opinion is in the minority, you're energetic, strong, and aggressive. Paul's done that, walking to the beat of slamming the Bengals front office (all of which expected, and appreciated). Often times, you might not like his opinion, but that's not the point. It's his job to provide one.

If Curnutte did the same thing, I'd read him less. At some point, I just want to be informed. Not reacting to what I'm reading; I never learn that way because I'm too busy countering the biased slant. Same thing applies to Hobson. Though, ironically (if not hypocritically), I've admitted several times that Chick Ludwig is my favorite; successfully walking the line between beat, and a blog solely representing opinion.

Think of it like this. Blogs gained momentum and popularity based on one thing. Blogs were the alternative to the mainstream media. Many people started acknowledging that the "opinion" represented by the mainstream media, shoved down our throats, became too suffocating. Why? Because opinion was thought to skew the facts way too much. We questioned it. Some claim a devious undertone worldwide conspiracy. Others are simply looking for alternatives, a new medium. Blogs exploded, talk radio dominated. Not because the information was there, rather it was darkened with a slant, and we all knew that the slant was there. It made us angry. Based on whatever view you hold, the alternatives were growing. Are still growing. And will grow furthermore.

In the end, with a beat writer, I just want facts. I have my own opinion and have saturated these very pages with it for three years, and the three years before that at BengalsZone. And the five years before that on my old site with my name. I highly appreciate different opinion, for the love of the debate, with the acknowledgment that I really don't know everything. Keeping balance is critical, being open minded is everything. And I've shifted my opinion based on what you guys have said on the comments before. There's no reason to expect it won't happen again. Growth depends on it.

My only point is this: there is a difference between a beat writer and a columnist, if such discrepancies remain difficult to separate. The beat writers are there to inform; the very foundation of journalism. I've never taken to it myself, because I like spreading my opinion like some spoiled brat. But it's not about me. Never is, nor was. It's about the topic. The information, dissected and opinioned upon. We don't complain about what's written; rather categorize it, absorb it, and reflect it. The beat writer is done, information presented. Opinion follows; not from the original writer, rather columnists and blogs, or simply in the form of bar room banter.

In our case, it's about the Bengals. We slam the Bengals when they play poorly. We praise them when they fulfill our most basic expectation: a win on Sunday. We're critical of the front office for failures that we feel restrict the overall product. Opinion is our job -- as fans. We exist because of it. We're alternatives, we're unique. Any relative blog that exists, never exists without the information. Otherwise, we'd sound like trivial and petty blabbermouths that are simply uninformed. Readers typically see that. Read less. Move on to something else. Find the alternative. We're not here to inform you; that's where the beat comes in. We're here to react, if not stimulate you, and ourselves. We're here to paint a picture of the information, why it's good, bad, or really bad.

While I won't rank him amongst the best or worse beat writers in the history of newspapers, Mark Curnutte did serve a basic need. He provided information, passed that onto you, so then you could formulate an opinion. If you needed an opinion, then seek the alternative. Seek Daugherty, a blog, a discussion forum, or better yet, formulate it yourself. After all, it's always about growth. It's always about the information.

If you've ever moved around the country when you were younger, you'll understand if you have other teams that you root for. In my case, I've always rooted for the Vikings and Twins; provided they weren't playing the Bengals and Reds. I was raised in (super liberal) Minnesota in the 80s, leaving for the (super conservative) Queen City by the time John Taylor caught a 10-yard touchdown pass from Joe Montana, completing a 14-point fourth quarter rally winning Super Bowl XXIII. We hate the San Francisco 49ers for two reasons; this is one of them.

Of the games we called for Wild Card weekend, we couldn't find any reason why the Vikings hosting the Eagles would include an overwhelming subplot, trend, or momentum that would have us select a sure-winner. The Eagles were fortunate to make the playoffs, after the football gods smiled upon Philadelphia, carefully allowing a long-shot scenario come true. The Eagles finished the season winning four of their final five games, including wins against playoff teams against the Cardinals and the Giants. Philadelphia finished with a 4-2 record against the Giants (split), Steelers and Falcons, losing their second game to the Ravens (a week after the Bengals threw Eagle-ville into freaking chaos).

Since that loss to the Ravens, Donovan McNabb has played good football, scoring eight touchdowns and throwing only one pick. Brian Westbrook has two 100-yard rushing performances in the past five games, including a third game in which he recorded over 100 yards from scrimmage. In his past three games, he hasn't scored a touchdown, nor recorded 100 yards, after scoring six touchdown in the two games that preceded it.

Against the Vikings, the Eagles have won six of their past seven games. Andy Reid and Donovan McNabb have never lost to them; McNabb hasn't even thrown a pick. In their past five head-to-head games, the Eagles average 28.8 points scored, allowing only 18.2 to the Vikes.

However, if you believe that defenses and rushing offenses rule the playoffs, then this game should feature both. The Eagles sport the league's third best defense; the Vikings have the sixth-best. No team defends the rush better than the Vikings' 76.9 yards-allowed per game, even though the Eagles are a close fourth with 92.2 yards per. Where the Eagles struggle and where the Vikings clearly have the advantage, is rushing offense. With Adrian Peterson and Chester Taylor leading the league's fifth best rushing offense (2,332 yards rushing), the Eagles 22nd rushing offense averages 106.1 yards per game, and 4.0 yards-per-rush. However, it's well noted that the Eagles simply abandoned the rushing offense at times.

Like the Colts/Chargers; very hard to predict.I see this game being it's opposite; defense-dominated. If the game is based on who makes the least amount of mistakes, then it's clearly the Eagles (the Vikings have a -6 turnover differential; +3 for the Eagles). It's critical that Adrian Peterson set the pace for the Vikings offense, otherwise, I believe they don't have a chance. I think the Eagles are the better team, especially playing better in the closing games of the season.

However, I grew up a Vikings fan, and the home-field advantage for both the Twins and Vikings has always always favored Minnesota teams more than others; Vikings are 6-2 at home. The Eagles on the road are 3-4-1, with their only wins coming against the Giants, Seahawks and 49ers. We're calling the Vikings on this one, expecting Adrian Peterson to absolutely take the game over; though we wouldn't be surprised if the Eagles win easily either if Peterson is ineffective. How's that for fence-sitting?

We've faced the Baltimore Ravens twice this season (each time, the Ravens limited the Bengals offense to less than eight first downs). In each game, the Ravens ran down our throats, while their defense suffocated our offense with six total points (one touchdown on a Johnathan Joseph fumble return for touchdown during kickoff weekend). What's different from this season's version of the Ravens from its predecessors, is that the offense is increasingly stable, with good game-management by rookie quarterback Joe Flacco, leading a three-headed monster running back unit of Willie McGahee, Le'Ron McClain and Ray Rice -- all three combining for 2,027 yards rushing.

With the second-ranked defense in the NFL, the Ravens' 15.2 scoring defense (second) is helped by a passing defense (second) and a league best 60.6 passer rating against opposing quarterbacks. Showcasing the rushing defense, third best in the NFL, will eventually determine whether the Miami Dolphins can compete against the Ravens. If it wasn't for the Steelers, Baltimore would be first in many of the major defensive categories; be that as it may, the Ravens are in the top-five in nearly every category on defense.

The Ravens finished the season 11-5; all five defeats against playoff teams (Steelers twice, Titans, Colts and Giants). Overall, the Ravens are 2-5 against playoff teams, with a win against the Eagles and the Miami Dolphins.

The trouble that the Dolphins face is that when used Wild Cat formations (at the time, considered "unstoppable"), the Ravens held Ronnie Brown and Rick Williams to 43 yards rushing on 17 carries -- the longest being a 13-yard Brown rush. Willis McGahee recorded his first of three 100-yard performances this season, including a touchdown and a 35-yard reception. Flacco was playing game-management while Ray Lewis and Terrell Suggs dominated.

We think it's incredible what the Dolphins have done this year; they're written the script on how to go from 1-15 to playoff berth by outperforming an 11-5 New England Patriots' squad that's watching this game, from home. Convinced primarily by watching several Ravens' games, it's rare that Baltimore is soundly beaten this season, with only two defeats by more than four points (28-point loss to the Colts, 20-point loss to the Giants). The Dolphins are 1-2 against playoff teams, ending 2008 on a five-game winning streak against the Rams, Bills, 49ers, Chiefs, and Jets.

We're not trying to take anything away from the Dolphins, or the fans that support them, but the Ravens have played great most of the season and their style of football (good defense, powerful rushing offense) is often two things that wins playoff games.