Our LB Starters.

[derekshank]

There have been a lot of complaints about the LB's this year. Some of it is because of injury, some because of Odell. Caleb Miller, Brian Simmons, and Landon Johnson aren't exactly striking fear in anyone's heart. So what is the solution?

Getting Jeanty healthy will obviously be a big boost... but even then, Johnson, Simmons, and Jeanty isn't exactly an elite combo. It is serviceable... but that is about as complementary a word I will use. As long as they all maintain their roles, they can get the job done, but there aren't any potential pro-bowlers there right now.

So, my thought is... we used a first day '07 draft pick on Brooks. You don't usually use 1st day picks (especially future ones) for depth. I think they want him on the field ASAP. He has all the physical tools... but he's behind in the mental aspect. But it's still only week 6. Is there a chance he'll be a starter by year's end? I think if he can learn his role well, this LB unit will get a lot better.

The question is... where? I don't want to re-live the horrors of a rookie MLB this year... but it might make the most sense (If he can learn the position well enough... and not make rookie mistakes). If I'm not mistaken, Lofa Tatupu finished in 2nd place for defensive rookie of year last year at MLB. It can be done.

Does anyone think that around week 10 we might see Simmons move back to OLB, and move Landon Johnson back to what is currently Caleb Miller's role (backing up all 3 positions)? I think having Simmons, Brooks and Jeanty will certainly give this defense much more intensity, which we desperately need. We've all seen the high-lights. We know how energetic and powerful he can be out there.

Maybe we won't see him this year. Maybe he's just too raw... but if our LB's are going to over-pursue and be out of position anyway... we might as well have Brooks in there. I'm probably just being overly hopeful that the use of this pick pays more immediate dividends.

[fattyjay]

If Brooks does get in he will most likely be in at SSLB, not the middle. I think the coaches believe Simmons has been better in the middle than they originally thought. I agree though, Brooks should be put in at the position he is going to take over. Bres says he has a lot to catch up on mentally, but half the time it looks like the defense is trying too hard to remember what they are supposed to be doing instead of just going out and making plays. I would love to see the line up of Simmons, Jeanty, and Brooks, but i don't think it will happen this year. I just don't understand why they are switching him from middle to strong if he has so much to learn. Why not put him in his natural spot?

[Kazkal]

odell would strike fear if he was on the field

I perfer to see him play postion that will be his future one.SSLB I doubt he'll play if jeanty comes back so that leaves WSLB or MLB.

[agreen_112]

If Brooks does get in he will most likely be in at SSLB, not the middle. I think the coaches believe Simmons has been better in the middle than they originally thought. I agree though, Brooks should be put in at the position he is going to take over. Bres says he has a lot to catch up on mentally, but half the time it looks like the defense is trying too hard to remember what they are supposed to be doing instead of just going out and making plays. I would love to see the line up of Simmons, Jeanty, and Brooks, but i don't think it will happen this year. I just don't understand why they are switching him from middle to strong if he has so much to learn. Why not put him in his natural spot?

Because Odell is our MLB. The Bengals are going to keep him there and hope he can return with the same talent he showed last year. Simmons is getting old and Landon just doesn't have what it takes to excell, thus the reasoning for molding Brooks into an OLB. If Brooks pans out to be what the coaches believe in, we could have a scary set of LB's. Odell, Brooks, Nicholson, Pollack, Jeanty (pending the career-ending possibility), Johnson and Simmons (he still has a couple of years left in him). Keep Miller for ST's.

We took Brooks early so we could start to develop him early. He'll be awesome by next year.

[Kazkal]

Well I woulden't say odells our MLB of the future inless he earns it want the best MLB at the spot...then put the other one at WLB Odell smaller so may make better wlb.

[derekshank]

Because Odell is our MLB.

I guess you can try to make the case that Marvin has just been purposefully over-reactionary when talking to the media about Odell... but it is hard to deny that his statements indicate that Odell is done here. Marvin is pissed that Odell lied to him, he practiced him as the 4th string the entire pre-season, when he was caught drinking and driving, they petitioned the NFL to act swiftly... and Marvin had Odell clean out his locker and go home, something the NFL did not require.

Both Marvin's words and his actions indicate that he is mad as hell at Odell... and it will be nearly impossible for Odell to get back out of the doghouse, even if they can't find a reason to cut him. As much potential as he had... I really think Marvin has moved on, and we won't see Odell play for the Bengals again. But that is just me going based on what I've seen and heard from Marvin.

[Kazkal]

hope yer wrong dererk ,Nothing agaist you I just wanna see odell as a bengal for years to come If he stays clean between now and the next draft.

[jditty47]

hard for me to picture us moving simmons back to the weakside with the injuries and the issues of depth and experience at LB. He is going to stay in the middle for the remainder of the season. with that said, i expect miller and Landon to rotate on the weak side, landon getting more reps. brooks and miller to minimally sub in for simmons in the middle and brooks. jeanty and brooks rotating on the strong for the most part. and dont forget frazier, im sure he'll see the field at some point in a reserve role.

[Tasher]

The Jury is still out on Odell. He is a huge talent and I hope that he gets his act together so that he can be a great Bengal. Having said that, I do not believe that Marvin will give up on anyone until they are gone. The intensity of the actions speak to the message being sent (I believe) and not the fact that he is already gone (I hope). If he continues to screw up then I suspect that he is gone, which would presumably happen bewteen now and minicamps in the spring. He could also come back out of shape and get cut... I pray this is not the case.

Future would be bright with Nicholson, Jeanty, Thurman, Brooks, Pollack all in their thrid year or younger with Simmons and Johnson adding veteran leadership.

Now to the more immediate problem: I suspect that Brooks and Nicholson will begin to see more and more playing time as the season wears on and Nicholson gets healthy. I think that Brooks will continue to play dual roles both in the middle and on the strong side. Eventually as Brooks and Nicholson develop, I would expect to see Simmons move back to weak side with Johnson spelling him. That would give us better depth. Having Jeanty, Brooks and Simmons on the field at the same time looks a lot better to me.

The thing that strikes me as being different this year is that we are on an improving incline (hopefully) as we steadily get better throughout the season. Last year we were pretty flat after about week 12 and did not continue to get better which I believe hurt us down the stretch. Course we were playing Detroit and Buffalo, not Colts, Broncos, Steelers which should force us to continue to improve and not play down to the level of competition. Our overall schedule this year is absolutely brutal from week one to 17 so I think that it is going to look pretty ugly week to week anyway. The upside is that the rookies and younger players will develop faster against top notch competition, in my opinion.

[HoosierCat]

WSLB: Simmons

MLB: Landon

OLB: Brooks

About the best we can do at the moment, IMHO...

[derekshank]

hard for me to picture us moving simmons back to the weakside with the injuries and the issues of depth and experience at LB. He is going to stay in the middle for the remainder of the season. with that said, i expect miller and Landon to rotate on the weak side, landon getting more reps. brooks and miller to minimally sub in for simmons in the middle and brooks. jeanty and brooks rotating on the strong for the most part. and dont forget frazier, im sure he'll see the field at some point in a reserve role.

I can buy that. While Johnson, Simmons and Jeanty might not look all that impressive... it's hard to deny that if our depth of Miller, Brooks, Nicholson, and Frazier can get on the field more and more, the freshness of our LB's will greatly reduce an opponent's ability to wear them down. While none of them may be elite... the high number of "servicable" guys might be almost as good (and certainly better than the past when we had a low number of servicable guys, and a high number of guys that plain stunk).

I do not believe that Marvin will give up on anyone until they are gone. The intensity of the actions speak to the message being sent (I believe) and not the fact that he is already gone (I hope).

You might be right Tasher... and honestly I hope you are. having Odell back, hopefully Pollack back, with Simmons, Landon Johnson, Jeanty, and Brooks would be a scary combination of incredible depth and subbing.

That said... if they want to retain him, wouldn't the smart move be to keep him under close surveilance? It seems like by sending him home, they are just asking for him to screw up again. And in a way, I think they are. I think they want him to show up to camp next year out of shape, and not ready or able to play, so they can either cut him for football reasons... or else the NFL won't activate him from his suspension... meaning the Bengals don't have to worry about him at all again.

Hopefully Marvin's actions are meant as a wake up call to Odell, and the rest of the team... but the abandonment of any connection with him at all by cleaning out his locker and sending him home seems much more final and conclusive to me. While I certainly wouldn't mind seeing him play here again, I seriously doubt he does.

[CBin2k7]

WSLB: Simmons

MLB: Landon

OLB: Brooks

About the best we can do at the moment, IMHO...

Agree....

Landon has played his best ball when he was in the middle his rookie year. The shoulder injury derailed him a little bit, but I thought he was more than serviceable in the middle. On the weak side, LJ gets washed out by blocks, whereas in the middle LJ can use his speed to attack at the proper angles. Only a matter of time before Brooks starts at SSLB, he is suited for the position, and it should be sooner than later. Leaving Simmons on the weak side. Jeanty/Miller rotate in as neccessary. Nicholson gets healthy, Odell... who knows.

[Kazkal]

That said... if they want to retain him, wouldn't the smart move be to keep him under close surveilance? It seems like by sending him home, they are just asking for him to screw up again

Mybe its more you fudged up it's time to become a man and grow up,The only person who can truthfully clean odell up is odell himself..having several close people to me that had drug problems they accept they had a problem and got cleaned up theirselves...

Odell really only has 2 choices clean up and play football for 8-10 years make a lot of fing money or give up do drugs get drunk and have fun blowing his 2nd rnd signing bonus because he won't be getting more then min for next team he plays for and thats if he can stay on the field for them.

[DC_Bengals_Fan]

The Jury is still out on Odell. He is a huge talent and I hope that he gets his act together so that he can be a great Bengal. Having said that, I do not believe that Marvin will give up on anyone until they are gone. The intensity of the actions speak to the message being sent (I believe) and not the fact that he is already gone (I hope). If he continues to screw up then I suspect that he is gone, which would presumably happen bewteen now and minicamps in the spring. He could also come back out of shape and get cut... I pray this is not the case.

Future would be bright with Nicholson, Jeanty, Thurman, Brooks, Pollack all in their thrid year or younger with Simmons and Johnson adding veteran leadership.

Now to the more immediate problem: I suspect that Brooks and Nicholson will begin to see more and more playing time as the season wears on and Nicholson gets healthy. I think that Brooks will continue to play dual roles both in the middle and on the strong side. Eventually as Brooks and Nicholson develop, I would expect to see Simmons move back to weak side with Johnson spelling him. That would give us better depth. Having Jeanty, Brooks and Simmons on the field at the same time looks a lot better to me.

The thing that strikes me as being different this year is that we are on an improving incline (hopefully) as we steadily get better throughout the season. Last year we were pretty flat after about week 12 and did not continue to get better which I believe hurt us down the stretch. Course we were playing Detroit and Buffalo, not Colts, Broncos, Steelers which should force us to continue to improve and not play down to the level of competition. Our overall schedule this year is absolutely brutal from week one to 17 so I think that it is going to look pretty ugly week to week anyway. The upside is that the rookies and younger players will develop faster against top notch competition, in my opinion.

The problem with Odell is that he hasn't shown an indication that he can stay clean for a week at a time, let alone between now and next year. I'd take even money any day on him getting either arrested or another positive drug test between now and camp. The Bengals need to plan as if Odell has played his last down here, and I think fans would be wise to do the same. If he does play again, great, but I'd bet against it.

Regardless, there's enough depth at LB - hopefully - that we should be OK. I think Jeanty's the steal of the year, and if the worst happens he won't bring you down as a starter. Landon can play the other side if necessary like his is now. I'd like someone to step up and give Simmons some competition, but he's got another year if he has to. And that's assuming Pollack's neck doesn't heal, Odell completely flames out, and neither Brooks or Nicholson develop into anything, and surely 1-2 of those assumptions are wrong.