Wright stakes his claim

[ChadJohnson-85]

Quarterback Anthony Wright had the benefit of the No. 1 offense Saturday and very well may have used it to lock up the No. 2 job in a 323-yard passing effort during the Black’s 45-30 win over the Orange here at Georgetown College in the Bengals’ Mock Game.

An estimated crowd of about 9,300 gave the college a Bengals’ weekend attendance record of 18,700 and watched wide receivers Chad Johnson and T.J. Houshmandzadeh hook up with Wright for a combined 18 catches, 249 yards and Houshmandzadeh’s 50-yard touchdown.

The coaches won't make any kind of No. 2 pronouncements at least until watching Saturday's film and probably not even until then. "It doesn't really matter. I'm going to do my business," Wright said. "I'll let everything else take care of itself."

In a glorified pitch of flag football, the scrum for the Bengals’ nickel cornerback job went to another level when Keiwan Ratliff came up with two interceptions and four passes defensed playing against Wright’s first teamers. Quarterback Doug Johnson didn’t fare as well with the backup line and receivers in completing 16 of 30 passes for 130 yards.

Wright and Johnson had the field all to themselves because Carson Palmer rested his reconstructed left knee after playing three series in Friday night’s intrasquad scrimmage. So did Johnson and Houshmandzadeh because Friday’s star, wide receiver Chris Henry, sat out the Mock with a hamstring problem as did the other receiving star, rookie Bennie Brazell.

They should be back in a few days, if not Monday, but their hamstring problems don’t seem to be as severe as that of linebacker David Pollack. It has been described anywhere from day-to-day to three weeks, although head coach Marvin Lewis pooh-pooed the latter. At the very least, Pollack’s appearance in next Sunday night’s preseason opener against Washington at Paul Brown Stadium looks to be in jeopardy.

For the second time in 18 hours, Stacy Andrews started at right guard in place of Bobbie Williams (knee) on the first-team offense and Shaun Smith and Domata Peko filled in for tackles John Thornton (hip) and Sam Adams (rehab) on the first-team defense. All except Adams are expected back in the next few days, although Adams’ return is unknown.

Rookie free agent fullback Naufahu Tahi broke a small bone in his foot Friday and may be shelved for a couple of weeks.

Sounds like Wright is the wright stuff.

Here's the link. ~~~~~> http://www.bengals.com/news/news.asp?story_id=5378

[ShulaSteakhouse]

Well so much for an injury-free scrimmage with Pollack out for a while, and Ben and Henry having hamstring problems as well.

Stretch fellas streeetchhhh!!!

[Kazkal]

Pack your bags doug.

Guess i got to happy

[CantStop85]

Well at least we know Wright can get the ball to the right guys.

[ArmyBengal]

Never liked the pick up of Dougie and will be more than happy to see him hit the bricks !!!

WHODEY !!!

[cincy9275]

finding out wright had a good mock game and to see him connect with chad and tj for 18 receptions and 249 yards and a 50 yard td . it made me feel a lot more comfortable if he has to start . he did throw 2 picks but our defense has been picking off all the qb's in this camp and it looks like there going to be good at it this season . now lets see what wright can do in the pre-season . i hope he keeps it up

[jditty47]

picks are going to happen vs ur own team when they know ur calls/audibles. wright did good...very good. ill be fine with him for a few games if desperately needed. he is capable of 2-2 - hard to see him beating the chiefs or steelers...

[redsbengalsbucks]

Wasnt he the Ravens QB last year when they beat the Stealers?

[ArmyBengal]

Here's my thought on this...

If everyone was claiming how great Harrington would be with our offensive weapons, why wouldn't Wright have the same type of expected success ?? Harrington is a piece of crap in my book and I've never thought highly of Wright either, but Wright can run and has an arm. Accuracy may be a question, but I'm more than willing to see what he can do in our offense...

WHODEY !!!

[Dadraftnick]

Let's not kid ourselves, Wright is not only one of the worst QB's in the NFL, he is one of the worst back ups.

He is an interception waiting to happen.

He is good at one thing, throwing interceptions and that is it and I dont think even the greatest QB coach in the leagu, Ken Zampese can help him.

The Bengals could have had somebody that was good enough to come and win a few games like Jamie Martin but, they went the cheapest possiable way.

They could have had Martin if they would have just signed him instead of messing around forever,until it was too late.

Now we are stuck with Wright and if he couldnt win with one of the best defenses in the league and he was worse than what they have now in Baltimore what does that tell you?

In case you need you to spell it out, Wright S-U-C-K-S.

With the hardest schedule in the NFL,all I can say is Carson better start all of the games and rock because,Wright is not going to get it done.

I am not being negative, I am just telling it like it is.

[walshfan]

Wright is far from the worst backup....

this style of offense is conducent to his intangibles imo..

strong armed gunslingers that have a bevy of receivers and an outstanding offensive line usually put up some big time numbers..

He aint no Palmer but his abilities suit this offense better than Kitna's did...

[BlueResident]

I'll take Wright over Johnson any day, from I've seen at camp so far Wright isn't terrible like most say he is...sure he makes mistakes, but that's because he's a backup for a reason...

I think that surrounded by our offensive talent he could help us win a couple of games if need be

[Dadraftnick]

Wright had an offense in Baltimore that he was asked not to loose the game,just to hand off to Lewis and he lost game after game and his job because he threw interception after interception.

As far as this being a good system for him,this is the worst kind of system for a guy like him.

The best system for Wright is one that he throws as little as possiable or better yet sits on the bench.

This is a Mike Brown pick all of the way.

The only thing Brown knows is arm stregnth,my guess is that Brown vetoed Jamie Martin (who Zampese wanted) in favor of arm stregnth, that is how we got Akili Smith and David Klingler.

They had arm stregnth 90 and accuracy 0.

[BlueResident]

Wright had an offense in Baltimore that he was asked not to loose the game,just to hand off to Lewis and he lost game after game and his job because he threw interception after interception.

As far as this being a good system for him,this is the worst kind of system for a guy like him.

The best system for Wright is one that he throws as little as possiable or better yet sits on the bench.

This is a Mike Brown pick all of the way.

The only thing Brown knows is arm stregnth,my guess is that Brown vetoed Jamie Martin (who Zampese wanted) in favor of arm stregnth, that is how we got Akili Smith and David Klingler.

They had arm stregnth 90 and accuracy 0.

well all things aside I still believe Rudi can carry this team for a few games if Carson isn't in...he's underrated and got his knee fixed up, he's set for a huge season

[Dadraftnick]

Wright had an offense in Baltimore that he was asked not to loose the game,just to hand off to Lewis and he lost game after game and his job because he threw interception after interception.

As far as this being a good system for him,this is the worst kind of system for a guy like him.

The best system for Wright is one that he throws as little as possiable or better yet sits on the bench.

This is a Mike Brown pick all of the way.

The only thing Brown knows is arm stregnth,my guess is that Brown vetoed Jamie Martin (who Zampese wanted) in favor of arm stregnth, that is how we got Akili Smith and David Klingler.

They had arm stregnth 90 and accuracy 0.

well all things aside I still believe Rudi can carry this team for a few games if Carson isn't in...he's underrated and got his knee fixed up, he's set for a huge season

He will have to,even if Carson starts but, you know that teams will be stacking up on the run to try to put either of them into a 3rd and long.

[walshfan]

Wright had an offense in Baltimore that he was asked not to loose the game,just to hand off to Lewis and he lost game after game and his job because he threw interception after interception.

As far as this being a good system for him,this is the worst kind of system for a guy like him.

The best system for Wright is one that he throws as little as possiable or better yet sits on the bench.

This is a Mike Brown pick all of the way.

The only thing Brown knows is arm stregnth,my guess is that Brown vetoed Jamie Martin (who Zampese wanted) in favor of arm stregnth, that is how we got Akili Smith and David Klingler.

They had arm stregnth 90 and accuracy 0.

In the past 4 seasons Martin has a ratio of 12/17 Td's to Ints'

Wright is 15/17 for that period so I dont see a big difference there...

Martin had Isaac Bruce and Tory Hold to throw to... Wright didnt have that advantage...

I think the team looked at Martin's age (36} as a drawback as well....

[BlueResident]

Wright had an offense in Baltimore that he was asked not to loose the game,just to hand off to Lewis and he lost game after game and his job because he threw interception after interception.

As far as this being a good system for him,this is the worst kind of system for a guy like him.

The best system for Wright is one that he throws as little as possiable or better yet sits on the bench.

This is a Mike Brown pick all of the way.

The only thing Brown knows is arm stregnth,my guess is that Brown vetoed Jamie Martin (who Zampese wanted) in favor of arm stregnth, that is how we got Akili Smith and David Klingler.

They had arm stregnth 90 and accuracy 0.

well all things aside I still believe Rudi can carry this team for a few games if Carson isn't in...he's underrated and got his knee fixed up, he's set for a huge season

He will have to,even if Carson starts but, you know that teams will be stacking up on the run to try to put either of them into a 3rd and long.

oh absolutely, no doubt...

However, I belive that Wright may be able to function as a starter with Rudi getting the majority of carries because Rudi can plow through players. With our O-line at least you know Rudi will get yards and the QB (whoever it ends up being) will at least have time to throw the ball when he needs to.

Wright is a backup, so you can't expect him to play like Palmer (obviously) so we're going to have to look to our other players on offense to step up big...Also don't forget that our defense will be improved drastically which may help take some pressure away from the offense

[Kazkal]

Indications appear that Anthony Wright has won the battle for the No. 2 QB position and will start Sunday's preseason opener against Washington at Paul Brown Stadium. Wright and Palmer took virtually all of the snaps during Monday's practice.

Good bye doug johnson

[The_Next_Big_Thing]

Wright isn't the worst backup in the league! He's not even the third worst in our division. Kyle Boller is still THE worst QB in the league. Frye in Cleveland is backed up by the mighty Derek Anderson? You think Wright is worse than Charlie Batch as a backup? Heck, I'd go so far as to say Wright is right up there as the best backup in our division. That's not saying much, but it is true.

Van Pelt and Jay Cutler in Denver backing up Jake? Neither inspires confidence.

Damon Huard in KC?

Joey Harrington in Miami?

Matt Cassel in NE?

Marques Tuiasosososososopopopo in Oakland?

AJ Feelme in San Diego?

Tim Ratay in Tampa Bay? (Hey, they must have hired him because it rhymes!)

Frerotte in St. Louis?

Cody Pickett, Jesse The Bachelor Palmer in San Fran?

Jared Fatboy Lorenzen in NY?

Todd Bouman in the big sleezy?

Mike McMahon for the Vikes?

Tony "Ribs" Romo in Dallas?

There are a lot of teams far worse off than having Wright.

[Kazkal]

I'd say matt cassel is the best backup in the NFL sense he got plenty of knowhow well playing at USC now continues his bench warming skills as a patriot.

[BlueResident]

I'd say matt cassel is the best backup in the NFL sense he got plenty of knowhow well playing at USC now continues his bench warming skills as a patriot.

I'd probably agree with you...I would have said Kitna last season, but since he's a starter for the Lions now I'd say Cassel

[stilldiesel]

Out of curiosity; where do you guys rank Charlie Batch? I personally think he is an upgrade over the 2005 version of Maddox but he is injury prone. BTW, Kyle Boller beat Tommy Maddox last year. The 1st game Wright lost to Ben by 1 point. (though Ben was playing on one good leg after the 1st series)

[HairOnFire]

BTW, Kyle Boller beat Tommy Maddox last year. The 1st game Wright lost to Ben by 1 point. (though Ben was playing on one good leg after the 1st series)

Poor Ben. How is Thumbelina these days?

[stilldiesel]

BTW, Kyle Boller beat Tommy Maddox last year. The 1st game Wright lost to Ben by 1 point. (though Ben was playing on one good leg after the 1st series)

Poor Ben. How is Thumbelina these days?

I think his thumb is the least of his worries after that motorcycle wreck. He is fine and should play against the Cards live on NFL network Sat. at 4pm.

[BengalByTheBay]

Out of curiosity; where do you guys rank Charlie Batch? I personally think he is an upgrade over the 2005 version of Maddox but he is injury prone. BTW, Kyle Boller beat Tommy Maddox last year. The 1st game Wright lost to Ben by 1 point. (though Ben was playing on one good leg after the 1st series)

To answer your question, I think Kyle Boller would be an upgrade over Maddox 2005. That said, he obviously was not as ready to come back and start as he was ready to lose his job in the first place. However, Batch doesn't impress me very much either. He reminds me a little bit of Anthony Wright actually. He is relatively mobile, probably his best asset. He has an unimpressive arm, but is a better game manager than Wright -- which is not saying much. All in all, I would put him in the lower half of the league in terms of backups. I would also put Wright there, so don't flame out. If Maddox had stayed sharp rather than getting fat assuming he would be a clipboard sherpa for the rest of his career, Batch would never have come into the equation.