Chatman a Bengal

[kingwilly]

Per Bengals.com

3-19-06, 5:40 p.m." According to the agent for wide receiver/punt returner Antonio Chatman, he and the Bengals have agreed to a two-year deal that will be signed Monday....

very smart move...now, who's gonna throw his the ball till week 5?

[TJJackson]

OUT

FREAKING

STANDING

potentially a replacement for all the catches we will be missing from Chris Henry ***AND*** give us a much better punt return game

and you know this guy already has good chemistry with TJ and Chad, which is a bigger plus than many will credit it here

I absolutely LOVE this signing

oh...wait...how much moolah? :-)

[Whur CHad At?]

Great Great Move!

Now just sign a friggn QB already!!

[massie0929]

Definitely an upgrade over Walter and probably cheaper too.

[combatbengal]

Guts, Palmer will be ready for the start of the season. He will have had 8 months to get that leg back to playing level. Plus he has all of the state of the art equipment and assistance to get him there. Great pick up with Chatman!

[HoosierCat]

He'll compete for the punt return job and will likely be No. 5 or 6 on the depth chart at WR. Assuming, of course, he makes the roster. Worth picking up but nothing to go ape over.

[oldschooler]

Bengals and Chatman reach deal

BY MARK CURNUTTE | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

A day after they let Kevin Walter go, the Bengals agreed to terms on a two-year contract today with another wide receiver.

Antonio Chatman, who caught 49 passes for the Packers last season, including eight against the Bengals, reached agreement on a two-year deal with the Bengals, agent Mark Mersel said this afternoon.

The contract will be signed Monday.

“There are lots of incentives, things like punt returns,” said Mersel, who declined to reveal financial figures until the contract is signed.

Chatman, who caught 68 passes in two seasons (1999 and 2000) with the University of Cincinnati Bearcats, also has played two seasons in the Arena League. He has 71 NFL receptions.

“He’s a true slot receiver, a solid No. 3 or No. 4,” said Mersel, who relayed that Bengals offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski is excited about the acquisition.

“Bratkowski sees him as a new weapon,” Mersel said. “They have those big receivers outside. He gives them a slot man who’s not afraid to go over the middle and make the tough catch.”

The Bengals announced Saturday that they were not exercising their option to match the offer sheet Walter signed as a restricted free agent with the Houston Texans. Walter signed for four years for $6.4 million.

The Bengals today also confirmed the free agent visits by quarterback Brian Griese and defensive tackle Lional Dalton, a nine-year NFL veteran who played in all 32 possible games the past two seasons with the Chiefs. Dalton, who is 6-foot-1, 315 pounds, broke into the NFL in 1998 with the Baltimore Ravens and played for four seasons with Ravens defensive coordinator Marvin Lewis, now Bengals coach.

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/art...0012/1066/rss07

A quote about Chatman from an article Hobson wrote yesterday...

Chatman, a University of Cincinnati product, only dropped one ball of the nearly 90 passes and punts he fielded for the Packers this past season. He also had the NFL's longest punt return last year, an 85-yarder against the Bears.

http://www.bengals.com/news/news.asp?story_id=5144

Chatman had more catches and yardage last year, than Walter has had in his career.

Walter : 30 catches| 296 yards | 1 TD

Chatman: 49 catches| 549 yards| 4 TD`s |9.9 yard average

Chatman has 71 catches | 795 yards| 5 TD`s | 11.2 yard average in his career.

And that`s not even including his punt return skills. This was definitely a good signing !

The Bengals haven`t made any blockbuster moves

in Free Agency. But they have made 2 solid moves,

that upgraded an already good team.

[bengalindian]

I'm not jumping up and down, but this is a good signing that could be a sleeper. It could help a LOT with field position, and we all know how important that is, especially if Palmer isn't the guy coming onto the field. Even more, Chatman had a decent season receiving with a crappy year for receivers in Green Bay. I think this is a 100% Marvin Lewis type signing because of the underlying benefits it could have this upcoming season.

[Spor_tees]

I beat the Bengals to this...I had Chatman on my fantasy football team last season! The punt return yardage really added up for some soild points.

[KiLBurn]

I like the move just for the fact that I don't have to subject my vocal chords to yelling at the TV (Keiwan) "Run FORWARD you frikkin idiot!"

[CantStop85]

Anyone still miss Kevin Walter?

[Whur CHad At?]

Anyone still miss Kevin Walter?

Nope. Never did

[andybren]

“Bratkowski sees him as a new weapon,” Mersel said. “They have those big receivers outside. He gives them a slot man who’s not afraid to go over the middle and make the tough catch.”

Uh oh. This is Spain's mating call. Unless he's back on the other side of the fence where Kevin Walter was only "depth".

Regardless, good signing. I'd much rather have 2 or 3 more Dexter's or Chatman's than freakin' LaVar Arrington.

[ArmyBengal]

There's no way this isn't a great signing for the Bengals. A better option than Walter and a punt returner as well ??? Great, just great. Good job to the organization on this signing. Wonder how the Texans feel about having Walter ??? Still wish him good luck down there though !!!

WHODEY !!!

[ShulaSteakhouse]

He's good enough to be a #3 on this team without Henry, right now. More likely a #4 if KW stays and contributes, but Chatman will push him.

It's a solid pick-up, 2 year deal, no sweat, no big commitments.

I do like the philosophy of adding vets who aren't immediately relied upon to be saviors or do everything, but adequately fill a need and keep your draft options open at the same time.

I can't argue with either the Jackson signing nor the Chatman pick-up.

I would like to see a DT or someone like Arrington signed still, even if it means releasing roster players to make room.

[BengalChamps]

I think this addition has more to do with the punt return game than anything. I know Walter was great on Teams, but if Antonio can break some returns that would be huge! Of course just about anything would be huge compared to last years 31st ranked punt return unit.

[BengalPappaw]

The signing of Chatman is very good news!

I went back and watched the Green Bay Game against us this past year and he looked especially good on punt returns.

AND, his pass catching look equally good.

On the other hand, his blocking will need some work -- if he plays as the third or fourth receiver.

[Stripes]

I like this signing, more for the punt return possibilities than his potential as a receiver. I won't go run in circles about it, but it is good news. FA #2 for us!

[schweinhart]

I'd say Chatman has a good shot at being the 3rd WR until Henry gets back. And no question he's already beat out Keiwan as the PR. Makes watching Jamall Broussard in Europe a lot less interesting with Chatman signed.

Will miss Walter, though. When he'd get the slop knocked out of him over the middle, he'd come up with his chin strap stuck around his mouth like a dust mask. The Texans probably overpaid for a player who'll have mediocre production at best on offense. He's not the next Kevin Curtis and wasn't the fastest when he gunned on teams.

[HairOnFire]

And there it is. The Bengals didn't just replace Kevin Walter, they upgraded at WR, and improved in a more important special team role. All in less time than it took me to type this.

Put me in the camp that really likes this move. In fact, I think everyone seems to like it except Joisey.

[Kazkal]

I'm happy with the pickup good WR depth good special teamer i'd have him over walter anyday people wanna say walter makes those tough catches like someone else said he's had more catches in 1 year then walter has had in his life

[Spain]

Walter replaced. I like it, however Tab will keep him off the feild.

[The_Next_Big_Thing]

This is a good pickup. Does he have the potential Blue Eyes did? Probably. Is he as consistant in the passing game? Not even close. Does he upgrade our special teams? No, but he keeps it about even.

We lost Blue Eyes, but we got a guy who can return punts. Kevin was slower but had better hands. Chatman is faster but drops more balls and doesn't run his routes as well. Kevin was a good gunner on special teams, Chatman is a return man.

[oldschooler]

This is a good pickup. Does he have the potential Blue Eyes did? Probably. Is he as consistant in the passing game? Not even close. Does he upgrade our special teams? No, but he keeps it about even.

We lost Blue Eyes, but we got a guy who can return punts. Kevin was slower but had better hands. Chatman is faster but drops more balls and doesn't run his routes as well. Kevin was a good gunner on special teams, Chatman is a return man.

A quote about Chatman from an article Hobson wrote yesterday...

Chatman, a University of Cincinnati product, only dropped one ball of the nearly 90 passes and punts he fielded for the Packers this past season. He also had the NFL's longest punt return last year, an 85-yarder against the Bears.

http://www.bengals.com/news/news.asp?story_id=5144

[The_Next_Big_Thing]

Chatman had a really good season for the Fudgepackers last season. BUT his history is another issue all together.