I'm just outraged with the Bengals lack of leadership!

[BengalszoneBilly]

7 minutes ago, TJJackson said:

Two Carry Perry was a FIRST rounder.

I remember my outrage vividly.

[kingwilly]

48 minutes ago, TJJackson said:

Two Carry Perry was a FIRST rounder.

Yep, didn't recall that one properly. 

But you get the idea. Our r2 picks bust as much as hit. 

[combatbengal]

So, who’s next to jump ship? We lost Andrew Whitworth to the Rams, Kevin Zeitler to the Browns, Peko to Denver, Marcus Hunt to the Colts, Karlos Dansby to the Cardinals, James Wright to the Browns and now Rex Burkhead to the Pat’s.  Yea, our team is going to be outstanding next season, we’ve dropped all the dead weight, got rid of all the overpriced players, released the old guys that have nothing left to give, and so on and so on. Um and don’t worry folks, we still have plenty of time to make things happen in free agency. Oh and by the way, we have the draft and we all know that every draft pick will replace and start for these guys that we lost. Is this a bit sarcastic – my bad? Why am I so down, we did resign CB Dre Kirkpatrick for $52.5M over five years; he’s been one heck of a shutdown CB for us. NOT! Oh and I believe that Whitworth signed a 3 years deal for $36M – naw, we couldn’t afford him. Plus, Kirpatrick is a better leader and player than Whit will ever be.

[COB]

Not even trying to keep Rex is the weirdest thing in a long line of weird things.  Clearly he was a very good running back.  I guess New England, among others, could see it.  Why couldn't our front office?  One explanation makes sense:  Rex deemed our shit show coaching staff, towel vending program, lack of free gatorade, practicing outside in December, and just said fuck it.  Then he let it be known through his agent he'd be headed elsewhere.  

[ArmyBengal]

I remember being at a draft party when Perry was picked. I wanted CB Chris Gamble. When they announced "Chris" I started going crazy and then came "Perry" and I was heated. Wrong Chris !!!

[HoosierCat]

Hard to disagree with Doc today.

Quote

Woe are The Men. We’ve been awfully kind to them since the 2010 reboot, and they’ve deserved it, mostly. Smart drafts, patience, loyalty rewarded, judicious free-agent signings that didn’t break the bank. Very good results, at least until Game 17.

That was then. Now?

In two offseasons, they’ve done a very nice job dismantling all that.

Don’t lecture us about The System, free agency, roster churn, salary caps and the like. We’re aware of all that. We understand that players come and go. What we don’t understand are the choices being made.

Yesterday, the Bengals brought back a player that as recently as a year ago they had no further use for. A guy who underachieved his way through his first couple seasons here, then as he developed had injury issues that persist to this day. Andre Smith left for Minnesota after last year, where he missed 12 games with a torn triceps. The Vikings didn’t think Smith was important enough to keep, even though he’s just 30 years old. He hasn’t played a full season in four years. In his eight years as a pro, Smith has played a full season exactly twice.

The Bengals potentially will play Smith at right guard. He’s never played guard in the NFL. They label this “flexibility.’’

Meantime, the Bengals let their most durable player (not just O-lineman, player) walk. Because. . . because. . . because they don’t believe guards should make a truckload of money. Even though the Bengals have a truckload of money to spend.

Also yesterday, they lost Rex Burkhead, who will absolutely shine next fall in New England. They retain Two-Yard Jeremy, though. For the record, Burkhead ran for 305 yards in the six games after Gio Bernard’s ACL tear, and at 4.7 YPC. Hill went for 216 and 2.5.

And Adam Jones and Rey Maualuga are still on the roster.

And they’re pondering drafting Joe Mixon. 

How the (could have been) mighty are falling.

It’s just March, yes. The draft looms (it can’t be helped) there will be other players without jobs. Things could become a whole lot better by mid-July. But we don’t major in clairvoyancy around This Space. We comment on what is in front of us. What’s in front of us looks like 7-9.

 

[ArmyBengal]

Right now I think 7-9 is the ceiling.
That could change with the draft, but I'm not thinking it will by much.
We need o-line help and the only position I really like in the draft is Center, but they love Bodine.  OT and OG ??  Not much more talent than we have.
LB ??  They won't go LB at #9 because of the ghost of Keith Rivers and we will have another LB corps that blows.

While I like some of the youth, there are no clear answers with Jackson at CB and Billings at DT.
What about DE ??  Hunt needed to go, but MJ has sucked since his return.  Hardison could be kicked out, but that's no guarantee either.
They just lost their RB depth and have little talent and injuries.

Doc makes the same comment I've been making for a while.
Douche man and Maualuga are still part of this team.

You can't just let the majority of your picks walk out the door.
At least not when you believe in building through the draft.

I will end up rooting more for the Texans this year I bet...