Jump to content

Iloka Released


kingwilly

Recommended Posts

8 hours ago, COB said:

They let Whit walk and kept Ced.  

They let Reggie walk and kept Williams.  

This is a surprise but it shouldn’t be.  Mike loves, and I mean absolutely loves, guys on that first 4 year, CBA price controlled, contract.  Bates makes 480K this year.  His whole 4 year deal was worth a little more, grand total, than 4 million.  Once he showed he could play, that was it, goodbye George Iloka.

Yep, never under-estimate Mike Brown's penchant for not paying Safeties, especially ones that would be rotational or on the bench, even if it means losing your quality depth and winning games.   It's a big reason I won't pay a dime to watch this team or buy anything with the Bengals' name on it.  It's not that George is a great player, but he's the only competent, experienced FS talent they have other than a 2nd round rookie (who "should" be an upgrade).

The other interesting note is Illoka's stance on the anthem and his kneeling, I wonder how much that factored into it. 

My problem with this franchise is that the owner doesn't care about winning enough.  Therefore I don't care about their product enough to buy or invest anything in them, or get emotionally attached like I did growing-up.  In fact I wouldn't care if they go 4-12 if it means moving on from Dalton and Marvin, and teaching Brown another lesson he'll never learn from.

 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • ArmyBengal changed the title to Iloka Released
  • ArmyBengal featured and unfeatured this topic
12 hours ago, skyline said:

Let's toss Hewitt in there as well.  I'll be SHOCKED if he makes the final roster.

He’s played a total of 9 snaps this preseason.

Hue Jackson’s the last OC who actually used him on offense.

Unless he’s the secret backup long snapper I can’t see him staying around this year.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I tweeted with Joe Goodberry a bit ago.  His take was along these lines:

Shawn Williams is a true SS.  He's our guy at that position.  We need a true FS to complement him.  Iloka was really neither of those things...he was more of a tweener.  They were looking for a true FS in free agency, but when that fell through Bates became the guy.

I said that was all well and good, but why not keep Iloka for depth in case of injury.  He responded that Clayton Fejedelem is better than people know.  He grades very highly and could competently fill that role.  

He didn't say this, but it sounds like the gist is that Clayton can be a competent backup and his price tag is lower.

 

You can buy that or not, but it may be the most reasonable "football" explanation I've heard.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 hours ago, ArmyBengal said:

Yeah I can buy off on that I guess.

i thought Marvin always wanted the hybrids however. When did that philosophy change ?? Maybe when the CBA did ??

I think it changed when Austin was hired. From the moment Austin got here, it was clear they were unhappy with the safety room. They pursed Coleman in free agency (even made an offer). They kicked the tires on Reid. They drafted Bates. I mean, it was flashing neon sign that someone was in jeapordy. My miss was I would have figured that was Williams in trouble, more than Iloka. As much as I like Iloka's game, he is terrible at ball skills for a safety. Just not enough picks. That one he dropped against Pittsburgh in the second match-up last year was a killer and a microcosm of his issues. He lays on big hits, but those hits are by and large illegal now, and he doesn't fill the run fits as quickly as one would like. So, in fairness, looking back at it, not sure why I thought he was safer than Williams. I guess in part because Iloka has always been healthy and able to answer the bell, while Williams has been hurt a lot. 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, membengal said:

I think it changed when Austin was hired. From the moment Austin got here, it was clear they were unhappy with the safety room. They pursed Coleman in free agency (even made an offer). They kicked the tires on Reid. They drafted Bates. I mean, it was flashing neon sign that someone was in jeapordy. My miss was I would have figured that was Williams in trouble, more than Iloka. As much as I like Iloka's game, he is terrible at ball skills for a safety. Just not enough picks. That one he dropped against Pittsburgh in the second match-up last year was a killer and a microcosm of his issues. He lays on big hits, but those hits are by and large illegal now, and he doesn't fill the run fits as quickly as one would like. So, in fairness, looking back at it, not sure why I thought he was safer than Williams. I guess in part because Iloka has always been healthy and able to answer the bell, while Williams has been hurt a lot. 

Great point here as well.

Sort of like what we saw when LaFell was released.  A change in coordinator and position coaches and love for players appears to have changed as well.
Both of those releases appear to be changes in philosophy for this organization and yet another reason I am intrigued with the coming season.
We still might not make it back to the playoffs this year, but it would appear things are definitely different.
Lazor, Pollack, and Austin make it worth checking out at this point.

Marvin Lewis can go eat a dick.
 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

30 minutes ago, ArmyBengal said:

...yet another reason I am intrigued with the coming season.

 

 

Ha ha!  Got ya!!

 

Wait.  There’s a signpost up ahead.  Contemplate this:  they fix everything.  We get back to a top 5 defense.  Our line is Whit and Zeitler like.  We kick ass in most every facet of the game.  But every time we have a big game, Andy goes out and throws up all over himself.  We sit back on the couch and go, “Oh yea.  That.”

You’ve just entered the Mike Brown zone.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Latest depth chart after cuts has Marvin's sorry hands all over it.  

Hart and Hopkins starting at RT/RG? Really? What have they done so far? They've pretty much sucked.

Vigil over Evans? Why? Evans has clearly out-played him in preseason and has more upside.

MJ over everyone else at DE? Money? 

Nope, all about Marvin's love of mediocre-to-bad veterans over upstart young guys as usual on defense.  Some kind of silly ego thing with him.

This franchise doesn't want to win enough - as I said.  They simply don't care enough. 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

4 minutes ago, ShulaSteakhouse said:

Latest depth chart after cuts has Marvin's sorry hands all over it.  

Hart and Hopkins starting at RT/RG? Really? What have they done so far? They've pretty much sucked.

Vigil over Evans? Why? Evans has clearly out-played him in preseason and has more upside.

MJ over everyone else at DE? Money? 

Nope, all about Marvin's love of mediocre-to-bad veterans over upstart young guys as usual on defense.  Some kind of silly ego thing with him.

This franchise doesn't want to win enough - as I said.  They simply don't care enough. 

Nothing will change until Marvin walks away. Keeping him as head coach is like putting spoiled milk back in the refrigerator hoping it will be good tomorrow.

He's had more than a fair shot at success, 2nd most tenured head coach in the league behind Belichick. Bill has rings and Marvin's got dick. Lewis must love him some dick...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

15 hours ago, COB said:

Ha ha!  Got ya!!

 

Wait.  There’s a signpost up ahead.  Contemplate this:  they fix everything.  We get back to a top 5 defense.  Our line is Whit and Zeitler like.  We kick ass in most every facet of the game.  But every time we have a big game, Andy goes out and throws up all over himself.  We sit back on the couch and go, “Oh yea.  That.”

You’ve just entered the Mike Brown zone.

Doo do doo do doo do doo

Link to comment
Share on other sites

21 hours ago, COB said:

Ha ha!  Got ya!!

Wait.  There’s a signpost up ahead.  Contemplate this:  they fix everything.  We get back to a top 5 defense.  Our line is Whit and Zeitler like.  We kick ass in most every facet of the game.  But every time we have a big game, Andy goes out and throws up all over himself.  We sit back on the couch and go, “Oh yea.  That.”

You’ve just entered the Mike Brown zone.

Don't mistake "intrigued" for "unaware". 
While I am intrigued by what I've seen from the coordinators and position coaches, I am well of aware of what to expect from a Marvin Lewis coached team.
I will hope for a deep playoff run, while expecting an 8-8 season.

Every year it's the same line for Bengals fans around this time of the year.  "If this or that comes together this could be an interesting year."
Disregard any future optimism because if I'm being honest, I expect to be watching other teams in the playoffs and not the Bengals.
I'll remain hopeful to be wrong.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I hope Iloka has a great year and then gets paid.  This CBA and the effect it has had on some vets is bullshit when it ends up screwing good guys like George Iloka.  

Having said that, I think he may have taken a little bit of a financial bath just to play for Zimmer.  It just seems to me that if he and his agent had shopped him around they'd have gotten a better offer somewhere else.  But if he was focused on the Vikes, and I think he probably was, maybe all they could muster was the vet minimum with a handshake agreement that if he plays well they'd reward him with a multi year deal after the 2018 season.

I still think the world of Zimmer and wish that   1. he were still here and, 2. every season of Hard Knocks would just be held wherever Zimmer was coaching so we could listen to him yell Fuck on the practice field all the time. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...